Archbishopric of Justiniana Prima


Archbishopric of Justiniana Prima was an Eastern Christian autonomous Archbishopric with see in the city of Justiniana Prima and jurisdiction over the Late Roman Diocese of Dacia in central parts of the Southeastern Europe.

History

The archdiocese was established in 535 AD by Emperor Justinian I, in his presumed home-town of Justiniana Prima.
The establishment is mentioned in Justinian's own Novel XI from 535, when he promotes the metropolitan to an archbishop, independent from the Archbishop of Thessalonica. The establishment is seen as part of the feud between Justinian and the archbishop of Eastern Illyricum, who was a papal vicar.
Its last mention is in 602, amid the Slav raids on the Balkans.

Administration

Its cathedral archiepiscopal see was at Justiniana Prima. According to Novella 11, issued in 535, the first Archbishop received canonical jurisdiction over the following Byzantine provinces, mainly on the territory of the Diocese of Dacia:
But by 545, in the Novella 131, Macedonia Secunda was omitted.

Dioceses

Eastern Orthodox

The Archbishopric of Ohrid was seen as a successor of the old archbishopric. Archbishop John IV, nephew of emperor Alexios I Komnenos, resurrected the title of Archbishop of Justiniana Prima in 1143 for his own use.

Roman Catholic titular see

It is one of the titular sees listed in the Annuario Pontificio.
It has had the following incumbents, all of the archiepiscopal rank: