Bela (Epirus)

Medieval fortress town and bishopric in Epirus, northwestern Greece

For other uses, see Bela.

Bela or Vela (Greek: Βελά) was a medieval fortress town and bishopric in Epirus, northwestern Greece.

## History

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Bela is located near the site of the modern Vella Monastery, some 2 km south of Kalpaki.[1] The name is of Slavic origin.[1] The fortress survived until the mid-20th century, when it was documented by N. G. L. Hammond; however, the Second World War and its aftermath, as well as the operation of a quarry on the eastern side of the hill, have destroyed most of the remains described by Hammond.[2]

Bela first appears in the mid-10th century, when the Byzantine Empire's Notitiae Episcopatuum mention the see of "Photice, that is Bela" (Φωτικῆς ἤτοι Βελᾶς), implying that the seat of the bishopric of Photice, a suffragan of the Metropolis of Naupaktos, had been moved to Bela. This move was temporary, since from the mid-11th century, Photice is again mentioned without further additions.[3] Its only recorded bishop during that time, Constantine, is known from a 10th-century episcopal seal.[4]

From the early 13th century, however, Bela is attested as a separate bishopric, held by Manuel Makres.[1] It is possible that during the 13th century, Bela formed also a province (theme), but this is unclear.[1] It appears that by 1367, Bela and nearby Dryinopolis were no longer suffragans of Naupaktos, but of the Metropolis of Ioannina, as indeed is confirmed from the late 15th century on.[1]

In 1380, Bela was captured by the Ottoman Turks under Lala Şahin Pasha,[5] but in 1382 it came under the control of John Spata's son-in-law Marchesano.[2]

## Catholic titular see

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Main article: Diocese of Bela

Bela is the location of the Roman Catholic titular Diocese of Bela. The see, Eastern Orthodox throughout its existence, was nominally restored in 1933 as a Latin Catholic titular bishopric.[6]

## References

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1. ^ a b c d e Soustal & Koder 1981, p. 123.
2. ^ a b Soustal & Koder 1981, p. 124.
3. ^ Soustal & Koder 1981, pp. 123, 236.
4. ^ Nesbitt, John; Oikonomides, Nicolas, eds. (1994). Catalogue of Byzantine Seals at Dumbarton Oaks and in the Fogg Museum of Art, Volume 2: South of the Balkans, the Islands, South of Asia Minor. Washington, DC: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection. pp. 15–16. ISBN 0-88402-226-9.
5. ^ Soustal & Koder 1981, pp. 123–124.
6. ^ "Titular Episcopal See of Bela". GCatholic.org. Retrieved 21 December 2018.

## Sources

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* Soustal, Peter; Koder, Johannes (1981). Tabula Imperii Byzantini, Band 3: Nikopolis und Kephallēnia (in German). Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. ISBN 978-3-7001-0399-8.

39°51′54″N 20°37′01″E﻿ / ﻿39.86500°N 20.61694°E﻿ / 39.86500; 20.61694