Alexander I of Imereti

Alexander I (Georgian: ალექსანდრე I, Alek'sandre I) (died 1389), of the Bagrationi dynasty, was king of Western Georgia from 1387 to 1389. Prior to that, he was eristavi ("duke") of Imereti under the authority of the kings of Georgia.

Alexander I
Duke of Imerti
Reign	1372–1378
Predecessor	Bagrat I
Successor	Himself as King
King of Western Georgia
Reign	1387–1389
Successor	George I
Died	1389
Spouse	Ana Orbeliani
Issue	Demetrius of Imereti Tamar of Imereti
Dynasty	Bagrationi
Father	Bagrat I
Religion	Georgian Orthodox Church

Alexander was born sometime after 1358 into the family of Bagrat I, then duke (and ex-king) of Imereti, and his wife, a Jaqeli atabeg of Samtskhe. On his father's death in 1372, Alexander was appointed by King Bagrat V of Georgia as duke of Imereti. In 1387, he took advantage of Timur's invasions of Georgia and proclaimed himself king of Imereti at the Gelati Monastery, but the city of Kutaisi remained in the hands of Bagrat V's loyalists and the dukes of Mingrelia, Guria, Abkhazia, and Svaneti refused to join him. Alexander succeeded in seizing several fortresses in Imereti, but Kutaisi remained outside his control.^[1][2][3] He died in 1389 and was succeeded by his brother George I.^[1]

Alexander was married to a certain Ana Orbeliani. He had two children:^[3]

• Prince Demetrius (died 1455), Duke of Imereti;
• Princess Tamar (died c. 1455), wife of Alexander I of Georgia.

References

1. Bagrationi, Vakhushti (1976). Nakashidze, N.T. (ed.). История Царства Грузинского [History of the Kingdom of Georgia] (PDF) (in Russian). Tbilisi: Metsniereba. p. 41.
2. Rayfield, Donald (2012). Edge of Empires: A History of Georgia. London: Reaktion Books. p. 148. ISBN 978-1780230306.
3. Toumanoff, Cyril (1949–51). "The Fifteenth-Century Bagratids and the Institution of Collegial Sovereignty in Georgia". Traditio. 7: 181–183.

Preceded by Bagrat I	King of Imereti 1387–1389	Succeeded by George I