George XII of Georgia
Encyclopedia
George XII sometimes known as George XIII (November 10, 1746 — December 28, 1800), of the House of Bagrationi
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 the last king of Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
(Kingdom of Kartli and Kakheti) from 1798 until his death in 1800. His brief reign in the closing years of the 18th century was marked by significant political instability which implied the near certainty of a civil strife and a Persian invasion. Overwhelmed by the problems in his realm, George renewed a quest of protection from Tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
Paul I of Russia
Paul I of Russia
Paul I was the Emperor of Russia between 1796 and 1801. He also was the 72nd Prince and Grand Master of the Order of Malta .-Childhood:...
. After his death, the Kingdom of Georgia was abolished and absorbed by Imperial Russia, and the royal family was deported from Georgia.
Early life and ascension to the throne
George was born to Heraclius II (Erekle), then the king of KakhetiKakheti
Kakheti is a historical province in Eastern Georgia inhabited by Kakhetians who speak a local dialect of Georgian. It is bordered by the small mountainous province of Tusheti and the Greater Caucasus mountain range to the north, Russian Federation to the Northeast, Azerbaijan to the Southeast, and...
, and later also 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...
, and his second wife Ana. George was recognized, c. 1766, by his father as Crown Prince
Crown Prince
A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....
-batonishvili
Batonishvili
Batonishvili was a title for princes and princesses of the blood royal in the Transcaucasian kingdom of Georgia, and was suffixed to the Christian name e.g., Alexandre Batonishvili, Ioane Batonishvili...
, and appointed the lord of Pambak
Pambak
Pambak or P’ambak may refer to:*Pambak, Gegharkunik, Armenia*Pambak, Lori, Armenia*Sipan, Armenia, formerly Pambak*Pambak River*Pambak mountains...
and Lori
Lori
Lori may refer to:*Lori *Lori Province, Armenia*Lori , a nomadic community found in Balochistan region of Pakistan and Iran*Luri language , spoken by the Lur people Lorestān, Iran...
(now in Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
). In 1770, he took part in Heraclius’ militarily successful, but ultimately fruitless expedition against the 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...
garrisons in southern Georgia. In the same year, George, together with his half-brother, Prince Levan, campaigned against the defiant eristavi
Eristavi
Eristavi was a Georgian feudal office, roughly equivalent to the Byzantine strategos and normally translated into English as "duke". In the Georgian aristocratic hierarchy, it was the title of the third rank of prince and governor of a large province...
("duke") of the Ksani
Ksani
Ksani is a small river in central Georgia, which rises on the southern slopes of the Greater Caucasus Mountain Range in South Ossetia and flows into the Kura River. Ksani is often associated with the Medieval Georgian Ksani Fortress which lies close to the Ksani River....
and subdued his domain to the royal crown.
George ascended the Georgian throne upon his father’s death on January 12, 1798, being recognized by Tsar Paul on February 22, 1799 and crowned at the Anchiskhati Church
Anchiskhati Church
The Anchiskhati Basilica of St Mary is the oldest surviving church in Tbilisi, Georgia. It belongs to the Georgian Orthodox Church and dates from the sixth century.-History:...
in Tiflis on December 5, 1799. His capital, Tiflis, still lay largely in ruins and the country was suffering after-effects of the Persian invasion of 1795
Battle of Krtsanisi
The Battle of Krtsanisi was fought between Persian and Georgian armies at the place of Krtsanisi near Tbilisi, Georgia, from September 8 to September 11, 1795, as part of the war intended by the Persian ruler Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar as a reprisal for King Heraclius II of Georgia’s alliance with...
which was a response to Heraclius' rapprochement with Imperial Russia (The Treaty of Georgievsk
Treaty of Georgievsk
The Treaty of Georgievsk was a bilateral treaty concluded between the Russian Empire and the east Georgian kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti on July 24, 1783. The treaty established Georgia as a protectorate of Russia, which guaranteed Georgia's territorial integrity and the continuation of its reigning...
of 1783) and his refusal to submit to the Persian authority.
Troubles in Georgia
The three years of his reign was a time of confusion and instability. Unlike his heroic father, George did not enjoy popularity among his subjects and few had any respect for him. Suffering from excess of corpulence and edema, the king mostly lay ill in Tiflis and remained fanatically devout. He was beset by the intrigues of his stepmother, the Dowager Queen Darejan (Darya), who sought to deprive George of the throne in favor one of her own sons. His numerous half-brothers ensconced on the large domains assigned to them by their late father and ignored his authority. One of them, AlexanderAlexander of Georgia
Alexander was a Georgian prince of the Bagrationi family who headed several insurrections against the Russian rule in Georgia between 1800 and 1832. He was known in Persia as Eskandar Mirza.- Early career :...
, left for Dagestan
Dagestan
The Republic of Dagestan is a federal subject of Russia, located in the North Caucasus region. Its capital and the largest city is Makhachkala, located at the center of Dagestan on the Caspian Sea...
and remained in armed opposition to the king and his pro-Russian policies for years.
To make things even worse, Fath Ali Shah of Persia demanded that George XII send his oldest son to Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
as a hostage and commanded to submit his country to the Persian vassalage. Immediately after George’s ascension to the throne, the shah wrote to the Georgian monarch:
"Our lofty standard will proceed to your lands and, just as occurred in the time of Agha Mohammed Khan, so now you will be subjected to doubly increased devastation, and Georgia will again be annihilated, and the Georgian people given over to our wrath."
Thus, living in constant fear of being deposed, or of seeing yet another Persian army invading his kingdom, George was forced to the conclusion that something more than a formal Russian protectorate was needed to ensure the kingdom's survival. By that time, many leading Georgian politicians were disillusioned in the alliance with Russia since the latter had failed to provide any support during the 1795 Persian attack. Furthermore, George’s illness aroused an issue of the king’s possible successor and divided the Georgian nobles into rival parties; one of them seconded the crown prince David, son of George XII
David Bagrationi
David Bagrationi also known as David the Regent was a Georgian prince , writer and scholar, was a regent of the Kingdom of Kartl-Kakheti, eastern Georgia, from December 28, 1800 to January 18, 1801.The eldest son of the last Kartl-Kakhetian, King George XII by his first wife Ketevan...
, and the other proffered the king’s half-brother Yulon.
Alliance with Russia
In order to secure succession to his son, and prevent the kingdom from being dragged into a civil war, George had already sent, in September 1799, an embassy to St Petersburg with instructions to negotiate a new treaty with TsarTsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
Paul I of Russia
Paul I of Russia
Paul I was the Emperor of Russia between 1796 and 1801. He also was the 72nd Prince and Grand Master of the Order of Malta .-Childhood:...
. This time, the imperial government showed more interest towards Georgia as Napoleon
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
’s Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian campaign drew Paul’s attention to the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. In November 1799, a small Russian force arrived in Tiflis and Peter Ivanovich Kovalensky, the Tsar’s envoy, assumed control of Georgia’s foreign relations. Kovalensky and Hājjī Ibrāhīm Shīrāzī, the Persian minister, exchanged fiery notes reaffirming their governments’ determination to keep Georgia under their vassalage and threatening to enforce their interests by force.
The interrupted negotiations between Russia and Georgia were resumed, but gradually shifted focus. King George offered the Tsar more authority over internal and foreign affairs of Georgia provided that the right of his dynasty to rule the country and the autocephaly
Autocephaly
Autocephaly , in hierarchical Christian churches and especially Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches, is the status of a hierarchical church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop...
of the Georgian Orthodox Church would be guaranteed. However, while the Georgian envoys were in St Petersburg still negotiating the terms of the new treaty, Paul I decided to annex the kingdom outright and, in November 1800, wrote to the Russia commander in Tiflis: "The weakening of the king’s health gives ground for expecting his decease; you are therefore immediately to dispatch, as soon as this occurs, a proclamation in Our name that until Our consent is received no action should be taken even to nominate an heir to the Georgian throne." On December 18, 1800, the Tsar signed a manifesto unilaterally annexing the Georgian realm to the Russian crown. Neither Paul nor George were fated to see the manifesto published, however. On 28 December 1800, before his emissaries had returned from St. Petersburg, George XII died and his son, David, declared himself a regent of Georgia. Paul himself was murdered on March 11, 1801, and his successor, Alexander I
Alexander I of Russia
Alexander I of Russia , served as Emperor of Russia from 23 March 1801 to 1 December 1825 and the first Russian King of Poland from 1815 to 1825. He was also the first Russian Grand Duke of Finland and Lithuania....
refused David to be crowned a king and formally reaffirmed the annexation in the September 12, 1801 decree.
Marriages and children
George was married twice, first to Princess Ketevan née Andronikashvili (1754–1782), and then to Princess Mariam née Tsitsishvili (1768–1850). He fathered fourteen sons and nine daughters.Sons
- DavidDavid BagrationiDavid Bagrationi also known as David the Regent was a Georgian prince , writer and scholar, was a regent of the Kingdom of Kartl-Kakheti, eastern Georgia, from December 28, 1800 to January 18, 1801.The eldest son of the last Kartl-Kakhetian, King George XII by his first wife Ketevan...
(1767—1819) - IoanIoane BagrationiIoane Bagrationi was a Georgian prince , writer and encyclopedist....
(1768—1839) - Luarsab (1771 — before 1798)
- BagratBagrat BagrationiBagrat Bagrationi was a son of George XII of Georgia, the last reigning king of Georgia. Prince Nugzar Bagration-Gruzinsky, the senior claimant to the Georgian throne, is a direct descendent of his....
(1776—1841) - Solomon (1780 — before 1798)
- TeimurazTeimuraz BagrationiTeimuraz Bagrationi otherwise known as tsarevich Teimuraz Georgievich was a Georgian prince and scholar primarily known as an author of the first critical history in Georgian as well as for his work to popularize interest in the history and culture of Georgia and preserve its treasures.Prince...
(1782—1846) - Michel (1783—1862)
- Jibrail (1788—1812)
- Elizbar (1790—1854)
- Joseph (died before 1798)
- Spiridon (died before 1798)
- OkropirOkropir BagrationiOk'ropir Bagrationi known in Russia as Tsarevich Okropir Georgievich Gruzinsky was a Georgian prince of the Bagrationi Dynasty....
(1795—1857) - Svimeon (born 1796 — died in infancy)
- Irakli (1799—1859)
Daughters
- Varvara (1769—1801)
- Sophio (1771—1840)
- Nino (1772—1847)
- Salome (died in infancy)
- Rhipsime (1776—1847)
- Gayana (1780—1820)
- Thamar (1788—1850)
- Ana (1789—1796)
- Ana (1800—1850)