The Duchy of Tskhumi ( ka, ცხუმის საერისთავო) was a
duchy
A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a Middle Ages, medieval country, territory, fiefdom, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or Queen regnant, queen in Western European tradition.
There once exis ...
(''
saeristavo
Saeristavo ( ka, საერისთავო), in historical and scientific literature with this term is defined a territorial unit in old Georgia, which was ruled by Eristavi (duke).
List of the Duchies of Kingdom of Georgia
See also
*Eris ...
'') in a
medieval Georgia
The nation of Georgia ( ka, საქართველო ''sakartvelo'') was first unified as a kingdom under the Bagrationi dynasty by the King Bagrat III of Georgia in the early 11th century, arising from a number of predecessor states of ...
. Ruled by a
House of Shervashidze
The House of Sharvashidze or Chachba or Shervashidze ( ka, შარვაშიძე-შერვაშიძე-ჩაჩბა) was a Georgian- Abkhazian ruling family of Principality of Abkhazia. The family was later recognized as one of the ...
, the duchy existed from 8th to 14th century, in the north-western part of
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
and comprised territories around modern
Sukhumi
Sukhumi (russian: Суху́м(и), ) or Sokhumi ( ka, სოხუმი, ), also known by its Abkhaz name Aqwa ( ab, Аҟәа, ''Aqwa''), is a city in a wide bay on the Black Sea's eastern coast. It is both the capital and largest city of ...
,
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
.
History
![2014 Suchum, Pozostałości zamku Bagrata (02)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/2014_Suchum%2C_Pozosta%C5%82o%C5%9Bci_zamku_Bagrata_%2802%29.jpg)
Duchy of Tskhumi was probably formed as a separated
feudal
Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a wa ...
entity during the reign of
Leon II on the lands of ancient
Apsiles. Forming one of the eight duchies of
Kingdom of Abkhazia
The Kingdom of Abkhazia ( ka, აფხაზთა სამეფო, tr; lit. "Kingdom of the Abkhazians"), also known as Abasgia or Egrisi-Abkhazia, was a Middle Ages, medieval feudalism, feudal state in the Caucasus which was established i ...
, it comprised territories above
Lazica
Lazica ( ka, ეგრისი, ; lzz, ლაზიკა, ; grc-gre, Λαζική, ; fa, لازستان, ; hy, Եգեր, ) was the Latin name given to the territory of Colchis during the Roman/Byzantine period, from about the 1st centur ...
up to
Anacopia
New Athos or Akhali Atoni ( ka, ახალი ათონი, ''Akhali Atoni''; ab, Афон Ҿыц, ''Afon Ch'yts''; russian: Новый Афон; ''Novy Afon'', gr, Νέος Άθως, ''Neos Athos'') is a town in the Gudauta ''raion'' of ...
and
Alania
Alania was a medieval kingdom of the Iranian Alans (proto-Ossetians) that flourished in the Northern Caucasus, roughly in the location of latter-day Circassia, Chechnya, Ingushetia, and modern North Ossetia–Alania, from its independence from th ...
.
Bagrat's castle served as the seat of the
Eristavi
''Eristavi'' (; literally, "head of the nation") was a Georgian feudal office, roughly equivalent to the Byzantine ''strategos'' and normally translated into English as "prince" or less commonly as "duke". In the Georgian aristocratic hierarchy, i ...
of Tskhumi.
In 1033,
Bagrat IV's half-brother
Demetre organized the plot with the aim of dethrone his brother. Although an attempt by some great nobles to exploit Demetre's possible aspirations to the throne in their opposition to Bagrat's rule failed. Now threatened by Bagrat, the
dowager
A dowager is a widow or widower who holds a title or property—a "dower"—derived from her or his deceased spouse. As an adjective, ''dowager'' usually appears in association with monarchy, monarchical and aristocracy, aristocratic Title#Aristocr ...
Queen Alda defected to the Byzantines and surrendered Anacopia to the emperor
Romanos III
Romanos III Argyros ( el, Ρωμανός Αργυρός; Latinized Romanus III Argyrus; 968 – 11 April 1034), or Argyropoulos was Byzantine Emperor from 1028 until his death. He was a Byzantine noble and senior official in Constantinople whe ...
who honored her son Demetre with the rank of ''
magistros
The ''magister officiorum'' (Latin literally for "Master of Offices", in gr, μάγιστρος τῶν ὀφφικίων, magistros tōn offikiōn) was one of the most senior administrative officials in the Later Roman Empire and the early centu ...
''. According to the words of the chronicler of ''
The Georgian Chronicles
''The Georgian Chronicles'' is a conventional English name for the principal compendium of medieval Georgian historical texts, natively known as ''Kartlis Tskhovreba'' ( ka, ქართლის ცხოვრება), literally "Life of Ka ...
'': King Bagrat defeated united army of his opponents and then besieged Anacopia, then he went back, leaving
Eristav
''Eristavi'' (; literally, "head of the nation") was a Georgian feudal office, roughly equivalent to the Byzantine '' strategos'' and normally translated into English as "prince" or less commonly as "duke". In the Georgian aristocratic hierarchy, ...
of Abkhazia - Otago Chachasdze and his army to take charge of the fortress. Owing to the active support of the Abkhazian Eristav, Bagrat IV managed to return the fortress of Anacopia to Georgia.
![Beslet bridge](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Beslet_bridge.JPG)
In 12th century, king
David the Builder
David IV, also known as David the Builder ( ka, დავით აღმაშენებელი, ') (1073–1125), of the Bagrationi dynasty, was the 5th king of United Georgia from 1089 until his death in 1125.
Popularly considered to be ...
appointed the son of
shah
Shah (; fa, شاه, , ) is a royal title that was historically used by the leading figures of Iranian monarchies.Yarshater, EhsaPersia or Iran, Persian or Farsi, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) It was also used by a variety of ...
Shirvan
Shirvan (from fa, شروان, translit=Shirvān; az, Şirvan; Tat: ''Şirvan''), also spelled as Sharvān, Shirwan, Shervan, Sherwan and Šervān, is a historical Iranian region in the eastern Caucasus, known by this name in both pre-Islam ...
Otagho as a
viceroy
A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...
of Abkhazia, who later became the founder of
House of Shervashidze
The House of Sharvashidze or Chachba or Shervashidze ( ka, შარვაშიძე-შერვაშიძე-ჩაჩბა) was a Georgian- Abkhazian ruling family of Principality of Abkhazia. The family was later recognized as one of the ...
. The city of Tskhumi (
Sukhumi
Sukhumi (russian: Суху́м(и), ) or Sokhumi ( ka, სოხუმი, ), also known by its Abkhaz name Aqwa ( ab, Аҟәа, ''Aqwa''), is a city in a wide bay on the Black Sea's eastern coast. It is both the capital and largest city of ...
) became the summer residence of the
Georgian kings. According to Russian scholar V. Sizov, it became an important "cultural and administrative center of the
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
state.
["ABKHAZIA – UNFALSIFIED HISTORY" Giorgi Sharvashidze.](_blank)
/ref> The historian Yuri Voronov also conjectured that castle might have hosted the queen-regnant Tamar of Georgia
Tamar the Great ( ka, თამარ მეფე, tr, lit. "King Tamar") ( 1160 – 18 January 1213) reigned as the Queen of Georgia from 1184 to 1213, presiding over the apex of the Georgian Golden Age. A member of the Bagrationi dynasty ...
during her stays in Abkhazia in the early 13th century. During this period the Eristavi (Duke) of Tskhumi was Otagho Shervashidze.
In the 1240s, Mongols
The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal membe ...
divided Georgia into eight military-administrative sectors ( Tumens), the territory of contemporary Abkhazia formed part of the duman administered by Tsotne Dadiani
Tsotne Dadiani ( ka, ცოტნე დადიანი) (died ) was a Georgian nobleman of the House of Dadiani and one of the leading political figures in the time of Mongol ascendancy in Georgia. Around 1246, he was part of a failed plot aim ...
of Odishi
Odishi ( ka, ოდიში) was a historical district in western Georgia, the core fiefdom of the former Principality of Mingrelia, with which the name "Odishi" was frequently coterminous. Since the early 19th century, this toponym has been su ...
. Vakhushti
Vakhushti ( ka, ვახუშტი, tr) (1696–1757) was a Georgian royal prince ('' batonishvili''), geographer, historian and cartographer. His principal historical and geographic works, '' Description of the Kingdom of Georgia'' and the '' ...
notes that Duchy started to decline in 14th century after consolidation of power in western Georgia by dukes of Odishi. During the civil war between the successors of Imeretian King David Narin — Constantine
Constantine most often refers to:
* Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I
*Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria
Constantine may also refer to:
People
* Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...
and Michael
Michael may refer to:
People
* Michael (given name), a given name
* Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael
Given name "Michael"
* Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian an ...
, Duke of Odishi, Giorgi I Dadiani Giorgi I Dadiani ( ka, გიორგი I დადიანი; died 1323) was a member of the House of Dadiani and ''eristavi'' ("duke") of Odishi in western Georgia from the late 13th century until his death.
The principal source on Giorgi Dad ...
, subjugated much of the duchy of Tskhumi and expanded his possessions up to Anacopia, while the Shervashidze entrenched in Abkhazia
Abkhazia, ka, აფხაზეთი, tr, , xmf, აბჟუა, abzhua, or ( or ), officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, recognised by most countries as part of Georgia, which vi ...
, from that time on Georgian monarchs were recognizing Tskhumi as a feudal domains of House of Dadiani
The House of Dadiani ( ka, დადიანი ), later known as the House of Dadiani- Chikovani, was a Georgian family of nobles, dukes and princes, and a ruling dynasty of the western Georgian province of Mingrelia.
The House of Dadiani
Th ...
.
In the 12th–13th centuries, Tskhumi became a center of traffic with the European maritime powers. The Republic of Genoa
The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the Lat ...
established their short-lived trading factory at Tskhumi (''Sebastopolis'') early in the 14th century. Tskhumi served as capital of the Odishi-Megrelian rulers, it was in this city that Vamek I ( 1384-1396), the most influential Dadiani, minted his coins. Documents of the 15th century clearly distinguished Tskhumi from Principality of Abkhazia
The Principality of Abkhazia ( ka, აფხაზეთის სამთავრო, tr) emerged as a separate feudal entity in the 15th-16th centuries, amid the civil wars in the Kingdom of Georgia that concluded with the Triarchy and coll ...
. The Ottoman navy occupied the town in 1451, but for a short time. Later contested between the princes of Abkhazia
Abkhazia, ka, აფხაზეთი, tr, , xmf, აბჟუა, abzhua, or ( or ), officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, recognised by most countries as part of Georgia, which vi ...
and Mingrelia
Mingrelia ( ka, სამეგრელო, tr; xmf, სამარგალო, samargalo; ab, Агырны, Agirni) is a historic province in the western part of Georgia, formerly known as Odishi. It is primarily inhabited by the Mingrelian ...
, Tskhumi (''Suhum-Kale'') temporarily fell to the Ottoman hands in 1578.
Rulers
* Otagho I Shervashidze (?–1138)
* Otagho II Shervashidze (1184–1213)["Histories and Praises of Crowned Monarchs" 1959: 33-34]
* Dardin Shervashidze (?–1243)
*Tsotne Dadiani
Tsotne Dadiani ( ka, ცოტნე დადიანი) (died ) was a Georgian nobleman of the House of Dadiani and one of the leading political figures in the time of Mongol ascendancy in Georgia. Around 1246, he was part of a failed plot aim ...
(1245–c. 1260)
* Bedan Dadiani (c. 1270s– c. 1290s)
*Giorgi I Dadiani Giorgi I Dadiani ( ka, გიორგი I დადიანი; died 1323) was a member of the House of Dadiani and ''eristavi'' ("duke") of Odishi in western Georgia from the late 13th century until his death.
The principal source on Giorgi Dad ...
(c. 1293–1323)
* Mamia I Dadiani (1323–1345)
* Giorgi II Dadiani (1345–1384)
*Vameq I Dadiani Vameq I Dadiani ( ka, ვამეყ I დადიანი; died 1396) was a member of the House of Dadiani and ''eristavi'' ("duke") of Odishi in western Georgia from 1384 until his death.
Vameq succeeded on the death of his father, Giorgi II ...
(1384–1396)
* Mamia II Dadiani (1396–1403)
*Shervashidze (1403–1412?)
*Liparit I Dadiani
Liparit I Dadiani ( ka, ლიპარიტ I დადიანი; died 1470) was a member of the House of Dadiani and '' eristavi'' ("duke") of Odishi, latter-day Mingrelia, in western Georgia from 1414 until his death. Under his rule, Mingrel ...
(1414–1470)
*Shamadavle Dadiani Shamadavle Dadiani (also Shamandavle or Shamandavla; ka, შამადავლე დადიანი; died 1474) was a member of the House of Dadiani and ''eristavi'' ("duke") of Odishi ( Mingrelia) in western Georgia from 1470 until his deat ...
(1470–1473)
*Vameq II Dadiani
Vameq II Dadiani (also Vamiq; ka, ვამეყ ამიყII დადიანი; died 1482) was a member of the House of Dadiani and ''eristavi'' ("duke") of Odishi ( Mingrelia) in western Georgia from 1474 until his death.
Vameq was th ...
(1474–1482)
*Liparit II Dadiani Liparit II Dadiani ( ka, ლიპარიტ II დადიანი; died 1512) was a member of the House of Dadiani and ''eristavi'' ("duke") of Odishi, that is, Mingrelia, in western Georgia from 1482 until his death.
Liparit was a son of Sh ...
(1482–1512)
*Mamia III Dadiani Mamia III Dadiani ( ka, მამია III დადიანი; died 31 January 1533) was a member of the House of Dadiani and '' eristavi'' ("duke") of Odishi, that is, Mingrelia, in western Georgia from 1512 until his death. Mamia was a son and ...
(1512–1533)
*Levan I Dadiani
Levan I Dadiani (also Leon; ka, ლევან ეონI დადიანი; died 1572) 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 ...
(1533–1546)
*Giorgi III Dadiani
Giorgi III Dadiani ( ka, გიორგი III დადიანი; died 1582) 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.
Giorgi Dad ...
(1546–1574)
* Mamia IV Dadiani (1574–1578)
*Haydar Pasha (1578–1581)
*Puto Shervashidze (1581–?)
See also
* Duchy of Aragvi
The Duchy of Aragvi ( ka, არაგვის საერისთავო) was an important fiefdom in medieval and early modern Georgia, strategically located in the upper Aragvi valley, in the foothills of the eastern Greater Caucasus cres ...
* Duchy of Racha
The Duchy of Racha ( ka, რაჭის საერისთავო, ''rach'is saerist'avo'') was an important fiefdom in medieval and early modern Georgia, located in the western province of Racha, in the upper Rioni Valley in the foothills ...
* Duchy of Ksani
The Duchy of Ksani ( ka, ქსნის საერისთავო) was an administrative unit in feudal Georgia. It consisted lands around Ksani and two more neighbouring south-western valleys, thus making two administrative entities: Ksni ...
References
{{Kingdom of Georgia topics
Duchies of the Kingdom of Georgia
Principality of Abkhazia
The Principality of Abkhazia ( ka, აფხაზეთის სამთავრო, tr) emerged as a separate feudal entity in the 15th-16th centuries, amid the civil wars in the Kingdom of Georgia that concluded with the Triarchy and coll ...
House of Shervashidze