David ( ka, დავითი, ''Davit′''; 1781 – 1 September 1820) 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 ...

royal prince ('' batonishvili'') of the Bagrationi dynasty of

Imereti Imereti (Georgian: იმერეთი) is a region of Georgia situated in the central-western part of the republic along the middle and upper reaches of the Rioni River. Imereti is the most populous region in Georgia. It consists of 11 municip ...

. He was killed in a rebellion against the Russian rule in Imereti. He was the ancestor of the now-extinct line of Princes and Serene Princes Bagration.

Life

Prince David was a son of

Prince Bagrat of Imereti Bagrat ( ka, ბაგრატი) (1741–1800) was a Georgian royal prince (''batonishvili'') of the Bagrationi dynasty of Imereti. He was the common ancestor of all male-line descendants of the kings of Imereti, surviving into the 21st century. ...

by his wife Mariam, née Eristavi of Guria. He was, thus, a grandson of King

Alexander V of Imereti Alexander V ( ka, ალექსანდრე V) (c. 1703/4 – March 1752), of the Bagrationi Dynasty, was King of Imereti (western Georgia (country), Georgia) from 1720 his death in 1752, with the exceptions of the periods of 1741 and 1746–1 ...

, a nephew of King

Solomon I Solomon I the Great, ( ka, სოლომონ I დიდი) (1735 – April 23, 1784), of the Bagrationi Dynasty, was King of Imereti (western Georgia) from 1752 to 1765 and again from 1767 until his death in 1784. Solomon was a son of Ale ...

, and a cousin of King Solomon II. By the time of the Russian conquest of Imereti in 1810, he lived in his family estate in

Argueti Argveti (), also Margveti (), is a historic district in Imereti, western Georgia. Overview The area lay on the historic Iberian-Lazican frontier, i.e., between what are now eastern and western parts of Georgia. From the 3rd century BC to the 6t ...

. The Russian commander-in-chief in the Caucasus, General Tormasov, ordered to remove from Imereti all members of the royal family, who might have had "pernicious influence on the people". General Simonovich, a Russian commander in Imereti, interceded and asked Tormasov to allow Prince David to remain in homeland on account of his being "mentally retarded and not having any influence on the people". Tormasov refused with contempt and ordered that David be deported to

Tiflis Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million pe ...

, noting that "the Imeretian people are even more retarded and, out of their insanity, can follow anyone." In June 1819, the people of Imereti rose in rebellion against the Russian encroachment on the local church. The uprising then spread to

Guria Guria ( ka, გურია) is a region (''mkhare'') in Georgia, in the western part of the country, bordered by the eastern end of the Black Sea. The region has a population of 113,000 (2016), with Ozurgeti as the regional capital. Geography ...

and

Mingrelia Mingrelia ( ka, სამეგრელო, tr; xmf, სამარგალო, samargalo; ab, Агырны, Agirni) is a historic province in the western part of Georgia, formerly known as Odishi. It is primarily inhabited by the Mingrelian ...

. Prince David became on the leaders of the movement in which the clerics, nobles, and peasants were involved. By July 1820, the Russian army under General Velyaminov was able to contain the revolt in Imereti; David and some other rebels withdrew into the mountains 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 ...

, where suffered a major defeat at the castle of Kvara. David was killed in the fighting; "the '' tsarevich'' David, son of Bagrat, one of the evilest brigands, is killed", the Russian commander-in-chief in the Caucasus,

General Yermolov Aleksey Petrovich Yermolov (russian: Алексе́й Петро́вич Ермо́лов, p=jɪrˈmoləf; – ) was a Russian Imperial general of the 19th century who commanded Russian troops in the Caucasian War. He served in all the Rus ...

, reported to the Chief of General Staff Prince Volkonsky on 8 October 1820.

Family and descendants

Prince David was married to Princess Darejan, daughter of Vakhtang, of the

Eristavi of Racha Chkhetidze ( ka, ჩხეტიძე) was a Georgian noble family known in west Georgia from the tenth century. The oldest known representative is Germain Chkhetidze, Archbishop-Metropolitan of Bedia in 999. It formed the following lines: *The P ...

family. He fathered four sons and two daughters. * Prince Ivan Bagration (1810–1869), who was married to Princess Elisabed Tsereteli, with issue; * Princess Mariam Bagration (born 1812), married to Prince Ivan Eristavi of Racha; * Prince Teimuraz Bagration (1816 – c. 1855), lieutenant-colonel of the Imperial Russian army; * Prince Nikoloz Bagration (1818–1820); * Princess Ekaterine Bagration (1819–1890), married to Prince Nikoloz Eristavi of Guria (1817–1914); * Prince Beri Bagration (fl. 1820). David's descendants, in the persons of his two sons, Ivan and Teimuraz, were confirmed by the Governing Senate in the dignity of Princes Bagration (Князья Багратион) on 6 December 1850, with the addition of the style "Serene Highness" (Светлейший князь) to Ivan's son Alexander on 15 June 1881. This line became extinct with the execution of Alexander's son David in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

in 1937 and the death of David's daughter Nino, Professor at Georgian Technical University, in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...

in 2008.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:David, Prince of Imereti 1781 births 1820 deaths Bagrationi dynasty of the Kingdom of Imereti Georgian princes 18th-century people from Georgia (country) 19th-century people from Georgia (country) Rebels from Georgia (country)