Kingdom of Western Georgia
დასავლეთ საქართველოს სამეფო
dasavlet sakartvelos samepo
1259–1330
1387–1392
1396–1401
Map of fragmented Kingdom of Georgia in 1311, with western realm in purple.
Map of fragmented Kingdom of Georgia in 1311, with western realm in purple.
CapitalKutaisi
Common languagesMiddle Georgian
Religion
Eastern Orthodox Christianity (Georgian Patriarchate)
GovernmentFeudal monarchy
Historical eraLate Middle Ages
Preceded by		 Succeeded by
Kingdom of Georgia
Kingdom of Georgia
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The Kingdom of Western Georgia (Georgian: დასავლეთ საქართველოს სამეფო, romanized: dasavlet sakartvelos samepo) was a late medieval de facto independent fragmented part[1][2] of the Kingdom of Georgia that emerged during the Mongol invasions of the realm, led by King David VI Narin in 1259[3][4] and later followed by his successors. Over the decades, the monarchy would fall into chaos and transform into a federation of autonomous principalities unruly of the central or regional royal power and authority.

Most of the occasions, realm would be reannexed into unified fold by the eastern Georgian kings. Nevertheless, the unified Georgian realm would de jure collapse in 1490,[5] and western Georgia would secure an independent future under the name of Kingdom of Imereti, that will exist til 1810.[6]

Name of the realm

The question of the contemporaneous name of the realm between 1259 and the early 1400s remains without a concrete answer because from the end of the 15th century, Western Georgia extended from the modern-day city of Sochi in the north[7] to Trebizond in the south and the Likhi Range in the east. The chronology of the adoption of this name for this state is not clear and it is plausible that some monarchs before 1490[8] fragmentation would style themselves as "Kings of Imereti", however, it may well be an anachronism and that an actual change of the title would happen much later.[9]

Indeed, upon 1259 independence pushed by King David VI Narin, he would continue to be styled as David VI, king of united Georgia. Modern historians, such as the former head of the historical department of the Tbilisi State University, Professor Nodar Asatiani justifies the naming of the realm as the Kingdom of Western Georgia until the 15th century, demonstrating that the rulers of that fragmented state considered themselves a legitimate line of the Georgian kings who protected the Georgian nation during the Muslim invasions and were fiercely fighting for the unity.[10] French historian Marie-Félicité Brosset also attributes the creation of the distinctive kingdom of Imereti under that name to the first coronation of King Bagrat VI in 1463.[11]

List of kings

1330-1386: Reunification of Georgia

1392-1396: Reunification of Georgia

References

  1. ^ Rayfield, p. 131
  2. ^ Brosset (1856) p. 2
  3. ^ Rayfield, p. 129
  4. ^ Brosset (1849) p. 546
  5. ^ Rayfield, p. 162
  6. ^ Rayfield, p. 271
  7. ^ Dubois de Montpéreux, pp. 93-165
  8. ^ Rayfield, p. 164
  9. ^ Rayfield, p. 273
  10. ^ Brosset (1849) p. 545
  11. ^ Brosset (1856) p. 210

Bibliography

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