David VI of Georgia

David VI დავით VI
King of Kings of Georgia
A 13th century fresco of David VI Narin.
King of Georgia
Reign	1245–1259
Predecessor	Rusudan
Successor	David VII
King of Imereti
Reign	1259–1293
Successor	Constantine I
Spouse	Tamar Amanelisdze Theodora Doukaina Palaeologina
Issue
Constantine I Michael Vakhtang II Alexander
Full name
David VI the Junior David VI Narin
Dynasty	Bagrationi
Father	Muhammad Mughis ud-din Turkan Shah
Mother	Rusudan of Georgia
Born	1225
Died	1293 Tbilisi
Burial	Svetitskhoveli Cathedral, Mtskheta
Religion	Georgian Orthodox Church

David VI Narin (also called the clever) (1225–1293), from the Bagrationi dynasty, was king of Georgia in 1245–1293. From 1259 to 1293, he ruled the kingdom of Imereti under the name David I as a vassal state of Georgia.

Life

Son of Queen Rusudan by her husband, Muhammad Mughis ud-din Turkan Shah, he was crowned at Kutaisi, as joint sovereign by his mother in 1230. Fearing that her nephew David VII Ulu would claim the throne at her death, Rusudan held him prisoner at the court of her son-in-law, the sultan Kaykhusraw II, and sent her son David to the Mongol court to get official recognition as heir apparent. She died in 1245, still waiting for her son to return. Since David was believed by the Georgian nobles to have disappeared, two years later, they proclaimed David, his cousin and son of Giorgi IV Lasha, as king of Georgia. In 1248, he was recognized by Güyük Khan as junior co-king to his cousin David. Thereafter known as David VI Narin (i.e. “the junior”) and David VII Ulu (i.e. “the senior”), the cousins ruled jointly until 1259, when the former rose, unsuccessfully, against the Mongol yoke and, then, fled to Kutaisi, from whence he reigned over western Georgia (Imereti) as a separate ruler. In 1261, he gave shelter to David VII Ulu, who in his turn had attempted to end the Mongol dominance. However, David Ulu made peace with the Mongols and returned to Tbilisi, eastern Georgia in 1262. Thus, Georgia split into two parts. However, both rulers continued to be titled king of Georgia.

He developed friendly relations with the Golden Horde and Egypt, and repulsed the Ilkhanate attacks. In 1269, he gave shelter to Teguder of Turan, brother of Baraq Khan of Turan, who had rebelled against the Ilkhan ruler Abaqa Khan. However, when Teguder’s force began terrorizing the Georgian population, David sided with Abaqa Khan’s general Sirmon. Despite this, Abaqa attempted to overthrow David with the help of the renegade Rachan lord Kakhaber Kakhaberisdze, and sent two expeditions against Imereti in the 1270s. Nevertheless, David VI Narin succeeded in retaining his independence and attempted to restore Georgian influence in the Empire of Trebizond. For this purpose, he marched to Trebizond during Emperor John II Comnenus’ absence at Constantinople in April 1282; and although he failed to take the city, the Georgians occupied several provinces and helped John’s half-sister Theodora, daughter of Manuel I of Trebizond by his Georgian wife, Roussudan (Rusudan), seize the throne in 1285, only to be put suddenly to flight.^[1]

He died at Kutaisi in 1293. He was succeeded by his elder son, Konstantini I.

Marriage and children

He was married to Tamar, daughter of the Georgian noble Amanelisdze. In 1254, he married Theodora, daughter of the Byzantine emperor Michael VIII Palaeologus.

• Konstantini I (by Tamar)
• Mikeli I (by Tamar)
• Vakhtang II of Georgia (by Tamar)
• Aleksandri (by Theodora)

A genealogical theory also considers him father to Rusudan of Georgia, wife of Manuel I of Trebizond.^[2]

References

1. ^ [1]
2. ^ David Hughes, "possible Seljuk connection"

External links

• History of Georgia – XIII-XV centuries

Preceded by Rusudan	King of Georgia 1245–1259	Succeeded by David VII Ulu
Preceded by None	King of Imereti 1259–1293	Succeeded by Konstantini I

Persondata
Name	David 06 Of Georgia
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1225
Place of birth
Date of death	1293
Place of death	Tbilisi