Bagrat IV

Bagrat IV (1018 or 1020 – 24 November 1072) was a Georgian king who reigned between 1027 and 1072. He was the eldest son of King George I and Queen Mariam. Between 1022 and 1025, he was held hostage in Constantinople. Bagrat IV and his royal court tried to protect the country from Byzantine and Turk invaders, to overcome the nobility opposing the centralization and to reclaim the territories of the Georgian Kingdom.

When young Bagrat IV became a king, Constantine VIII, the Byzantine Emperor broke the 1022 peace agreement and sent his army to Georgia. The enemy pillaged and destroyed South Georgia. Some strong feudal lords joined the enemy forces. However, the Byzantines were unable to capture the fortress of Kldekari. After this, the Byzantines changed their tactics and sent Prince Demetre (son of Gurgen Artanujeli), who previously fled to Byzantium. By bringing Demetre into the political arena, the Byzantines wanted to show that they were fighting for the rights of the prince, who was unjustly oppressed. This tactic was successful. A part of the ruling elite, who hoped to improve their position by supporting the new king, rebelled against their feudal lords and supported Demetre and the Byzantines. At this critical moment, Constantine VIII passed away, and the Byzantines withdrew their army from Georgia.

Byzantine Empire sought to improve relations with Georgia because of the new threats in the East. Under these circumstances, at the initiative of Queen Mariam, a peace treaty was signed in 1029/30. Emperor Romanos III arranged a marriage between his niece Elena (Basil's daughter) and King Bagrat IV and granted him the title of Kouropalates (curopalates). This familial and political connection was supposed to become the foundation for friendly relations between the two countries, however, Queen Elena soon died in Kutaisi. Bagrat IV married Borena, the daughter of the King of Ossetia. Soon, a new civil war erupted. Reactionary feudal lords created a rift between Bagrat IV and his half-brother Prince Demetre, who lived in Anakopia (Abkhazia). However, an attempt to enthrone Demetre failed. In 1032, mother and son handed over Anakopia to the Byzantines. Demetre fled to Constantinople.

In the 1030s, the fight began for the liberation of the Tbilisi Emirate. In 1032, Liparit Baghvashi, the Eristavi of Kldekari, captured the Emir of Tbilisi, Jafar. However, fearing that Liparit might take control of Tbilisi, King Bagrat IV freed the Emir. In 1038/40, Bagrat IV successfully assaulted Tbilisi. Emir Jafar was already preparing to flee, however, Bagrat IV signed a peace treaty with the Emir. The king did this on the advice of the nobles opposed to Liparit. This became the cause of a rift and conflict between Liparit and Bagrat IV, which lasted for nearly two decades (see Liparit IV).

Troubled by Byzantine aggression, the leaders of Anisi handed over this city to Bagrat IV in 1045. In the same year, Bagrat IV began a campaign against Byzantium to reclaim Anakopia and Khupati (modern-day Khopa, Turkey). At a crucial moment in the battle, a delegation from the governor of Tbilisi approached Bagrat IV and offered to surrender Tbilisi to him. Bagrat IV entrusted the leadership of the battle for Anakopia and Khupati to his commanders and he quickly moved to Kartli, entered Tbilisi, and placed his officials in the city. Meanwhile, with the help of Liparit IV Baghvashi, the Byzantines took control of Anisi.

In 1046, with the help of the Byzantine army, Liparit made contact with the Kingdom of Kakheti, as well as the Armenian King of Tashir-Dzoraget, and invaded Kartli. He was accompanied by Demetre, son of Giorgi. Bagrat IV was forced to abandon Tbilisi and face the enemy in Javakheti. Before the decisive battle, Demetre passed away. Liparit seized the fortress of Artanuji. Bagrat IV retreated to western Georgia. However, Bagrat IV regained his strength after the Seljuk Turks captured Liparit in 1048. Bagrat IV took Uplistsikhe and captured Liparit's children, Ivane and Niania.

Bagrat IV once again took control of Tbilisi. Still, in 1051, when Liparit returned from captivity and resumed the struggle against Bagrat IV with the help of the Byzantine army, this attempt to reclaim Tbilisi also failed. Liparit became the ruler of almost all of Eastern Georgia. Bagrat IV left his young son, Giorgi, in Kutaisi as the king of Western Georgia, while he went to Constantinople in 1052 and asked the emperor to mediate a reconciliation with Liparit. The emperor, with Liparit's intervention, kept Bagrat IV with him for three years. During this time, Liparit was the de facto ruler of Georgia. He transferred Giorgi from Imereti to Kartli, crowned him as king and declared himself as Giorgi’s guardian. Finally, with the emperor’s mediation, Bagrat IV and Liparit made peace. In 1056, Bagrat IV returned to his homeland. In 1058, the nobles of Meskheti loyal to the king captured Liparit and handed him over to the king. Bagrat IV forced Liparit to become a monk, exiled him to the Byzantine Empire, and took control of his territories. From here on, he strengthened his power, took control of most of Kakhet-Hereti, and defeated his opponents.

In the early 1060s, due to the increasing aggression of the Seljuk Turks, the Byzantine Empire was forced to pursue a path of reconciliation with Georgia. The mutual interest in fighting a common enemy pushed Bagrat IV in this direction as well. After Sultan Alp Arslan's first campaign, Emperor Bagrat IV arranged marriage between his daughter, Martha (Mariam) and the son of Emperor Constantine X’s (1059–67), Michael.

Strengthened by these alliances, in 1067-68, Bagrat IV began a campaign to annex Kakheti. However, in 1068, Alp Arslan launched a second invasion to Georgia. The Sultan was unable to achieve his goal – Bagrat IV refused to pay tribute to Sultan. The Sultan withdrew from Georgia but handed Tbilisi and Rustavi over to the Emir of Gnaja, Fadl, who tried to invade Kartli. However, Bagrat IV defeated Fadl, captured Tbilisi, and transferred it to the descendants of the emir and imposed an annual tribute. Thus, the Emir of Tbilisi became a vassal of the Georgian king. Fadl again launched another invasion to Georgia, but Bagrat IV sought the help of his brother-in-law, King Durgulel of Ossetia. A joint Georgian-Ossetian army raided Ganja.

Bagrat IV was able to defend Georgia's independence and overcome the resistance of the noble feudal lords. During his reign, the groundwork was laid for the liberation of Tbilisi Emirate and Kakhet-Hereti.

Bagrat IV paid great attention to culture and education. There is an opinion that Bagrat IV created the laws, known as the “Laws of Bagrat Kouropalates”. Bagrat IV passed away in Kartli, and according to his will, he was buried in Chkondidi. His only remaining damaged fresco is preserved in Ateni Sioni Monastery.

Sources: გიორგი კედრენე, წგ.: გეორგიკა, ს. ყაუხჩიშვილის გამოც., ტ. 5, თბ., 1963; მატიანე ქართლისა, წგ.: ქართლის ცხოვრება, ს. ყაუხჩიშვილის გამოც., ტ. 1, თბ., 1955; სუმბატ დავითის ძის ქრონიკა ტაო-კლარჯეთის ბაგრატიონთა შესახებ, ე. თაყაიშვილის გამოც., თბ., 1949 (მასალები საქართველოსა და კავკასიის ისტორიისათვის, ნაკვ. 27).

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V. Guchua