Joannicius III ( el, , sr, Јоаникије III), (c. 1700 – 1793) was

Archbishop of Peć and Serbian Patriarch This article lists the heads of the Serbian Orthodox Church, since the establishment of the church as an autocephalous archbishopric in 1219 to today's patriarchate. The list includes all the archbishops and patriarchs that led the Serbian Ortho ...

from 1739 to 1746 and Archbishop of Constantinople and Ecumenical Patriarch from 1761 to 1763. The

ordinal number In set theory, an ordinal number, or ordinal, is a generalization of ordinal numerals (first, second, th, etc.) aimed to extend enumeration to infinite sets. A finite set can be enumerated by successively labeling each element with the least n ...

of his title is III both for his office as

Serbian Patriarch This article lists the heads of the Serbian Orthodox Church, since the establishment of the church as an autocephalous archbishopric in 1219 to today's patriarchate. The list includes all the archbishops and patriarchs that led the Serbian Ortho ...

and of Constantinople.

Life

Ioannis Karatzas was born in circa 1700 and belonged to the influential

Phanariote Phanariots, Phanariotes, or Fanariots ( el, Φαναριώτες, ro, Fanarioți, tr, Fenerliler) were members of prominent Greek families in Phanar (Φανάρι, modern ''Fener''), the chief Greek quarter of Constantinople where the Ecumeni ...

family

Caradja The House of Caradja, Karadja, Karaca, or Caragea (also known as ''Caratzas'' and ''Karatzas'', el, Καρατζάς) is a princely house of Byzantine and Phanariote Greek origins, present as dignitaries in the Ottoman Empire, and established as ...

(''Karatzas''), of

Byzantine Greek Medieval Greek (also known as Middle Greek, Byzantine Greek, or Romaic) is the stage of the Greek language between the end of classical antiquity in the 5th–6th centuries and the end of the Middle Ages, conventionally dated to the Ottoman co ...

origin.Genealogical Tree of the Caradja Family
/ref> He became a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

serving Patriarch Paisius II and later he was appointed

protosyncellus A protosyncellus or protosynkellos ( el, πρωτοσύγκελλος) is the principal deputy of the bishop of an eparchy for the exercise of administrative authority in an Eastern Orthodox or Eastern Catholic church. The equivalent position in t ...

. With the 1739

Treaty of Belgrade The Treaty of Belgrade, also known as the Belgrade Peace, was the peace treaty signed on September 18, 1739 in Belgrade, Habsburg Kingdom of Serbia (today Serbia), by the Ottoman Empire on one side and the Habsburg monarchy on the other, that e ...

which ended the

Austro–Turkish War (1737–39) The term Austro-Turkish War may refer to: * Austro-Turkish War (1593–1606) * Austro-Turkish War (1663–1664) * Austro-Turkish War (1683–1699) * Austro-Turkish War (1716–1718) * Austro-Turkish War (1737–1739) * Austro-Turkish War (1788–1 ...

, the

Kingdom of Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia ( sr-cyr, Краљевина Србија, Kraljevina Srbija) was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Princi ...

ceased to exist. The

Ottoman sultan The sultans of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı padişahları), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to its dissolution in 1922. At its hei ...

deposed Serbian Patriarch Arsenije IV who sided with the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...

during the war, and in his place appointed the Greek Joannicius, who took the title of ''Archbishop of Peć and Serbian Patriarch''. Among the Serbs he was known as ''Joanikije'' (Јоаникије), and it was recorded at the time that he was appointed by 'the mighty ule of theTurk, and not by election at the erbian''sabor'' (assembly)'. The previous patriarch Arsenije IV moved to the Habsburg monarchy along with many

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

, in what is known as the Second Great Serb Migration. Arsenije IV became

Metropolitan of Karlovci The Metropolitanate of Karlovci ( sr, Карловачка митрополија, Karlovačka mitropolija) was a metropolitanate of the Eastern Orthodox Church that existed in the Habsburg monarchy between 1708 and 1848. Between 1708 and 1713 ...

, maintaining however deep connections with the Serbs who remained in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

under the jurisdiction of Joannicius. Joannicius remained

until 1746, when, burdened with debts due to his high-living, he was forced to sell the title to pay his creditors. After returning to

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

, in September 1747 he obtained an appointment as

Metropolitan of Chalcedon The Metropolis of Chalcedon ( el, Μητρόπολη Χαλκηδόνος) is an ecclesiastical territory (diocese) of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. Christianity spread in Chalcedon during the 2nd century AD. The city was initially ...

. On 26 March 1761 he was elected Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, an office he maintained until 21 May 1763, when he was deposed and exiled to

Mount Athos Mount Athos (; el, Ἄθως, ) is a mountain in the distal part of the eponymous Athos peninsula and site of an important centre of Eastern Orthodox monasticism in northeastern Greece. The mountain along with the respective part of the penins ...

. Thanks to the support of his family, Joannicius returned from exile and obtained the revenue from the monastery of the island of Halki near Constantinople, where he died in 1793.

References

Sources

* * * * * * * *

External links

Official site of the Serbian Orthodox Church: Serbian Archbishops and Patriarchs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Joannicius 03 Of Constantinople, Patriarch 1700s births 1793 deaths Patriarchs of the Serbian Orthodox Church Caradja family 18th-century Greek people 18th-century Ecumenical Patriarchs of Constantinople Bishops of Chalcedon