Youth

Vakhtang was born around 1618, and was the eldest son of Teimuraz I, Prince of Mukhrani, who has the prince of the House of Mukhrani since 1580, and his wife, Princess Anne Sidamoni, he descends from a younger branch of the Bagrationi dynasty which has governed an interior province of Kartli since the beginning of the 16th century. From his youth, Vakhtang was educated as heir to the throne of a powerful principality and around the age of 5, his family began his training in the military arts.

His father soon became one of the leaders of the Georgian revolt against Safavid Iran which then occupied the Kingdom of Kartli and Kakheti, and in 1623 he was appointed regent of Kartli by the Georgian nobles from the north of the kingdom.^[1] However, he was killed during the Battle of Marabda in 1625, when Vakhtang was only 7 years old and the prerogative of Mukhrani went to Teimuraz's brother, Kaikhosro.^[2] He was in turn defeated during the invasion of Kartli by King Teimuraz I of Kakheti in 1627 and went into exile in the Ottoman Empire, while his wife and nephews, including Vakhtang, took refuge in Imereti. at the court of King George III.^[3]

After the failure of Teimuraz I of an attempt by the exiled family to retake their domains, the House of Mukhrani fell into the hands of Prince David of Kakheti.^[4] However, the entire region is the scene of civil conflict between the pro-Safavid and Christian parties; Mukhrani found itself at the center of the conflict, while being administered by the Duchy of Aragvi.^[5] Following the death of Shah Abbas the Great in 1629, the pro-Persian party divided and King Simon II of Kartli confiscated the Mukhrani from Duke Zurab I of Aragvi and invited the young Vakhtang, then aged 11 , to rule the principality as Vakhtang II of Mukhrani.^[4] A few months later, Simon II was killed by the Duke of Aragvi, Teimuraz I of Kakheti regained possession of Kartli and the fate of Mukhrani and Vakhtang became uncertain.^[6]

In 1634, Prince Vakhtang, whose exact status is unknown but who remains one of the most influential nobles in central Georgia, was the first prince to offer his allegiance to the Persian-Georgian general Rostom Khan, who invaded Kartli with Safavid troops.^[7] Vakhtang meets Rostom in Khunan, Persia, and his arrival encourages the Baratiani clan to follow the general.^[7] In Tbilisi, Rostom is proclaimed king of Kartli, vassal of Persia, and the rebels are defeated.^[6]

Prince of Mukhrani

Rostom Khan's rise to power solidified Vakhtang's power over Mukhrani, who ruled with the Muslim name of Bakhuta Beg.^[8] In 1635, he positioned himself as a negotiator during talks between the central government and the rebel Duke David of Aragvi, his maternal uncle, and welcomed the king, his troops and the duke to Mukhrani.^[8] These negotiations failed and David of Aragvi was assassinated in the fortress of Vakhtang by the guards of Rostom Khan, who used Mukhrani as a base to invade the Aragvian province of Dusheti.^[8]

This episode changes the dynamics of relations between Vakhtang and Kingdom of Kartli. The same year, Teimuraz I of Kakheti, in exile in Imereti, returned to his former kingdom with the help of the prince of Mukhrani.^[8] The latter, accompanied by Prince Iotam Amilakhvari, visited him in Kakheti in order to plan an invasion of Kartli.^[9] Following Rostom Khan's failure to obtain Persian reinforcements, Teimuraz entered Kartli and formed an alliance with Vakhtang and the Duchy of Ksani, before besieging Gori with Mukhranian troops.^[10] The night siege failed and Vakhtang and Teimuraz withdrew to the villages of Ikorta and Artsevi, within the Duchy of Ksani.^[9] Together, they regroup and attack Gori again but are defeated by Rostom Khan in a bloody battle.^[11] The latter devastated Mukhran, while Vakhtang took refuge in Saeristo.^[10]

Vakhtang's defeat forces him to return to Rostom's sphere of influence.^[12] In 1638, he warned the monarch of an imminent invasion of Teimuraz, following which the king sent the Georgian Catholicos Eudemus to convince Teimuraz to return to Kakheti.^[10] Two years later, another invasion plan gained the support of Duke Zaal of Aragvi and Iotam Amilakhvari, who united their forces at Akhalgori.^[13] On December 24, 1640, Rostom Khan sent a dispatch to Vakhtang requesting help from Mukhrani's troops,^[14] before sending him a new letter on the night of December 24 to 25 saying:^[15]

“We are arriving with a lot of people, come and join us also with your people in good condition, so that God helping us, we attack without waiting for daybreak. »

Rostom arrives in Mukhrani the same night and is welcomed there by Vakhtang[18]. On the morning of December 25, united forces rushed Akhalgori, taking the rebels attending Christmas mass by surprise.^[15] During the battle, Vakhtang distinguished himself as a remarkable fighter, while the rebel nobles suffered a great defeat.^[15] Following the battle, Rostom, Vakhtang and their troops eat together the Christmas meal prepared for the defeated.^[15]

In the spring of 1642, Rostom Khan launched an invasion of Kakheti with his Iranian troops.^[16] Vakhtang and his Mukhranian forces were sent to capture Teimuraz in Tianeti and confronted him at the Battle of Ughlisi.^[16] Vakhtang's soldiers killed the Kakhetian general Revaz Cholokashvili, forcing Teimuraz to flee the battlefield and take refuge in eastern Kakheti, where he was pursued by Rostom.^[16]

Heir of Rostom

Ascension

While Rostom's death theoretically ensured Vakhtang's ascension to the throne of Kartli, Shah Abbas II's envoy did not immediately recognize him as monarch, initially treating him as the kingdom's interim administrator.^[31] This restraint is probably linked to the power of Zaal of Aragvi, which threatens to enter into conflict.^[32] The latter in turn tried to have himself proclaimed king by landing at Avlabari, just outside Tbilisi, but seeing the strength of the central troops, he took refuge in his domains in Dusheti, while refusing to submit to Vakhtang.^[33]

On January 1, 1659, Persia officially recognized Vakhtang as monarch of Kartli,^[33] authorizing his coronation as king at Mtskheta according to ancient Georgian Orthodox tradition. For his coronation, he received from the shah a crown, an egret, a sword made of diamonds, a horse and weapons.^[23] He then became Shah Navaz Khan, or Vakhtang V, “King of kings, master, possessor and sovereign of the Abkhaz, Kartvelians, Ranians, Kakhetians and Armenians, Shirvanshah and Shahanshah to the limits of the East and the North”.

The fate of Mariam Dadiani, dowager queen of Kartli and widow of Rostom, is not immediately clear. Afraid of being deported to Iran to join the shah's harem, she first sent him a lock of her white hair to demonstrate her advanced age, while showing her face as much as possible in public.^[33] The shah then forced Vakhtang V to marry her so that she could stay in Georgia.^[33] Vakhtang, then married to his first wife Rodam Qaplanishvili, a woman of "rare beauty", was forced to divorce her (or, according to some sources, to dismiss her as a secondary wife according to Persian tradition) in order to marry Mariam.^[34] Despite the original opposition of Vakhtang V, he was forced to accept following pressure from the Persian delegates.^[33]

As a formality, Vakhtang sent an emissary to Levan II Dadiani, brother of the queen, to approve the wedding. He offers a golden throne and gems to Mariam. The marriage took place in mid-February 1659^[33] during a ceremony which lasted a week. After the celebration, the queen sent one of her ladies as a present to Simon I Gurieli, former prince of Guria and first husband of Mariam, and four ladies to Shah Abbas II to thank him for granting her the right to stay in Georgia.^[33] Mariam maintained a certain relationship with Simon Gurieli until the latter's death in 1672, causing the jealousy of Vakhtang V.^[35]

Vassal of the Safavids

Much like his adoptive father, Vakhtang V's status as an independent monarch remains the subject of debate.^[32] In Georgia, he is crowned in Georgian Orthodox rites and preserves his name Vakhtang V, King of Kartli, for the Christian population, a level of autonomy generally unacceptable for Safavid Iran.^[32] However, contemporary Persian documents make him Shah Navaz Khan, Wali of Gurjistan ("governor of Georgia"), making him a dignitary of the Persian Empire governing a Persian province.^[36] A little over a century later, King George XII would use in vain this confederal system of a monarchy within an empire as an example of possible integration within Imperial Russia.^[37]

A vassal who governed, according to Prince Vakhushti Bagrationi, "well"^[38] according to the interests of the Safavids, he quickly became one of the most influential political figures in Persia.^[39] Kalistrat Salia made Vakhtang V the third most important man in Persia, behind the shah and his vizier.^[39] This position allowed the Georgian upper class to become powerful in the Persian capital,^[39] beginning an era of Georgian influence in Isfahan under Bagrationi dynasty of Mukhrani. The royal family becomes members of the imperial high court.^[40] A Shiite, Vakhtang V and his court often took part in the religious intrigues of Isfahan.^[40]

This close relationship between Kartli and Persia, however, takes place within the framework of broad control by the Persian authorities in eastern Georgia.^[26] As early as 1659, Shah Abbas II appointed Mourtouz Ali Khan as governor of Kakheti,^[41] while the Persian-Georgian general Allahverdi Khan charged with a mission to settle 15,000^[17] (or 1,500 according to some sources) families Azerbaijani forces in Kakheti and build three Persian military bases there.^[42] At the same time, the Persian authorities in South Caucasus relocated 50,000 Muslim families from Azerbaijan and Karabakh to Kartli.^[43] The kingdom of Vakhtang V is divided into six territories, four of which are placed under the supervision of Mourteza Qouli Khan, beylerbey of Karabakh, and two, under that of Ali Qouli Khan Kankerlou, governor of Nakhchivan.^[44] The latter govern directly over local Muslim families, but such separation leads to numerous tensions between Christian and Muslim communities, tensions which are sometimes violent.^[44] Ali Qouli Khan Kankerlou himself led a military expedition against the Christian Tushetians, in the areas of Vakhtang V.^[44]

While Vakhtang preserved his royal right to appoint every heir of the noble families, he was forced to receive permission from the Persian authorities when making such appointments.^[45] The Persians also tried to preserve internal peace, as shown by Abbas II's appointment of the diplomat Safiqoli Khan to negotiate peace between Vakhtang and Zaal of Aragvi, negotiations which resulted in a temporary truce with the visit de Zaal at the court of Isfahan.^[43] In 1660, he was forced to send his young daughter Anuka to Persia to marry Abbas II.