The site of Apollonia lay on the territory of the Illyrian tribe of Taulanti. Apollonia, was an important port on the Illyrian coast and one of the western starting points of the Via Egnatia. In 229 BC, it came under the control of the Roman Republic. The later Roman emperor Augustus studied in Apollonia in 44 BC. Apollonia flourished under Roman rule and was noted by Cicero as “magna urbs et gravis”, a great and important city. Christianity was established in the city at an early stage.