| George II | |
|---|---|
 George II, a fresco from theGelati Monastery | |
| King of Imereti (more...) | |
| Reign | 1565–1585 |
| Predecessor | Bagrat III |
| Successor | Levan |
| Died | 1585 (1586) |
| Spouse | RusudanShervashidze TamarDiasamidze |
| Issue Among others | |
| Dynasty | Bagrationi |
| Father | Bagrat III of Imereti |
| Mother | Helen |
| Religion | Georgian Orthodox Church |
| Khelrtva | .svg) |
George II (Georgian:გიორგი II) (died 1585) was a Georgian monarch of theBagrationi dynasty, who reigned asking (mepe) ofImereti, one of the principal realms of westernGeorgia, from 1565 to 1585. During his reign, George II had to face conflicts with neighboring principalities, as well as the ascendantOttoman Empire.
At one point, King George was able to forge an alliance with his fellow Georgian monarchsGeorge II of Guria andGeorge III of Mingrelia. This so called "alliance of three Georges" provided a much needed period of peace for Western Georgia in the 1570s.[1]
George II was born to KingBagrat III and his wife Queen Helen. Modern historians accept 1565 as the year of George II's ascension to the throne.[2]
At the beginning of George's reign, a fragile peace existed[3] between the king and his vassalsGeorge II of Guria andLeon I of Mingrelia, who werede facto independent. This peace was quickly undermined when George Gurieli and Levan Dadiani went to war, a conflict soon eased by Gurieli’s marriage to Dadiani’s daughter in 1566.[3]
When Gurieli later divorced his wife, the princes of western Georgia prepared for civil war: George of Guria allied himself with George II of Imereti,[4] while Levan Dadiani formed an anti-royal coalition with the Chiladze and Lipartiani families, aiming to depose King George and place on the thronePrince Khosro, the monarch’s cousin.[5] Dadiani’s forces invadedGuria, but King George inflicted a decisive defeat on them in 1568 at the Battle of Ianeti.[6]
The victory at Ianeti was followed by an Imeretian–Gurian invasion ofMingrelia, and when King George capturedZugdidi, Levan Dadiani was forced to take refuge inConstantinople.[2] However, George II of Imereti continued to face a defiant nobility.[2] Encouraged by SultanSelim II, Lavan Dadiani returned to Georgia in 1568 and, supported by nine Ottoman ships and troops fromErzurum andTrabzon, landed in Guria, threatening Prince Gurieli with a devastating invasion.[2] George Gurieli was forced to pay him tribute[2] and assisted in expelling the Georgia's forces from Mingrelia.[7]
King George sought to consolidate his power by orchestrating the assassination of Duke Javakh Chiladze during a banquet held in his honor.[2] The Chiladze domains, a powerful territory spanning Imereti, Guria, and Mingrelia,[2] were then annexed to the royal lands as punishment for the duke’s support of Dadiani during the Battle of Ianeti.[7] In response, George of Guria and Levan of Mingrelia declared war on George II, defeating him and divided the Chiladze estates between themselves.[7]
These conflicts had severe consequences for the local population. The economy of western Georgia, laboriously established byBagrat III, collapsed,[8] while the Ottomans exploited the instability to extend their influence over the regional nobility.[9]
To stabilize the situation, George II of Imereti engaged in a variety of diplomatic maneuvers and facilitated inter-dynastic marriages, which paved the way to an alliance between himself and his neighborsGeorge II of Guria andGeorge III of Mingrelia. This so called "alliance of three Georges" provided a period of peace for Western Georgia for much of the 1570s.[10]
In 1578, following the devastation ofTbilisi, the Ottoman generalLala Mustafa Pasha turned his ambitions toward Imereti with the intention of invading the kingdom and overthrowing the “rebel Christian” George.[11] However, George fortified the perilousLikhi Range, the natural frontier between western and eastern Georgia, and inflicted a serious defeat on the Ottoman forces.[11]
George II returned in triumph toKutaisi, bringing with him treasures seized from the Ottomans.[12] On 1 November, however, Lala Mustafa Pasha once again advanced toward Imereti. George II defeated him for the second time at the Likhi Range, effectively ending Ottoman attempts to conquer western Georgia by force.[11]
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In 1582, the fragile peace among the three Georges of western Georgia collapsed following the death ofGeorge III Dadiani, who was succeeded by his brotherMamia.[13] Seeking revenge for being previously sidelined by the Georges, Mamia invadedGuria and forcedGeorge II of Guria into exile.[14]
In 1583, the aging and weakened George II sought to secure the throne of Imereti for his son,Levan—his third designated heir following the deaths of his two elder sons—who was then only ten years old.[15] Fearing the ambitions of his brotherConstantine,[15] George II had both Constantine and his nephewRostom imprisoned.[14]
George II died in 1585 after a reign of at least twenty years.[14] He was succeeded by the young Levan, who was vulnerable to the powerful nobility and witnessed the royal authority disintegrate under the influence of Mamia Dadiani.[6] The disorder following George II’s succession resulted in internal turmoil and the rise of Mingrelian power,[15] culminating in theBattle of Gochouri.Simon of Kartli also exploited the instability, launching three invasions of Imereti in the years following the death of George II.[16]
George II was married three times. The identity of his first wife is unknown; she may have been an anonymous daughter ofMamia I Gurieli. He married secondly to RusudanSharvashidze (died 1578) and thirdly to Tamar (died 1586), daughter of Prince ShermazanDiasamidze. He had six sons:
| Preceded by | King of Imereti 1565–1585 | Succeeded by |