Bagrat VII of Kartli
Encyclopedia
Bagrat Khan also known as Bagrat VII (1569–1619), was king of Kartli
, eastern Georgia
, effectively serving as a khan
for the Persian shah
Abbas I
from 1615 to 1619.
A son of Daud Khan of Kartli, he took refuge in Persia after his father was dislodged by the Ottoman
invasion in 1578. He was brought up Muslim
at the shah’s court. In 1615, he was installed by Abbas I as a puppet king/khan in Kartli on the deposition of his cousin, King Luarsab II the Martyr
. He exercised only a limited power confined to Lower Kartli and largely relied on Persian forces. Considered as a renegade, he was disgusted by most of the kingdom’s population and, in spite of the Persian presence, he was unable to control even seemingly loyal nobility. His short and uneventful reign was spent mostly in a town Bolnisi
, where he died in 1619, to be succeeded by his son, Semayun Khan
.
Kartli
Kartli is a historical region in central-to-eastern Georgia traversed by the river Mtkvari , on which Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, is situated. Known to the Classical authors as Iberia, Kartli played a crucial role in ethnic and political consolidation of the Georgians in the Middle Ages...
, eastern Georgia
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...
, effectively serving as a khan
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
for the Persian shah
Shah
Shāh is the title of the ruler of certain Southwest Asian and Central Asian countries, especially Persia , and derives from the Persian word shah, meaning "king".-History:...
Abbas I
Abbas I of Persia
Shāh ‘Abbās the Great was Shah of Iran, and generally considered the greatest ruler of the Safavid dynasty. He was the third son of Shah Mohammad....
from 1615 to 1619.
A son of Daud Khan of Kartli, he took refuge in Persia after his father was dislodged by the Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
invasion in 1578. He was brought up Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
at the shah’s court. In 1615, he was installed by Abbas I as a puppet king/khan in Kartli on the deposition of his cousin, King Luarsab II the Martyr
Luarsab II of Kartli
The Holy Martyr Luarsab II , of the Bagrationi dynasty, was a king of Kartli from 1606 to 1615. He is known for his martyr’s death at the hands of the Persian shah Abbas I...
. He exercised only a limited power confined to Lower Kartli and largely relied on Persian forces. Considered as a renegade, he was disgusted by most of the kingdom’s population and, in spite of the Persian presence, he was unable to control even seemingly loyal nobility. His short and uneventful reign was spent mostly in a town Bolnisi
Bolnisi
Bolnisi , is a city in the country of Georgia, located in the Kvemo Kartli region and capital of the Bolnisi district. Currently has an estimated 13,800 inhabitants....
, where he died in 1619, to be succeeded by his son, Semayun Khan
Simon II of Kartli
Simon II , also known as Svimon or Semayun Khan , was a Persian-appointed king of Kartli, eastern Georgia, from 1619 to 1630/1631.A son of Bagrat Khan, Simon was a Georgian convert to Islam...
.