Akhaltsikhe
Akhaltsikhe ახალციხე | |
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![]() ![]() Akhaltsikhe ახალციხე Location of Akhaltsikhe in Georgia | |
Coordinates: 41°38′20″N 42°59′10″E / 41.63889°N 42.98611°E | |
Country |
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mkhare | Samtskhe-Javakheti |
Population (2002) | |
• Total | Approximately 20,000. With the numerous surrounding villages, 46,134 |
Time zone | Georgian Time (UTC+4) |
Akhaltsikhe (Georgian: ახალციხე, literally "new castle"; formerly known as Lomisa) is a small city in Georgia's southwestern region (mkhare) of Samtskhe-Javakheti. It is situated on the both banks of a small river Potskhovi, which separates the city to the old city in the north and new in the south.
History
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The city is first mentioned in the chronicles in the 12th century. In the 12th–13th centuries it was the seat of the Akhaltsikhelis, dukes of Samtskhe, whose two most illustrious representatives were Shalva and Ivane Akhaltsikheli (of Akhaltsikhe). From the 13th up to the 17th century the city and Samtkhe were governed by the feudal family of the Jaqelis. In 1576 the Ottomans took it and from 1628 the city became the centre of the Samtskhe Eyalet of the Ottoman Empire as "Ahıska". In 1828, during the Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829, Russian troops under the command of General Paskevich captured the city and, as a consequence of the 1829 Treaty of Adrianople (Edirne), it was ceded to the Russian Empire as part of first Kutaisi and then Tbilisi governorates. In the old part of the city one can see an old fortress, castle and mosque, the old fortress of the Jakelis (13th–14th century), and St. Marine's Church. The hills nearby the city harbour the Sapara Monastery (10th–14th centuries).
In the late 1980s the city was host to the Soviet Army's 10th Guards Motor Rifle Division, which became a brigade of the Georgian land forces after the fall of the Soviet Union.
Population
According to the 2002 Census, the city's population with the many surrounding villages was 46,134. The city proper is currently estimated by locals to be about 20,000. In 2002 the majority were ethnic Georgians (28,473, or 61%), with minority of Armenians (16,879, or 37%).[1]
International relations
Twin towns and sister cities
Akhaltsikhe is twinned with:
People associated with Akhaltsikhe
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- Grégoire-Pierre Agagianian (1895–1971), cardinal of the Armenian Catholic Church
- Michael Aznavourian, father of Charles Aznavour
- David Baazov, rabbi in Akhaltsikhe (1918)
- Aghan Ephrikian (?-1840), Pasha and governor
- Aram Ghanalanyan (1909–1983), Armenian philologist, folklorist, member of Armenian National Academy of Sciences
- Hovhannes Katchaznouni (1868–1938), first prime minister of the Democratic Republic of Armenia
- Ahmed-Pasha Khimshiashvili (?-1836), Pasha of Ahiska
- Sergo Kobuladze (1909–1978), painter and illustrator
- Hakob Kojoyan (1883–1959), Soviet Armenian artist
- Shalva Maglakelidze, plenipotentiary for the Russian Provisional Government and then for the government of Georgia in Akhaltsikhe (1917–1918)
- Stepan Malkhasyants, Armenian academician
- Palavandishvili family
- Giorgi Mazniashvili, governor general of Akhaltsikhe (1919–1920)
- Natela Svanidze, Georgian composer
- Michel Tamarati (1858–1911), Georgian Catholic priest and historian
- Vakhtang Tchutchunashvili (?-1668), usurper of Imereti throne, fled to Ahiska after being deposed
- Vakhtang V, King of Kartli, fled to Ahiska after a coup failure
- Lusine Zakaryan (1937–1991), Soviet Armenian soprano singer
See also
- Battle of Akhalzic
- Akhaltsikhe Museum
References
- ↑ 2002 Georgia Census. State Department of Statistics of Georgia. Retrieved on May 26, 2011
External links
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Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Akhaltsikhe. |
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Akhaltsikhe. |
Coordinates: 41°38′20″N 42°59′10″E / 41.63889°N 42.98611°E
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