| Provincia Palaestina Prima ἐπαρχία Πρώτη Παλαιστίνης | |||||||||
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| Province of theDiocese of the East (Byzantine Empire) | |||||||||
| 395–636 | |||||||||
 Byzantine provinces in the 5th century | |||||||||
| Capital | Caesarea Maritima[1] | ||||||||
| Historical era | Byzantine Palestine | ||||||||
• division of the Roman Empire | 395 | ||||||||
| 484–572 | |||||||||
| 614–628 | |||||||||
| 636 | |||||||||
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| Today part of | Israel Jordan Palestine | ||||||||
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Rabbinic period and the Middle Ages
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Palaestina Prima orPalaestina I was aByzantineprovince that existed from the late 4th century until theMuslim conquest of the Levant in the 630s, inthe region of Palestine.[2] It included the historical regions ofJudea,Samaria and thecoastal plain.[3] The province was temporarily lost to theSassanid Empire (Persian Empire) in 614, but re-conquered in 628.
The province of Palaestina Prima came into existence in the late 4th century through a series of reforms of the Roman provincial administration which subdivided many provinces into smaller administrative units. The intent of these reforms were to circumscribe the ability of provincial governors with strong garrisons to stage revolts and to improve efficiency by reducing the area controlled by each governor.[4] Provinces were clustered into regional groups calleddioceses.[5] Thus, the province ofSyria Palaestina and neighboring regions were organized into the provincesPalaestina Prima,Palaestina Secunda, andPalaestina Tertia orPalaestina Salutaris (First, Second, and Third Palestine).[6]Palaestina Prima with its capital inCaesarea Maritima encompassed the central parts ofPalestine, including the coastal plain,Judea, andSamaria.[3]Palaestina Secunda had its capital inScythopolis and included northernTransjordan, the lowerJezreel Valley, theGalilee, and theGolan area.Palaestina Tertia with its capital inPetra included theNegev, southern Transjordan, and parts of theSinai Peninsula.[7] These provinces became part of theDioceses Orientis, a diocese grouping the near eastern provinces.
Despite Christian domination, until the 4th and 5th centuriesSamaritans developed some autonomy in the hill country ofSamaria, a move that gradually escalated into a series of open revolts. The four majorSamaritan Revolts during that period caused a near extinction of the Samaritan community as well as significant Christian losses. In the late 6th century, Byzantines and their ChristianGhassanid allies took a clear upper hand in the struggle.
In 602, thefinal war between the Byzantine Empire and its eastern rival the Sasanid Empire (Persian Empire) broke out. In 613 the Persians invaded the Levant and theJews revolted against the Byzantines, hoping to secure autonomy for Jerusalem.[8] The following year Persian-Jewish forces captured Caesarea andJerusalem, destroying its churches, massacring its Christian population, and taking theTrue Cross and other relics as trophies to the Persian capitalCtesiphon.[9] The event sent shock-waves through theChristian world. Since the days ofConstantine the Great, Jerusalem had been the emblematic capital of Christianity and the symbolic center of the world.[10] The Jews gained dominance over Jerusalem, but the Persians found it more expedient to side with the Christians who constituted the overwhelming majority of the population and in 617 the Persians returned the city to them.[11] Meanwhile, the Roman emperorHeraclius began a successful counter-offensive. By 627/8 he wasadvancing into the Persian heartland. The Persians sued for peace and had to return the Roman provinces they had captured and the stolen relics. In March 629, Heraclius triumphantly returned the True Cross to Jerusalem.[12] Heraclius had promised the Jews pardon for their revolt. However, at the prompting of the Christian leadership, Heraclius went back on his promise. The Jews were expelled from Jerusalem and thousands were massacred.[13]
Byzantine control of the province was again and irreversibly lost in 636, during theMuslim conquest of Syria.
The population of Palestine reached an all-time peak during the Byzantine era.[14]
Greek-speaking Byzantine Christians and Samaritans dominated the central regions of Palaestina Prima, while Christian Ghassanid Arabs and Nabataean Arabs dominated Palaestina Secunda and Tertia respectively. The Samaritan revolts in the 5th and 6th centuries, and the subsequent suppression of their communities, took its toll on their numbers.[15] Many also converted to Christianity.
According to the 6th centuryhagiographyLife of Barsauma, about a wanderingmonophysite monk, the Jews together with the pagans, constituted the majority in Palestine in the 5th century. However, some historians have questioned that claim.[16]
Depending on the time, either a notableRoman orPersian military presence would be noted.
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During the Byzantine period, Palestina Prima gradually became a center ofChristianity, attracting numerous monks and religious scholars from the Near East and Southern Europe, and abandoning previous Roman and Hellenistic cults.Arianism and Christianity found themselves in a hostile environment as well.
Variants of theMosaic religion were still at large from the 4th until the 6th centuries, practiced by ethnoreligious communities ofSamaritans andJews.[17] However, with the decline of the Samaritan and Jewish populations through war, emigration and conversion during the 6th and 7th century, the religion declined as well. By the late Byzantine period, fewer synagogues could be found and many were destroyed in violent events. The city ofHebron is notable in being one of the last Jewish cities remaining (although theCave of the Patriarchs had been converted into a Church).
Written sources from the Byzantine period describeAscalon andGaza as important commercial hubs that exportedwine to many places throughout the empire.Jerome points out that the region was home to numerous monastic settlements at the time and had a landscape dotted withvineyards. The church may have been a significant wine producer, as evidenced by archeological sites likeHorvat Hesheq [he] andHorvat Bet Loya.[18]
The amalgamation of Roman/Byzantine Palaestina prima (which had included the coastal area as well as Judaea and Samaria) and parts of Palaestina tertia (which had consisted of Edom and Moab as well as the 'Arava Valley) into Jund Filastīn led to a shift in the prominence and population of a number of important Jewish settlements.
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