Serbia - Caričin Grad – Iustiniana Prima, archaeological site

The fortified settlement at Caričin Grad is located in south-east Serbia, on the slopes of Mount Radan, descending towards the Leskovac valley, away from any major roads, in the Pusta Reka valley. The first archaeological excavations of Tsaritsin Grad began in 1912 and have been going on to the present day. Based upon the obtained results and historic sources, the first theories about the name of the settlement and the period of its existence have been made. It has been established that it is a town of Iustiniana Prima, built by the Byzantine emperor Justinian I (527-565) near the place he has been born. By the order of the emperor a new administrative and archbishopric seat of the Illyricum province was built, so as to strengthen the rule of Byzantium and help spread Christianity. The settlement was not to last long, and its disappearance is associated with the emperor Heraclius (610-641) and the invasions of Slavic tribes.