Bagrat VII of Kartli

Bagrat Khan also known as Bagrat VII (Georgian: ბაგრატ VII) (1569–1619), was King of Kartli, eastern Georgia, effectively serving as a khan for the Persian shah Abbas I from 1615 to 1619.

Life

A son of Daud Khan of Kartli, he took refuge in Persia after his father was dislodged by the Ottoman invasion in 1578. He was brought up Muslim at the shah’s court. In 1615, he was installed by Abbas I as a puppet king/khan in Kartli on the deposition of his cousin, King Luarsab II the Martyr. He exercised only a limited power confined to Lower Kartli and largely relied on Persian forces. Considered as a renegade, he was disgusted by most of the kingdom’s population and, in spite of the Persian presence, he was unable to control even seemingly loyal nobility. His short reign was spent mostly in the town of Bolnisi, where he died in 1619, to be succeeded by his son, Simon II (Semayun Khan).

Family

Bagrat was married to Anna, daughter of Alexander II of Kakheti. They had the following children:

1. Simon II, King of Kartli.
2. Pahrijan-Begum, given in marriage to Shah Abbas I.

External links

• Bagrat VII (Georgian)
• Royal Ark – Genealogies of Kings of Georgia