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Roman Syria was an early Roman province annexed to the Roman Republic in 64 BC by Pompey in the Third Mithridatic War following the defeat of King of Armenia Tigranes the Great, who had become the protector of the Hellenistic kingdom of Seleucid Empire.
Following the partition of the Herodian Kingdom of Judea into a tetrarchy in 4 BC, it was gradually absorbed into Roman provinces, with Roman Syria annexing Iturea and Trachonitis. By the late 2nd century AD, the province was divided into Coele Syria and Syria Phoenice.
Following the fall of the Roman Republic and its transformation into the Roman Empire, Syria became a Roman imperial province, governed by a Legatus. During the early empire, the Roman army in Syria accounted for three legions with auxiliaries who defended the border with Parthia.
In 6 AD, Emperor Augustus deposed the ethnarch Herod Archelaus and united Judea, Samaria and Idumea into the Roman province of Judea; such province was placed under the direct authority of the Legate of Syria Publius Sulpicius Quirinius, who appointed Coponius as Prefect of Judea. Following the death of Herod Philip II (34 AD) and the removal of Herod Antipas (39 AD) Iturea, Trachonitis, Galilee and Perea were also transferred under the jurisdiction of the province of Syria.
From 37 to 41 AD, much of the southern region was separated from Syria and transformed into a client kingdom under Herod Agrippa. After Agrippa's death, his kingdom was gradually re-absorbed into the Roman Empire, until it was officially transformed into a Roman province following the death of Herod Agrippa II.
Syrian province forces were directly engaged in the First Jewish–Roman War of 66–70 AD. In 66 AD, Cestius Gallus, legate of Syria, brought the Syrian army, based on Legio XII Fulminata, reinforced by auxiliary troops, to restore order in Judaea and quell the revolt. The legion, however, was ambushed and destroyed by Jewish rebels at the Battle of Beth Horon, a result that shocked the Roman leadership. The future emperor Vespasian was then put in charge of subduing the Jewish revolt. In the summer of 69, Vespasian, with the Syrian units supporting him, launched his bid to become Roman emperor. He defeated his rival Vitellius and ruled as emperor for ten years when he was succeeded by his son Titus.
Based on an inscription recovered from Tel Dor in 1948, Gargilius Antiquus was known to have been the governor of a province in the eastern part of the Empire, possibly Syria, between his consulate and governing Asia.Dov Gera and Hannah M. Cotton, "A Dedication from Dor to a Governor of Syria", Israel Exploration Journal, 41 (1991), pp. 258–66 In November 2016, an inscription in Greek was recovered off the coast of Dor by Haifa University underwater archaeologists, which attests that Antiquus was governor of the province of Judea between 120 and 130, possibly prior to the Bar Kokhba revolt. Divers Find Unexpected Roman Inscription From the Eve of Bar-Kochba Revolt Haaretz.com (Last accessed 6 June 2017)
As related by Theodor Mommsen,
As related by Theodor Mommsen,
From the later 2nd century, the Roman Senate included several notable Syrians, including Claudius Pompeianus and Avidius Cassius.
Syria was of crucial strategic importance during the Crisis of the Third Century. In 244 AD, Rome was ruled by a native Syrian from Philippopolis (modern day Shahba) in the province of Arabia Petraea. The emperor was Marcus Iulius Philippus, more commonly known as Philip the Arab. Philip became the 33rd emperor of Rome upon its millennial celebration.
Roman Syria was invaded in 252/253 (the date is disputed) after a Roman field army was destroyed in the Battle of Barbalissos by the King of Persia Shapur I which left the Euphrates river unguarded and the region was pillaged by the Persians. In 259/260 a similar event happened when Shapur I again defeated a Roman field army and captured the Roman emperor, Valerian, alive at the Battle of Edessa. Again, Roman Syria suffered as cities were captured, sacked and pillaged.
From 268 to 273, Syria was part of the breakaway Palmyrene Empire.
| Coele Syria | Provincia Syria Coele |
| Phoenicia | Provincia Syria Phoenice |
| Syria Palaestina | Provincia Syria Palaestina |
| Arabia Petraea | Provincia Arabia Petraea |
On the other hand, Ancient Greece comprised a majority in Hellenistic urban centers such Antioch, Apamea, Cyrrhus and the Decapolis, which had been settled by Greeks under Seleucid Empire patronage.
Estimates for the population of the entire Levant in the 1st century vary from 3.5–4 million to 6 million, levels only matched even by 19th century levels. Urban centers peaked and so did population density in the rural settlements. Antioch and Palmyra reached a peak of 200,000–250,000 inhabitants, while Apamea counted 117,000 'free citizens' circa AD 6. Combined with their dependancies and villages, Apamea and Cyrrhus may have counted as high as 500,000 each. The Syrian Coastal Mountain Range, marginal hill country, were less densely settled and had a population of around 40–50,000.
In contrast to Jews, who shared collective historical memories, Syrians lacked a unified cultural or social identity. The unifying aspects in Roman Syria were Greek civic structures and narratives promoted by Roman imperial rule, suggesting that Syrian culture was largely defined through Greek and Roman influences. The term 'Syrian' therefore primarily functioned as a geographical designation.
Ancient episcopal sees of the late Roman province of Syria Secunda (II) listed in the Annuario Pontificio as :
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Categories: Ancient Levant, Seleucid Empire Successor States, Former Countries In West Asia, 60s Bc Establishments, 1st-century Bc Establishments In The Roman Republic, States And Territories Disestablished In The 2nd Century, 198 Disestablishments, 190s Disestablishments In The Roman Empire, Jews And Judaism In The Roman Empire
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