| Simon I | |
|---|---|
 Simon byGiovanni Orlandi | |
| King of Kartli (more...) | |
| Reign | 1556–1569 1578–1599 |
| Predecessor | Luarsab I David XI |
| Successor | David XI George X |
| Born | 1537 |
| Died | 1611 Constantinople,Yedikule Fortress |
| Burial | |
| Spouse | Nestan-Darejan of Kakheti |
| Issue | George X |
| Dynasty | Bagrationi |
| Father | Luarsab I of Kartli |
| Mother | Tamar of Imereti |
| Religion | Georgian Orthodox Church, laterShia Islam |
| Khelrtva |  |
Simon I the Great (Georgian:სიმონ I დიდი,romanized:simon I didi), also known asSvimon (Georgian:სვიმონი,romanized:svimoni;c. 1537 – 1611), of theBagrationi dynasty, was aGeorgianking (mepe) ofKartli from 1556 to 1569 and again from 1578 to 1599. His first tenure was marked by war against thePersian domination of Georgia. In 1569 he was captured by the Persians, and spent nine years in captivity. In 1578 he was released and reinstalled in Kartli. During this period (i.e. his second tenure), he fought as a Persian subject against theOttoman domination of Georgia.[1][2] In 1599 Simon I was captured by the Ottomans and died in captivity.[1] During 1557 to 1569 he was known asMahmud Khan (Persian:محمود خان,romanized: Mahmūd Khān) and from 1578 to 1599 asShahnavaz Khan (Persian:شاهنواز خان,romanized: Shāhnavāz Khān). He was also referred to asSimon the Mad (Turkish:Deli Simon) by the Ottomans.[3]
The eldest son of the heroic kingLuarsab I of Kartli andTamar of Imereti, he commanded his father's army at theBattle of Garisi against the Persian invaders, 1556. He was proclaimed by his father co-ruler and heir apparent just prior to the action. Though Luarsab was mortally wounded, the battle was won by Simon, who soon ascended the throne on the death of his father. As the Kartlian capitalTbilisi remained in the Persian hands, Simon had a residence inGori, whence he ruled over the territories recaptured from the occupiers. In 1559, he allied himself with another Georgian sovereign,Levan I of Kakheti, and married his daughterNestan-Darejan. Beginning in 1560, Simon launched a series of battles to recover Tbilisi, but in April 1561 suffered a defeat at theBattle of Tsikhedidi, which cost life to his brother-in-law and ally,Prince Giorgi of Kakheti. His brother,David, recently submitted to theSafavidShahTahmasp I, converted toIslam, and returned with a Persian army to claim the crown. Simon blockaded Tbilisi and won the battles atDighomi (1567) and Samadlo (1569), but he was finally defeated and taken prisoner atP'artskhisi, 1569. David, now known as Daud Khan, was made by Persians a tributary king of Kartli. Simon was sent to Persia where he refused to convert toIslam and was imprisoned at the fortress ofAlamut for nine years.
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When the peace between the Safavids and the Ottomans collapsed and the Turkish generalLala Mustafa Pashadrove the Persians out of Georgia in 1578, it roused the Safavids to come to take further action.[2] Then incumbent Safavid kingMohammad Khodabanda wanted a puppet ruler in Kartli that was popular amongst the local population.[2] Therefore, he ordered for Simon I to be released from prison and offered him the crown of Kartli on the demand that he would convert to Islam.[2] Having been imprisoned for nine years, Simon I's resolve was weakened.[2] In the same year he accepted the Safavid king's demands, and, in order to invade Tbilisi, he received cannon and 5,000Qizilbash soldiers led by general Ali-Qoli Khan.[2] Simon led a successful guerilla war against the Turks, recovered most ofKartli by 1579, and put a siege to Tbilisi. At the same time, he induced the princeManuchar II Jaqeli to revolt against the Ottoman rule inAkhaltsikhe, and attempted to get support fromPopeClement VIII, EmperorRudolph II andPhilip II of Spain. The negotiations, however, failed to yield any serious results.[4]
In 1580 Simon I repulsed Ottoman invasion of Kartli, and in 1582 defeated main Ottoman army on the field of Mukhrani, which had a lasting impact as Ottomans were at the height of their power and such a defeat shuttered the myth of their invincibility. Simon I'sPersian monolingualseal of the same period reads: "Allah, who has no equal, knows that Semiyun (Simon) is a slave of theShah from the bottom of his heart, 933 (1585)".[5]
From 1588 to 1590, Simon interfered on three occasions into a power struggle in the western Georgian kingdom ofImereti, and though victorious overLevan of Imereti at the Battle of Gop'anto (1588), he was finally defeated at Op'shkviti and driven out with the help of the Turks. Finally, the Ottomans prevailed and their recently appointed commander, Ferhad Pasha, was able to conquer Kartli by 1588. Simon had to make peace with theSublime Porte and agreed to pay an annual tribute. By apeace treaty signed inConstantinople on March 21, 1590, the Safavids also recognised all of Georgia as an Ottoman possession. Simon, however, resumed his struggle against the occupants in 1595, and retook Gori after a long-lasting siege in 1599. In response,sultanMehmed III sent a large punitive force led by Jafar Pasha,beylerbey ofTabriz in 1599.[6] Simon met it at Nakhiduri, but he was severely defeated and taken captive while retreating.[6]
Upon the Simon's arrest the SultanMehmed III made the following order:
FromMorocco to theCaspian Sea, from theCaucasus to thePersian Gulf, I order to exhibit the carpets in all of my realm and to celebrate for 3 days the arrest of King Simon.
Simon was sent to Constantinople where the Georgian noblewomanGulchara was brought to care for the aged king. He died in 1611 as a prisoner at theFortress of the Seven Towers (Yedikule) without converting toSunni Islam,[1] shortly before thecessation of the Ottoman–Safavid hostilities. His body was then redeemed by the Georgians and buried at theSvetitskhoveli Cathedral atMtskheta next to his father.
Simon married in 1559 Nestan-Darejan (died c. 1612), daughter of Levan I of Kakheti. They had six children, four sons and two daughters:
| Preceded by | King of Kartli 1556–1569 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | King of Kartli 1578–1599 | Succeeded by |