Archil of Kakheti
| Archil | |
|---|---|
Ioanne and Juansher | |
| Born | Kingdom of Iberia |
| Died | 786 |
| Issue | Juansher of Kakheti Prince Ioane Princess Gurandukht Princess Mariam Princess Mirandukht Princess Susan |
| Dynasty | Chosroid dynasty |
| Father | Stephen of Kakheti |
| Religion | Georgian Orthodox Church |
Life
Archilʼs biography is related in the medieval corpus of Georgian chronicles known as The Life of Kartli. One of its parts, the c. 800 history by
Pseudo-Juansher, terminates with a brief account of Archilʼs tenure as prince, while another one – The Martyrdom of Archil,[1] a brief text of uncertain age (between early 9th and late 11th centuries) inserted just after Ps.-Juansherʼs chronicle – narrowly focuses on Archilʼs martyrdom.[2]
Archil was a scion of the former royal dynasty of
Bagratids, a future royal dynasty, during the time of Archil.[citation needed
]
Around 786, eastern Georgia was subjected to another Arab invasion, this time led by
Byzantine emperor Heraclius
while evacuating Caucasia in the 620s.
Archil has been canonized by the Georgian Orthodox Church which commemorates him on June 21 (N.S. July 4).[3]
Family
Archil was survived by two sons,
Iovane (John) and four daughters: Guarandukht, Mariam, Mirandukht and Shushan. Upon Archilʼs death, Iovane evacuated to Egrisi while Juansher remained in Kakheti[4] and later married Princess Latavri of Tao-Klarjeti of the Bagrationi dynasty
.
Notes
- ^ In surviving manuscripts the title is given as The Passion of the Holy and Glorious Martyr Archil, King of Kartli (წამებაჲ წმიდისა და დიდებულისა მოწამისა არჩილისი, რომელი ესე იყო მეფე ქართლისაჲ, ts'amebay ts'midisa da didebulisa mots'amisa archilisi, romeli ese ik'o mepe k'art'lisay). Though the title of the work identifies its subject as "the king of Kartli", the text itself does not directly refer to Archil as "king" and this title is not apparently used here in a literary sense. Rapp, p. 471.
- ^ Rapp, p. 474.
- ^ Machitadze, Archpriest Zakaria (2007) Holy Royal Martyrs Archil and Luarsab Archived 2008-05-17 at the Wayback Machine. The Lives of the Georgian Saints. Retrieved from Pravoslavie.Ru on November 11, 2007.
- ^ Rapp, pp. 474-5.
References
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- Rapp, Stephen H. (2003), Studies In Medieval Georgian Historiography: Early Texts And Eurasian Contexts
- Toumanoff, Cyril (1963). Studies in Christian Caucasian History, pp. 394–95. Washington DC: Georgetown University Press