George, ''Giorgi'', ( ka, გიორგი) (1250–1268) was the eldest son of

David VII Ulu David VII, also known as David Ulu ( ka, დავით VII ულუ) (1215–1270), from the Bagrationi dynasty, was king of Georgia from 1247 to 1270, jointly with his namesake cousin, David VI, from 1247 to 1259, when David VI, revolting f ...

, a Bagratid

king of Georgia This is a list of kings and queens regnant of the kingdoms of Georgia before Russian annexation in 1801–1810. For more comprehensive lists, and family trees, of Georgian monarchs and rulers see Lists of Georgian monarchs. Kings of Iberia ...

, by whom he was designated as heir-apparent to the throne. In the early 1260s, he was held as a hostage at the Mongol Ilkhan court of

Hulagu Khan Hulagu Khan, also known as Hülegü or Hulegu ( mn, Хүлэгү/ , lit=Surplus, translit=Hu’legu’/Qülegü; chg, ; Arabic: fa, هولاکو خان, ''Holâku Khân;'' ; 8 February 1265), was a Mongol ruler who conquered much of We ...

and later served with his father in the Mongol military ranks. He died at the age of 18 in 1268, preceding his father by two years.

Biography

George was born in 1250 to King David VII and the Alan woman Altun, whom the king took as a temporary wife because he had no children by his queen Jigda-Khatun and whom he agreed to dismiss after the birth of an heir. The marriage was, in fact, repudiated after the birth of the second child, a daughter, Tamar. George was adopted by Jigda-Khatun, who died shortly afterwards. George, along with his father, step-mother, and the uncle David VI Narin, is mentioned in a church inscription from

Abelia ''Abelia'' is a previously recognized genus that contained about 30 species and hybrids, placed in the honeysuckle family, Caprifoliaceae. Molecular phylogenetic studies showed that the genus was not monophyletic, and in 2013, Maarten Christen ...

in the south of Georgia. In 1262, David's rebellion against the Ilkhan hegemony ended in failure and he had to agree to peace terms offered by Hulagu Khan, envisaging, among other things, sending George as a hostage to the Ilkhan court. David acceded and the boy-prince George, under protection of the Christian man called Enuk Arkun, traveled to the khan's court in Iran, where he was treated with honor. At one point, when the peace between Hulagu and David was about to collapse, the khan contemplated to put George to death, but the prince's life was saved through the intervention of Hulagu's Christian wife

Doquz Khatun Doquz Khatun (also spelled Dokuz Khatun) (d. 1265) was a 13th-century princess of the Keraites who was married to Hulagu Khan, founder of the Ilkhanate. Life Doquz Khatun was a granddaughter of the Keraite khan Toghrul, through his son Uyku or A ...

. Within a year or so, George was allowed to return to Georgia, where he joined his father in the exhausting service along the defensive lines in

Shirvan Shirvan (from fa, شروان, translit=Shirvān; az, Şirvan; Tat: ''Şirvan''), also spelled as Sharvān, Shirwan, Shervan, Sherwan and Šervān, is a historical Iranian region in the eastern Caucasus, known by this name in both pre-Islam ...

, which had been erected by Hulagu against the rival Mongol khan Berke. It was where George contracted a severe bowel disease, which eventually took his life in 1268. His body was briefly rested at the Sioni cathedral in

Tbilisi 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 p ...

and then buried at Mtskheta. The sorrowful king David VII died within two years, leaving his troubled kingdom to

Demetrius Demetrius is the Latinized form of the Ancient Greek male given name ''Dēmḗtrios'' (), meaning “Demetris” - "devoted to goddess Demeter". Alternate forms include Demetrios, Dimitrios, Dimitris, Dmytro, Dimitri, Dimitrie, Dimitar, Dumi ...

, a younger son of his third marriage to Queen Gvantsa.

Ancestry

Notes

References

* * {{authority control 1250 births 1268 deaths Bagrationi dynasty of the Kingdom of Georgia Georgian princes 13th-century people from Georgia (country) Heirs apparent who never acceded