Khertvisi fortress ( ka, ხერთვისის ციხე) is one of the oldest fortresses in

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 was functional throughout the Georgian feudal period. It is situated in Khertvisi village of

Aspindza Municipality Aspindza ( ka, ასპინძის მუნიციპალიტეტი, ''Aspindzis munitsipalit'et'i'') is a municipality in southern Georgia, in the region of Samtskhe-Javakheti with a population of 10,372 (2021). Its main town and a ...

, Southern Georgia, in

Meskheti Meskheti ( ka, მესხეთი) or Samtskhe ( ka, სამცხე) (Moschia in ancient sources), is a mountainous area in southwestern Georgia. History Ancient tribes known as the Mushki (or Moschi) and Mosiniks (or Mossynoeci) were the ...

region. The fortress was first mentioned in the 10th-11th centuries.Закарая, П. (1983) Памятники Восточной Грузии. Искусство, Москва, 376 с. akaraya, P. Monuments of Eastern GeorgiaIn Russian) The church was built in 985, and the present walls were built in 1354. According to a local legend, Khertvisi was once destroyed by

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

, though it has then been reconstructed and invaded on numerous occasions through the centuries.

Middle Ages and later use

In the 10th-11th centuries it was the center of Meskheti region. During the 12th century it became a town. In the 13th century

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 ...

destroyed it and until the 15th century it lost its power. According the inscription on a stone, found in the fortress, significant reconstruction was made by Zakari Kamkamishvili in 1354–1356. From the end of the 13th up to the 15th century it was owned by Meskheti landlords from

Jaqeli The House of Jaqeli ( ka, ჯაყელი) was a Georgian princely (''mtavari'') family and a ruling dynasty of the Principality of Samtskhe, an offshoot of the House of Chorchaneli. History "Jaqeli", literally meaning "of/from Jaqi", was ori ...

family. In the 16th century the southern region of Georgia was invaded by

Ottomans The Ottoman Turks ( tr, Osmanlı Türkleri), were the Turkic founding and sociopolitically the most dominant ethnic group of the Ottoman Empire ( 1299/1302–1922). Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks remains scarce, ...

. During next 300 years they have owned Khertvisi too. In 1624 the fortress was temporarily taken by

Giorgi Saakadze Giorgi Saakadze the Grand Mouravi ( ka, გიორგი სააკაძე) (c. 1570 – October 3, 1629) was a Georgian politician and military commander who played an important but contradictory role in the politics of the early 17th-cent ...

. Another successful though again temporary attempt was made by the King Heraclius II in 1771. Khertvisi was finally set free from

in 1828. At the end of the 19th century

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 ...

and

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

army returned the lost territories and Khertvisi became the military base for Russian and Georgian troops.

Architecture

Khertvisi fortress is situated on the high rocky hill in the narrow canyon at the confluence of the rivers

Mtkvari 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 ...

and

Paravani The Paravani ( ka, ფარავანი) is a river of southern Georgia. It is long, and has a drainage basin of .citadel A citadel is the core fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of "city", meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. In ...

with towers and the lower yard, surrounding the citadel from the south and east. The citadel, resting on the mountain top, is itself made of smaller separate parts. Two tunnels from the north lead down to the river.

References

Sources

www.tourism.gov.geInternational Association of Tourists and Travelers
Buildings and structures completed in 1354 Castles and forts in Georgia (country) World Heritage Tentative List Buildings and structures in Samtskhe–Javakheti Immovable Cultural Monuments of National Significance of Georgia {{Georgia-geo-stub