Battle of Trialeti

The Battle of Trialeti was fought between the armies of the Kingdom of Georgia and the Seljuk Empire in 1110. When the Georgians captured Samshvilde and Dzerna in 1110, the Seljuks felt this kind of defeat very hard and could not easily give up, so the Sultan of the Seljuk Empire sent 1.000 men to Georgia but they were defeated by 1,500 men under the command of David IV in Trialeti.

Battle of Trialeti
Part of Georgian–Seljuk wars
Date 1110 Location Near Trialeti, Kingdom of Georgia Result Georgian victory
Belligerents
Kingdom of Georgia	Seljuk Empire
Commanders and leaders
David IV	Muhammed Tapar
Strength
1,500 Tadzreuli warriors	100.000

Background and battle

In 1110 the Georgians led by George of Chqondidi, his nephew Theodore, Abuleti and Ivane Orbelian, retaliated against the Seljuk settlement and recaptured the town of Samshvilde, a heavily fortified town of great symbolic importance, and then liberating the Kura and Iori valleys.^[1] Following this capture, the Seljuks left a large part of their captured territories, allowing Georgian troops to capture Dzerna [ka].^[2]

The Seljuks felt this kind of defeat very hard and they could not easily give up the territory they had once conquered.^[3]

In response to this double defeat, in 1110 Sultan Muhammad I Tapar sent an army of 1,000 soldiers to invade Georgia.^[1] David IV at that time was in his residence at Nacharmagevi.^[2] If David IV had avoided the enemy and gathered an army it would have resulted in the destruction of the country. Furthermore, the king would probably not even be able to form an army before the Turks retreated. He chose the more aggressive course of action; as soon as he received information about the Seljuk army, he made a quick decision. With the small but select army at his disposal (tadzreuli numbering 1,500 warriors),^[4] he organized a forced march at night and managed to block the enemy's march to the Trialeti Mountains before they entered the Kartli Plain. As a result, events unfolded exactly as described in the treatise: the Georgians gained an obvious moral advantage and the Seljuks, exhausted by the long march, were forced to fight in an unfavourable position. Despite their numerical superiority, the Turks could not defeat David's detachment (which was in a better position) and left the battlefield in despair.^[3][2][5] According to Georgian Chronicles, not believing in such a simple victory, the king stayed on until the following day, waiting for another Seljuk attack, and only then realised the Seljuk defeat.^[6]

Aftermath

The Battle of Trialeti deprived the Seljuk Empire of the opportunity to conduct a major military campaign against Georgia. In 1110–1114, David IV did not conduct active military operations either. In 1115, Roger of Salerno defeated the Atabag of Mosul at the Battle of Sarmin. After that, David became active again and in 1115-1118 he captured Rustavi,^[2][4]Lori,^[2] and Agarani^[7] and also defeated the Seljuks at the Battle of Rakhsi.^[8]

References

1. Rayfield 2012, p. 90.
2. Metreveli 2011, p. 66.
3. JOURNAL OF MEDIEVAL MILITARY HISTORY. Boydell & Brewer. 21 June 2022. ISBN 9781783277186.
4. Samushia 2015, p. 29.
5. Allen 1932, p. 98.
6. Kaukhchishvili 1955, p. 333.
7. History of Georgia 2012, p. 387.
8. History of Georgia 2012, p. 386.

Sources

• Allen, W.E.D. (1932). A History of the Georgian People. London: Routledge & Keagan Paul.
• Baumer, Christoph (2023). History of the Caucasus. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9780755636303.
• Brosset, Marie-Félicité (1849). Histoire de la Géorgie depuis l'Antiquité jusqu'au XIXe siècle. Volume I [History of Georgia from Ancient Times to the 19th Century, Volume 1] (in French). Saint-Petersburg: Imperial Academy of Sciences.
• Kaukhchishvili, Simon (1955). La vie du Karthli – Texte complet et commentaires le concernant (in Georgian). Tbilisi: Publication d'État. ISBN 99928-43-44-6..
• Lortkipanidze, Mariam; Japaridze, Otar; Muskhelishvili, David; Metreveli, Roin (2012). History of Georgia in four volumes, vol. II - History of Georgia from the 4th century to the 13th century. Tbilisi: National Academy of Sciences of Georgia. ISBN 978-9941-19-585-3.
• Metreveli, Roin (2011). Saint David the Builder. Tbilisi. ISBN 9789941425509.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Rayfield, Donald (2012). Edge of Empires : A History of Georgia. Reaktion Books.
• Samushia, Jaba (2015). Illustrated history of Georgia. Tbilisi: Palitra L. ISBN 978-9941-21-755-5.