Akhaltsikheli
Encyclopedia
Akhaltsikheli were a Georgian
noble family prominent in the end of the 12th to the mid-13th centuries. Their name came from the city of Akhaltsikhe
, their original fiefdom.
They branched out from the Toreli
(Thoreli) ducal family towards the end of the 12th century and through loyal service to the Georgian crown acquired more lands including those ruled by their kinsmen from the Thoreli house. As a result of the Khwarezmian
and Mongol
invasions, the family declined, lost their possessions to other noble families, and virtually went extinct by the end of the 13th century.
The most prominent of them were
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
noble family prominent in the end of the 12th to the mid-13th centuries. Their name came from the city of Akhaltsikhe
Akhaltsikhe
Akhaltsikhe is a small city in Georgia's southwestern region of Samtskhe-Javakheti. It is situated on the both banks of a small river Potskhovi, which separates the city to the old city in the north and new in the south. The name of the city translates from Georgian as "new fortress".- History...
, their original fiefdom.
They branched out from the Toreli
Toreli
The Toreli , earlier known as the Gamrekeli , were a noble family in medieval Georgia, known from the 10th century and prominent into the 14th...
(Thoreli) ducal family towards the end of the 12th century and through loyal service to the Georgian crown acquired more lands including those ruled by their kinsmen from the Thoreli house. As a result of the Khwarezmian
Khwarezmian Empire
The Khwarazmian dynasty or Khwarezmian dynasty, also known as Khwarezmids, dynasty of Khwarazm Shahs or Khwarezm-Shah dynasty was a Persianate Sunni Muslim dynasty of Turkic mamluk origin.They ruled Greater Iran in the High Middle Ages, in the period of about 1077 to 1231, first as vassals of...
and Mongol
Mongol Empire
The Mongol Empire , initially named as Greater Mongol State was a great empire during the 13th and 14th centuries...
invasions, the family declined, lost their possessions to other noble families, and virtually went extinct by the end of the 13th century.
The most prominent of them were
- Shalva of AkhaltsikheShalva of AkhaltsikheShalva Toreli-Akhaltiskheli was a Georgian military commander and courtier, of the noble house of Toreli-Akhaltsikheli.Shalva was one of the most notable military commanders during a series of expansionist wars waged by the Kingdom of Georgia under Queen Tamar . He consecutively held top posts of...
- Iwane of Akhaltsikhe (died 1225), Shalva’s brother, prominent military commander who was appointed governor general of KarsKarsKars is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province. The population of the city is 73,826 as of 2010.-Etymology:As Chorzene, the town appears in Roman historiography as part of ancient Armenia...
in 1205/1206 and granted the titles of Atabek and Amir. He was killed by the Khwarezmians in the Battle of GarniBattle of GarniThe Battle of Garni took place near garni , in the part of Armenia that was vassal to Georgia, was fought in 1225 between Georgians and Armenians, and Khwarazmians ; the invaders were led by Jalal ad-Din Mingburnu, the desperate last sultan of the Khwarezmid Empire who, driven from his...
. - Pharadavla of Akhaltsikhe (died 1244), Shalva’s son; He fled to the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm when the Mongols took control of Georgia, and joined the army of sultan Kaykhusraw IIKaykhusraw IIGhiyath al-Din Kaykhusraw II was the sultan of the Seljuqs of Rûm from 1237 until his death in 1246. He ruled at the time of the Babai uprising and the Mongol invasion of Anatolia. He led the Seljuq army with its Christian allies at the Battle of Köse Dağ in 1243...
. Together with another refuge from Georgia, Dardin Sharvashisdze, he commanded Georgian auxiliaries at the Battle of Köse DagBattle of Köse DagThe Battle of Köse Dağ was fought between the Seljuk Turks of Anatolia and the Mongols on June 26, 1243 at the defile of Köse Dağ, a location between Erzincan and Gümüşhane in northeast Anatolia, modern Turkey, and ended in a decisive Mongol victory....
in 1243 where the Seljuk Turks were crushed by the Mongol commander Bayju. Sharvashisdze was killed in action, and the sultan later had Pharadavla assassinated.