Rusudan was the younger daughter of King George III

George III of Georgia

Giorgi III , of the Bagrationi dynasty, was king of Georgia from 1156 to 1184. His reign, and that of Tamar, are seen as the 'golden age' of Georgian history, the era of empire, diplomatic success, military triumphs, great learning, cultural, spiritual, and artistic flowering.-Life:He succeeded on...

 of 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...

 and of his wife, Burdukhan (Gurandukht). Her elder sister was the famous Queen Tamar

Tamar of Georgia

Tamar , of the Bagrationi dynasty, was Queen Regnant of Georgia from 1184 to 1213. Tamar presided over the "Golden age" of the medieval Georgian monarchy...

, who succeeded their father as ruler of Georgia.

Born about 1158/1160, Rusudan was married, possibly in 1180, to Manuel Komnenos (born 1145)

Manuel Komnenos (born 1145)

Manuel Komnenos was the eldest son of Andronikos Komnenos by his first wife, whose name is not recorded....

, the eldest son of Andronikos I

Andronikos I Komnenos

Andronikos I Komnenos was Byzantine Emperor from 1183 to 1185). He was the son of Isaac Komnenos and grandson of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos.-Early years:...

, who in turn was to be Byzantine Emperor from 1183 to 1185. Manuel and Rusudan had two sons, Alexios

Alexios I of Trebizond

Alexios I Megas Komnenos or Alexius I Comnenus was Emperor of Trebizond from 1204 to 1222. He was the eldest son of Manuel Komnenos and of Rusudan, daughter of George III of Georgia. He was thus a grandson of the Byzantine Emperor Andronikos I. Andronikos was dethroned and killed in 1185...

, probably born in 1182, and David

David Komnenos

David Komnenos was one of the founders of the Empire of Trebizond and its joint ruler together with his brother Alexios until his death.-Early life:...

, born around 1184.

When Andronikos was deposed and killed, Manuel was blinded, and possibly may have died from his wounds. It is said that Rusudan fled Constantinople

Constantinople

Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...

 with her sons, taking refuge either in Georgia or in the former Byzantine province of Pontus

Pontus

Pontus or Pontos is a historical Greek designation for a region on the southern coast of the Black Sea, located in modern-day northeastern Turkey. The name was applied to the coastal region in antiquity by the Greeks who colonized the area, and derived from the Greek name of the Black Sea: Πόντος...

.

While the Fourth Crusade

Fourth Crusade

The Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire...

 were camped outside Constantinople between 1203 and 1204 (and would later take the city), Tamar sent Georgian troops to help Alexios and David to take control of Pontus in April of 1204. Combined with their additional conquests this became the new Empire 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...

.