Gvantsa ( ka, გვანცა, or,
archaically
In language, an archaism (from the grc, ἀρχαϊκός, ''archaïkós'', 'old-fashioned, antiquated', ultimately , ''archaîos'', 'from the beginning, ancient') is a word, a sense of a word, or a style of speech or writing that belongs to a hi ...
, Guantsa, გუანცა; also transliterated as Gwantza, Gontza, Gontsa, or Gonc'a) (died c. 1263) was a
Queen Consort 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 ...
as the third wife of King
David VII “Ulu” (
r.: 1245-1270).
She was the daughter of Kakhaber IV
Kakhaberidze,
Duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
of
Racha
Racha (also Račha, , ''Račʼa'') is a highland area in western Georgia, located in the upper Rioni river valley and hemmed in by the Greater Caucasus mountains. Under Georgia's current subdivision, Racha is included in the Racha-Lechkhumi and ...
and
Takveri
Lechkhumi (Georgian: ლეჩხუმი, ''Lečxumi'') is a historic province in northwestern Georgia which comprises the area along the middle basin of the Rioni and Tskhenistskali and also the Lajanuri river valley. Now part of the Racha-Le ...
, who married Gvantsa off to Prince
Avag Mkhargrdzeli
Avag Mkhargrdzeli (died 1250 AD) was a Georgian noble of Armenian descent, he was ''atabeg'' and ''amirspasalar'' of Georgia during the 13th century.
The eastern areas Bjni, Gegharkunik, Vayots-dzor, Artsakh, Siunik, Nakhichevan, Dvin and ...
,
Lord High Tutor and
Lord High Constable of Georgia with whom she begot a daughter Khvashak. After Avag’s death in 1250, Gvantsa remarried the Georgian king David VII in 1252 and gave birth to a son, the future king
Demetrius II of Georgia
Demetrius II the Self-Sacrificer or the Devoted ( ka, დემეტრე II თავდადებული) (1259–12 March 1289) of the Bagrationi dynasty, was king of Georgia in 1270–1289.
Life
Son of King David VII and his wife Gv ...
, in 1259. In the meantime, Khvashak was reared by the king’s trustee
Sumbat Orbeli or
Sadun of Mankaberdi (here the medieval sources diverge) and later given in marriage to
Shams al-Din Juvayni
Shams al-Din Juvayni ( fa, شمسالدین جوینی; also spelled Joveyni) was a Persian statesman and member of the Juvayni family. He was an influential figure in early Ilkhanate politics, serving as ''sahib-i divan'' (vizier and minist ...
, an influential minister at the Mongol
Il-Khan
The Ilkhanate, also spelled Il-khanate ( fa, ایل خانان, ''Ilxānān''), known to the Mongols as ''Hülegü Ulus'' (, ''Qulug-un Ulus''), was a khanate established from the southwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. The Ilkhanid realm, ...
’s court.
Unlike David VII's first wife, the late Jigda-Khatun, Gvantsa was on extremely bad terms with the influential royal favorite
Jikur, the
Master of Ceremonies (''mestumre'') of Georgia. Jikur's rivals exploited this enmity and accused him of treason before the king who had him executed by drowning in the
Mtkvari River
The Kura is an east-flowing river south of the Greater Caucasus Mountains which drains the southern slopes of the Greater Caucasus east into the Caspian Sea. It also drains the north side of the Lesser Caucasus while its main tributary, the Ar ...
. When David staged a failed revolt from the Il-Khan hegemony in 1260, Gvantsa was captured by the Mongol punitive forces and killed on the orders of the Il-Khan
Hulagu
Hulagu Khan, also known as Hülegü or Hulegu ( mn, Хүлэгү/ , lit=Surplus, translit=Hu’legu’/Qülegü; chg, ; Arabic: fa, هولاکو خان, ''Holâku Khân;'' ; 8 February 1265), was a Mongol ruler who conquered much of West ...
through the intrigues of rival Georgian nobles.
[ Brosset, Marie-Félicité. ''Histoire de la Géorgie depuis l’antiquite jusqu’ au XIX siècle, v. 1-7'', pp. 554-555. St.-Рb., 1848-58.]
References
1260s deaths
13th-century executions
13th-century people from Georgia (country)
Executed royalty
Executed women from Georgia (country)
Queens consort from Georgia (country)
People executed by the Mongol Empire
Year of birth unknown
13th-century women from Georgia (country)
{{georgia-royal-stub