ANTIOCH on Orontes

ANTAKYA or Antioch, was city in southern Turkey, capital of Hatay Province, on the Orontes River near the Mediterranean Sea. It was the ancient capital of the Seleucid dynasty in Syria and of a province of the Roman Empire. The city was founded in 301 B.C. by Seleucus I, one of the generals and successors of Alexander the Great. Strategically located at the crossroads of important caravan routes, it soon became a commercial centre and one of the leading cities of the world, famous for the magnificence of its architecture, which was rivalled only by that of Rome and Alexandria. When Syria was conquered by Rome in 64 B.C., Antakya became the eastern capital of the Roman Empire. The Romans added to the architectural splendours of the city, building temples, palaces, and theatres, extending aqueducts, and paving the main streets with marble.