Konstantine (Murzakan) Dadeshkeliani (

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 ...

: კონსტანტინე (მურზაყან) ციოყის ძე დადიშქელიანი; 1826–1857) was the last prince (''

mtavari ''Mtavari'' ( ka, მთავარი) was a feudal title in Georgia usually translated into English as Prince or Duke. The earliest instances of the use of ''mtavari'' are in the early Georgian hagiographic texts dated to the 5th century. From ...

'') of the western

mountainous region of

Svaneti Svaneti or Svanetia (Suania in ancient sources; ka, სვანეთი ) is a historic province in the northwestern part of Georgia (country), Georgia. It is inhabited by the Svans, an ethnic subgroup of Georgians. Geography Situated o ...

from 1841 to 1857. The eldest son of Prince Mikheil (Tsiok) Dadeshkeliani, he succeeded on his father’s death in September 1841. He ruled under the regency of his grandmother Digorkhan, who died in an armed conflict between the two branches of Dadeshkeliani of

in 1843. Konstantine assumed full ruling powers in 1846. He remained a nominal vassal of 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. ...

, but was effectively independent. Continuing dynastic strife among the Dadishkeliani, their defiance to the Russian government, and vacillation during the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...

(1854–1856), however, led to direct Russian intervention. In 1857, Prince Alexander Baryatinsky, Viceroy of the Caucasus, ordered Svaneti to be subdued by armed force. Konstantine chose to negotiate, but was deposed on September 11, 1857, and ordered into exile to

Erivan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and in ...

. On a farewell audience in

Kutaisi Kutaisi (, ka, ქუთაისი ) is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world and the third-most populous city in Georgia, traditionally, second in importance, after the capital city of Tbilisi. Situated west of Tbilis ...

on October 27, 1857, he quarreled with a local Russian administrator,

Alexander Gagarin Prince Alexander Ivanovich Gagarin (russian: Александр Иванович Гагарин) (1801 – 27 October 1857) was a Russian general and nobleman of Rurikid ancestry who was involved in the Caucasian and Crimean wars. In 1857, he s ...

, and stabbed to death him and three of his staff. When captured, Konstantine was summarily tried by court martial and shot on. Lang, David Marshall (1962), ''A Modern History of Georgia'', pp. 96-97.

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

: Weidenfeld and Nicolson.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dadeshkeliani, Konstantine 1826 births 1857 deaths Nobility of Georgia (country)

Konstantine Konstantine is a masculine given name. Notable people with the name include: * Konstantine Dadeshkeliani (1826–1857), Georgian prince * Konstantine Gamsakhurdia (1893–1975), Georgian writer * Konstantine Gamsakhurdia (politician) (born 1961), ...

People executed by Russia by firing squad