Irenopolis or Eirenopolis or Eirenoupolis () was an ancient

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

and

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

city in northeastern

Cilicia Cilicia () is a geographical region in southern Anatolia, extending inland from the northeastern coasts of the Mediterranean Sea. Cilicia has a population ranging over six million, concentrated mostly at the Cilician plain (). The region inclu ...

, not far from the Calycadnus river, also known briefly as Neronias () in honour of the Roman emperor

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68) was a Roman emperor and the final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 until his ...

. Irenopolis was also an

episcopal see An episcopal see is the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, making it synonymous with ''diocese'' ...

that is now included in the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

's list of

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...

Location

It is located on the site of Düziçi (formerly Haruniye) in the province of Osmaniye. Located at the mouth of the Darb al-‛Ain pass, which led from al-Hārūnīya to Germanikeia, 104 km SE of

Adana Adana is a large city in southern Turkey. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, inland from the northeastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the administrative seat of the Adana Province, Adana province, and has a population of 1 81 ...

and 29.5 km NE of

Osmaniye Osmaniye () is a city on the eastern edge of the Çukurova plain in southern Turkey. It is the seat of Osmaniye Province and Osmaniye District.Antiochus IV of Commagene Gaius Julius Antiochus IV Epiphanes (, before 17 AD – after 72 AD), the last king of Commagene, reigned between 38 and 72 as a client king to the Roman Empire. The epithet "Epiphanes" means "the Glorious". Life Antiochus was born a prince ...

. The coins of the city show that

Asclepius Asclepius (; ''Asklēpiós'' ; ) is a hero and god of medicine in ancient Religion in ancient Greece, Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology. He is the son of Apollo and Coronis (lover of Apollo), Coronis, or Arsinoe (Greek myth), Ars ...

and

Hygeia Hygieia is a goddess from Greek mythology (more commonly spelled Hygeia, sometimes Hygiea; ; or , or ). Hygieia is a goddess of health ( – ''hugieia''), cleanliness and hygiene. Her name is the source for the word "hygiene". Hygieia devel ...

were worshiped in the city during pagan era. The cult of the two gods in the city may be connected with the natural spring of the area.

Theodoret of Cyrus Theodoret of Cyrus or Cyrrhus (; AD 393 – 458/466) was an influential theologian of the School of Antioch, biblical commentator, and Christian bishop of Cyrrhus (423–457). He played a pivotal role in several 5th-century Byzantine ...

confirms that the two names, Eirenopolis and Neronias, apparently refer to the same city. The name Neronias refereeing to honors bestowed on the city by

. The city is mentioned by Hierocles Nicephore and Calliste. The city came under Muslim rule following the

Battle of Manzikert The Battle of Manzikert or Malazgirt was fought between the Byzantine Empire and the Seljuk Empire on 26 August 1071 near Manzikert, Iberia (theme), Iberia (modern Malazgirt in Muş Province, Turkey). The decisive defeat of the Byzantine army ...

in 1071.

Bishopric

Christianity first came to the area in the 1st century the strategic location through the mountain passes, and the work of

St Paul Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the teachings of Jesus in the first-century world. For his contributions towards the New Testament, he is generally ...

made it an early candidate for missionaries. The city was the seat of a

bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

times. ;Known residential bishops *The Bishop Narcissus participated in the councils of Ankara and

Neocaesarea Niksar, historically known as Neocaesarea (Νεοκαισάρεια), is a city in Tokat Province, Turkey. It is the seat of Niksar District.Nicaea Nicaea (also spelled Nicæa or Nicea, ; ), also known as Nikaia (, Attic: , Koine: ), was an ancient Greek city in the north-western Anatolian region of Bithynia. It was the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea (the first and seve ...

in 325 AD the

Council of Antioch Beginning with three synods convened between 264 and 269 in the matter of Paul of Samosata, more than thirty councils were held in Antioch in ancient times. Most of these dealt with phases of the Arian and of the Christological controversies. F ...

as sometime claimed. *Indimus *Basilius *John Bishop of Irenapolis, Cilicia *Procopius *Paul. ;Titular Catholic bishops *Stefano Missir (1837–1863) *Luigi Ciurcia (1866–1881) *Luigi Matera (1882–1891) * Anatol Wincenty Nowak (Novak) (1900–1924) * Alfred-Jules Mélisson (1925) * Alexandre-Philibert Poirier (1925–1927) * Antoni Wladyslaw Szlagowski (1928–1945) *

Allen James Babcock Allen James Babcock (June 17, 1898 – June 27, 1969) was an American prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the seventh Bishop of Grand Rapids, Michigan from 1954 to 1969. Biography Early life Babcock was born on June 17, 1898, in ...

(15 Feb 1947 – 1954) Dixon Evening Telegraph ( Dixon, Illinois)'' Friday, March 28,'' 1947, Page 11 *

Oscar de Oliveira Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer J ...

(1954–1959) *Georges Jacquot (20 May 1959 – 1961) *

Gaetano Michetti Gaetano Michetti (3 March 1922 – 13 December 2007) was the bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pesaro in Italy. Appointed by Pope John XXIII in July 1975, he served until 3 January 1998. Biography Born in Corridonia in 1922, Michetti ...

(1961–1975)

Coinage

The city minted its own

coin A coin is a small object, usually round and flat, used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to facilitate trade. They are most often issued by ...

age, from 92/93 AD, during Domitian's reign, were still minted until the reign of Gallienus (253–268 AD).

References

Sources

* * {{Former settlements in Turkey Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Turkey Roman towns and cities in Turkey Former populated places in Cilicia Populated places of the Byzantine Empire Catholic titular sees in Asia Populated places in ancient Cilicia

Location

Bishopric

Coinage

See also

References

Sources