Euchaita

Euchaita (Greek: Ευχάιτα) was a town (polisma) in Pontus, in northern Asia Minor (mod. Turkey). Today the Turkish village Beyözü, which partly lies on the ruins, in the province of Çorum (in the subprovince of Mecitözü).

Euchaita was the location of Saint Theodore of Amasea's slaying of the dragon, and his remains were taken here after his martyrdom. The town became a center of his cult. The original church was destroyed during the Sassanid Persian occupation, and rebuilt after the Byzantines retook the city in 622. In the 970s, Emperor John I Tzimiskes built a new church dedicated to the saint there and renamed the town Theodoropolis.

It was a favorite place to banish political and religious opponents during the Byzantine Empire. The capital of the Armeniac Theme until the late 8th century, the town suffered from Arab attacks and earthquakes.

In the late 11th century Euchaita fell to the Seljuk Turks.

In the early 21st Century, the town became the focus of an interdisciplinary archaeological project (the Avkat Archaeological Project), under the direction of John Haldon of Princeton University. Additional institutions contributing resources and personnel include Trent University, the College of Charleston, the University of Birmingham, Ankara University, and the Middle East Technical University (Ankara).

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