The introduction of Christianity on Zakynthos is said to have occurred when either Saint Mary Magdalene or Saint Berenice visited the island in the 1st century AD on their way to Rome. In 324 AD, Zakynthos was made part of the Praetorian prefecture of Illyricum. As the Roman Empire split into Eastern and Western halves and the western half declined, Zakynthos and the rest of the Ionian Islands, now located on the periphery of the Eastern Roman or Byzantine Empire, became vulnerable to attacks from barbarian tribes and pirates. In 466 AD, the Vandal King Genseric pillaged Zakynthos and captured 500 Zakynthian members of the local elite. Later the island was used as a naval station during Belisarius' campaign against the Vandals.