George II (died 1585), of the Bagrationi Dynasty

Bagrationi Dynasty

The Bagrationi dynasty was the ruling family of Georgia. Their ascendency lasted from the early Middle Ages until the early 19th century. In modern usage, this royal line is frequently referred to as the Georgian Bagratids, a Hellenized form of their dynastic name.The origin of the Bagrationi...

, was a king of Imereti

Kingdom of Imereti

The Kingdom of Imereti was established in 1455 by a member of the house of Bagration when the Kingdom of Georgia was dissolved into rival kingdoms. Before that time, Imereti was considered a separate kingdom within the Kingdom of Georgia, to which a cadet branch of the Bagration royal family held...

 from 1565 to 1585. He succeeded on the death of his father, Bagrat III

Bagrat III of Imereti

Bagrat III , 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...

. With his ascend to the throne, George found himself involved in the civil war among the princes of western Georgia. He sided with his nominal vassal, Prince George II Gurieli of Guria

Principality of Guria

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...

, against Levan II Dadiani, the energetic ruler of Mingrelia. The latter allied himself with Prince Varaz Chiladze, and attempted, in 1568, to oust George II in favor of the royal cousin, Khosro. The king emerged victorious and, together with the prince of Guria, took control of Mingrelia. Levan fled to Istanbul

Istanbul

Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

 and, with an Ottoman

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 support, resumed the throne, forcing Gurieli to plea for peace. Later, the two princes forged an alliance and revolted against the king. The western Georgian princes became engulfed into havoc of feudal warfare, mounting and disbanding alliances, and raiding the rival fiefdoms. In addition to the civil strife, the Ottomans also increased their pressure upon the Kingdom of Imereti. Although George II was able to block the advance of the Turkish commander Lala Mustafa Pasha

Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha

Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha was an Ottoman general and Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire.He had risen to the position of Beylerbey of Damascus and then to that of Fifth Vizier...

 from eastern Georgia in 1578, he had to submit to the sultan’s order and, in 1581, at the head of a combined Imeretian-Mingrelian-Gurian army, raided the eastern Georgian kingdom of Kartli

Kartli

Kartli is a historical region in central-to-eastern Georgia traversed by the river Mtkvari , on which Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, is situated. Known to the Classical authors as Iberia, Kartli played a crucial role in ethnic and political consolidation of the Georgians in the Middle Ages...

 whose ruler, Simon I

Simon I of Kartli

Simon I also known as Svimon , of the Bagrationi dynasty, was a Georgian king of Kartli from 1556 to 1569 and again from 1578 to 1599...

, waged a relentless guerrilla warfare against the Ottoman army.