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Timurid invasions of Georgia
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Timurid invasions of Georgia
The Timurid invasions of Georgia (Georgian: თემურლენგის ლაშქრობები საქართველოში, romanized: temurlengis lashkrobebi sakartveloshi) were eight invasions between 1386 and 1403 of the Kingdom of Georgia in the Caucasus by the Timurid Empire. Led by Timur, the Timurids ultimately conquered the Christian monarchy and made it a tributary state that kept its independence and religion.
Timur's vast empire stretched, at its greatest extent, from Central Asia into Anatolia and these conflicts were intimately linked with the wars between Timur (Tamerlane) and Tokhtamysh, the last khan of the Golden Horde and Timur's major rival for control over the Islamic world. Although he invaded parts of Georgia, he could not make the country Muslim and recognized it as a Christian state.
In the first of eight invasions, Timur sacked Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, and captured the king Bagrat V in 1386. Georgian resistance prompted a renewed attack by the Turco-Mongol armies. Bagrat's son and successor, George VII, put up a stiff resistance and had to spend much of his reign (1395–1405) fighting the Timurid invasions. Timur personally led most of these raids to subdue the recalcitrant Georgian monarch. He did not establish firm control over Georgia. By the time George VII was forced to accept Timur's terms of peace and agree to pay tribute, he was a master of little more than "gutted towns, ravaged countryside and a shattered monarchy".
Timur's first appearance in the Caucasus was a response to Khan Tokhtamysh's marauding inroad into Northern Iran through the Caucasian lands in 1385. This marked an outbreak of outright hostility between the two Islamic monarchs. Timur responded by launching a full-scale invasion of the small frontier countries, which lay between the western border of his emerging empire and Tokhtamysh's khanate. After having overrun Azerbaijan and Kars, Timur marched into Georgia. The official history of his reign, Zafarnama, represents this campaign in Georgia as a jihad. Timur set out from Kars and assailed Samtskhe, the southernmost principality within the Kingdom of Georgia later in 1386. Tbilisi fell on 22 November 1386, its inhabitants were massacred and Bagrat fell into captivity. Timur's army spent the winter in Karabakh.
To regain his freedom, Bagrat pretended to convert to Islam and Timur sent him back under surveillance of a 12,000-strong army which was to enforce Georgian Kingdom's conversion to Islam. Bagrat secretly informed his son George, who raised an army and destroyed the Timurid troops, freeing Bagrat.
The death of thousands of soldiers in battle with Georgian troops led to the start of Timur’s new invasion of Georgia in the spring of 1387. The enemy's numbers significantly outnumbered the Georgian forces hastily assembled by the prince. Timur personally led the participants in the invasion. A huge number of the country's inhabitants fled to the mountains, thanks to which large casualties were avoided.
In 1392-1393 Timur raided and sacked the cities of Central Iran, then Baghdad, Syria, etc. In the spring of 1394, he came to southern Georgia and sent four commanders with an army of 40,000 to raid Samtskhe-Saatabago. Timur invaded and ravaged Samtskhe, Kors, Kola, and Akhaltsikhe. The population of the Georgian territories he occupied showed fierce resistance to the invaders, which is why the latter had to leave the region after the capture.
On September 13, 1394, Timur invaded with a large army from the Koli valley to the Aragvi valley via Trialeti and Kvemo Kartli. On the way, he destroyed everything, robbed and killed the inhabitants. Big battles took place in Aragvi valley. Timur's goal seems to have been to capture the Darial Pass in order to ultimately prevent the withdrawal of Georgian allied North Caucasian raiders and a possible Tokhtamysh invasion. Every time Timur appeared in Georgia, Tokhtamysh tried to invade Eastern Caucasus. It happened this time as well. Timur was unable to capture Darial due to the great resistance of the mountaineers. He was forced to come down from the mountain and go to Shaki through Tbilisi. At that time, Timur learned that Tokhtamysh would invade Shirvan through Derbent and ravage the place. Timur quickly moved in this direction, but avoided the battle and turned back again. His army encamped on the banks of the Mtkvari, near Mahmud Abad, and began preparations for a great campaign against Tokhtamish. It became clear to Timur that he could not subdue Caucasus, including Georgia, if he did not defeat Tokhtamysh.
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Timurid invasions of Georgia
The Timurid invasions of Georgia (Georgian: თემურლენგის ლაშქრობები საქართველოში, romanized: temurlengis lashkrobebi sakartveloshi) were eight invasions between 1386 and 1403 of the Kingdom of Georgia in the Caucasus by the Timurid Empire. Led by Timur, the Timurids ultimately conquered the Christian monarchy and made it a tributary state that kept its independence and religion.
Timur's vast empire stretched, at its greatest extent, from Central Asia into Anatolia and these conflicts were intimately linked with the wars between Timur (Tamerlane) and Tokhtamysh, the last khan of the Golden Horde and Timur's major rival for control over the Islamic world. Although he invaded parts of Georgia, he could not make the country Muslim and recognized it as a Christian state.
In the first of eight invasions, Timur sacked Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, and captured the king Bagrat V in 1386. Georgian resistance prompted a renewed attack by the Turco-Mongol armies. Bagrat's son and successor, George VII, put up a stiff resistance and had to spend much of his reign (1395–1405) fighting the Timurid invasions. Timur personally led most of these raids to subdue the recalcitrant Georgian monarch. He did not establish firm control over Georgia. By the time George VII was forced to accept Timur's terms of peace and agree to pay tribute, he was a master of little more than "gutted towns, ravaged countryside and a shattered monarchy".
Timur's first appearance in the Caucasus was a response to Khan Tokhtamysh's marauding inroad into Northern Iran through the Caucasian lands in 1385. This marked an outbreak of outright hostility between the two Islamic monarchs. Timur responded by launching a full-scale invasion of the small frontier countries, which lay between the western border of his emerging empire and Tokhtamysh's khanate. After having overrun Azerbaijan and Kars, Timur marched into Georgia. The official history of his reign, Zafarnama, represents this campaign in Georgia as a jihad. Timur set out from Kars and assailed Samtskhe, the southernmost principality within the Kingdom of Georgia later in 1386. Tbilisi fell on 22 November 1386, its inhabitants were massacred and Bagrat fell into captivity. Timur's army spent the winter in Karabakh.
To regain his freedom, Bagrat pretended to convert to Islam and Timur sent him back under surveillance of a 12,000-strong army which was to enforce Georgian Kingdom's conversion to Islam. Bagrat secretly informed his son George, who raised an army and destroyed the Timurid troops, freeing Bagrat.
The death of thousands of soldiers in battle with Georgian troops led to the start of Timur’s new invasion of Georgia in the spring of 1387. The enemy's numbers significantly outnumbered the Georgian forces hastily assembled by the prince. Timur personally led the participants in the invasion. A huge number of the country's inhabitants fled to the mountains, thanks to which large casualties were avoided.
In 1392-1393 Timur raided and sacked the cities of Central Iran, then Baghdad, Syria, etc. In the spring of 1394, he came to southern Georgia and sent four commanders with an army of 40,000 to raid Samtskhe-Saatabago. Timur invaded and ravaged Samtskhe, Kors, Kola, and Akhaltsikhe. The population of the Georgian territories he occupied showed fierce resistance to the invaders, which is why the latter had to leave the region after the capture.
On September 13, 1394, Timur invaded with a large army from the Koli valley to the Aragvi valley via Trialeti and Kvemo Kartli. On the way, he destroyed everything, robbed and killed the inhabitants. Big battles took place in Aragvi valley. Timur's goal seems to have been to capture the Darial Pass in order to ultimately prevent the withdrawal of Georgian allied North Caucasian raiders and a possible Tokhtamysh invasion. Every time Timur appeared in Georgia, Tokhtamysh tried to invade Eastern Caucasus. It happened this time as well. Timur was unable to capture Darial due to the great resistance of the mountaineers. He was forced to come down from the mountain and go to Shaki through Tbilisi. At that time, Timur learned that Tokhtamysh would invade Shirvan through Derbent and ravage the place. Timur quickly moved in this direction, but avoided the battle and turned back again. His army encamped on the banks of the Mtkvari, near Mahmud Abad, and began preparations for a great campaign against Tokhtamish. It became clear to Timur that he could not subdue Caucasus, including Georgia, if he did not defeat Tokhtamysh.
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