Lesser Abkhazia ( Georgian : ჯიქეთი, Jiqeti) was the term used to refer to those lands of Abkhazia that were not subject to the direct control of the ruling Shervashidze dynasty. The area was part of the Black Sea Governorate during Russian rule.
181-683: The territory was part of the Kingdom of Georgia between 10th and 15th centuries. After the Russian-Circassian War , the bulk of the mountaineers relocated to the Ottoman Empire , while the depopulated coastline was gradually colonized by Christian settlers of various ethnicity. Sadzen was an ill-defined region on the eastern shore of the Black Sea which used to be settled by the Sadz people, hence
362-549: A de facto Roman protectorate there. Nonetheless, Roman–Persian rivalry over control and influence in Armenia continued unabated for the next several decades. The decision of the Parthian King Artabanus III to place his son on the vacant Armenian throne triggered a war with Rome in 36 AD, which ended when Artabanus III abandoned claims to a Parthian sphere of influence in Armenia. War erupted in 58 AD, after
543-679: A holy war . In the Caucasus he inflicted a defeat on an army led by a Persian-allied Arab chief and then won a victory over the Persians under Shahrbaraz. Following a lull in 623, while he negotiated a truce with the Avars, Heraclius resumed his campaigns in the East in 624 and routed an army led by Khosrau at Ganzak in Atropatene. In 625 he defeated the generals Shahrbaraz, Shahin and Shahraplakan in Armenia, and in
724-589: A "shift of emphasis in the 'grand strategy of the Roman empire' ", but his successor, Hadrian , decided that it was in Rome's interest to re-establish the Euphrates as the limit of its direct control. Hadrian returned to the status quo ante , and surrendered the territories of Armenia, Mesopotamia, and Adiabene to their previous rulers and client-kings. War over Armenia broke out again in 161, when Vologases IV defeated
905-486: A "tyrant", was eventually deposed by Heraclius, having sailed from Carthage . Around the same time, the Persians completed their conquest of Mesopotamia and the Caucasus, and in 611 they overran Syria and entered Anatolia, occupying Caesarea . Having expelled the Persians from Anatolia in 612, Heraclius launched a major counter-offensive in Syria in 613. He was decisively defeated outside Antioch by Shahrbaraz and Shahin , and
1086-464: A Seljuk force in the Battle of Ertsukhi . Over the course of 1110 to 1118, David IV captured the fortresses of Samshvilde , Rustavi , Gishi , and Lori . Starting in 1118 through 1120, David IV began major military reforms, including the resettlement of several thousand Kipchaks . In exchange, each Kipchak family provided David IV with a soldier, allowing him to establish a standing army. This alliance
1267-400: A century of almost continuous conflict, left both empires crippled. When Kavadh II died only months after coming to the throne, Persia was plunged into several years of dynastic turmoil and civil war. The Sasanians were further weakened by economic decline, heavy taxation from Khosrau II's campaigns, religious unrest, and the increasing power of the provincial landholders . The Byzantine Empire
1448-540: A coup organized by her Russian husband Yury Bogolyubsky , prince of Novgorod . In an attempt to reassure her Empire's neighbor, she issued a peace document in Arabic, believed to be addressed to Kilij Arslan II , stating, "in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost to be friend of your friends, enemy of your enemies, as long as I am alive, to have the best intentions, never to attack your towns, states or fortresses". Early in
1629-562: A crucial feudal institution, whose economical and political power would always be at least equal to that of the main noble families. During the Middle Ages, Christianity was the central element of Georgian culture. Specific forms of art were developed in Georgia for religious purposes. Among them, calligraphy , polyphonic church singing, cloisonné enamel icons, such as the Khakhuli triptych , and
1810-664: A few years after the end of the last Roman–Persian war. Benefiting from their weakened condition, the Rashidun armies swiftly conquered the entire Sasanian Empire , and deprived the Eastern Roman Empire of its territories in the Levant , the Caucasus , Egypt , and the rest of North Africa . Over the following centuries, more of the Eastern Roman Empire came under Muslim rule. According to James Howard-Johnston , "from
1991-650: A few years they were struck by the onslaught of the Arabs (newly united by Islam), which, according to Howard-Johnston, "can only be likened to a human tsunami". According to George Liska, the "unnecessarily prolonged Byzantine–Persian conflict opened the way for Islam". The Sasanian Empire rapidly succumbed to these attacks and was completely conquered. During the Byzantine–Arab wars, the exhausted Roman Empire's recently regained eastern and southern provinces of Syria , Armenia , Egypt and North Africa were also lost, reducing
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#17328518941832172-459: A few years. In reply to this, the sultan of the Eldiguzids attacked Ganja several times, and in 1143 the town again fell to the sultan. According to Mkhitar Gosh , Demetrius ultimately gained possession of Ganja, but, when he gave his daughter in marriage to the sultan, he presented the latter with the town as dowry, and the sultan appointed his own emir to rule it. Thus, Ganja once again fell into
2353-603: A further defeat near the Syrian Gates , the Parthians withdrew from Syria. They returned in 38 BC but were decisively defeated by Ventidius, and Pacorus was killed. In Judaea, Antigonus was ousted with Roman help by Herod in 37 BC. With Roman control of Syria and Judaea restored, Mark Antony led a huge army into Atropatene , but his siege train and its escort were isolated and wiped out, while his Armenian allies deserted. Failing to make progress against Parthian positions,
2534-435: A large Muslim army that included the emirs of Homs , Hama , and Baalbek as well as contingents from other Ayyubid principalities to support al-Awhad , emir of Jazira . During the siege, Georgian general Ivane Mkhargrdzeli accidentally fell into the hands of the al-Awhad on the outskirts of Ahlat. Using Ivane as a bargaining chip, al-Awhad agreed to release him in return for a thirty year truce with Georgia, thus ending
2715-507: A mercenary unit, and were slightly superior individually in comparison to the Persian ones, as Procopius claims; however, the Persian horse-archer units as a whole always remained a challenge for the Romans, which suggests the Roman horse-archers were smaller in numbers. By the time of Khosrow I the composite cavalrymen ( aswaran ) appeared, who were skilled in both archery and the use of lance. On
2896-533: A moment, the whole of the Roman East seemed lost to the Parthians or about to fall into their hands. However, the conclusion of the second Roman civil war soon revived Roman strength in Asia. Mark Antony had sent Ventidius to oppose Labienus, who had invaded Anatolia. Soon Labienus was driven back to Syria by Roman forces, and, although reinforced by the Parthians, was defeated, taken prisoner, and killed. After suffering
3077-474: A number of Hunnic peoples and then by the Hephthalites . With both empires preoccupied by these threats, a largely peaceful period followed, interrupted only by two brief wars, the first in 421–422 after Bahram V persecuted high-ranking Persian officials who had converted to Christianity , and the second in 440 , when Yazdegerd II raided Roman Armenia. The Anastasian War ended the longest period of peace
3258-483: A permanent peace. He invaded Anatolia and sacked Sebasteia, but to take Theodosiopolis, and after a clash near Melitene the army suffered heavy losses while fleeing across the Euphrates under Roman attack and the Persian royal baggage was captured. The Romans exploited Persian disarray as general Justinian invaded deep into Persian territory and raided Atropatene . Khosrau sought peace but abandoned this initiative when Persian confidence revived after Tamkhusro won
3439-534: A plot and formed a secret alliance with the Demetrius I. While a Georgian army waited in ambush, he offered tribute to Saltukids , ruler of Erzerum and asked the latter to accept him as a vassal. In 1153–1154, Emir Saltuk II marched on Ani, but Shaddad informed his suzerain, the King of Georgia, of this. Demetrius marched to Ani, defeated and captured the emir. At the request of neighbouring Muslim rulers and released him for
3620-518: A pretender claiming to be Maurice's son, and by the revolt against Phocas led by the Roman general Narses. In 603 Khosrau defeated and killed the Roman general Germanus in Mesopotamia and laid siege to Dara. Despite the arrival of Roman reinforcements from Europe, he won another victory in 604, while Dara fell after a nine-month siege. Over the following years the Persians gradually overcame the fortress cities of Mesopotamia by siege, one after another. At
3801-461: A ransom of 100,000 dinars , paid by Saltuk's sons in law and Saltuk swore not to fight against the Georgians he returned home. Although his reign saw a disruptive family conflict related to royal succession, Georgia remained a centralized power with a strong military. A talented poet, Demetrius also continued his father's contributions to Georgia's religious polyphony . The most famous of his hymns
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#17328518941833982-508: A rival branch of the Bagrationi dynasty, and into five semi-independent principalities— Odishi , Guria , Abkhazia , Svaneti , and Samtskhe . Early Georgian kingdoms were reduced to feudal regions over the course of the Roman–Persian wars . The area then fell under the control of the early Muslim conquests of the 7th century. Iberian princes from the Bagrationi dynasty fought against
4163-437: A series of short-term emperors, Shapur I soon resumed his attacks. In the early 250s, Philip was involved in a struggle over the control of Armenia; Shapur conquered Armenia and killed its king, defeated the Romans at the Battle of Barbalissos in 253, then probably took and plundered Antioch . Between 258 and 260, Shapur captured Emperor Valerian after defeating his army at the Battle of Edessa . He advanced into Anatolia but
4344-500: A significant role in preaching Christianity in the mountains of the Caucasus. "Wherever the missions of the patriarchs of Constantinople, Rome, Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem failed, the Georgian Church succeeded in bringing Jesus's Cross and preaching His Gospels ". This is corroborated not only by old written sources, but also by Christian architectural monuments bearing Georgian inscriptions, which are still to be seen throughout
4525-431: A surprise attack that winter he stormed Shahrbaraz's headquarters and attacked his troops in their winter billets. Supported by a Persian army commanded by Shahrbaraz, together with the Avars and Slavs, the three unsuccessfully besieged Constantinople in 626 , while a second Persian army under Shahin suffered another crushing defeat at the hands of Heraclius' brother Theodore. Meanwhile, Heraclius formed an alliance with
4706-594: A unified Abkhazia and Iberia. In his early reign, Bagrat pressed a claim to the kingdom of Khakheti-Hereti to the east, and annexed it in 1010. Bagrat also reduced the autonomy of dynastic princes to stabilize his realm, with his fears focusing on the Klarjeti line of the Bagrationi. In order to secure the throne for his son, George I of Georgia , Bagrat tricked his cousins into a meeting and imprisoned them, and his cousins' children fled to Constantinople , where they requested
4887-439: A victory in Armenia, where Roman actions had alienated local inhabitants. In the spring of 578 the war in Mesopotamia resumed with Persian raids on Roman territory. The Roman general Maurice retaliated by raiding Persian Mesopotamia, capturing the stronghold of Aphumon , and sacking Singara. Khosrau again opened peace negotiations but he died early in 579 and his successor Hormizd IV ( r. 578–590 ) preferred to continue
5068-478: Is Thou Art a Vineyard . Demetrius was succeeded by his son George III in 1156, beginning a stage of more offensive foreign policy. In the same year of his ascension to the throne, Giorgi launched a successful campaign against the Shah-Armens , raided their lands and turn back with prisoners and booty. In 1161, George III took over Ani and appointed his general Ivane Orbeli as its ruler. A coalition consisting of
5249-512: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Abkhazia location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Kingdom of Georgia The Kingdom of Georgia ( Georgian : საქართველოს სამეფო , Sakartvelos samepo ), also known as the Georgian Empire , was a medieval Eurasian monarchy that was founded in c. 1008 AD . It reached its Golden Age of political and economic strength during
5430-454: Is shown by the facts themselves that [Severus'] conquest has been a source of constant wars and great expense to us. For it yields very little and uses up vast sums; and now that we have reached out to peoples who are neighbor of the Medes and the Parthians rather than of ourselves, we are always, one might say, fighting the battles of those peoples." In the long series of wars between the two powers,
5611-776: The Arab occupation and came to rule the Tao-Klarjeti region. They established the Kouropalatate of Iberia as a nominal vassal of the Byzantine Empire . By 888, they had gained control of the central Georgian land, Kartli , and restored the Iberian kingship . The Bagrationi dynasty was unable to maintain their kingdom, and it was divided between the three branches of the family. The main branch controlled Tao , while another controlled Klarjeti . In 736, Marwan ibn Muhammad's invasion of Georgia
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5792-686: The Araxes . This campaign was evidently started because the ruler of Erzerum refused to submit to Georgia. The emir of Kars requested aid from the Ahlatshahs, but the latter was unable to respond, it was soon taken over by the Ayyubid Sultanate in 1207. By 1209 Georgia challenged Ayyubid rule in the Armenian highlands and led a liberation war for south Armenia. The Georgian army besieged Khlat . In response Ayyubid Sultan al-Adil I assembled and personally led
5973-472: The Battle of Carrhae by the Parthians under General Surena ; this was the worst Roman defeat since the battle of Arausio . The Parthians raided Syria the following year, and mounted a major invasion in 51 BC, but their army was caught in an ambush near Antigonea by the Romans, and they were driven back. The Parthians largely remained neutral during Caesar's Civil War , fought between forces supporting Julius Caesar and forces supporting Pompey and
6154-704: The Caucasus , namely the Arsacid dynasty of Armenia , the Arsacid dynasty of Iberia , and the Arsacid dynasty of Caucasian Albania . Meanwhile, the Romans expelled the Seleucids from their territories in Anatolia in the early 2nd century BC, after defeating Antiochus III the Great at Thermopylae and Magnesia . Finally, in 64 BC Pompey conquered the remaining Seleucid territories in Syria, extinguishing their state and advancing
6335-514: The Didgori . Soon after, David IV secured Tbilisi , one of the last Muslim enclave remaining in Georgia, and the capital was moved there, beginning Georgia's Golden Age . In 1123, David IV liberated Dmanisi , the last Seljuk stronghold in southern Georgia. By 1124, Shirvan was captured along with the Armenian city of Ani . This expanded the kingdom's borders to the Araxes basin. David IV founded
6516-664: The Gelati Academy , known at the time as "a new Hellas " and "a second Athos ". David also composed the Hymns of Repentance , eight free-verse psalms. The kingdom continued to flourish under Demetrius I , the son of David. Demetrius instituted religious tolerance throughout his kingdom, going as far as to give the Tbilisi Muslims tax exemptions and religious privileges. Despite this, neighbouring Muslim rulers began attacking Georgia from all sides. The Seljuqid sultans fought to restore
6697-502: The Kingdom of Abkhazia in what is today northwestern Georgia was under the rule of Theodosius the Blind , who did away with Abkhazian traditions. In 978, the Abkhazian aristocracy, dissatisfied with the rule of Theodosius, performed a coup d'état and invited Bagrat to claim the throne of Abkhazia. Gurgen died in 1008, leaving his throne for Bagrat, allowing Bagrat to become the first king of
6878-606: The Lord's Sepulchre , they march into the Holy City...without paying tribute to anyone, for the Saracens dare in no wise molest them... In 1334, Shaykh Hasan of the Jalayir was appointed as governor of Georgia by Abu Sai'd. The young and weak politician Abu Sa'id Khan could not stop the decline of the state. In 1335 , after his death, complete chaos began in the country, and in fact, Ilkhanate
7059-703: The Monastery of Iviron in Greece . It is the principal historical precursor of present-day Georgia . Lasting for several centuries, the kingdom fell to the Mongol invasions in the 13th century, but managed to re-assert sovereignty by the 1340s. The following decades were marked by the Black Death , as well as numerous invasions under the leadership of Timur , who devastated the country's economy, population, and urban centers. The Kingdom's geopolitical situation further worsened after
7240-816: The Roman–Iranian Wars , were a series of conflicts between states of the Greco-Roman world and two successive Iranian empires : the Parthian and the Sasanian. Battles between the Parthian Empire and the Roman Republic began in 54 BC; wars began under the late Republic, and continued through the Roman (later Eastern Roman (Byzantine) ) and Sasanian Empires. A plethora of vassal kingdoms and allied nomadic nations in
7421-736: The Sultan of Ahlat, Shah-Armen Sökmen II ( c. 1128–1183). This war was started by the passage of Ani into the hands of the Georgians; Demetrius I had to compromise and give up Ani to the Shaddadid emir Fadl ibn Mahmud on terms of vassalage and inviolability of the Christian churches. In 1139, Demetrius raided the city of Ganja in Arran . He brought the iron gate of the defeated city to Georgia and donated it to Gelati Monastery at Kutaisi . Despite this brilliant victory, Demetrius could hold Ganja only for
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7602-593: The Western Turkic Khaganate , who took advantage of the dwindling strength of the Persians to ravage their territories in the Caucasus. Late in 627, Heraclius launched a winter offensive into Mesopotamia, where, despite the desertion of the Turkish contingent that had accompanied him, he defeated the Persians at the Battle of Nineveh . Continuing south along the Tigris, he sacked Khosrau's great palace at Dastagird and
7783-570: The devastating invasions by Timur and subsequent enfeeblement of the Kingdom of Georgia, it soon faced a new threat. Timur's death in 1405 marked the beginning of the end of his Empire, unified only by fear and blood of the subjected peoples. Turkomans, particularly the Kara Koyunlu clan, were among the first to rebel against Shah Rukh who ruled most of the Persia and Mawerannahr . Qara Yusuf , ruler of
7964-436: The fortress of Gagi , laid waste as far as the region of Gagi and Gegharkunik , seized prisoners and booty, and then moved to Ani capturing and granting it to Shaddadid emir Shahanshah ibn Mahmud . The Muslim rulers were jubilant, and they prepared for a new campaign. However, this time they were forestalled by George III , who marched into Arran at the beginning of 1166, occupied a region extending to Ganja , devastated
8145-511: The limes of the Syrian and Mesopotamian frontiers of the Roman Empire. The Roman and Persian border units were known as limitanei and marzoban s, respectively. The Sasanians, and to a lesser extent the Parthians, practiced mass deportations to new cities as a tool of policy, not just the prisoners-of-war (such as those of the Battle of Edessa ), but also the cities they captured, such as
8326-887: The "Georgian cross-dome style" of architecture, which characterizes most medieval Georgian churches. The most celebrated examples of Georgian religious architecture of the time include the Gelati Monastery and Bagrati Cathedral in Kutaisi , the Ikalto Monastery complex and Academy, and the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral in Mtskheta . Outstanding Georgian representatives of Christian culture include Euthymius of Athos (Ekvtime Atoneli, 955–1028), George of Athos (Giorgi Atoneli, 1009–1065), Arsen Ikaltoeli (11th century), and Ephrem Mtsire , (11th century). Philosophy flourished between
8507-422: The 10th century, David III of Tao invaded the Duchy of Kartli , giving it to his adopted son, who would later be known as Bagrat III of Georgia , with his biological father, Gurgen of Iberia , as regent. In 994, Gurgen was crowned King of the Iberians . In 975, supported by the Duke of Kartli Ivane Marushisdze and David, Bagrat claimed the throne of Kartli, becoming King of the Kartlians . During this time,
8688-406: The 1190s, the Georgian government began to interfere in the affairs of the Eldiguzids and of the Shirvanshahs, aiding rivaling local princes and reducing Shirvan to a tributary state. The Eldiguzid atabeg Abu Bakr attempted to stem the Georgian advance, but suffered a defeat at the hands of David Soslan at the Battle of Shamkor and lost his capital to a Georgian protégé in 1195. Although Abu Bakr
8869-445: The 11th and 13th century, especially at the Academy of Gelati Monastery, where Ioane Petritsi attempted a synthesis of Christian, aristotelician and neoplatonic thought. Tamar's reign also marked the continuation of artistic development in the country commenced by her predecessors. While her contemporary Georgian chronicles continued to enshrine Christian morality, the religious theme started to lose its earlier dominant position to
9050-411: The 11th and the early 13th centuries, Georgia experienced a political, economical and cultural golden age , as the Bagrationi dynasty managed to unite western and eastern halves of the country into a single kingdom. To accomplish that goal, kings relied much on the prestige of the Church, and enrolled its political support by giving it many economical advantages, immunity from taxes and large appanages. At
9231-526: The 2nd century AD, during which the Romans consistently held the upper hand over Parthia. The Emperor Trajan invaded Armenia and Mesopotamia during 114 and 115 and annexed them as Roman provinces. He captured the Parthian capital, Ctesiphon , before sailing downriver to the Persian Gulf . However, uprisings erupted in 115 AD in the occupied Parthian territories, while a major Jewish revolt broke out in Roman territory, severely stretching Roman military resources. Parthian forces attacked key Roman positions, and
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#17328518941839412-468: The 8-year-old Bagrat. By the time Bagrat ascended to the throne, the Bagratids' unification drive had gained much momentum. Many of the Georgian lands, such as Tao, Tbilisi, Kakheti and Hereti, were either under the rule of foreign empires or of independent kings. The loyalty of Georgian nobles was also questionable. Bagrat IV's childhood saw the regency increase the influence of the nobility, something which he tried to stop when he assumed his full powers. In
9593-513: The Aq Qoyunlu Turkoman invasion of Kartli, and seized control of Imereti . Occupation of the capital did not last long and Constantine II of Georgia was able to repel them, but it was still costly to Georgians. Ismail I , founder of the Safavid dynasty , formed an alliance with the Georgians in 1502 and decisively defeated Aq Qoyunlu in the same year, destroying their state and marking the end of their invasions. Bagrat IV's (r.1027 – 1072) coins featured Greek inscriptions alongside Georgian. By
9774-416: The Arabs in later conflicts, though these too were ultimately recovered . When the Roman and Parthian Empires first collided in the 1st century BC, it appeared that Parthia had the potential to push its frontier to the Aegean and the Mediterranean. However, the Romans repulsed the great invasion of Syria and Anatolia by Pacorus and Labienus, and were gradually able to take advantage of the weaknesses of
9955-444: The Ayyubid conquest of Jerusalem in 1187, Tamar sent envoys to the sultan to request that the confiscated possessions of the Georgian monasteries in Jerusalem be returned. Saladin's response is not recorded, but the queen's efforts seem to have been successful. Ibn Šaddād furthermore claims that Tamar outbid the Byzantine emperor in her efforts to obtain the relics of the True Cross , offering 200,000 gold pieces to Saladin who had taken
10136-461: The Caucasus was defeated by Sittas at Satala . Belisarius was defeated by Persian and Lakhmid forces at the Battle of Callinicum in 531, which resulted in his dismissal. In the same year the Romans gained some forts in Armenia, while the Persians had captured two forts in eastern Lazica. Immediately after the Battle of Callinicum, unsuccessful negotiations between Justinian's envoy, Hermogenes, and Kavadh took place. A Persian siege of Martyropolis
10317-518: The Central Asian steppe into northern Iran . Although subdued for a time by the Seleucids, in the 2nd century BC they broke away, and established an independent state that steadily expanded at the expense of their former rulers, and through the course of the 2nd and early 1st century BC, they had conquered Persia , Mesopotamia , and Armenia . Ruled by the Arsacid dynasty , the Parthians fended off several Seleucid attempts to regain their lost territories, and established several eponymous branches in
10498-572: The Empire to a territorial rump consisting of Anatolia and a scatter of islands and footholds in the Balkans and Italy. These remaining lands were thoroughly impoverished by frequent attacks, marking the transition from classical urban civilization to a more rural, medieval form of society. However, unlike Persia, the Roman Empire ultimately survived the Arab assault, holding onto its residual territories and decisively repulsing two Arab sieges of its capital in 674–678 and 717–718 . The Roman Empire also lost its territories in Crete and southern Italy to
10679-437: The Georgian Golden Age, which describes a historical period in the High Middle Ages , spanning from roughly the late 11th to 13th centuries, when the kingdom reached the zenith of its power and development. The period saw the flourishing of medieval Georgian architecture, painting and poetry, which was frequently expressed in the development of ecclesiastic art, as well as the creation of first major works of secular literature. It
10860-446: The Georgian court. Tamar's Pontic endeavor can also be explained by her desire to take advantage of the Western European Fourth Crusade against Constantinople to set up a friendly state in Georgia's immediate southwestern neighborhood, as well as by the dynastic solidarity to the dispossessed Comnenoi. As a retribution for the attack on Georgian-controlled city of Ani , where 12,000 Christians were massacred in 1208, Georgia's Tamar
11041-406: The Georgian successes, Süleymanshah II , the resurgent Seljuqid sultan of Rûm , rallied his vassal emirs and marched against Georgia, but his camp was attacked and destroyed by David Soslan at the Battle of Basian in 1203 or 1204. The chronicler of Tamar describes how the army was assembled at the rock-hewn town of Vardzia before marching on to Basian and how the queen addressed the troops from
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#173285189418311222-455: The Great invaded and conquered the cities of Tabriz , Ardabil , Khoy , Qazvin and others along the way to Gorgan in northeast Persia. The country's power had grown to such extent that in the later years of Tamar's rule, the Kingdom was primarily concerned with the protection of the Georgian monastic centers in the Holy Land , eight of which were listed in Jerusalem . Saladin 's biographer Bahā' ad-Dīn ibn Šaddād reports that, after
11403-428: The Great's conquest of Persia , which was thought to be the cause of the subsequent Iranian disarray; this is matched by the notion imitatio Alexandri cherished by the Roman emperors Caracalla, Alexander Severus, and Julian. Roman sources reveal long-standing prejudices with regard to the Eastern powers' customs, religious structures, languages, and forms of government. John F. Haldon underscores that "although
11584-410: The Iberians who had left their country were given the choice of remaining in Roman territory or returning to their native land. The Persians broke the "Treaty of Eternal Peace" in 540, probably in response to the Roman reconquest of much of the former western empire, which had been facilitated by the cessation of war in the East. Khosrau I invaded and devastated Syria, extorting large sums of money from
11765-406: The Kara Koyunlu, defeated Shah Rukh, captured Baghdad, and repulsed Timurids from western Persia. After they established themselves as the new leading power in the middle east. They took advantage of the temporary weakness of Georgians and launched attacks against them, apparently in which, George VII of Georgia was killed. Constantine I of Georgia , fearing further encroachment, allied himself with
11946-451: The Messiah" in Arabic. Copper coins belonging to George IV (r.1213-1223) carry the year 1210 (430 in the K'oronikon), indicating that during this time his mother gave George a significant amount of royal authority. The reverse of the coin is similar to Tamar's irregular issue, but in the center is an inscription in ecclesiastical majuscules that reads "GI DZE T'MRSI," which is an acronym for "Giorgi, son of T'amar." The Arabic inscription on
12127-413: The Mongol Great Khan Mangu". Both cousins issued a joint silver coin of Byzantine type in which the reverse features the Holy Virgin, while the obverse features the kings standing together. These coins, which are quite rare, were most likely produced at Kutaisi in 1261-62, following David VII's rebellion, flight from the Mongol lords, and his subsequent shelter in Western Georgia with David VI. Between
12308-526: The North Caucasus in Chechnya, Ingushetia, Dagestan, North Ossetia, Kabardino-Balkaria. The golden age of Georgian monasticism lasted from the 9th to the 11th century. During that period, Georgian monasteries were founded outside the country, most notably on Mount Sinai , Mount Athos (the Iviron monastery , where the Theotokos Iverskaya icon is still located), and in Palestine . Roman%E2%80%93Persian Wars Roman–Sasanian wars Byzantine–Sasanian Wars The Roman–Persian Wars , also known as
12489-433: The Parthian King Vologases I forcibly installed his brother Tiridates on the Armenian throne. Roman forces overthrew Tiridates and replaced him with a Cappadocian prince, triggering an inconclusive war . This came to an end in 63 AD after the Romans agreed to allow Tiridates and his descendants to rule Armenia on condition that they receive the kingship from the Roman emperor. A fresh series of conflicts began in
12670-473: The Parthian military system, which, according to George Rawlinson , was adapted for national defense but ill-suited for conquest. The Romans, on the other hand, were continually modifying and evolving their " grand strategy " from Trajan 's time onwards, and were by the time of Pacorus able to take the offensive against the Parthians. Like the Sasanians in the late 3rd and 4th centuries, the Parthians generally avoided any sustained defense of Mesopotamia against
12851-524: The Parthians remained neutral, Lucullus considered attacking them. In 66–65 BC, Pompey reached agreement with Phraates, and Roman–Parthian troops invaded Armenia , but a dispute soon arose over the Euphrates boundary. Finally, Phraates asserted his control over Mesopotamia, except for the western district of Osroene , which became a Roman dependency. The Roman general Marcus Licinius Crassus led an invasion of Mesopotamia in 53 BC with catastrophic results; he and his son Publius were killed at
13032-637: The Persians: by 527, the Iberian revolt had been crushed, a Roman offensive against Nisibis and Thebetha in that year was unsuccessful, and forces trying to fortify Thannuris and Melabasa were prevented from doing so by Persian attacks. Attempting to remedy the deficiencies revealed by these Persian successes, the new Roman emperor, Justinian I , reorganized the eastern armies . In 528 Belisarius tried unsuccessfully to protect Roman workers in Thannuris, undertaking
13213-687: The Roman army and forced its withdrawal; this was the origin of the Antonine Plague that raged for a generation throughout the Roman Empire. In 195–197, a Roman offensive under the Emperor Septimius Severus led to Rome's acquisition of northern Mesopotamia as far as the areas around Nisibis , Singara and the third sacking of Ctesiphon. A final war against the Parthians was launched by the Emperor Caracalla , who sacked Arbela in 216. After his assassination, his successor, Macrinus ,
13394-587: The Roman eastern frontier to the Euphrates , where it met the territory of the Parthians. Parthian enterprise in the West began in the time of Mithridates I and was revived by Mithridates II , who negotiated unsuccessfully with Lucius Cornelius Sulla for a Roman–Parthian alliance (c. 105 BC). When Lucullus invaded Southern Armenia and led an attack against Tigranes in 69 BC, he corresponded with Phraates III to dissuade him from intervening. Although
13575-422: The Roman forces in the East, numbering 30,000, against the capital of Persian Armenia, Dvin , was defeated by a meticulous ambush by a small Persian force at Anglon . Khosrau besieged Edessa in 544 without success and was eventually bought off by the defenders. The Edessenes paid five centenaria to Khosrau, and the Persians departed after nearly two months. In the wake of the Persian retreat, two Roman envoys,
13756-423: The Roman garrisons at Seleucia , Nisibis and Edessa were expelled by the local inhabitants. Trajan subdued the rebels in Mesopotamia, but having installed the Parthian prince Parthamaspates on the throne as a client ruler, he withdrew his armies and returned to Syria. Trajan died in 117, before he was able to reorganize and consolidate Roman control over the Parthian provinces. Trajan's Parthian War initiated
13937-560: The Roman position collapsed. Over the following decade the Persians were able to conquer Palestine , Egypt, Rhodes and several other islands in the eastern Aegean, as well as to devastate Anatolia. Meanwhile, the Avars and Slavs took advantage of the situation to overrun the Balkans , bringing the Roman Empire to the brink of destruction. During these years, Heraclius strove to rebuild his army, slashing non-military expenditures, devaluing
14118-486: The Roman protectorate. The emperor seized the chance, and in 548–549 combined Roman and Lazic forces with the magister militum of Armenia Dagistheus won a series of victories against Persian armies, although they failed to take the key garrison of Petra (present-day Tsikhisdziri ). In 551, general Bessas who replaced Dagistheus put Abasgia and the rest of Lazica under control, and finally subjected Petra after fierce fighting , demolishing its fortifications. In
14299-419: The Romans there, captured Edessa and ravaged Syria. In 163 a Roman counter-attack under Statius Priscus defeated the Parthians in Armenia and installed a favored candidate on the Armenian throne. The following year Avidius Cassius invaded Mesopotamia, winning battles at Dura-Europos and Seleucia and sacking Ctesiphon in 165. An epidemic which was sweeping Parthia at the time, possibly of smallpox , spread to
14480-528: The Romans withdrew with heavy casualties. Antony was again in Armenia in 33 BC to join with the Median king against Octavian and the Parthians. Other preoccupations obliged him to withdraw, and the whole region came under Parthian control. With tensions between the two powers threatening renewed war, Octavian and Phraataces worked out a compromise in 1 AD. According to the agreement, Parthia undertook to withdraw its forces from Armenia and to recognize
14661-512: The Romans. In 383 or 384 Armenia again became a bone of contention between the Roman and the Sasanian empires, but hostilities did not occur. With both empires preoccupied by barbarian threats from the north, in 384 or 387, a definitive peace treaty was signed by Shapur III and Theodosius I dividing Armenia between the two states. Meanwhile, the northern territories of the Roman Empire were invaded by Germanic, Alanic, and Hunnic peoples, while Persia's northern borders were threatened first by
14842-477: The Romans. In 602 the Roman army campaigning in the Balkans mutinied under the leadership of Phocas , who succeeded in seizing the throne and then killed Maurice and his family. Khosrau II used the murder of his benefactor as a pretext for war and reconquer the Roman province of Mesopotamia. In the early years of the war the Persians enjoyed overwhelming and unprecedented success. They were aided by Khosrau's use of
15023-404: The Romans. Encouraged by this success, the emperor Gordian III advanced down the Euphrates but was defeated near Ctesiphon in the Battle of Misiche in 244. Gordian either died in the battle or was murdered by his own men; Philip became emperor, and paid 500,000 denarii to the Persians in a hastily negotiated peace settlement. With the Roman Empire debilitated by Germanic invasions and
15204-405: The Romans. Following a lull during the 350s while Shapur fought off nomad attacks on Persia's eastern and then northern frontiers, he launched a new campaign in 359 with the aid of the eastern tribes which he had meanwhile defeated, and after a difficult siege again captured Amida (359). In the following year he captured Bezabde and Singara, and repelled the counter-attack of Constantius II. But
15385-530: The Romans. However, the Iranian plateau never fell, as the Roman expeditions had always exhausted their offensive impetus by the time they reached lower Mesopotamia, and their extended line of communications through territory not sufficiently pacified exposed them to revolts and counterattacks. From the 4th century AD onwards, the Sasanians grew in strength and adopted the role of aggressor. They considered much of
15566-631: The Romans: in 524/525 the Iberians rose in revolt against Persia, following the example of the neighboring Christian kingdom of Lazica , and the Romans recruited Huns from the north of the Caucasus to assist them. To start with, the two sides preferred to wage war by proxy, through Arab allies in the south and Huns in the north. Overt Roman–Persian fighting had broken out in the Transcaucasus region and upper Mesopotamia by 526–527. The early years of war favored
15747-403: The Sasanians regarded the Roman Empire as the enemy par excellence. Proxy warfare was employed by both Byzantines and the Sasanians as an alternative to direct confrontation, particularly through Arab kingdoms in the south and nomadic nations in the north. Militarily, the Sasanians continued the Parthians' heavy dependence on cavalry troops: a combination of horse-archers and cataphracts ;
15928-552: The Shirvanshah Ibrahim I to counter Turkoman advance and engaged them in the Battle of Chalagan , in which he was defeated and taken captive. In captivity Constantine behaved very proudly, which infuriated Qara Yusuf to such an extent, that he ordered his, his half-brother David's and 300 Georgian nobles' execution. Kara Yusuf put Constantine to death by his own hand. Alexander I of Georgia who sought to strengthen and restore his declining Kingdom, faced constant invasions by
16109-515: The Tigris. Harried by the Persians, Julian was killed in the Battle of Samarra , during a difficult retreat along the Tigris . With the Roman army stuck on the eastern bank of the Euphrates, Julian's successor Jovian made peace, agreeing to major concessions in exchange for safe passage out of Sasanian territory. The Romans surrendered their former possessions east of the Tigris, as well as Nisibis and Singara, and Shapur soon conquered Armenia, abandoned by
16290-458: The advancing Ottoman tribesmen led by Orhan I . In 1341 he interfered in the power struggle in the neighbouring Empire of Trebizond and supported Anna Anachoutlou who ascended the throne with the help of the Laz , only to be put to death a year later. He also organized a successful campaign against Shirvan , a neighboring state of Georgia. The restoration of the unity of Georgia, the liberation from
16471-620: The aid of the Byzantine Empire to take back their patrimonial land. Bagrat's reign secured a victory for the Bagratids of Georgia, ending the power-struggles that had plagued the region for centuries. Bagrat had a peaceful foreign policy, successfully avoiding conflicts with the Byzantines and nearby Muslim realms, even though some of David's territory, such as Tao and Tbilisi , remained in Byzantine and Arab control, respectively. George I's reign
16652-406: The arrival of troops under Khosrau resulted in a ravaging of Syria, the failure of the Roman siege of Nisibis and the fall of Dara. At a cost of 45,000 solidi , a one-year truce in Mesopotamia (eventually extended to five years) was arranged, but in the Caucasus and on the desert frontiers the war continued. In 575, Khosrau I attempted to combine aggression in Armenia with discussion of
16833-581: The back illustrates George's name and titles. It is significant that only copper was minted in Georgia beginning under the rule of Demetrius I . This was the outcome of the silver famine that was raging over the Near East during this time. It was not until the thirteenth century that this famine was ended. Large amounts of silver were brought to the Middle East after the Mongol invasion of China in 1213, where it
17014-569: The balcony of the church. Exploiting her success in this battle, between 1203 and 1205 Georgians seized the town of Dvin and entered Ahlatshah possessions twice and subdued the emir of Kars (vassal of the Saltukids in Erzurum), the Ahlatshahs, and the emirs of Erzurum and Erzincan . In 1206, the Georgian army, under the command of David Soslan , captured Kars and other fortresses and strongholds along
17195-640: The blood spilled in the warfare between the two states brought as little real gain to one side or the other as the few meters of land gained at terrible cost in the trench warfare of the First World War. Both sides attempted to justify their respective military goals in both active and reactive ways. According to the Letter of Tansar and the Muslim writer Al-Tha'alibi , Ardashir I 's and Pacorus I 's invasions, respectively, of Roman territories, were to avenge Alexander
17376-578: The capital Ctesiphon and captured the Persian treasury and royal harem. The resulting peace settlement gave the Romans control of the area between the Tigris and the Greater Zab . The Roman victory was the most decisive for many decades: all the territories that had been lost, all the debatable lands, and control of Armenia lay in Roman hands. Many cities east of the Tigris were given to the Romans including Tigranokert , Saird , Martyropolis , Balalesa , Moxos , Daudia , and Arzan. Also, control of Armenia
17557-405: The cities of Syria and Mesopotamia, and systematically looting other cities including Antioch , whose population was deported to Persian territory. The successful campaigns of Belisarius in the west encouraged the Persians to return to war, both taking advantage of Roman preoccupation elsewhere and seeking to check the expansion of Roman territory and resources. In 539 the resumption of hostilities
17738-498: The city of Samshvilde and sacked the capital city Tbilisi . He massacred thousands of Christians, put heavy indemnity on Georgia, and returned to Tabriz . He also mounted a second military expedition against Georgia in 1444. His forces met those of Alexander's successor, King Vakhtang IV at Akhaltsikhe , but the fighting was inconclusive and Jahan Shah returned to Tabriz once more. As a result of foreign and internal struggles unified Kingdom of Georgia ceased to exist after 1466 and
17919-557: The conflicts between Persia and East Rome revolved around issues of strategic control around the eastern frontier, yet there was always a religious-ideological element present". From the time of Constantine on, Roman emperors appointed themselves as the protectors of Christians of Persia. This attitude created intense suspicions of the loyalties of Christians living in Sasanian Iran and often led to Roman–Persian tensions or even military confrontations (e.g. in 421–422 ). A characteristic of
18100-544: The conquest of the Byzantine Empire and the Empire of Trebizond by the Ottoman Turks . As a result of these processes, by the end of the 15th century Georgia turned into a fractured entity. This whole series of events also led to the final collapse of the kingdom into anarchy by 1466 and the mutual recognition of its constituent kingdoms of Kartli , Kakheti , and Imereti as independent states between 1490 and 1493—each led by
18281-501: The construction of a fort right on the frontier. Damaging raids on Syria by the Lakhmids in 529 encouraged Justinian to strengthen his own Arab allies, helping the Ghassanid leader Al-Harith ibn Jabalah turn a loose coalition into a coherent kingdom. In 530, a major Persian offensive in Mesopotamia was defeated by Roman forces under Belisarius at Dara , while a second Persian thrust in
18462-591: The cordial relationship between Georgia and the Caliphate. Demetrius I's (r.1125-1154) reign exclusively struck copper coins. There are several recognized patterns in his coinage, which eschewed Byzantine conventions in favor of a hybrid Georgian-Muslim style. The reverse of one version includes the name of the Caliph of Baghdad due to political expediency, while the obverse features the king's initial "D" in Georgian ecclesiastical majuscule together with his title "Sword of
18643-548: The correspondence between them. George V wrote to the King of France that he was ready to participate with him in the liberation of the "Holy Lands" of Syria-Palestine, and had 30,000 soldiers. The widespread use of the Jerusalem cross in Medieval Georgia - an inspiration for the modern national flag of Georgia - is thought to date to the reign of George V. One of the primary reasons of Georgian political and military decline
18824-461: The currency and melting down Church plate, with the backing of Patriarch Sergius , to raise the necessary funds to continue the war. In 622, Heraclius left Constantinople, entrusting the city to Sergius and general Bonus as regents of his son. He assembled his forces in Asia Minor and, after conducting exercises to revive their morale, he launched a new counter-offensive, which took on the character of
19005-720: The deportation of the Antioch 's people to Weh Antiok Khosrow , which led to the decline of the former. These deportations also initiated the spread of Christianity in Persia . The Persians seem to have been reluctant to resort to naval action. There was some minor Sasanian naval action in 620–23 , and the only major Byzantine navy 's action was during the Siege of Constantinople (626) . The Roman–Persian Wars have been characterized as "futile" and too "depressing and tedious to contemplate". Prophetically, Cassius Dio noted their "never-ending cycle of armed confrontations" and observed that "it
19186-612: The domination of the Mongols and the establishment of order in the country contributed to the revival of the country's economy. In the cities of Georgia, trade and craft production developed significantly; Trade and economic relations were restored not only with the cities of the Middle East and the North, but also with the city-states of Europe, particularly Northern Italy. George V had friendly relations with King Philip VI of France , as evidenced by
19367-460: The end of the 1st century AD, Rome organized the protection of its eastern frontiers through the limes system, which lasted until the Muslim conquests of the 7th century after improvements by Diocletian . Like the Romans, the Sasanians constructed defensive walls opposite the territory of their opponents. According to R. N. Frye, it was under Shapur II that the Persian system was extended, probably in imitation of Diocletian's construction of
19548-476: The enormous cost of these victories weakened him, and he was soon deserted by his barbarian allies, leaving him vulnerable to the major offensive in 363 by the Roman Emperor Julian , who advanced down the Euphrates to Ctesiphon with a major army. Despite a tactical victory at the Battle of Ctesiphon before the walls Julian was unable to take the Persian capital or advance any farther and retreated along
19729-581: The ensuing Liberators' civil war and sent a contingent to fight on their side at the Battle of Philippi in 42 BC. After the Liberators' defeat, the Parthians invaded Roman territory in 40 BC in conjunction with the Roman Quintus Labienus , a former supporter of Brutus and Cassius. They swiftly overran the Roman province of Syria and advanced into Judea , overthrowing the Roman client Hyrcanus II and installing his nephew Antigonus . For
19910-592: The fall of the city. That year an armistice was reached as a result of an invasion of Armenia by the Huns from the Caucasus . Although the two powers negotiated, it was not until November 506 that a treaty was agreed to. In 505, Anastasius ordered the building of a great fortified city at Dara . At the same time, the dilapidated fortifications were also upgraded at Edessa, Batnae and Amida. Although no further large-scale conflict took place during Anastasius' reign, tensions continued, especially while work proceeded at Dara. This
20091-451: The feudal lords and centralized the power. In 1089–1100, he organized military action to destroy Seljuk troops, beginning the resettlement of occupied regions. In 1099, David IV refused to pay tribute to the Seljuqs. By 1104, the local king of the eastern Georgia provide of Kakheti , Aghsartan II , was captured by David IV's supporters, reuniting the area. The following year, David IV defeated
20272-448: The final phase of the conflict, when what had begun in 611–612 as a raid was soon transformed into a war of conquest, was the pre-eminence of the Cross as a symbol of imperial victory and of the strong religious element in the Roman imperial propaganda; Heraclius himself cast Khosrau as the enemy of God, and authors of the 6th and 7th centuries were fiercely hostile to Persia. The sources for
20453-681: The form of buffer states and proxies also played a role. The wars were ended by the early Muslim conquests , which led to the fall of the Sasanian Empire and huge territorial losses for the Byzantine Empire, shortly after the end of the last war between them. Although warfare between the Romans and Persians continued over seven centuries, the frontier, aside from shifts in the north, remained largely stable. A game of tug of war ensued: towns, fortifications, and provinces were continually sacked, captured, destroyed, and traded. Neither side had
20634-483: The fortress-city proved to be far more difficult than Kavadh expected; the defenders repelled the Persian assaults for three months before they were beaten. In 503, the Romans attempted an ultimately unsuccessful siege of the Persian-held Amida while Kavadh invaded Osroene and laid siege to Edessa with the same results. Finally in 504, the Romans gained control through the renewed investment of Amida, which led to
20815-846: The frontier and to ease restrictions on diplomacy and trade. War broke again shortly after Armenia and Iberia revolted against Sasanian rule in 571, following clashes involving Roman and Persian proxies in Yemen (between the Axumites and the Himyarites ) and the Syrian desert, and after Roman negotiations for an alliance with the Western Turkic Khaganate against Persia. Justin II brought Armenia under his protection, while Roman troops under Justin's cousin Marcian raided Arzanene and invaded Persian Mesopotamia, where they defeated local forces. Marcian's sudden dismissal and
20996-400: The frontier in upper Mesopotamia remained more or less constant. Historians point out that the stability of the frontier over the centuries is remarkable, although Nisibis, Singara, Dara and other cities of upper Mesopotamia changed hands from time to time, and the possession of these frontier cities gave one empire a trade advantage over the other. As Frye states: One has the impression that
21177-501: The hands of the Eldiguzids . In 1130, Demetrius revealed a plot of nobles, probably involving the king's half-brother Vakhtang . The King arrested the conspirators and executed one of their leaders, Ioanne Abuletisdze , in 1138 (or 1145). Fadl's successor, Fakr al-Din Shaddad , a Shaddadid emir of Ani asked for Saltuk 's daughter's hand, however Saltuk refused him. This caused a deep hatred in Shaddad towards Saltuk. In 1154 he planned
21358-507: The highly original secular literature. This trend culminated in an epic written by Georgia's national poet Rustaveli – The Knight in the Panther's Skin ( Vepkhistq'aosani ). Revered in Georgia as the greatest achievement of native literature, the poem celebrates the Medieval humanistic ideals of chivalry , friendship and courtly love . From the 10th century, Georgians had started to play
21539-461: The history of Parthia and the wars with Rome are scant and scattered. The Parthians followed the Achaemenid tradition and favored oral historiography , which assured the corruption of their history once they had been vanquished. The main sources of this period are thus Roman ( Tacitus , Marius Maximus , and Justin ) and Greek historians ( Herodian , Cassius Dio and Plutarch ). The 13th book of
21720-741: The immediate Georgian threat to the Ayyubids. This brought the struggle for the Armenian lands to a stall, leaving the Lake Van region to the Ayyubids of Damascus . Among the remarkable events of Tamar's reign was the foundation of the Empire of Trebizond on the Black Sea in 1204. This state was established in the northeast of the crumbling Byzantine Empire with the help of the Georgian armies, which supported Alexios I of Trebizond and his brother, David Komnenos , both of whom were Tamar's relatives. Alexios and David were fugitive Byzantine princes raised at
21901-514: The internecine conflict between Seljuk heirs, George II of Georgia defeated a Seljuk governor, Sarang of Ganja, at the Battle of Partskhisi in 1074. In 1076, the Seljuk sultan Malik Shah I attacked again. Georgia eventually submitted to Malik Shah, paying an annual tribute in order to have peace. George II ceded the crown to his 16-year-old son David IV in 1089. Under the tutelage of his court minister, George of Chqondidi , David IV suppressed
22082-596: The key cities. In 541 he invaded Lazica in the north. Belisarius was quickly recalled by Justinian to the East to deal with the Persian threat, while the Ostrogoths in Italy, who were in touch with the Persian King, launched a counter-attack under Totila . Belisarius took the field and waged an inconclusive campaign against Nisibis in 541. In the same year, Lazica switched its allegiance to Persia and Khosrau led an army to secure
22263-544: The kingdom continued to prosper during the reigns of Demetrios I ( c. 1125–1156), George III ( c. 1156–1184), and especially, his daughter Tamar ( c. 1184–1213). With the decline of Byzantine power and the dissolution of the Great Seljuk Empire , Georgia became one of the pre-eminent nations of the region, stretching, at its largest extent, from present-day Southern Russia to Northern Iran , and westwards into Anatolia . The Kingdom of Georgia brought about
22444-468: The kingdom of Georgia came under the Mongol rule in the late 13th and early 14th centuries, combining inscriptions in Georgian, Arabic, and Persian. During the regency of Töregene Khatun (r.1244-1245), silver dirhems minted at Tbilisi stated "The Great Mongol Alush (Ulush) Bek”, which has been intrepretated to "[Money issued by] the Great Mongol Viceroy (Supreme Commander)." During this same time,
22625-401: The kingdom. In 542 Khosrau launched another offensive in Mesopotamia and unsuccessfully attempted to capture Sergiopolis . He soon withdrew in the face of an army under Belisarius, en route sacking the city of Callinicum. Attacks on a number of Roman cities were repulsed and the Persian general Mihr-Mihroe was defeated and captured at Dara by John Troglita . An invasion of Armenia in 543 by
22806-470: The land added to the Roman Empire in Parthian and early Sasanian times to rightfully belong to the Persian sphere. Everett Wheeler argues that "the Sassanids, administratively more centralized than the Parthians, formally organized defense of their territory, although they lacked a standing army until Khosrau I ". In general, the Romans regarded the Sasanians as a more serious threat than the Parthians, while
22987-498: The land and turn back with prisoners and booty. The Shaddadids ruled Ani for about 10 years as vassals of Eldgiz, but in 1174 George III took the Shahanshah as a prisoner and occupied Ani once again, appointing Ivane Orbeli as governor. After that, Eldiguz together with other Muslim rulers invaded Georgia twice, the first invasion was successfully repelled by the Georgians, but during the second invasion Georgians lost Ani and in 1175 it
23168-526: The last buffer state, the Arab Lakhmids , was annexed to the Sasanian Empire. Frye notes that in the 3rd century AD such client states played an important role in Roman–Sasanian relations, but both empires gradually replaced them by an organized defense system run by the central government and based on a line of fortifications (the limes ) and the fortified frontier cities, such as Dara . Towards
23349-459: The later half of the 11th century, the Seljuq Turks invaded nearby regions, prompting greater cooperation between the Georgian and Byzantine governments. In a political arrangement, Bagrat's daughter Maria married the Byzantine co-emperor Michael VII Doukas at some point between 1066 and 1071. In 1065 the Seljuk sultan Alp Arslan attacked Kartli , taking Tbilisi and building a mosque. During
23530-521: The latter were heavy armored cavalry provided by the aristocracy. They added a contingent of war elephants obtained from the Indus Valley , but their infantry quality was inferior to that of the Romans. The combined forces of horse archers and heavy cavalry inflicted several defeats on the Roman foot-soldiers, including those led by Crassus in 53 BC , Mark Antony in 36 BC , and Valerian in 260 AD . The Parthian tactics gradually became
23711-401: The logistical strength or manpower to maintain such lengthy campaigns far from their borders, and thus neither could advance too far without risking stretching its frontiers too thin. Both sides did make conquests beyond the border, but in time the balance was almost always restored. Although initially different in military tactics, the armies of both sides gradually adopted from each other and by
23892-516: The name. In the mid-19th century, it came to be known in Russian and Western literature as Lesser Abkhazia . According to Ivane Javakhishvili it is a historical part of Georgia . The northern part of Sadzen today forms part of Greater Sochi , while the southern part falls within the borders of Abkhazia . The Sochi conflict took place in Sadzen in 1918-1920. This Georgian history -related article
24073-456: The negotiations soon broke down. The proposal was initially greeted with enthusiasm by the Roman emperor and his nephew, Justinian , but Justin's quaestor , Proculus, opposed the move, believing that Khosrau's adoption would give him, and by extension Persia, a claim to the Imperial throne. Tensions between the two powers were further heightened by the defection of the Iberian king Gourgen to
24254-540: The newly appointed magister militum, Constantinus, and Sergius proceeded to Ctesiphon to arrange a truce with Khosrau. (The war dragged on under other generals and was to some extent hindered by the Plague of Justinian , because of which Khosrau temporarily withdrew from Roman territory) A five-year truce was agreed to in 545, secured by Roman payments to the Persians. Early in 548, King Gubazes of Lazica , having found Persian protection oppressive, asked Justinian to restore
24435-406: The other hand, the Persians adopted war engines from the Romans. The Romans had achieved and maintained a high degree of sophistication in siege warfare and had developed a range of siege machines . On the other hand, the Parthians were inept at besieging; their cavalry armies were more suited to the hit-and-run tactics that destroyed Antony's siege train in 36 BC. The situation changed with
24616-471: The reign of King David IV and Queen Tamar the Great from the 11th to 13th centuries. Georgia became one of the pre-eminent nations of the Christian East , and its pan- Caucasian empire and network of tributaries stretched from Eastern Europe to Anatolia and northern frontiers of Iran , while Georgia also maintained religious possessions abroad, such as the Monastery of the Cross in Jerusalem and
24797-497: The reigns of Demetrius I (r.1125-1154), Giorgi III (r.1156–1184), David IV (r.1089–1125), and T'amar (r.1184 – 1213), coins were minted bearing the titles " malik al-mulūk " and " malikat al-malikāt ", respectively. According to Brosset, Georgia used Arabic as a lingua franca because of the importance of trade relations with the Islamic world. Karst supports this stating that the bilingual coins served as an official and visible symbol of
24978-546: The relics as booty at the battle of Hattin – to no avail, however. Jacques de Vitry , the Patriarch of Jerusalem at that time wrote: There is also in the East another Christian people, who are very warlike and valiant in battle, being strong in body and powerful in the countless numbers of their warriors...Being entirely surrounded by infidel nations...these men are called Georgians, because they especially revere and worship St. George...Whenever they come on pilgrimage to
25159-507: The rise of the Sasanians, when Rome encountered an enemy equally capable in siege warfare. The Sasanians mainly used mounds, rams, mines, and to a lesser degree siege towers, artillery, and also chemical weapons , such as in Dura-Europos (256) and Petra (550–551) . Use of complex torsion equipment was rare, since traditional Persian expertise in archery reduced their apparent benefits. Elephants were employed (e.g. as siege towers) where
25340-559: The rule of the Shirvanshahs . Shirvan's large Muslim population rose against Georgia. This probably happened in 1129 or 1130, when Demetrius restored the Shirvanshahs to power in Shirvan , installing on the throne Manuchihr II , the husband of his daughter Rusudan . The Shirvanshahs had to provide the Georgian king with troops whenever the latter demanded it. In 1130, Georgia was attacked by
25521-592: The ruler of Ahlat, Shah-Armen Sökmen II , the ruler of Diyarbekir , Kotb ad-Din il-Ghazi , Al-Malik of Erzerum, and others was formed as soon as the Georgians seized the town, but the latter defeated the allies. 1162 In the summer, the Georgian army, whose number reached 30,000, took Dvin . In response to this, Eldiguz Soon he proceeded northward to recover the city of Dvin . A coalition of Muslim rulers - Shah-Armen Seyfettin Beytemür, Ahmadili Arslan-Aba, Arzen emir Fakhr ul-Din and Saltuk II , led by Eldiguz took
25702-403: The same time they won a string of victories in Armenia and systematically subdued the Roman garrisons in the Caucasus. Phocas' brutal repression sparked a succession crisis that ensued as the general Heraclius sent his nephew Nicetas to attack Egypt , enabling his younger son Heraclius , to claim the throne in 610. Phocas, an unpopular ruler who is invariably described in Byzantine sources as
25883-567: The same time, the kings, most notably David the Builder (1089–1125), used state power to interfere in church affairs. Notably, he summoned the 1103 council of Ruisi-Urbnisi , which condemned Armenian Miaphysitism in stronger terms than ever before, and gave unprecedented power, second only to the Patriarch, to his friend and advisor George of Chqondidi . For the following centuries, the Church would remain
26064-420: The same year a Persian offensive led by Mihr-Mihroe occupied eastern Lazica. The truce that had been established in 545 was renewed outside Lazica for a further five years on condition that the Romans pay 2,000 lb of gold each year. The Romans failed to completely expel the Sasanians from Lazica; in 554, Mihr-Mihroe launched a new attack , dislodging a newly arrived Byzantine army from Telephis. In Lazica
26245-425: The same year. His successor Numerian was forced by his own army to retreat, being frightened by the belief that Carus had died of a strike of lightning. After a brief period of peace during Diocletian 's early reign, Narseh renewed hostilities with the Romans invading Armenia, and defeated Galerius not far from Carrhae in 296 or 297. However, in 298 Galerius defeated Narseh at the Battle of Satala , sacked
26426-520: The second half of the 6th century, they were similar and evenly matched. The expense of resources during the Roman–Persian Wars ultimately proved catastrophic for both empires. The prolonged and escalating warfare of the 6th and 7th centuries left them exhausted and vulnerable in the face of the sudden emergence and expansion of the Rashidun Caliphate , whose forces invaded both empires only
26607-572: The son of Rusudan, David VI (r.1245-1259), was minting copper coins at Dmanisi , with production moving to Tbilisi by 1247. David VI's obverse consisted of, the king on a horse (left side); below are some bushes and dark objects that could be hounds, while the reverse has inscriptions in Persian. David VI ruled with his cousin David VII (r.1248–1259) whose coins were minted in Tbilisi starting in 1252, which state, "David, son of Giorgi, Bagrationi, vassal of
26788-459: The south and failed. In 238–240, towards the end of his reign, Ardashir attacked again, taking several cities in Syria and Mesopotamia, including Carrhae , Nisibis and Hatra . The struggle resumed and intensified under Ardashir's successor Shapur I ; he invaded Mesopotamia and captured Hatra , a buffer state which had recently shifted its loyalty but his forces were defeated at a battle near Resaena in 243; Carrhae and Nisibis were retaken by
26969-468: The stalemate. The Persians captured Martyropolis through treachery in 589, but that year the stalemate was shattered when the Persian general Bahram Chobin , having been dismissed and humiliated by Hormizd IV, raised a rebellion. Hormizd was overthrown in a palace coup in 590 and replaced by his son Khosrau II , but Bahram pressed on with his revolt regardless and the defeated Khosrau was soon forced to flee for safety to Roman territory, while Bahram took
27150-414: The standard method of warfare in the Roman empire and cataphractarii and clibanarii units were introduced into the Roman army; as a result, heavily armed cavalry grew in importance in both the Roman and Persian armies after the 3rd century AD and until the end of the wars. The Roman army also gradually incorporated horse-archers ( Equites Sagittarii ), and by the 5th century AD they were no longer
27331-411: The terrain was unfavorable for machines. Recent assessments comparing the Sasanians and Parthians have reaffirmed the superiority of Sasanian siegecraft, military engineering , and organization, as well as ability to build defensive works. By the beginning of Sasanian rule, a number of buffer states existed between the empires. These were absorbed by the central state over time, and by the 7th century
27512-411: The third century BC to the early seventh century AD, the rival players [in the East] were grand polities with imperial pretensions, which had been able to establish and secure stable territories transcending regional divides". The Romans and Parthians came into contact through their respective conquests of parts of the Seleucid Empire . During the 3rd century BC, the Parthians migrated from
27693-405: The throne as Bahram VI. With support from Maurice, Khosrau raised a rebellion against Bahram, and in 591 the combined forces of his supporters and the Romans defeated Bahram at the Battle of Blarathon and restored Khosrau II to power. In exchange for their help, Khosrau not only returned Dara and Martyropolis but also agreed to cede the western half of Iberia and more than half of Persian Armenia to
27874-422: The time, had to make peace with the invaders, by abandoning Tbilisi to the enemy. It was only after Uzun Hasan's death (1478) when the Georgians were able to recover their capital. In the winter of 1488, the Ak Koyunlu Turkomans led by Halil Bey attacked Georgia's capital Tbilisi, and took the city after a long-lasted siege in February 1489. Alexander II of Imereti , another pretender to the throne, took advantage of
28055-433: The traditional faction of the Roman Senate . However, they maintained relations with Pompey, and after his defeat and death, a force under Pacorus I assisted the Pompeian general Q. Caecilius Bassus , who was besieged at Apamea Valley by Caesarian forces. With the civil war over, Julius Caesar prepared a campaign against Parthia, but his assassination averted the war. The Parthians supported Brutus and Cassius during
28236-483: The tribal Turkomans. Alexander re-conquered Lori from the Turkomans in 1431, which was of great importance in securing of the Georgian borders. Around 1434/5, Alexander encouraged the Armenian prince Beshken II Orbelian to attack the Kara Koyunlu clansmen in Siunia and, for his victory, granted him Lori under terms of vassalage. In 1440, Alexander refused to pay tribute to Jahan Shah of the Kara Koyunlu. In March, Jahan Shah surged into Georgia with 20,000 troops, destroyed
28417-422: The two powers ever enjoyed. War broke out when the Persian King Kavadh I attempted to gain financial support by force from the Byzantine Emperor Anastasius I ; the emperor refused to provide it and the Persian king tried to take it by force. In 502 AD, he quickly captured the unprepared city of Theodosiopolis and besieged the fortress-city of Amida through the autumn and winter (502–503). The siege of
28598-575: The war dragged on inconclusively for several years, with neither side able to make any major gains. Khosrau, who now had to deal with the White Huns , renewed the truce in 557, this time without excluding Lazica; negotiations continued for a definite peace treaty. Finally, in 562, the envoys of Justinian and Khosrau – Peter the Patrician and Izedh Gushnap – put together the Fifty-Year Peace Treaty . The Persians agreed to evacuate Lazica and received an annual subsidy of 30,000 nomismata ( solidi ). Both sides agreed not to build new fortifications near
28779-516: The war. In 580, Hormizd IV abolished the Caucasian Iberian monarchy, and turned Iberia into a Persian province ruled by a marzpan (governor). During the 580s, the war continued inconclusively with victories on both sides. In 582, Maurice won a battle at Constantia over Adarmahan and Tamkhusro, who was killed, but the Roman general did not follow up his victory; he had to hurry to Constantinople to pursue his imperial ambitions. Another Roman victory at Solachon in 586 likewise failed to break
28960-433: Was a period of military, political, economical and cultural progress. It also included the so-called Georgian Renaissance (also called Eastern Renaissance ), during which various human activities, forms of craftsmanship and art, such as literature, philosophy and architecture thrived in the kingdom. Tamar not only shielded much of her Empire from further Turkish invasions but successfully pacified internal tensions, including
29141-470: Was able to resume his reign a year later, the Eldiguzids were only barely able to contain further Georgian forays. The question of liberation of Armenia remained of prime importance in Georgia's foreign policy. Tamar's armies led by two Christianised Kurdish generals, Zakare and Ivane Mkhargrdzeli (Zakarian) overran fortresses and cities towards the Ararat Plain , reclaiming one after another fortresses and districts from local Muslim rulers. Alarmed by
29322-417: Was agreed for seven years, and it is likely that some payments were made to the Persians. In 505, Anastasius ordered the building of a great fortified city at Dara . The dilapidated fortifications were also upgraded at Edessa, Batnac and Amida. Although no further large-scale conflict took place during Anastasius' reign, tensions continued, especially while work continued at Dara. This construction project
29503-435: Was agreed to as a result of an invasion of Armenia by the Huns from the Caucasus. Negotiations between the two powers took place, but such was their distrust that in 506 the Romans, suspecting treachery, seized the Persian officials. Once released, the Persians preferred to stay in Nisibis. In November 506, a treaty was finally agreed upon, but little is known of what the terms of the treaty were. Procopius states that peace
29684-407: Was aided by David IV's earlier marriage to the Khan 's daughter. Entering 1120, David IV became more expansionist. He invaded the neighbouring Shirvan area and the town of Qabala . From there, he began to successfully attack the Seljuk in the eastern and southwestern areas of Transcaucasia . In 1121, Sultan Mahmud b. Muhammad declared a holy war on Georgia. but David IV defeated his army at
29865-424: Was also severely affected, with its financial reserves exhausted by the war and the Balkans now largely in the hands of the Slavs. Additionally, Anatolia was devastated by repeated Persian invasions; the Empire's hold on its recently regained territories in the Caucasus, Syria, Mesopotamia, Palestine and Egypt was loosened by many years of Persian occupation. Neither empire was given any chance to recover, as within
30046-403: Was because the construction of new fortifications in the border zone by either empire had been prohibited by a treaty concluded some decades earlier. Anastasius pursued the project despite Persian objections, and the walls were completed by 507–508. In 504, the Romans finally gained the upper hand with the renewed investment of Amida, leading to the hand-over of the city. That year an armistice
30227-447: Was captured and circulated by the trading public. When the silver supply in Georgia was restored, Queen Rusudan (r.1223–1245) was able to modify the coinage by issuing her renowned "Botinats" in 1230. The Arabic legend of this series frequently transliterates the Queen's name as "Rusūdān", whereas her copper coins have "Rūsudān" on the description of Rusudan's silver coin from 1230. Georgian coins showed signs of foreign influence when
30408-509: Was dealt with in 1021, Basil II turned his attention to Georgia, leading to a two-year-long war and an eventual Byzantine victory. George, as a result, had to abandon his claims in Tao and surrender some of his southwestern lands, which were eventually made into the theme of Iberia . George's son, who would eventually become Bagrat IV , was also given to Basil as a hostage. Bagrat IV spent the next three years in Constantinople , being released in 1025. George I's death in 1027 saw him succeeded by
30589-512: Was defeated by Roman forces there; attacks from Odaenathus of Palmyra forced the Persians to withdraw from Roman territory, surrendering Cappadocia and Antioch . In 275 and 282 Aurelian and Probus respectively planned to invade Persia, but they were both murdered before they were able to fulfil their plans. In 283 the emperor Carus launched a successful invasion of Persia, sacking its capital, Ctesiphon; they would probably have extended their conquests if Carus had not died in December of
30770-551: Was defeated by the Parthians near Nisibis . In exchange for peace, he was obliged to pay for the damage caused by Caracalla. Conflict resumed shortly after the overthrow of Parthian rule and Ardashir I 's foundation of the Sasanian Empire. Ardashir (r. 226–241) raided Mesopotamia and Syria in 230 and demanded the cession of all the former territories of the Achaemenid Empire . After fruitless negotiations, Alexander Severus set out against Ardashir in 232. One column of his army marched into Armenia, while two other columns operated to
30951-434: Was divided into several neighboring states. George V took good advantage of the created situation. He stopped paying tribute to the Mongols and expelled their army from the country, and successfully restored the country's previous strength and Christian culture. During his reign, Armenian lands, including Ani , were part of the Kingdom of Georgia. In the 1330s, George secured the southwestern province of Klarjeti against
31132-422: Was foreshadowed by a Lakhmid raid led by al-Mundhir IV , which was defeated by the Ghassanids under al-Harith ibn Jabalah. In 540, the Persians broke the "Treaty of Eternal Peace" and Khosrau I invaded Syria, destroying the city of Antioch and deporting its population to Weh Antiok Khosrow in Persia; as he withdrew, he extorted large sums of money from the cities of Syria and Mesopotamia and systematically looted
31313-546: Was given to the Romans. The arrangements of 299 lasted until the mid-330s, when Shapur II began a series of offensives against the Romans. Despite a string of victories in battle, culminating in the overthrow of a Roman army led by Constantius II at Singara (348), his campaigns achieved little lasting effect: three Persian sieges of Nisibis , in that age known as the key to Mesopotamia , were repulsed, and while Shapur succeeded in 359 in successfully laying siege to Amida and taking Singara, both cities were soon regained by
31494-423: Was interrupted by Kavadh I's death and the new Persian king, Khosrau I, re-opened talks in spring 532 and finally signed the Perpetual Peace in September 532, which lasted less than eight years. Both powers agreed to return all occupied territories, and the Romans agreed to make a one-time payment of 110 centenaria (11,000 lb of gold). The Romans recovered the Lazic forts, Iberia remained in Persian hands, and
31675-404: Was known primarily for its war against the Byzantines. This war had its roots in the 990s, when David III, after losing a rebellion against the Byzantine Emperor Basil II , agreed to cede his lands in Tao to the emperor upon his death. George I, in an attempt to take back the Kuropalates' land, occupied Tao starting from 1015 or 1016, during a Byzantine war with the Bulgarian Empire . When Bulgaria
31856-418: Was prevented from attacking Ctesiphon only by the destruction of the bridges on the Nahrawan Canal . Khosrau was overthrown and killed in a coup led by his son Kavadh II , who at once sued for peace, agreeing to withdraw from all occupied territories. Heraclius restored the True Cross to Jerusalem with a majestic ceremony in 629. The devastating impact of this last war, added to the cumulative effects of
32037-411: Was recaptured by Shaddadids . The unified monarchy maintained its precarious independence from the Byzantine and Seljuk empires throughout the 11th century, and flourished under David IV the Builder ( c. 1089–1125), who repelled the Seljuk attacks and essentially completed the unification of Georgia with the re-conquest of Tbilisi in 1122. In spite of repeated incidents of dynastic strife,
32218-434: Was repelled by Abkhazians, Lazic and Iberian allies. This successful defense along with increasing struggles against Byzantium helped lead to a process of unification of the Georgian states into a single feudal monarchy. The Georgian Church broke away from Constantinople in the 9th century, instead recognizing the authority of the Catholicate of Mtskheta . The church language was changed from Greek to Georgian . During
32399-470: Was subdivided into several political units. Kara Koyunlu tribal confederation was destroyed by Aq Qoyunlu , their kin tribesmen who formed another confederation, which was similar in many ways to its predecessor. Aq Qoyunlu Turkomans naturally took advantage of the Georgian fragmentation. Georgia was at least twice attacked by Uzun Hasan , the prince of the Aq Qoyunlu in 1466, 1472 and possibly 1476–7. Bagrat VI of Georgia , temporary ruler of most of Georgia at
32580-400: Was the bubonic plague . It was first introduced in 1346 by the soldiers of George the Brilliant returning from a military expedition in south-western Georgia against invading Osmanli tribesmen. It is said that the plague wiped out a large part, if not half of the Georgian populace. This further weakened the integrity of the kingdom, as well as its military and logistic capabilities. After
32761-422: Was to become a key component of the Roman defenses, and also a lasting source of controversy with the Persians, who complained that it violated the treaty of 422, by which both empires had agreed not to establish new fortifications in the frontier zone. Anastasius, however, pursued the project, and the walls were completed by 507/508. In 524–525 AD, Kavadh proposed that Justin I adopt his son, Khosrau , but
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