Kutsna Amirejibi (), also known as Kutsna the Chamberlain ( fl. 1350–1415 Dumin SV, Chikovani YK (1998). Дворянские роды Российской империи ("Noble families of the Russian Empire"), vol. 4, p. 114. Moscow: Likominvest.) was a

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 ...

nobleman active during and in the aftermath of

Timur's invasions of Georgia The Kingdom of Georgia, a Christian kingdom in the Caucasus, was subjected, between 1386 and 1403, to several disastrous invasions by the armies of Turco-Mongol conqueror Timur, whose vast empire stretched, at its greatest extent, from Central ...

. He was a father-in-law of King

Constantine I of Georgia Constantine I ( ka, კონსტანტინე I, ) (died 1412) was King of Georgia from 1405 or 1407 until his death in 1412. He is the common ancestor of all surviving branches of the Bagrationi dynasty. Biography Constantine was the eld ...

and a maternal grandfather of King

Alexander I of Georgia Alexander I the Great (, ''Aleksandre I Didi'') (1386 – between August 26, 1445 and March 7, 1446), of the Bagrationi house, was king of Georgia from 1412 to 1442. Despite his efforts to restore the country from the ruins left by the Turco-Mo ...

.Toumanoff, Cyril (1949–51). "The Fifteenth-Century Bagratids and the Institution of Collegial Sovereignty in Georgia". ''Traditio'' 7: 176–177.

Origin

It is not completely clear to which noble house Kutsna belonged. The latter part of his name, '' Amirejibi'', or sometimes written as ''Amiredjibi'', indicates his being a Prince-Chamberlain of the

Kingdom of Georgia The Kingdom of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამეფო, tr), also known as the Georgian Empire, was a medieval Eurasian monarchy that was founded in circa 1008 AD. It reached its Golden Age of political and economic ...

, but it is also the surname of the aristocratic family better documented from the early 17th century. Modern genealogists in Georgia have accepted the notion that Kutsna was one of the earliest members of that family as plausible. In the view of the historian

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, Armenia, ...

, the praenomen of Kutsna as well as that of his grandfather Kurtsik (Khurtsik) may suggest that he belonged to the feudal house of Khurtsikidze or Khurtsidze from

Samtskhe 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 t ...

. In his charter, Kutsna mentions his homonymous ancestor as having been a constable of Georgia under Queen Regnant Rusudan ( r. 1223–1245). But between the constableship of

Zakaria II Mkhargrdzeli Zakare Zakarian ( hy, Զաքարե Զաքարյան or Զաքարե Երկայնաբազուկ, ) or Zakaria II Mkhargrdzeli (, ), was an Armenian general of Queen Tamar of Georgia army during the late 12th and early 13th centuries. He was the r ...

(who died in 1212) and that of his nephew Avag-Sargis III Mkhargrdzeli (who filled that office from 1233/4 to 1250), the incumbents of it are not known.

Career and family

Kutsna was married to the lady called Rusa (Rusudan; died 1413). Their daughter, Natia, became the consort of King Constantine I of Georgia and mothered Alexander I, at the time of whose birth c. 1390 Kutsna was ambassador to

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

. The chronicles describe him as the one who was "greatly ennobled by the kings" and who "headed the army". Both Kutsna and his wife Rusa are known for their restoration of churches and monasteries in the aftermath of Timur's devastations; Kutsna patronized the churches of Ulumba and Nabakhtevi, and Rusa undertook the restoration of the principal cathedral of the Living Pillar at Mtskheta. She also directed the education of Alexander I and influenced the future king's preoccupations and his enthusiasm for religious building.

Rayfield, Donald Patrick Donald Rayfield OBE (born 12 February 1942, Oxford) is an English academic and Emeritus Professor of Russian and Georgian at Queen Mary University of London. He is an author of books about Russian and Georgian literature, and about Josep ...

(2012). ''Edge of Empires: A History of Georgia'', p. 153. London: Reaktion Books. . Kutsna appears in the contemporary records for the last time in 1415. He was succeeded by his son Ramin as the head of the family. Kutsna's fresco portrait as well as those of his wife and four children survive in the Nabakhtevi church, in

Shida Kartli Shida Kartli ( ka, შიდა ქართლი, , ; "Inner Kartli") is a landlocked administrative region (''Mkhare'') in eastern Georgia. It comprises a central part of the historical-geographic province of Shida Kartli. With an area of , S ...

, east of

Surami Surami ( ka, სურამი) is a small town ('' daba'') in Georgia’s Shida Kartli region with the population of 7,492. It is a popular mountain climatic resort and a home to a medieval fortress. Location Surami is located on the southern ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amirejibi, Kutsna 1410s deaths 14th-century people from Georgia (country) 15th-century people from Georgia (country) Diplomats of Georgia (country) Nobility of Georgia (country) Year of birth unknown