Leon I of Abkhazia, hereditary prince (

Eristavi ''Eristavi'' (; literally, "head of the nation") was a Georgian feudal office, roughly equivalent to the Byzantine '' strategos'' and normally translated into English as "prince" or less commonly as "duke". In the Georgian aristocratic hierarch ...

) of Abkhazia, ruling between 720–740 and a vassal to the

Byzantine Emperor This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Byzantine Empire, Eastern Roman Empire, to Fall of Constantinople, its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. On ...

. The ''

Divan of the Abkhazian Kings The ''Divan of the Abkhazian Kings'' ( ka, აფხაზთა მეფეთა დივანი, tr, which is often translated as the ''Chronicles of the Abkhazian Kings'') is a short medieval document composed in Georgian in the late 10th ...

'' mentions that his reign took place in the 1st half of the 8th century. During his reign Leon actively battled invading Arabs and had close diplomatic contacts with the prince of Iberia and Kakheti, Archil. He also had significant relations to the Byzantine emperor

Leo III the Isaurian Leo III the Isaurian ( gr, Λέων ὁ Ἴσαυρος, Leōn ho Isauros; la, Leo Isaurus; 685 – 18 June 741), also known as the Syrian, was Byzantine Emperor from 717 until his death in 741 and founder of the Isaurian dynasty. He put an e ...

, to whom he sent a letter asking for help against the forces of the

Umayyad Caliphate The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by th ...

. In answer, the Emperor confirmed his hereditary rule over the Kingdom of Abkhazia and suggested that he should accept Archil as his overlord and suzerain and by doing so, battle the Muslims with united forces. Leo III also bestowed the title of Archon upon the Abkhazian King. This meant that the Byzantines accepted Leon I's rule over the lands of

Egrisi In Greco-Roman geography, Colchis (; ) was an exonym for the Georgian polity of Egrisi ( ka, ეგრისი) located on the coast of the Black Sea, centered in present-day western Georgia. Its population, the Colchians are generally though ...

, Jiketi and Sanigia. The ties between Archil and Leon I were also strengthened by Leon's marriage with Gurandukht, the daughter of Archil's brother

Mirian of Kakheti Prince Mirian or Mihr ( ka, მირიანი; მირი) was a Georgian prince of the royal Chosroid dynasty reigning between 736 and 741. Life He was son of Prince Stephen of Kakheti and brother of Prince Archil of Kakheti. According to ...

. In 735, a large expedition led by Arab general Marwan was launched against the Georgian kingdoms. The Kingdom of Abkhazia suffered greatly from the invasion. After the pivotal siege of

Anakopia New Athos or Akhali Atoni ( ka, ახალი ათონი, ''Akhali Atoni''; ab, Афон Ҿыц, ''Afon Ch'yts''; russian: Новый Афон; ''Novy Afon'', gr, Νέος Άθως, ''Neos Athos'') is a town in the Gudauta ''raion'' of ...

, the Arabs were decisively defeated and retreated with heavy losses. During the invasion, Archil took shelter in the Kingdom of Abkhazia. Assisted by Leon, they participated in many important battles against the Arabs, including the siege of Anakopia. The reign of Leon I was a very important episode in the history of Georgia. Despite heavy losses, the Georgians managed to dissipate the invading Arab forces, which undoubtedly determined the survival of Christianity and statehood in Western Georgia, with long lasting future consequences.

Genealogy

References

* Georgian Soviet encyclopedia, vol. 6, pg. 191, Tb., 1983. {{end box 8th-century Kings of Abkhazia People of the Arab–Byzantine wars

Genealogy

See also

References