Timurid invasions of Georgia

Timurid invasions of Georgia
Part of the Timurid Wars, Tokhtamysh-Timur war
A miniature depicting Timur's army attacking the survivors of a town in Georgia, in the spring of 1396, by the Persian artist Kamāl ud-Dīn Behzād.
Date 1386–1403 Location Caucasus, eastern Anatolia, western Iran Result Timurid victory
Belligerents
Timurid Empire	Kingdom of Georgia
Commanders and leaders
Timur Miran Shah	Bagrat V George VII Ivane II Jaqeli (until 1400)
Strength
200,000	50,000
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Most of Georgia destroyed and civilians massacred At least 60,000 enslaved[1]

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Early modern history Duchy of Ksani Samtskhe-Saatabago Kingdom of Kartli Kingdom of Kakheti Kingdom of Imereti Principality of Guria Principality of Svaneti Principality of Mingrelia Principality of Abkhazia Safavid Georgia Childir Eyalet Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti
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The Timurid invasions of Georgia (Georgian: თემურლენგის ლაშქრობები საქართველოში, romanized: temurlengis lashkrobebi sakartveloshi) were eight invasions between 1386 and 1403 of the Kingdom of Georgia in the Caucasus by the Timurid Empire. Led by Timur, the Timurids ultimately conquered the Christian monarchy and made it a tributary state that kept its independence and religion.

Timur's

In the first of eight invasions, Timur sacked Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, and captured the king Bagrat V in 1386. Georgian resistance prompted a renewed attack by the Turco-Mongol armies. Bagrat's son and successor, George VII, put up a stiff resistance and had to spend much of his reign (1395–1405) fighting the Timurid invasions. Timur personally led most of these raids to subdue the recalcitrant Georgian monarch. He did not establish firm control over Georgia. By the time George VII was forced to accept Timur's terms of peace and agree to pay tribute, he was a master of little more than "gutted towns, ravaged countryside and a shattered monarchy".^[2]

Timur's first appearance in the

To regain his freedom, Bagrat pretended to convert to Islam and Timur sent him back under surveillance of a 12,000-strong army which was to enforce Georgian Kingdom's conversion to Islam. Bagrat secretly informed his son George, who raised an army and destroyed the Timurid troops, freeing Bagrat.^[3][1]

The death of thousands of soldiers in battle with Georgian troops led to the start of Timur’s new invasion of Georgia in the spring of 1387. The enemy's numbers significantly outnumbered the Georgian forces hastily assembled by the prince. Timur personally led the participants in the invasion. A huge number of the country's inhabitants fled to the mountains, thanks to which large casualties were avoided.^[4]

In 1392-1393 Timur raided and sacked the cities of Central Iran, then Baghdad, Syria, etc. In the spring of 1394, he came to southern Georgia and sent four commanders with an army of 40,000 to raid Samtskhe-Saatabago. Timur invaded and ravaged Samtskhe, Kors, Kola, and Akhaltsikhe. The population of the Georgian territories he occupied showed fierce resistance to the invaders, which is why the latter had to leave the region after the capture.^[4]

On September 13, 1394, Timur invaded with a large army from the Koli valley to the Aragvi valley via Trialeti and Kvemo Kartli. On the way, he destroyed everything, robbed and killed the inhabitants. Big battles took place in Aragvi valley. Timur's goal seems to have been to capture the Darial Pass in order to ultimately prevent the withdrawal of Georgian allied North Caucasian raiders and a possible Tokhtamysh invasion. Every time Timur appeared in Georgia, Tokhtamysh tried to invade Eastern Caucasus. It happened this time as well. Timur was unable to capture Darial due to the great resistance of the mountaineers. He was forced to come down from the mountain and go to Shaki through Tbilisi. At that time, Timur learned that Tokhtamysh would invade Shirvan through Derbent and ravage the place. Timur quickly moved in this direction, but avoided the battle and turned back again. His army encamped on the banks of the Mtkvari, near Mahmud Abad, and began preparations for a great campaign against Tokhtamish. It became clear to Timur that he could not subdue Caucasus, including Georgia, if he did not defeat Tokhtamysh.^[1]

In the winter of 1399,^[5] Timur breached the borders of Kingdom of Georgia with 100,000 specially chosen soldiers, under Timur, and Ibrahim I of Shirvan. They then crossed Kura river on a patoon bridge, and hacked the path with machetes to avoid Georgian sentries. They caught Kakheti, and Hereti by surprise before they could flee, and hide their property. A Georgian general Khimisha delayed the Timurids by tactical evasion, and those who were forewarned escaped to the caves and forests. Timur's forces looted and burned churches and monasteries. They slaughtered civilians in their hiding places.^[6] Tens of thousands were pressed into slavery or were massacred.^[5]

In the spring of 1400, Timur moved back to destroy the Kingdom of Georgia once and for all. He demanded that George VII should hand over the Jalayirid Tahir but George VII refused and met Timur at the Sagim River in Kvemo Kartli, but suffered a defeat.^[7] After the war, of those who survived the fighting and reprisals, many thousands died of hunger and disease, and 60,000 survivors were enslaved and carried away by Timur's troops.^[8]

After the departure of Timur from Georgia, King George moved to Eastern Georgia and began to organize domestic affairs. King George and Virshel, Duke of Ksani raided and punished the Dvals, who took advantage of Timur's invasion and raided and looted the Ksani valley.

In 1401, Timur came to the borders of Georgia from the east and camped in Shamkor.

In late 1401, Timur invaded the Georgia once again.^[9] George VII had to sue for peace, and sent his brother with the contributions. Timur made peace with George VII on condition that the King of Georgia supplied him troops during his campaign against Ottoman Empire and granted the Muslims special privileges.^[10] In the spring, Timur's army left for the Ottomans. On the way, he came to the Tortumi fortress, in which about 200 Georgian soldiers were fortified, capture it and destroyed it after a five-day battle, and cut off the soldiers.^[1]

Once the Ottomans were

Georgia became tributary to the Timurids, Georgia was allowed to retain its independence and remain as a Christian kingdom.^[2][1]

Allegedly, Timur's forces devastated the country to the point where new words, like abandoned city (ნაქალაქარი) abandoned village (ნასოფლარი) abandoned vineyard (ნავენახარი) and other similar phrases were introduced to the Georgian language.

Timur then finally left the Caucasus and headed for

In 1406, the ruler of Iran gathered an army and camped in Alatagh, Caucasus. Giorgi suddenly attacked and drove the enemy towards Tabriz.^[14]

• Timurid conquests and invasions
• Timur's fifth invasion of Georgia