Gubazes II ( ka, გუბაზ II, el, Γουβάζης) was king of
Lazica (modern western
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 ...
) from circa 541 until his assassination in 555. He was one of the central personalities of the
Lazic War (541–562). He originally ascended the throne as a
vassal of the
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
, but the heavy-handed actions of the Byzantine authorities led him to seek the assistance of Byzantium's main rival,
Sassanid Persia. The Byzantines were evicted from Lazica with the aid of a Persian army in 541, but the Persian occupation of the country turned out to be worse, and by 548, Gubazes was requesting assistance from Byzantium. Gubazes remained a Byzantine ally during the next few years, as the two empires fought for control of Lazica, with the fortress of
Petra as the focal point of the struggle. Gubazes eventually quarrelled with the Byzantine generals over the fruitless continuation of the war, and was assassinated by them.
Biography
Early life
Gubazes was of
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
descent through his mother, Valeriana. Tzathius' marriage to Valeriana seems to be the earliest recorded marriage between the Lazic and Byzantine elites. The custom of marrying Byzantine women, usually from the
senatorial
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the e ...
aristocracy, was common among the Lazic royalty: his uncle, the "king"
Opsites (it is unknown when exactly he reigned), was married to a Byzantine noblewoman named Theodora. It is known that Gubazes had a younger brother,
Tzath, who succeeded him on the throne, and an unnamed sister. Gubazes was married and had children, but neither the name of his wife nor of his offspring is known. The name of Gubazes's father is not known from the ancient annals. Professor
Cyril Toumanoff
Cyril Leo Toumanoff (russian: Кирилл Львович Туманов; 13 October 1913 – 4 February 1997) was a Russian-born Georgian historian and genealogist who mostly specialized in the history and genealogies of medieval Georgia, Armeni ...
, a specialist in
Caucasian history and genealogy, has hypothesized that Gubazes was a son and direct successor of the king
Tzath I, and that Opsites, his uncle, never actually ruled as a king.
The exact date of Gubazes's accession is unknown, but it must not have been much earlier than 541, when he is first attested as king of the
Lazi. It is very likely that before his accession he had lived for several years at the Byzantine capital,
Constantinople, for he is recorded to have been a ''
silentiarius ''Silentiarius'', Hellenized to ''silentiarios'' ( el, σιλεντιάριος) and Anglicized to silentiary, was the Latin title given to a class of courtiers in the Byzantine imperial court, responsible for order and silence ( la, silentium) in t ...
'', an influential position at the
imperial palace; alternatively, but less probably, he may have been given the title as an honorary appointment after his accession.
[.]
Defection to Persia
Lazica had been a Byzantine
client state
A client state, in international relations, is a state that is economically, politically, and/or militarily subordinate to another more powerful state (called the "controlling state"). A client state may variously be described as satellite state, ...
since 522, when its king, Tzath I, had rejected Persian hegemony. However, during the rule of Emperor
Justinian I (reigned 527–565), a series of heavy-handed Byzantine measures made them unpopular. In particular, the establishment of a trade monopoly by the ''
magister militum'' (general)
John Tzibus John Tzibus or Joannes Tzibus ( la, Ioannes Tzibus, Greek: ) was a general of the Byzantine emperor Justinian I. He served as the '' magister militum per Armeniam'', replacing the unpopular Peter by 535 at the latest. He founded the port city of Pe ...
, which was regulated from the newly constructed fortress of Petra, drove Gubazes to seek once again the protection of the Persian
shah,
Khosrau I (r. 531–579).
In 540, Khosrau broke the "
Eternal Peace" of 532 and invaded the Byzantine province of
Mesopotamia. In spring 541, Khosrau and his troops, led by Lazi guides, marched over the mountain passes into Lazica, where Gubazes submitted to him. The Byzantines under John Tzibus resisted valiantly from Petra, but Tzibus was killed, and the fortress
fell soon after. Khosrau left a Persian garrison at Petra and departed the country, but soon, the Lazi grew discontented: as
Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...
, they resented the Persians'
Zoroastrianism, and they were greatly affected by the cessation of the
Black Sea trade with Byzantium. The contemporary Byzantine historian
Procopius of Caesarea reports that Khosrau, who was aware of Lazica's strategic importance, intended to resettle the entire Lazi people and replace them with Persians. As a first step, the Persian ruler planned to assassinate Gubazes. Forewarned of Khosrau's intentions, Gubazes switched his allegiance back to Byzantium.
Return to Byzantine allegiance
In 548, Emperor Justinian dispatched 8,000 men under
Dagisthaeus
Dagisthaeus (, ''Dagisthaîos'') was a 6th-century Eastern Roman military commander, probably of Gothic origin, in the service of the emperor Justinian I.
Dagisthaeus was possibly a descendant of the Ostrogothic chieftain Dagistheus.* In 548, D ...
, who together with a Lazic force
set siege to the Persian garrison at Petra. As the Persians were well provisioned, the siege dragged on. Dagisthaeus had neglected to keep watch over the mountain passes that led into Lazica, and a far larger Persian relief force under
Mihr-Mihroe
Mihr-Mihroe (died 555), in Middle Persian either ''Mihr-Mihrōē''Encyclopaedia Iranica, edited by Ehsan Yar-Shater, Routledge & Kegan Paul Volume 6, Parts 1-3, page 281a or ''Mihrmāh-rōy''; in Byzantine sources Mermeroes ( el, Μερμερόη� ...
arrived and raised the siege. Yet, the Persians lacked sufficient supplies, and so, after strengthening the garrison at Petra and leaving a further 5,000 men under
Phabrizus
Fariburz, known in Byzantine sources as Phabrizus ( el, Φάβριζος), was a 6th-century Iranian military officer from the Mihran family, who served under the Sasanian king Khosrau I (r. 531–579).
Biography
He was the brother of the dipl ...
to secure its supply routes, Mihr-Mihroe left. In the spring of the next year, Gubazes and Dagisthaeus combined their forces, destroyed Phabrizus's army in a surprise attack, and pursued the survivors into
Caucasian Iberia
In Greco-Roman geography, Iberia ( Ancient Greek: ''Iberia''; la, Hiberia) was an exonym for the Georgian kingdom of Kartli ( ka, ქართლი), known after its core province, which during Classical Antiquity and the Early Middle Age ...
. In the same summer, they won another victory against a new Persian army led by
Khorianes. The allies failed, however, to prevent another Persian army from reinforcing Petra, and Dagisthaeus was recalled and replaced by
Bessas
Bessas is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France.
Population
See also
*Communes of the Ardèche department
The following is a list of the 335 communes of the Ardèche department of France.
The communes cooperate in the ...
.
In 550, a pro-Persian revolt broke out among the
Abasgians
The Abasgoi or Abasgians ( grc, Αβασγοί, Abasgoi, and grc, Ἁβασκοί, Abaskoi; la, Abasci, Abasgi; ka, აბაზგები, Abazgebi; compare Abkhaz ''Абазаа'' "the Abaza people") were one of the ancient tribes inhabi ...
, a people that neighboured Lazica to the north. This provided an opportunity for a high-ranking Lazic noble named Terdetes, who had quarreled with Gubazes, to betray to the Persians
Tzibile
Tsebelda fortress is a Late Antique/Early Medieval fortification near the village of Tsebelda, in the eponymous valley, in Abkhazia, Georgia. History
The Tsebelda fortress is an architectural complex consisting of ruined towers, Christian chape ...
, an important fort in the land of the Apsili, a tribe under Lazic suzerainty. The Apsili retook the fort, but refused to accept Lazic rule until persuaded to do so by the Byzantine general
John Guzes
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second E ...
. In 551, the Byzantines finally
took and razed Petra, but a new army under Mihr-Mihroe was able to establish Persian control over the eastern part of Lazica. The Byzantine forces in Lazica withdrew west to the mouth of the
Phasis, while the Lazi, including Gubazes and his family, sought refuge in the mountains. Despite enduring harsh conditions in the winter of 551/552, Gubazes rejected the peace offers conveyed by envoys from Mihr-Mihroe. In 552, the Persians received substantial reinforcements, but their attacks on the fortresses held by the Byzantines and the Lazi were repulsed.
Death
Over the next two years, the Byzantines increased their forces in Lazica, but failed to achieve decisive success; Gubazes quarreled with their generals, and wrote to Emperor Justinian accusing them of incompetence following a defeat by the Persians. Bessas was recalled, but the other two,
Martin Martin may refer to:
Places
* Martin City (disambiguation)
* Martin County (disambiguation)
* Martin Township (disambiguation)
Antarctica
* Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land
* Port Martin, Adelie Land
* Point Martin, South Orkney Islands
Austr ...
and the ''
sacellarius
A ''sakellarios'' ( el, σακελλάριος) or ''sacellarius'' is the title of an official entrusted with administrative and financial duties (cf. ''sakellē'' or ''sakellion'', "purse, treasury") in a government or institution. The title was ...
''
Rusticus, resolved to get rid of Gubazes. They sent a message to Constantinople accusing Gubazes of dealings with the Persians. Emperor Justinian, intending to question Gubazes himself, authorized the two generals to arrest him, using force if necessary. The two Byzantine generals then (September/October 555) invited Gubazes to observe the siege of a Persian-held fort, but when they met, John, Rusticus's brother, stabbed the king with his
dagger. Gubazes fell from his
horse, and one of Rusticus's servants gave him the finishing blow.
After Gubazes's murder, the Lazi stopped participating in operations against the Persians for a time, leading to the failure of
a Byzantine attack against the fort of Onoguris. An assembly of the Lazic people informed Emperor Justinian of the events, requested that an investigation be launched, and asked that Gubazes's younger brother Tzath, at the time residing in Constantinople, be confirmed as their new ruler. The Byzantine emperor complied with their requests: a "leading senator" named Athanasius (perhaps the
former praetorian prefect of the same name) was dispatched to investigate Gubazes's murder, and Tzath was sent to assume the Lazic throne. Athanasius's investigation cleared Gubazes of any suspicion of treachery; Rusticus and his brother John were found guilty and executed in autumn 556, but Martin was simply deposed from his post.
[; ; .]
References
Sources
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Gubazes 02 Of Lazica
6th-century births
6th-century rulers in Europe
555 deaths
6th-century murdered monarchs
Kings of Lazica
Deaths by stabbing in Georgia (country)
People of the Roman–Sasanian Wars
Lazic War