| Gubazes I გუბაზ I | |
|---|---|
| King ofLazica | |
| Reign | fl. 456 – 468 |
| Successor | Damnazes ? |
Gubazes I (Georgian:გუბაზი;Greek:Γουβάζης) was a king ofLazica who flourished in the 450s and 460s. His relations with theRoman Empire are recorded byPriscus.[1]
Around 456 Gubazes tried to negotiate an alliance with theSassanid Persians in order to break free from Roman hegemony. In response, in 456, the emperorMarcian dispatched a military expedition against the Lazi, calling upon Gubazes to abdicate or to depose his son, who was his co-ruler, "as it was against tradition to have two joint rulers". Eventually Gubazes abdicated in favor of his son and, in 466, paid a visit toConstantinople, where he had to endure the reprimands of the emperorLeo I, but he was eventually treated with favour and sent back to his homeland, where he seems to have been able to resume his reign. Gubazes' visit to Constantinople is also mentioned in theLife of St. Daniel the Stylite, which reports that Gubazes accompanied Leo to see the renowned monkDaniel, who greatly impressed the Lazic king and even mediated a treaty between the two monarchs.[2]
This period coincided with a campaign launched against Lazica by its eastern neighbour, KingVakhtang I of Iberia, which is narrated in theGeorgian Chronicles. Vakhtang was then a Sassanid vassal and his activities in Lazica may have been indirect assistance from the Sassanidshah, as previously offered to Gubazes during his break with Rome.[1]
Around 468 Gubazes, aided by the Romans, attacked the pro-Persian mountainous region ofSuania, which had seceded from Lazic overlordship, but, aside from a couple of fortresses, he failed to retake the territory. His failure may have been due to the interference of the Iberians, since theGeorgian Chronicles allude to another, in this case victorious, campaign, undertaken by Vakhtang of Iberia in Lazica around this time.[3][4]
| Unknown | King ofLazica c. 456 – 468 | Succeeded by Damnazes ? |