Below is a list of bishops of Edessa.
Early bishops The following list is based on the records of the Chronicle of Edessa (to c.540) and the Chronicle of Zuqnin.
Name of bishopStart dateor floruitEnd dateor deathNotesThaddeus (Addai I)c.100According to Eusebius of CaesareaAggai c.190According to EusebiusPalutc.200According to Eusebius;He was a contemporary of Serapion of AntiochBarsamya Conon304Sha'ad (Saades)The Chronicle of Edessa places him between Conon and EthalahaAitalaha324The Chronicle of Edessa omits his date of death;Abraham became bishop in 346Abraham (I)346361Barses361March 378Translated by imperial order from Harran to EdessaEulogius379Good Friday 387Said to have been ordained the same year Theodosius I became emperorCyrus I22 July 396Silvanus39717 October 398Pakida (Facidas)23 November 398"neomenia of the month of Ab" 409Diogenes409411Rabbula4118 August 435Ibas4351 January 448The Chronicle of Edessa states he was deposed 1 January 448 and restored two years laterNonnus21 July 448450The Chronicle of Edessa states he left the see in 450, but was restored to Edessa after Ibas' death in 457Ibas (restored)45028 October 457Nonnus (restored)457471Cyrus II4715 June 498Cyrus convinced Emperor Zeno to close the School of the Persians in EdessaPeter49810 April 510Entered Edessa on 12 SeptemberPaul51027 July 522Deposed for monophysitismAsclepius23 October 52227 June 526Died in Antioch;Paul had appointed him bishop of HarranPaul (restored)8 March 52630 October 526Accepted the council of Chalcedon and restored after Asclepius' deathAndrew7 February 5276 December 532Addi (Addai II)28 August 533541Died after the completion of the Chronicle of EdessaAmazonius553ThomasTheodorec.570600Perhaps bishop of Bostra (not Edessa)
Jacobite (Syriac) bishops These bishops belonged to the Syriac Orthodox Church. During the later period there were also Byzantine rite bishops alongside them.
Name of bishopStart dateor floruitEnd dateor deathNotesJacob Baradeus (James I)54130 July 578Severus578602/603Stoned to death by NarsesIn the first half of the seventh century, the episcopal structure appears to have been disrupted due to war: 602/603 — Edessa captured by the Persians; recovered by the Romans 604/605 May 611 — Edessa recaptured by the Persians 627 — Persians evacuate Edessa as part of treaty 638 — Edessa surrenders to the Muslim general YazidJohn609Ahischema (Nestorian)609A Nestorian imposed by the Persian king Khosrau IIPaulfl. 624In exile in Egypt (c.609–619) and Cyprus (619–629)Isaiah628Sent into exileSimon I (Simeon I)before 644649/650Died in Amida;Possibly an Orthodox bishopCyriacus I650/651664/665Daniel669Jacob II (James II)664/665709/710According to some sources, ruled twice:from c.684 to 688 and again in 708 until his death on 5 JuneHabib709/710728/729Some sources place him between the two terms of Jacob IIGabriel724Constantine I728/729Date of death missing from the Chronicle of Zuqnin, which extends his episcopate up to 745AthanasiusKnown only from the Chronicle of 846Timothy (I) ?before 755754/755Zacharias the Stylite ?754/755760/7671Simon II (Simeon II)761RetiredAnastasius761RetiredElijah of Qartnim (Elijah I)760/761after 775The Chronicle of Zuqnin says that he was never ordained;Was apparently still bishop when the Chronicle of Zuqnin ends (775)Basil IRuled during the patriarchate of Cyriacus (793–817)Theodosius IRuled during the patriarchate of Cyriacus (793–817)CyrilRuled during the patriarchate of Dionysius I (817–845)Elijah IIRuled during the patriarchate of Dionysius I (817–845)Constantine IIRuled during the patriarchate of Dionysius I (817–845)Theodosius II825Cyriacus IIRuled during the patriarchate of Ignatius II (878–883)Theodosius IIIRuled during the patriarchate of Dionysius II (897–909)DioscorusRuled during the patriarchate of Dionysius II (897–909)Timothy (II)Ruled during the patriarchate of Dionysius II (897–909)Philoxenus IRuled during the patriarchate of Basil I (923–935)Abraham (II)Ruled during the patriarchate of John VI (936–953)Philoxenus IIRuled during the patriarchate of John VIII (1004–1033)Athanasius I (Joshua)Ruled during the patriarchate of Dionysius IV (1034–1044)Hayyabefore 1034after 1074Athanasius IIRuled during the patriarchate of Basil II (1074–1075)Basil II Abu Ghalib bar Sabuniafter December 1101DeposedIgnatius Jadidaafter December 1101Athanasius III1130Basil III bar Shumnabefore 1144after 1166Athanasius IVc.1169Basil IVAbdallah1444Ruled during the patriarchate of Ignatius V (1412–1454);Entered into communion with the Roman church at the Council of Florence (1444)
Armenian bishops These bishops belonged to the Armenian church. They ruled alongside Jacobite, Byzantine and Latin bishops.
Name of bishopStart dateEnd dateor deathNotesJohnbefore 1144after 1144Also called Ananias
Latin archbishops In the first half of the twelfth century, during the period of the Crusades and the county of Edessa, there was a Latin Church archdiocese based in the city. It seems to have displaced the Byzantine bishop, but ruled alongside the Jacobite and Armenian bishops. From the 13th century on, titular bishops were sometimes appointed.
Resident bishops Name of bishopStart dateEnd dateor deathNotesBenedictDecember 1099after 1104Consecrated in December 1099Hughbefore 112023 December 1144Killed when Edessa was conquered by the Turks
Titular bishops Name of bishopStart dateEnd dateor deathNotesWilliam Freney1266after 1286Visited the Armenian kingdom of Cilicia;Possibly resident in EdessaJohnafter 1286MartinJohn David30 May 1343Possibly resident in EdessaNo titular bishops appointed for centuries.Livio Lilio18 August 162522 June 1643Died in officeGiacinto di Subiano, O.P.14 November 164413 July 1648Became archbishop of SmyrnaJohann Eberhard Nidhard, S.J.16 November 16718 August 1672Became cardinal-priest of San Bartolomeo all'IsolaCarlo Francesco Airoldi26 June 1673before 15 April 1683Died in officeThomas Vidoni27 September 169029 October 1708Became a cardinalGirolamo Grimaldi5 October 17122 October 1730Became a cardinalGiovanni Battista Barni22 January 17319 September 1743Became a cardinalAntonio Milón López5 April 17454 June 1762Died in officeManuel Ferrer y Figueredo27 March 176523 June 1777Became bishop of ZamoraGregorio Bandi17 December 178710 April 1802Died in officeFrancesco Bertazzoli24 May 180216 May 1823Became cardinal-priest of Santa Maria sopra MinervaGiacinto Placido Zurla, O.S.B.13 January 182429 October 1834Died in officeIgnazio Giovanni Cadolini12 February 183830 January 1843Became archbishop of FerraraPatrick Joseph Carew30 May 18432 November 1855Died in officeVincenzo Massoni19 June 18563 June 1857Died in officeGustav Adolf von Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst13 November 185725 June 1866Became cardinal-priest of Santa Maria in TraspontinaGiuseppe Cardoni22 February 18678 April 1873Died in officeTommaso Michele Salzano, O.P.22 December 187312 September 1890Died in officeFilippo Castracane degli Antelminelli25 September 189121 August 1899Died in officeGennaro Granito Pignatelli di Belmonte17 November 189930 November 1911Became cardinal-priest of Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei MartiriTommaso Pio Boggiani, O.P.10 January 19124 December 1916Became cardinal-priest of Santi Quirico e GiulittaGiovanni Battista Marenco, S.D.B.7 January 191722 October 1921Died in officeMario Giardini, B.21 November 192116 May 1931Became archbishop of AnconaLuigi Centoz28 January 193228 October 1969Died in office
References The Chronicle of Edessa Amir Harrak (editor and translator), The Chronicle of Zuqnin, parts III and IV: A.D. 488-775. Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, 1999.
it:Arcidiocesi di Edessa di Osroene