Aslan-Bey Sharvashidze, from the
House of Sharvashidze, was the Prince of the
Principality of Abkhazia from 1808 to 1810.
Biography
He was the eldest son of
Prince Kelesh Ahmed-Bey Sharvashidze by his forst wife, Princess Mariam
Dzapsh-Ipa.
Naturally, Aslan-Bey was associated with pro-western and pro-Turkish elements of the region and was responsible for rebelling against and later killing his father in order to ascend the throne of the Principality. According to
George Hewitt, this a Russian fabrication and the assassination was organised by Aslan-Bey's brother,
Sefer-bey,
Nino Dadiani and the Russian military administration.
Aslan-bey turned the town of
Sukhumi
Sukhumi or Sokhumi is a city in a wide bay on the Black Sea's eastern coast. It is both the Capital city, capital and largest city of Abkhazia, a partially recognised state that most countries consider a part of Georgia (country), Georgia. The ...
into his royal residence, which at the time, was guarded by a
Turkish military regiment. Aslan-Bey actively fought together with
King Solomon II of
Imereti
Imereti ( Georgian: იმერეთი, ) is a region of Georgia situated in the central-western part of the republic along the middle and upper reaches of the Rioni River. Imereti is the most populous region in Georgia. It consists of 11 mun ...
against
Tsarist Russian forces.
In 1810, after several decisive Russian military victories, the House of Sharvashidze was driven out of Sukhumi together with the Turkish regiment that was protecting him and fled to
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
. After Aslan-Bey’s expulsion from
Abkhazia
Abkhazia, officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a List of states with limited recognition, partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, at the intersection of Eastern Europe and West Asia. It cover ...
, the Tsarist Russian leadership established Aslan-Bey’s brother,
Sefer Ali-Bey, as the new ruler of Abkhazia.
In an interview with Nikoloz (Nicolas) Sharvashidze, Head-descendant of Aslan-Bey, it was mentioned that the elder descendants of the Aslan-Bey branch of the Sharvashidze family currently reside in Georgia, while the junior branch is said to have gone extinct in Turkey. Nikoloz is currently a student at the
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...
in the
McCombs School of Business and as such resides in Austin, Texas.
[Archived a]
Ghostarchive
and th
Wayback Machine
References
* ''Georgian State (Soviet) Encyclopedia.'' 1983. Book 10. p. 688.
* ''Sinop Etnografya Museum/Aslan Torun Mansion''
Princes of Abkhazia
Aslan-Bey
Muslims from the Russian Empire
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