Rostom Gurieli

Last updated February 19, 2019

Rostom Gurieli (Georgian :როსტომ გურიელი; died 1564), of the House of Gurieli, was Prince of Guria from 1534 until his death in 1564. Alongside his royal suzerain, Bagrat III of Imereti, Rostom fought against the expanding Ottoman Empire to which he lost parts of his principality. Rostom's relations with Bagrat III subsequently deteriorated over his support to the king's defiant vassal, Levan I Dadiani.

Georgian is a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians. It is the official language of Georgia.

The House of Gurieli was a Georgian princely (mtavari) family and a ruling dynasty (dukes) of the southwestern Georgian province of Guria, which was autonomous and later, for a few centuries, independent. A few ducal rulers of the dynasty also rose in the 17th-18th centuries to be kings of the whole western Caucasus in place of the hereditary Bagrationi kings of Imereti.

The Principality of Guria was a historical state in Georgia. Centered on modern-day Guria, a southwestern region in Georgia, it was located between the Black Sea and Lesser Caucasus, and was ruled by a succession of twenty-two princes of the House of Gurieli from the 1460s to 1829. The principality emerged during the process of fragmentation of a unified Kingdom of Georgia. Its boundaries fluctuated in the course of permanent conflicts with neighboring Georgian rulers and Ottoman Empire, and the principality enjoyed various degrees of autonomy until being annexed by Imperial Russia in 1829.

Accession

Rostom was a son of Mamia I Gurieli by his wife Ketevan. In 1533, Mamia was taken captive during his disastrous expedition against the Circassians in which Rostom's brother Giorgi was killed. Rostom had to ransom his father, on whose death he succeeded as Prince of Guria a year later. By that time, Guria, a principality on Georgia's southwestern Black Sea coast, had been menaced by the resurgent Ottoman Empire, then being in war with Safavid Persia over hegemony in the Caucasus. Rostom stood by the side of his official royal suzerain, King Bagrat III of Imereti, in his struggle against the Ottoman encroachment.^[1]

Mamia I Gurieli, of the House of Gurieli, was Prince of Guria from 1512 until his death in 1534. Succeeding on the death of his father Giorgi I Gurieli, Mamia became involved in the conflict between the two eastern Georgian kingdoms of Kartli and Kakheti in 1520; by force of arms, he compelled David X of Kartli to agree on peace with Levan of Kakheti, his son-in-law. Mamia Gurieli's 1533 campaign, jointly with his namesake Prince of Mingrelia, against the homebase of Circassian pirates ended in a fiasco, with Mamia being captured and ransomed later that year.

The Circassians, also known by their endonym Adyghe, are a Northwest Caucasian nation native to Circassia, many of whom were displaced in the course of the Russian conquest of the Caucasus in the 19th century, especially after the Russo-Circassian War in 1864. In its narrowest sense, the term "Circassian" includes the twelve Adyghe princedoms ; Abdzakh, Besleney, Bzhedug, Hatuqwai, Kabardian, Mamkhegh, Natukhai, Shapsug, Temirgoy, Ubykh, Yegeruqwai and Zhaney, each star on the Circassian flag representing each princedom. However, due to Soviet administrative divisions, Circassians were also designated as the following: Adygeans, Cherkessians, Kabardians and Shapsugians, although all the four are essentially the same people residing in different political units.

The Black Sea is a body of water and marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean between the Balkans, Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Western Asia. It is supplied by a number of major rivers, such as the Danube, Dnieper, Southern Bug, Dniester, Don, and the Rioni. About a third of Europe drains into the Black Sea, including the countries of Austria, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Turkey and Ukraine.

Ottoman wars

In 1535, Rostom joined forces with Bagrat in an invasion of the Principality of Samtskhe, ruled by the pro-Ottoman atabag Qvarqvare III Jaqeli. At the battle of Murjakheti, the atabag was defeated, captured by Gurieli's cup-bearer Isak Artumeladze, and eventually delivered to Bagrat. Qvarqvare died in prison, while Rostom was awarded his share of Samtskhe: Adjara and Chaneti, long sought after by the Gurieli dynasty. The Ottomans retaliated with a major invasion: Bagrat and Rostom were victorious at Karagak in 1543, but decisively defeated, in 1545, at Sokhoista, where Rostom's son Kaikhosro was killed.^[2]^[1]

Qvarqvare III Jaqeli was a Georgian ruling Prince and Atabeg of Samtskhe-Saatabago during 1518–1535. Member of the Jaqeli family and son of Atabeg Kaikhosro I Jaqeli. His failure to capture the throne at the death of his father Kaikhosro may have been caused by the ambition of his uncle Mzetchabuki, who had seized Atabeg's title from him. Despite of this Mzetchabuk Jaqeli declared Qvarqare as his successor. During his uncle's reign Qvarqvare actively involved in state affairs. In 1515 ill Mzetchabuk resigned from the throne and came to the Monastery as a monk. Qvarqvare couldn't ascend to the Meskhetian throne, because his second uncle Manuchar I had revolted. Qvarqvare went to Safavid Persia, became vassal of Shah Ismail I and lived at his court in Tabriz until his accession. In 1518 Qvarqvare commanded Qizilbash army and invaded Samtskhe. Persians dethroned Manuchar I and placed Qvarqvare on the throne. Manuchar invited Ottomans to fight against Safavids and overthrow his nephew, but Qvarqvare's forces defeated him at the battle near Erzurum, after which Manuchar escaped to the Ottoman empire. During Qvarqvare's reign Persian influence on Samtskhe was growing day by day. Because of that Turks greatly damaged the country and especially it's southwestern region. Meskhetian lords had recognized that under Qvarqvare's rule Samtskhe would finally turn to the Enemy's hands. They made an alliance with the Georgian kings, Bagrat III of Imereti and Luarsab I of Kartli to end up Jaqelian rule and protect Samtskhe from dominant Muslim empires (Ottomans and Safavids. In 1535 King Bagrat III invaded Samtskhe. He defeated and captured Qvarqvare III at the Battle of Murjakheti near Akhalkalaki, Georgians had annexed Principality of Samtskhe. Qvarqvare died in prison. A few years later, his survived youngest son Kaikhosro II requested Ottomans to expel Imeretian and Kartlian forces from Samtskhe. In 1545, at the Battle of Sokhoista, Kaikhosro defeated Bagrat III, after which he reinstated his legitimate throne. Samtskhe became vassal of the Ottoman empire. Qvarqvare III's descendants ruled Samtskhe-Saatabago and then Childir Eyalet until 1820s.

The Battle of Murjakheti was fought between the armies of the Kingdom of Imereti and the Principality of Samtskhe at the place of Murjakheti near Akhalkalaki, on 12 August 1535.

A cup-bearer was an officer of high rank in royal courts whose duty it was to serve the drinks at the royal table. On account of the constant fear of plots and intrigues, a person must be regarded as thoroughly trustworthy to hold the position. He must guard against poison in the king's cup and was sometimes required to swallow some of the wine before serving it. His confidential relations with the king often gave him a position of great influence. The position of cup-bearer is greatly valued and given only to a select few throughout history.

In 1547, the Ottoman military imposed a blockade of Guria's coastline and occupied the maritime settlements of Gonio and Batumi. Rostom appealed for help to Bagrat of Imereti and Levan I Dadiani, Prince of Mingrelia. However, the king of Imereti, indignant at Rostom's earlier decline of a combined attack on Mingrelia, disrupted the nascent Dadiani–Gurieli accord. Left to his own devices, Rostom attacked, pushed the Ottoman forces beyond the Chorokhi and forced them to evacuate Batumi, but he failed to prevent the loss of Adjara and Chaneti; the Gonio fortress became an important Ottoman outpost in southwestern Georgia.^[2]^[3]

Batumi is the capital of Autonomous Republic of Adjara and the second-largest city of Georgia, located on the coast of the Black Sea in the country's southwest. It is situated in a Subtropical Zone at the foot of Caucasus. Much of Batumi's economy revolves around tourism and gambling, but the city is also an important sea port and includes industries like shipbuilding, food processing and light manufacturing. Since 2010, Batumi has been transformed by the construction of modern high-rise buildings, as well as the restoration of classical 19th-century edifices lining its historic Old Town.

Levan I Dadiani was a member of the House of Dadiani and ruler of Odishi, that is, Mingrelia, in western Georgia. He succeeded on the death of his father, Mamia III Dadiani, as eristavi ("duke") of Odishi and ex officio mandaturt-ukhutsesi of Imereti in 1533. Dadiani's break with the king of Imereti brought about his downfall and imprisonment in 1546. He was able to escape and regain his possessions, securing Ottoman support for his independence from Imereti.

Rostom died in 1564 and was buried at the Shemokmedi Monastery. He was succeeded by his son, Giorgi II Gurieli.^[4]

The Shemokmedi monastery is a Georgian Orthodox monastery located at the village of Shemokmedi in Georgia's southwestern region of Guria. Founded in the 15th century, the Shemokmedi monastery functioned as a seat of a bishopric and burial ground of the Gurieli princely dynasty. It was a safe-house of church treasures and, over the centuries, had accumulated an extensive collection of various objects from other Georgian monasteries. Parts of the collection, which survived the 19th-century robbers, are now on display in Georgia's museums.

Giorgi II Gurieli, of the House of Gurieli, was Prince of Guria from 1564 to 1583 and again from 1587 to 1600. Succeeding on the death of his father Rostom Gurieli, Giorgi's rule over his small principality, located in southwest Georgia, was a period of conflict with the neighboring Dadiani of Mingrelia and increasing assertiveness of the Ottomans whom Gurieli submitted in 1581. His reign was interrupted, from 1583 to 1587, by a Mingrelian invasion, but Giorgi was able to resume the throne with Ottoman support.

Family

Rostom Gurieli was married twice, first to Princess Tinatin (fl. 1534), a member of the Imeretian royal family, and secondly, to Princess Tamar (fl. 1562). He fathered three sons and two daughters:^[4]

Prince Kaikhosro (died 1545), killed in the battle of Sokhoista with the Ottoman army;
Prince Giorgi II (died 1600), Prince-regnant of Guria (1566–1583, 1587–1600);
Princess Rodam, the first wife of Giorgi III Dadiani, Prince of Mingrelia (divorced in 1564);
Princess N., wife of Mamia IV Dadiani;
Possibly, Prince Vakhtang I (died 1587), Prince-regnant of Guria (1583–1587).

Related Research Articles

Bagrat III (1495-1565), of the Bagrationi dynasty, was a King of Imereti from April 1, 1510, to 1565. He succeeded upon the death of his father, Alexander II, and faced repeated assaults from the Ottoman Turks as well as the conflicts with his ostensible vassal princes of Mingrelia, Guria, and Abkhazia who were frequently joining the enemy.

Giorgi III Gurieli, of the Georgian House of Gurieli, was Prince of Guria from 1669 to 1684 and King of Imereti from 1681 to 1683. He was energetically involved in civil wars in western Georgian polities, which he sought to bring under his sway. He was killed in battle while trying to recover the lost throne of Imereti.

Mamia III Gurieli, also known as Mamia the Great Gurieli or the Black Gurieli, of the western Georgian House of Gurieli, was Prince of Guria from 1689 to 1714. Involved in civil wars plaguing western Georgia, he became King of Imereti three times in the years of 1701, 1711–1712, and 1713–1714. After his first reign as king for a year in 1701, he abdicated the throne of Imereti, being unable to tolerate the influence of his father-in-law Giorgi Abashidze. Subsequent periods of his royal career was the result of a feud with Giorgi VII of Imereti. Mamia died while still sitting on the throne of Imereti, which then reverted to his rival Giorgi VII.

Giorgi IV Gurieli, of the House of Gurieli, was Prince of Guria from 1711 to 1726, and a king of Imereti in western Georgia in 1716. He was installed as regent of Guria by his father, Mamia III Gurieli, then the king of Imereti, in 1712. In 1716, he seized the crown of Imereti, but was forced to abandon the enterprise later that year. Returning to Guria, his rule was challenged by a faction of local nobility, which included his mother Elene and brother Kaikhosro III Gurieli. He was finally able to crush the opposition after making peace with Bezhan Dadiani, Prince of Mingrelia.

The Battle of Sokhoista was fought between the Ottoman and Georgian armies at the Sokhoista field in what is now northeastern Turkey in 1545. It was the last attempt of the separate Georgian dynasts to fight as one unit against the Ottoman expansion, but ended in their decisive defeat. This might be the same battle as mentioned by Rüstem Pasha to have been fought at nearby Zivin.

Giorgi III Dadiani was Prince of Mingrelia, of the House of Dadiani, from 1572 to 1573 and again from 1578 until his death. He was a son and successor of Levan I Dadiani.

Mamia IV Dadiani was Prince of Mingrelia, of the House of Dadiani, from 1573 to 1578 and again from 1582 until his death. He was a younger son of Levan I Dadiani.

Manuchar I Dadiani was Prince of Mingrelia, of the House of Dadiani, from 1590 until his death. A younger son of Levan I Dadiani, he succeeded on the death of his elder brother, Mamia IV Dadiani.

Kakhaber II Gurieli, of the House of Gurieli, was eristavi ("duke") of Guria from c. 1469 until his death in 1483.

Vakhtang I Gurieli, of the House of Gurieli, was Prince of Guria from 1583 to 1587. He ruled Guria, a small state in southwestern Georgia, as a client of Mamia IV Dadiani, Prince of Mingrelia, who had deposed Giorgi II Gurieli. Vakhtang was one of the sponsors of the Shemokmedi Monastery, Guria's principal cathedral.

Mamia II Gurieli, of the House of Gurieli, was Prince of Guria from 1600 until his death at the hands of his own son Simon in 1625. Mamia's rule over his small principality, located in southwest Georgia, saw efforts to rebuff encroachments of the Ottoman Empire, with which he was forced to make peace in 1614, conceding the loss of territories and placing Guria under the obligation of paying tribute.

Mamia IV Gurieli, of the western Georgian House of Gurieli, was Prince of Guria from 1726 to 1756 and again from 1758 to 1765 and from 1771 to 1776. Intermissions of his rule was the result of Mamia's rivalry with his younger brother, Giorgi V Gurieli, and complex political situation in the region, including the Ottoman encroachments and efforts by the kings of Imereti to bring western Georgian polities under their supreme authority.

Giorgi V Gurieli, of the western Georgian House of Gurieli, was Prince of Guria from 1756 to 1758 and again from 1765 to 1771 and from 1776 to 1788.

The Ottoman invasion of Guria was remarkable event of Ottoman Empire against Principality of Guria, which resulted by occupation of the Chaneti (Lazistan) and Adjara; maritime settlements of Gonio and Batumi, in 1547.

References

1 2 Rayfield, Donald (2012). Edge of Empires: A History of Georgia. London: Reaktion Books. pp. 168–170. ISBN 1780230303.
1 2 Bagrationi, Vakhushti (1976). Nakashidze, N.T., ed. История Царства Грузинского [History of the Kingdom of Georgia](PDF) (in Russian). Tbilisi: Metsniereba. pp. 133–135.
↑ Church, Kenneth (2001). From dynastic principality to imperial district: the incorporation of Guria into the Russian Empire to 1856 (Ph.D.). University of Michigan. pp. 127–129.
1 2 Grebelsky, P. Kh.; Dumin, S.V.; Lapin, V.V. (1993). Дворянские роды Российской империи. Том 4: Князья Царства Грузинского[Noble families of the Russian Empire. Vol. 4: Princes of the Kingdom of Georgia] (in Russian). Vesti. pp. 36–37.

Regnal titles
Rostom Gurieli House of Gurieli
Preceded by Mamia I Gurieli	Prince of Guria 1534–1564	Succeeded by Giorgi II Gurieli

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[ray-1] 1 2 Rayfield, Donald (2012). Edge of Empires: A History of Georgia. London: Reaktion Books. pp. 168–170. ISBN 1780230303.

[Vakh-2] 1 2 Bagrationi, Vakhushti (1976). Nakashidze, N.T., ed. История Царства Грузинского [History of the Kingdom of Georgia](PDF) (in Russian). Tbilisi: Metsniereba. pp. 133–135.

[3] Church, Kenneth (2001). From dynastic principality to imperial district: the incorporation of Guria into the Russian Empire to 1856 (Ph.D.). University of Michigan. pp. 127–129.

[DRRI-4] 1 2 Grebelsky, P. Kh.; Dumin, S.V.; Lapin, V.V. (1993). Дворянские роды Российской империи. Том 4: Князья Царства Грузинского[Noble families of the Russian Empire. Vol. 4: Princes of the Kingdom of Georgia] (in Russian). Vesti. pp. 36–37.