Georgian Military Road
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The Georgian Military Road (Военно-Грузинская дорога [Voyenno-Gruzinskaya doroga] in Russian, and საქართველოს სამხედრო გზა [sakartvelos samkhedro gza] in Georgian) is a historic name of the main route through the Caucasus from Georgia to Russia.
It runs between Tbilisi (Georgia) and Vladikavkaz (Russia) and follows the traditional route used by invaders and traders throughout the ages. The road stretches some 208 kilometers through the Terek valley, crosses the Rocky Ridge (хребет Скалистый) in the Darial Gorge, then leads through the canyon of the Baidarka River to the mountain pass, from where it goes down to the valley of the Tetri Aragvi River and leads to Tbilisi along the right bank of the Kura (Mtkvari) River. The road was completed by the Russian military in 1799. After Georgia decided to join the Russian Empire in 1801, the Russians began improving the surfacing of the road and finished by 1863. The Georgian Military Road played an important role in the economic development of Transcaucasia.
The road reaches an altitude of 2379 meters (7815 feet) as it traverses the mountains. Among the scenic attractions found along its course are Mount Kazbek, Darial Gorge, Gergeti Trinity Church, the ancient town of Mtskheta (once Georgia's capital), the Jvari Monastery of the 6th century, the medieval fortress of Ananuri and Zemo Avchala, a hydroelectric dam.
The importance of the Georgian Military Highway as a through route has diminished in recent years, mainly because of delays at the border crossing between Russia and Georgia, and even, on occasions, the complete closure of that border post.
[edit] Further reading
- Article on the Georgian Military Highway in Hidden Europe Mitchell, Laurence (2006) The High Road to the Caucasus: Exploring the Georgian Military Highway. Hidden Europe, 9, pp.2-7 (July 2006) - in English.
