The Skhvilo fortress (), also known as Skhvilo castle, is a medieval fortress located in the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

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 , Sh ...

, in

Kaspi District Kaspi ( ka, კასპის მუნიციპალიტეტი) is a district of Georgia, in the region of Shida Kartli. Given a ''District'' status within Transcaucasian SFSR in 1930. District center is Kaspi. Geography The district ...

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 ...

. It was built in the 14th century, and served as the first residence of the duke (

tavadi ''Tavadi'' ( ka, თავადი, "prince", lit. "head/chief" an from ka, თავი ''tavi'', "head", with the prefix of agent ''-di'') was a feudal title in Georgia (country), Georgia first applied in the Late Middle Ages usually trans ...

) family Amilakhori.

Architecture

Skhvilo castle stretches along a ridge, bordered by the ravine of Rekhula river from the west and Tiriponi valley from the east. The castle is elongated rectangular, with only a narrow entrance to the west. Relatively well preserved, it has an area of about 45 × 20 m, protrudes with high walls of three to four floors (about 14 m) from the ground, ending with

merlons A merlon is the solid upright section of a battlement (a crenellated parapet) in medieval architecture or fortifications.Friar, Stephen (2003). ''The Sutton Companion to Castles'', Sutton Publishing, Stroud, 2003, p. 202. Merlons are sometimes ...

. Wooden battle trail, held on consoles, was stretching along behind.

Arrowslits An arrowslit (often also referred to as an arrow loop, loophole or loop hole, and sometimes a balistraria) is a narrow vertical aperture in a fortification through which an archer can launch arrows or a crossbowman can launch bolts. The interi ...

were on the same level. The thickness of the walls is three to four meters (two meters by other sourceЗакарая, П. (1983) Памятники Восточной Грузии. Искусство, Москва, 376 с. akaraya, P. Monuments of Eastern GeorgiaIn Russian)) On the west side there are two semicircular

bastion A bastion or bulwark is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fi ...

s, while on the east there are four, which emerge from the pillar-shaped wall. The only access was located on the southwest side, and getting inside was possible only by temporarily attaching a wooden ladder. In the small courtyard behind the door, there was another courtyard wall that blocked the passage to the buildings beyond. The whole structure is supported by two towers. To the north is a five-storie quadrangular tower used as a watchtower. This main tower is meant to hold the northern corner. A second tower, also quadrangular, but reduced to the height of the wall, is located on the south side of the fortress. The space between both towers is split by additional walls, and contains constructions of various age, including the residential buildings leaning against the defensive wall and a building originally used as a church. Because of limited space the church had two floors. A water reservoir, which was filled from aqueduc, is found near the church. Occasionally sappings can be observed under the walls, as well as other signs of the castle siege.

History

The history of Skhvilo castle is related to the rise of the feudal ancestors of Zevgendenidze (Amilakhvarni). In the 14th century, they first received the property, which they used as their residence. In the XVI-XVII centuries, they moved to Kvemo Chala where they built

Amilakhvari castle The Amilakhvari castle () is an architectural monument located at the village of Kvemo Chala, in Kaspi, Georgia. The monument is a large complex, built in the 17th–18th century, which originally contained three castles and various buildings in ...

, and Skhvilo castle only served as a fortress. In the 17th century, Iota, fortified in the castle, attacked King Rostom and defeated Amilakhvari. In the seventeenth century, it was one of the bastions of the governor of

Kartli Kartli ( ka, ქართლი ) is a historical region in central-to-eastern Georgia traversed by the river Mtkvari (Kura), on which Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, is situated. Known to the Classical authors as Iberia, Kartli played a crucial role ...

Givi Amilakhvari Givi Amilakhvari ( ka, გივი ამილახვარი) (1689–1754) was a Georgia (country), Georgian nobleman (''tavadi'') with a prominent role in the politics of eastern Georgia in the first half of the 18th century. He waged a le ...

, who fought against Iran's aggression. Until the end of the 18th century, Skhvilo Castle belonged to the Amilakhvarts family. It subsequently lost his former value.

References

Literature

* Georgian History and Culture, Vol. 5, Tbilisi, 1990 * Zakaraia P., Old Towns and Castles of Georgia, Tb., 1973 * Zakaraia P., Gvasalia J., Xse, T. 9, p. 629, Tb., 1985 {{coord, 42.0387, 44.4172, type:landmark_region:GE, display=title Immovable Cultural Monuments of National Significance of Georgia Castles and forts in Georgia (country) Buildings and structures in Shida Kartli