Bagrat V ( ka, ბაგრატ V) (1620–1681), of the

Bagrationi Dynasty The Bagrationi dynasty (; ) is a royal dynasty which reigned in Georgia from the Middle Ages until the early 19th century, being among the oldest extant Christian ruling dynasties in the world. In modern usage, the name of the dynasty is sometim ...

, was a

king of Imereti The Kingdom of Imereti ( ka, იმერეთის სამეფო, tr) was a Georgian monarchy established in 1455 by a member of the house of Bagrationi when the Kingdom of Georgia was dissolved into rival kingdoms. Before that time, Im ...

, whose troubled reign in the years of 1660–61, 1663–68, 1669–78, and 1679–81, was marked by extreme instability and feudal anarchy in the kingdom.

Reign

The eldest son of Alexander III of Imereti by his first wife, Bagrat V succeeded on his father's death in 1660. His influential stepmother

Darejan Nestan-Darejan ( ka, ნესტან-დარეჯანი) is a Georgian feminine given name, derived from the Persian ''nest andare jahan'', roughly translated as "the matchless". It occurs in the epic poem by the 12th-century Georgian poe ...

made him marry her niece,

Ketevan Ketevan ( ka, ქეთევანი) is a Georgian feminine given name. It is sometimes used as a Georgian form of Katherine but, in terms of their etymology, the two names aren't related as Katherine has origins in the Greek language while Ketev ...

. However, a year later, Darejan disrupted the union and offered Bagrat herself as a bride. On the king's refusal, Darejan had him arrested and blinded. The queen dowager then remarried an insignificant aristocrat,

Vakhtang Tchutchunashvili Vakhtang Tchutchunashvili ( ka, ვახტანგ ჭუჭუნაშვილი) (died 1668) was a Georgia (country), Georgian nobleman who ruled the Kingdom of Imereti, crown of Imereti, western Georgia, in the years of 1660–1661 and 1668 ...

, and had him crowned as king. The move drew many nobles into opposition. They enlisted the Ottoman and

Mingrelian Mingrelian may refer to: *the Mingrelians *the Mingrelian language Mingrelian or Megrelian (, ) is a Kartvelian language spoken in Western Georgia (regions of Mingrelia and Abkhazia), primarily by the Mingrelians. The language was also called kol ...

support and restored Bagrat. Darejan was exiled to

Akhaltsikhe Akhaltsikhe ( ka, ახალციხე ), formerly known as Lomsia ( ka, ლომსია), is a small city in Georgia's southwestern region (''mkhare'') of Samtskhe–Javakheti. It is situated on both banks of a small river Potskhovi (a left ...

, in the Ottoman-held Georgian province. In 1668, Bagrat was once again dethroned by Darejan's party with the military support of the

pasha Pasha, Pacha or Paşa ( ota, پاشا; tr, paşa; sq, Pashë; ar, باشا), in older works sometimes anglicized as bashaw, was a higher rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, gener ...

of Akhaltsikhe. However, both Darejan and her favorite were soon murdered, and Bagrat reclaimed the crown in 1669. These events had been closely watched by the royal court in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...

, eastern Georgia. King Vakhtang V Shahnawaz of Kartli, whose cooperation with the

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

suzerains allowed him to bring the whole eastern Georgia under his control, campaigned in Imereti and crowned his son Archil as king of Imereti in 1678. Under pressure from the Ottomans, however, Archil was soon recalled from Kutaisi, and Bagrat was replaced on the throne again in 1679.

Family

Bagrat was married three times. His first wife was

, daughter of Prince David of Kakheti, whom he divorced in 1661. He married secondly Tatia, daughter of Constantine I, Prince of Mukhrani, and repudiated the union in 1663 to marry her sister, Tamar (died 1683). He had two sons and three daughters: * Alexander IV (died 1695), born of a concubine, was King of Imereti from 1691 to 1695. * Prince Giorgi (1676–1678), born of Bagrat's marriage to Tamar of Mukhrani. * Princess Darejan (died after 1726), who was married successively to Prince

Giorgi III Gurieli Giorgi III Gurieli ( ka, გიორგი III გურიელი; died 1684), 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 ...

(died 1684), Prince Paata Abashidze (died 1684), and Papuna II, Duke of Racha (died 1696). * Princess Mariam (died c. 1726), who was married successively to Prince Iese Chikovani (died c. 1703) and Shoshita III, Duke of Racha (died 1729). * Princess Tinatin (1678–1760), who was married to Prince Giorgi Gurieli and then Prince

Levan IV Dadiani Levan IV Dadiani ( ka, ლევან IV დადიანი; died 1694) was Prince of Mingrelia from 1681 until 1691, when he was forced to abdicate and retire to Constantinople, where he died. A natural son of the preceding Levan III Dadiani, h ...

(died 1691). She became a nun under the name of Nino in 1704 and followed the suite of

Vakhtang VI of Kartli Vakhtang VI ( ka, ვახტანგ VI), also known as Vakhtang the Scholar, Vakhtang the Lawgiver and Ḥosaynqolī Khan ( fa, حسین‌قلی خان, translit=Hoseyn-Qoli Xān) (September 15, 1675 – March 26, 1737), was a Georgian m ...

in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

in 1724.

References

* Вахушти Багратиони (Vakhushti Bagrationi) (1745)
История Царства Грузинского: Жизнь Имерети
*

David Marshall Lang David Marshall Lang (6 May 1924 – 20 March 1991), was a Professor of Caucasian Studies, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. He was one of the most productive British scholars who specialized in Georgian, Armenian and an ...

, ''The Last Years of the Georgian Monarchy, 1658-1832''.

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

Columbia University Press Columbia University Press is a university press based in New York City, and affiliated with Columbia University. It is currently directed by Jennifer Crewe (2014–present) and publishes titles in the humanities and sciences, including the fiel ...

, 1957. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bagrat 05 Of Imereti 1620 births 1681 deaths Bagrationi dynasty of the Kingdom of Imereti Kings of Imereti 17th-century people from Georgia (country) Eastern Orthodox monarchs Blind royalty and nobility