Georgia in the Roman era

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The area of Georgia was under Roman control between the 1st century BC and the 7th century AD. This control varied by time and was intermittent over the kingdoms of Colchis and Iberia in the Caucasus region. These kingdoms roughly correspond to some of the western and eastern parts of modern Georgia. [1]

Contents

History

Pre-Roman Georgia: Colchis became part of the Roman province of Pontus. Early Georgian States Colchis And Iberia.svg
Pre-Roman Georgia: Colchis became part of the Roman province of Pontus.

Rome's conquests reached the Caucasus area at the end of the 2nd century BC, when the Roman Republic started to expand in Anatolia and the Black Sea.

In the area of what is now western Georgia there was the Kingdom of Colchis that in those years had fallen under control of the Kingdom of Pontus (an enemy of Rome), while further east there was the "Kingdom of Iberia". As a result of the Roman campaigns of Pompey and Lucullus in 65 BC, the Kingdom of Pontus was completely destroyed by the Romans and all its territory, including Colchis, was incorporated into the Roman Empire as its province. Iberia, on the other hand was invaded and became a vassal state of the empire.

From this point on Colchis became the Roman province of Lazicum, with Emperor Nero later incorporating it into the Province of Pontus in 63 AD, and successively in Cappadocia by Domitian in 81 AD. At the same time, Iberia continued to be a vassal state because it enjoyed significant independence and with the lowlands frequently raided by fierce mountain tribes, paying a nominal homage to Rome in exchange for protection was viewed as a worthwhile investment. [2]

The following 600 years of South Caucasian history were marked by the struggle between Rome and Parthians and Sassanids of Persia who fought long wars against the Romans, known as the Roman-Persian Wars.

Despite the fact that all major fortresses along the seacoast were occupied by the Romans, their rule was pretty loose. In 69 AD, the people of Pontus and Colchis under Anicetus staged a major uprising against the Romans which ended unsuccessfully.

Christianity began to spread in the early 1st century. Traditional accounts relate the event with Saint Andrew, Saint Simon the Zealot, and Saint Matata (but the Hellenistic, local pagan and Mithraic religious beliefs would remain widespread until the 4th century). [3]

While the Laz people's kingdom of Colchis was administered as a Roman province, Caucasian Iberia freely accepted the Roman Imperial protection. A stone inscription discovered at Mtskheta speaks of the 1st-century ruler Mihdrat I (AD 58-106) as "the friend of the Caesars" and the king "of the Roman-loving Iberians." Emperor Vespasian fortified the ancient Mtskheta site of Arzami for the Iberian kings in 75 AD.

In the 2nd century AD, Iberia strengthened her position in the area, especially during the reign of King Pharsman II Kveli (The Prominent) who achieved full independence from Rome and reconquered some of the previously lost territories from declining Armenia. During his reign Iberia and Rome became allies. Pharsman II was even invited by emperor Marcus Aurelius to Rome and an equestrian statue of Iberian king has been erected on Mars square in his honor.

In the 3rd century AD, the Lazi tribe came to dominate most of Colchis, establishing the kingdom of Lazica, locally known as Egrisi. Colchis was a scene of the protracted rivalry between the Eastern Roman/Byzantine and Sassanid empires, culminating in the Lazic War from 542 to 562. [4]

"Pompey's Bridge" was built in Georgia by the Roman legionaries of Pompey Pompeybridge1.JPG
"Pompey's Bridge" was built in Georgia by the Roman legionaries of Pompey

Furthermore, in the early 3rd century, Rome had to acknowledge sovereignty of Caucasian Albania and Armenia to Sassanid Persia, but all what is now Georgia was back under Roman control with Aurelian and Diocletian around 300 AD. [5]

The province of Lazicum (or Lazica) was given a degree of autonomy that by the mid-3rd century developed into full independence with the formation of a new Kingdom of Lazica-Egrisi on the territories of smaller principalities of the Zans, Svans, Apsyls, and Sanyghs. This new South Western Caucasian state survived more than 250 years until 562 when it was absorbed by the Eastern Roman Empire, during Justinian I. [6]

Indeed, in 591 AD Byzantium and Persia agreed to divide Caucasian Iberia between them, with Tbilisi to be in Persian hands and Mtskheta to be under Roman/Byzantine control.

At the beginning of the 7th century the temporary truce between the Romans and Persia collapsed again. The Iberian Prince Stephanoz I (ca. 590-627), decided in 607 AD to join forces with Persia in order to reunite all the territories of Caucasian Iberia, a goal he seems to have accomplished.

But Emperor Heraclius's offensive in 628 AD brought victory over the Persians and ensured Roman predominance in western and eastern Georgia until the invasion and conquest of the Caucasus by the Arabs in the second half of the 7th century.

Indeed, the presence of Rome started to disappear from Georgia after the Battle of Sebastopolis, fought near the eastern shores of the Black Sea in 692 AD between the Umayyads and the Eastern Roman Empire troops led by Leontios. [7]

The Lazica province of Justinian in 565 AD Roman-Persian Frontier, 565 AD.png
The Lazica province of Justinian in 565 AD

Sebastopolis (actual Sukhumi) continued to remain the last Roman/Byzantine stronghold in western Georgia, until being finally sacked and destroyed by the Arab conqueror Marwan II in 736 AD.

Roman Christianity

One of the main legacies of Rome to Georgia is the Christian faith.

Indeed, Christianity, first preached by the Apostles Simon and Andrew in the 1st century, became the state religion of Caucasian Iberia in 327, making Georgia one of the earliest Christian countries in the world. [8] [9]

The final conversion of all Georgia to Christianity in 327 is credited to St. Nina of Cappadocia. She was the only daughter of pious and noble parents, the Roman general Zabulon, a relative of the great martyr St. George, and Susanna, sister of the Patriarch of Jerusalem. [10]

Christianity was declared the state religion by King Mirian III of Iberia as early as 327 AD, which gave a great stimulus to the development of literature, arts and the unification of the country. In 334 AD, Mirian III commissioned the building of the first Christian church in Iberia which was finally completed in 379 AD on the spot where now stands the Cathedral of the Living Pillar in Mtskheta, the ancient capital of Georgia.

Petra in Lazica is an ancient bishopric in Georgia that is included in the Catholic Church's list of titular sees. [11]

Roman forts

The remnants of the eastern gate in Archaeopolis Nokalakevi99.jpg
The remnants of the eastern gate in Archaeopolis
Gonio (previously called "Apsaros"): remains of a Roman bath house in the fortress. Gonio Castle.jpg
Gonio (previously called "Apsaros"): remains of a Roman bath house in the fortress.

Roman presence was huge in coastal Georgia, where some Roman forts were defended for centuries by legionaries (and had even some Roman colonists living in the related cities). The fortress of Gonio, in the ancient Colchis city of "Apsaros", is considered by some scholars (like Theodore Mommsen) to have been the center of Roman power in western Georgia since the 2nd century AD.

Indeed, Roman culture -according to archeological findings- was widespread in western Lazicum, diminished in eastern Colchis but was minimal in Caucasian Iberia (with the exception of the capital Mtskheta).

The main Roman Forts (and related cities) were:

Archaeopolis (actual Nokalakevi) was ruled by the Romans from Augustus times, but only the Eastern Roman Empire developed in a huge way this fortification in central Lazicum after the 4th century AD. Actually it is a renowned archeological site of Georgia. [14]

Armazi, in eastern Georgia, was another fortified city related to Rome. This fortress near Mtskheta was captured by the Roman general Pompey during his 65 BC campaign against the Iberian king Artag. A ruined structure over the nearby Mtkvari River dates from that time and is still called "Pompey's bridge". Armazi's heyday came when Iberia was allied with the Roman emperors. A stone stele unearthed at Armazi in 1867 reports that the Roman Emperor Vespasian fortified Armazi for the Iberian king Mithridates I in 75 AD. [15] This defense wall constructed in a unique position, to block the southern exit of the Daryal Pass before it widens into the plain of modern Tbilisi, was presumably a preventive measure against the Alans who frequently raided the Roman frontiers from across the Caucasus.

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingdom of Iberia</span> Ancient Georgian kingdom of Kartli

In Greco-Roman geography, Iberia was an exonym for the Georgian kingdom of Kartli, known after its core province, which during Classical Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages was a significant monarchy in the Caucasus, either as an independent state or as a dependent of larger empires, notably the Sassanid and Roman empires. Iberia, centered on present-day Eastern Georgia, was bordered by Colchis in the west, Caucasian Albania in the east and Armenia in the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Georgian Orthodox Church</span> National Eastern Orthodox church

The Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia, commonly known as the Georgian Orthodox Church or the Orthodox Church of Georgia, is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in full communion with the other churches of Eastern Orthodoxy. It is Georgia's dominant religious institution, and a majority of Georgian people are members. The Orthodox Church of Georgia is one of the oldest churches in the world. It asserts apostolic foundation, and that its historical roots can be traced to the early and late Christianization of Iberia and Colchis by Andrew the Apostle in the 1st century AD and by Saint Nino in the 4th century AD, respectively. As in similar autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Christian churches, the church's highest governing body is the holy synod of bishops. The church is headed by the Patriarch of All Georgia, Ilia II, who was elected in 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mtskheta</span> City in Mtskheta-Mtianeti, Georgia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Military history of Georgia</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christianization of Iberia</span> Spread of Christianity in Caucasian Iberia

The Christianization of Iberia refers to the spread of Christianity in the early 4th century as a result of the preaching of Saint Nino in the ancient Georgian kingdom of Kartli, known as Iberia in classical antiquity. The then-pagan king of Iberia Mirian III declared Christianity to be the kingdom's state religion. Per Sozomen, this led the king's "large and warlike barbarian nation to confess Christ and renounce the religion of their fathers", as the polytheistic Georgians had long-established anthropomorphic idols, known as the "Gods of Kartli". The king would become the main sponsor, architect, initiator and an organizing power of all building processes.

References

  1. W.E.D. Allen, A history of the Georgian people (1932), p. 123
  2. Theodor Mommsen, William Purdie Dickson, Francis Haverfield. The provinces of the Roman Empire: from Caesar to Diocletian. Gorgias Press LLC, 2004: pg. 68
  3. "Christianity and the Georgian Empire" (early history) Library of Congress, March 1994, webpage:LCweb2-ge0015.
  4. "History of the later Roman Empire: The Lazic war".
  5. "Ancient Georgia".
  6. "Wars of Justinian I".
  7. Haldon, John F. Byzantium in the seventh century p.72
  8. The Church Triumphant: A History of Christianity Up to 1300, E. Glenn Hinson, p 223
  9. Prayers from the East: Traditions of Eastern Christianity, Richard Marsh, p. 3
  10. "stnina.ca/stnina_life.html". Archived from the original on 2007-07-12. Retrieved 2010-07-03.
  11. Annuario Pontificio 2013 (Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2013, ISBN   978-88-209-9070-1), p. 952
  12. "Photos of Gonio-Apsaros". Archived from the original on 2011-07-11. Retrieved 2010-07-05.
  13. John Leach (1986), Pompey the Great, p. 84. Routledge, ISBN   0-7099-4127-7.
  14. "Archaeopolis".
  15. Sherk, Robert K. (1988), The Roman Empire: Augustus to Hadrian, p. 128-9

Bibliography