Erekle II

Erekle II (Telavi, November 7, 1720 – January 11, 1798; buried in Mtskheta, at the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral) – King of Kakheti (1744–1762) and of Kartli-Kakheti (1762–1798). His parents were Tamar, daughter of Vakhtang VI, and Teimuraz II, son of King Erekle I of Kakheti. Erekle II became the unifier of the Kartli and Kakheti branches of the Bagrationi dynasty, which significantly weakened future contenders for the throne.

At his first successful battle (at the age of fifteen, he defeated a Lek army), due to his young age people affectionately called him “Little Kakhi.” Two years later (in 1737), Nadir Shah summoned Erekle II to Persia to take part in a military expedition to India, which gave him valuable experience. In June 1744, with Nadir Shah’s approval, Teimuraz II became king of Kartli, while Erekle II was crowned king of Kakheti. On October 1, 1745, Teimuraz II was crowned according to Christian rites in Mtskheta, symbolizing the end of the “Muslim kings’ era” in Georgia. Around this time, Erekle II married for the second time — his wife was Ana, daughter of the Imeretian nobleman Zaal Abashidze. They had two children, Giorgi and Tamar.

The joint governance of father and son in Kartli and Kakheti (1744–1762) was essentially equivalent to the unification of Eastern Georgia and created favorable conditions for combating the opposition of the nobility. In 1743–1744 they managed to abolish the Saeristavos (duchies) of Ksani and Aragvi and began systematically restricting the political privileges of other rebellious nobles. They were also successful in their relations with Iran. With Nadir Shah’s death (1747), Iranian domination in the South Caucasus came to an end.

Against the backdrop of the successes of the 1740s–1750s, the outlines of a grand plan for the nation’s salvation and renewal gradually emerged, expressed in the Teimuraz–Erekle political formula of “the liberation and resurrection of Georgia.” Along with national unity and independence, it also implied restoring the unity of the Georgian feudal monarchy of earlier times. Erekle II’s entire domestic and foreign policy was organically directed toward European-style development.

The changing balance of power in international relations radically altered the attitudes of Iran and Turkey toward the South Caucasus. If earlier Georgia and other South Caucasian countries had been targets of the aggression, now — in the face of the growing Russian threat — the region acquired for them the role of a defensive frontier. For Russia, meanwhile, Georgia and the Caucasus represented a gateway to the Near and Middle East. Thus, Erekle II’s alignment became of particular significance to the great powers. There began to appear a prospect of Georgia’s emergence as an independent force among them.

Erekle’s successful wars helped create the conditions necessary for internal development. Since the fighting occurred largely beyond Georgia’s borders, the country itself enjoyed peace. Erekle II maintained this relative stability for several decades, which allowed the king and his loyal cousin, Catholicos Anton I, to undertake essential reforms in the economic and cultural spheres, as well as in law and state administration.

Erekle II sought to achieve national unity and peace through the development of trade and by attracting foreign commercial capital. Yet he faced tremendous obstacles from the Ottoman Empire, which the Georgian kingdoms were unable to overcome by their own strength alone. Nevertheless, under the influence of the successes of the 1740s–1750s, Armenians, Assyrians, Yazidis, and other peoples of the Caucasus and the Middle East expressed their readiness to join the liberation struggle under Erekle II’s leadership.

Erekle II regarded orientation toward Orthodox Russia as the only means of realizing his goals. In the 1760s, the position of the Kartli-Kakheti kingdom grew stronger, and accordingly Erekle’s authority increased throughout the Middle East. His name even reached Europe. In 1765, Erekle II launched a campaign against the Yerevan Khanate to test the possibility of its direct incorporation into Georgia. In 1768, pursuing broader political aims, he took part in the Russo-Turkish War. Turkey’s defeat by Russia gave Erekle II freedom to act more actively in the South Caucasus.

In 1779, Erekle II marched again toward Yerevan, intending to annex the Yerevan Khanate directly to Georgia. At the decisive moment, however, forces acting behind his back, brought into Georgia son of Bakar, Alexander — a claimant to the Kartli throne “released” by Russia, thus forcing Erekle to postpone his great undertaking for the future. It became evident that Russia itself intended to dominate the Caucasus and that Erekle’s further strengthening did not serve its interests.

In 1783, the Treaty of Georgievsk was signed, placing the Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti under Russian protection. Yet the Russia that entered Georgia peacefully was already preparing to establish complete dominance over the Caucasus. A united, strong Georgia and Erekle II’s aspirations for regional hegemony stood in the way of that goal; thus, Russia embarked on a policy of gradually weakening the Kartli-Kakheti kingdom. Although Erekle II managed to achieve a temporary alliance of Georgian kingdoms and principalities (in 1790), by then he was already nearly powerless.

The Battle of Krtsanisi

In 1795, Erekle II fought his final battle near Tbilisi, on the field of Krtsanisi. At the beginning of September, the ruler of Iran, Agha Mohammad Khan (აღა-მაჰმად-ხანი), advanced toward Georgia with his main forces (approximately 35,000 men) and, on September 8, encamped on the bank of the Mtkvari River at the location known as Sarvani Field.

Erekle II, who had been expecting Russian assistance, found himself unprepared for the battle. He barely managed to hastily gather approximately 3,000 men, additional 2,000 men were sent by King Solomon II of Imereti. The military plan was to use the natural geography of Tbilisi to prevent the enemy's superior forces from deploying, covering large area and engaging fully in battle. Artificial structures and trenches were established to offer resistance. The Georgian command positioned its army in the narrow passages between Seidabadi and the Mtkvari River.

On the morning of September 9, the Iranian vanguard that launched an attack was repelled by the Georgian advance detachment with fire and a sudden assault. The Georgians were also victorious against the enemy’s vanguard (3,000 men) on September 10. According to accounts, Agha Mohammad Khan, frightened by the first battle, was considering turning back, but during the night, an Iranian spy who had escaped from the fortress with the aid of traitors convinced the Shah of the Georgian weakness.

On September 11, at 7 o'clock in the morning, the Iranian army advanced toward Tbilisi through the narrow passages of Mtkvari–Shavnabada and, an hour and a half later, attacked the first position of the Georgian battle defense. Following the assault by the reinforced enemy vanguard and artillery fire, the Georgian forces were forced to retreat to the second defensive position.

The Iranians lost several hundred fighters in an hour attempting to overcome this position, but they continuously brought fresh forces into the battle. Various Georgian units managed to repel the enemy and counterattacked, but the already small Georgian forces were depleted in the heavy fighting, and they gradually began to retreat. In the afternoon, Agha Mohammad Khan committed all his reserves to the fight and began pursuing the Georgians. The Georgian artillerymen managed to temporarily halt the enemy's advance. Shortly thereafter, the enemy entered the city.

Erekle II, who was nearly surrounded, was saved from severe peril by his own grandsons. The King and about 150 of his riders bypassed Tbilisi and headed toward Saguramo, eventually taking refuge in Mtiuleti. In the evening, the enemy army swept into the city. The population engaged in hand-to-hand combat. The enemy plundered and razed the King's palace, churches, residences, the printing house, set fire to the libraries, and seized the royal scepter, crown, flag, and other items. The famous baths of Tbilisi were also destroyed. The number of dead on both sides reached approximately 20,000.

In the memory of his people, Erekle II remained a knightly figure who fought for the independence and revival of his country. The fulfillment of the obligations that Russia had assumed under the treaty he left as a legacy for future generations. When news of the king’s death spread, people from all sides flocked to Telavi. The Georgian army, with its banners and cannons, took part in the funeral procession. According to his grandson, Teimuraz Batonishvili, on the fortieth day after his death, Erekle II’s body was taken to Mtskheta and buried in the Svetitskhoveli Cathedral.

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G. Maisuradze

G. Narsia