Turkoman invasions of Georgia

Georgian Kingdom in 1460, bordering Qara Qoyunlu to the south.
Date1407-1502
Location
Caucasus, eastern Anatolia, western Iran
Result Georgian victory[1][2]
Belligerents
 Kingdom of Georgia (1407-1490)
Kingdom of Kartli (1490-1502)
Kingdom of Kakheti (1490-1502)
Shirvanshah (in 1412)
 Safavid Empire (1502)		 Qara Koyunlu (1407-1468)
Aq Qoyunlu (1468-1502)
Commanders and leaders
Kingdom of Georgia George VII
Kingdom of Georgia Constantine I
Ibrahim I
Kingdom of Georgia Alexander I
Kingdom of Georgia Vakhtang IV
Kingdom of Georgia Bagrat VI
Kingdom of Georgia Constantine II
Safavid dynasty Ismail I		 Qara Yusuf
Jahan Shah
Uzun Hasan
Sufi Khalil Beg Mawsilu

The Turkoman invasions of Georgia (Georgian: თურქომანთა შემოსევები საქართველოში, romanized: turkomanta shemosevebi sakartveloshi) also Georgian–Turkoman wars, refers to invasions of various Muslim Turkoman tribes on the territory of the Kingdom of Georgia throughout the 15th century.

History

Background

After the devastating invasions by Timur and subsequent enfeeblement of the Kingdom of Georgia, it soon faced a new threat. Timur's death in 1405 marked the beginning of the end of his Empire, unified only by fear and blood of the subjected peoples. Turkomans, particularly the Qara Qoyunlu clan, were among the first to rebel against Shah Rukh who ruled most of the Persia and Mawerannahr. Qara Yusuf, ruler of the Qara Qoyunlu, defeated Shah Rukh, captured Baghdad, and repulsed Timurids from western Persia. After they established themselves as the new leading power in the middle east.

Qara Yusuf's invasions of Georgia

They took advantage of the temporary weakness of the Georgians and launched attacks against them as early as 1407 during which Qara Yusuf took 15,000 prisoners and killed George VII of Georgia.[3] Constantine I of Georgia, fearing further encroachment, allied himself with the Shirvanshah Ibrahim I to counter Turkoman advance and engaged them in the Battle of Chalagan, in which he was defeated and taken captive. In captivity Constantine behaved very proudly, which infuriated Qara Yusuf to such an extent, that he ordered his, his half-brother David's and 300 Georgian nobles' execution.[4]

Alexander's reconquests

Alexander I of Georgia who sought to strengthen and restore his declining Kingdom, faced constant invasions by the tribal Turkomans. They sacked Akhaltsikhe, city of the vital regional importance in 1416, in response of suggested oppression of Muslims. Alexander re-conquered Lori from the Turkomans in 1431, which was of great importance in securing of the Georgian borders. Around 1434/5, Alexander encouraged the Armenian prince Beshken II Orbelian to attack the Qara Qoyunlu clansmen in Syunik and, for his victory, granted him Lori under terms of vassalage.

Jahan Shah's first invasion of Georgia

In 1440, Alexander refused to pay tribute to Jahan Shah of the Qara Qoyunlu. In March, Jahan Shah surged into Georgia with 20,000 troops, destroyed the city of Samshvilde and sacked the capital city Tbilisi. He massacred 8,000 and enslaved 9,000 in Tbilisi, put heavy indemnity on Georgia, and returned to Tabriz.[5]

Jahan Shah's second invasion of Georgia

In 1444, Jahan Shah, attempted a new invasion of Georgia.[6] King Vakhtang IV met him in Akhaltsikhe, where the Georgians and Turkomans fought in a bloody battle that ended without a clear victor. At night, Jahan Shah and his troops escaped to Tabriz, putting an end to the Turkoman incursion.[7]

Uzun Hasan's invasions of Georgia

As a result of foreign and internal struggles, unified Kingdom of Georgia ceased to exist after 1466 and was subdivided into several political units. The Qara Qoyunlu tribal confederation was destroyed by Aq Qoyunlu, their kin tribesmen who formed another confederation, which was similar in many ways to its predecessor. Aq Qoyunlu Turkomans naturally took advantage of the Georgian fragmentation. Georgia was at least twice attacked by Uzun Hasan, the prince of the Aq Qoyunlu in 1466, 1472 and possibly 1476-7. Bagrat VI of Georgia, temporary ruler of most of Georgia at the time, had to make peace with the invaders, abandoning Tbilisi to the enemy. It was only after Uzun Hasan’s death (1478) when the Georgians were able to recover their capital.

Sufi Khalil's invasion of Kartli

In the winter of 1488, the Ak Koyunlu Turkomans led by Sufi Khalil Beg Mawsilu attacked Georgia’s capital Tbilisi, and took the city after a long-lasted siege in February 1489.[8] Alexander II of Imereti, another pretender to the throne, took advantage of the Aq Qoyunlu Turkoman invasion of Kartli, and seized control of Imereti. Occupation of the capital did not last long and Constantine II of Georgia was able to repel them, but it was still costly to Georgians.

Georgian–Safavid Alliance

Ismail I, founder of the Safavid dynasty, formed an alliance with the Georgians in 1502 and decisively defeated Aq Qoyunlu in the same year, destroying their state and marking the end of their invasions.[1][2]

References

  1. 1 2 Savory 1998, pp. 628–636.
  2. 1 2 Savory 2007, p. 33.
  3. ↑ Kouymjian 1997, p. 4.
  4. ↑ Toumanoff, Cyril (1949–51). The Fifteenth-Century Bagratids and the Institution of Collegial Sovereignty in Georgia. Traditio 7: 174, 176-177.
  5. ↑ Kouymjian 1997, p. 7.
  6. ↑ Rayfield 2012, p. 158.
  7. ↑ Brosset 1849, p. 643.
  8. ↑ Woods 1999, p. 143.

Sources

  • Kouymjian, Dickran (1997). "Armenia from the Fall of the Cilician Kingdom (1375) to the Forced Emigration under Shah Abbas (1604)". In Hovannisian, Richard (ed.). The Armenian People from Ancient to Modern Times. Vol. 2. St. Martin Press. pp. 1–50.
  • Savory, Roger (1998). "ESMĀʿĪL I ṢAFAWĪ". Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. VIII, Fasc. 6. pp. 628–636.
  • Savory, Roger (2007). Iran under the Safavids. Cambridge University Press. pp. 1–288. ISBN 978-0521042512.
  • Brosset, Marie-Félicité (1849). Histoire de la Géorgie depuis l'Antiquité jusqu'au XIXe siècle. Volume I [History of Georgia from Ancient Times to the 19th Century, Volume 1] (in French). Saint-Petersburg: Imperial Academy of Sciences.
  • Rayfield, Donald (2012). Edge of Empires, a History of Georgia. London: Reaktion Books. ISBN 978-1-78023-070-2.
  • Woods, John E. (1999). The Aqquyunlu: Clan, Confederation, Empire (Revised and Expanded ed.). University of Utah Press. ISBN 978-0874805659.
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