George VII of Georgia
Encyclopedia
George VII (died 1405 or 1407) was king of Georgia
from 1393 to 1407 (alternatively, from 1395 to 1405).
George was the son of the king Bagrat V
and his first wife Helena
of Trebizond
(died of bubonic plague
, 1366). Bagrat appointed him co-ruler in 1369.
In November 1386, King Bagrat was defeated and taken prisoner by the Mongol warlord Timur Leng. Prince George organized a successful resistance to the next incursion and released his father. In 1393, Bagrat died and George assumed full royal powers. He spent most of his reign fighting Timur who led seven more expeditions
against the stubborn Georgian kingdom from 1387 to 1403, leaving the country in ruins. Finally, in 1403 George had to make peace with the fierce enemy, recognising Timur as a suzerain and paying him tribute, but retaining the right to be crowned as a Christian
monarch. He was killed in battle against the Turkmen
nomads, apparently of the Kara Koyunlu
clan.
George VII may have died childless, as his brother, Constantine I
became the next king.
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...
from 1393 to 1407 (alternatively, from 1395 to 1405).
George was the son of the king Bagrat V
Bagrat V of Georgia
Bagrat V, “the Great” was the son of the Georgian king Davit IX with whom he was co-ruler from 1355, and became king after the death of his father in 1360....
and his first wife Helena
Helena Megale Komnene
Helena Megale Komnene is the name given for the first wife of King Bagrat V of Georgia. Her first name is recorded in "The Georgian Chronicle" , and her family name is based on a theory which identifies her as a daughter of Basil of Trebizond. If true, the identity of her mother would be...
of Trebizond
Empire of Trebizond
The Empire of Trebizond, founded in April 1204, was one of three Byzantine successor states of the Byzantine Empire. However, the creation of the Empire of Trebizond was not directly related to the capture of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade, rather it had broken away from the Byzantine Empire...
(died of bubonic plague
Bubonic plague
Plague is a deadly infectious disease that is caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis, named after the French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Yersin. Primarily carried by rodents and spread to humans via fleas, the disease is notorious throughout history, due to the unrivaled scale of death...
, 1366). Bagrat appointed him co-ruler in 1369.
In November 1386, King Bagrat was defeated and taken prisoner by the Mongol warlord Timur Leng. Prince George organized a successful resistance to the next incursion and released his father. In 1393, Bagrat died and George assumed full royal powers. He spent most of his reign fighting Timur who led seven more expeditions
Timur's invasions of Georgia
Georgia, a Christian kingdom in the Caucasus, was subjected, between 1386 and 1404, to several disastrous invasions by the Islamic armies of Turco-Mongol conqueror Timur, whose vast empire stretched, at its greatest extent, from Central Asia into Anatolia.These conflicts were intimately linked with...
against the stubborn Georgian kingdom from 1387 to 1403, leaving the country in ruins. Finally, in 1403 George had to make peace with the fierce enemy, recognising Timur as a suzerain and paying him tribute, but retaining the right to be crowned as a Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
monarch. He was killed in battle against the Turkmen
Turkmen people
The Turkmen are a Turkic people located primarily in the Central Asian states of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and northeastern Iran. They speak the Turkmen language, which is classified as a part of the Western Oghuz branch of the Turkic languages family together with Turkish, Azerbaijani, Qashqai,...
nomads, apparently of the Kara Koyunlu
Kara Koyunlu
The Kara Koyunlu or Qara Qoyunlu, also called the Black Sheep Turkomans , were a Shi'ite Oghuz Turkic tribal federation that ruled over the territory comprising the present-day Armenia, Azerbaijan, north-western Iran, eastern Turkey and Iraq from about 1375 to 1468.The Kara Koyunlu Turkomans at one...
clan.
George VII may have died childless, as his brother, Constantine I
Constantine I of Georgia
Constantine I was King of Georgia from 1407 to 1411 .He was the elder son of King Bagrat V of Georgia by his second wife, Anna of Trebizond. His maternal grandparents were Alexios III of Trebizond and Theodora Kantakouzene....
became the next king.