The House of Chavchavadze ( ka, ჭავჭავაძე) is a
Georgian noble family, formerly a
prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
ly one (
tavadi
''Tavadi'' ( ka, თავადი, "prince", lit. "head/chief" an from ka, თავი ''tavi'', "head", with the prefix of agent ''-di'') was a feudal title in Georgia (country), Georgia first applied in the Late Middle Ages usually trans ...
), later incorporated into the
Russian nobility
The Russian nobility or ''dvoryanstvo'' () arose in the Middle Ages. In 1914, it consisted of approximately 1,900,000 members, out of a total population of 138,200,000. Up until the February Revolution of 1917, the Russian noble estates staffed ...
, also with the title of
Prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
.
History
The family is first attested in the 15th century, during the reign of
Alexander I of Georgia
Alexander I the Great (, ''Aleksandre I Didi'') (1386 – between August 26, 1445 and March 7, 1446), of the Bagrationi house, was king ('' mepe'') of Georgia from 1412 to 1442. Despite his efforts to restore the country from the ruins left by ...
. By the time of
Leon of Kakheti they appear in the province of
Kakheti
Kakheti (; ) is a region of Georgia. Telavi is its administrative center. The region comprises eight administrative districts: Telavi, Gurjaani, Qvareli, Sagarejo, Dedoplistsqaro, Signagi, Lagodekhi and Akhmeta.
Kakhetians speak the ...
(1529, according to Prince Ioann of Georgia), where they produced two lines: one in
Telavi
Telavi (; ) is the main city and administrative center of the eastern Georgian province of Kakheti. As of the 2017 Census, its population was 19,751. The city is located on the foothills of the Tsiv-Gombori Range at above sea level.
History
Th ...
and
Tsinandali
Tsinandali ( ka, წინანდალი) is a village in Kakheti, Georgia, situated in the district of Telavi, 79 km east of Tbilisi. It is noted for the palace and historic winery-estate which once belonged to the 19th-century aristocra ...
; another in
Qvareli and
Shilda. Both these lines were elevated to a princely dignity under the kings
Erekle I
Heraclius I ( ka, ერეკლე I, Erekle I; ) or Nazar Alī Khān (; ) (1642–1709), of the Bagrationi dynasty, was a Georgian monarch (''mepe'') who ruled the kingdoms of Kakheti (1675–1676, 1703–1709) and Kartli (1688–1703) under ...
(1680s) and
Constantine II (1726), respectively.
The Chavchavadze family, with its head
Prince Garsevan, came to much prominence under the king
Erekle II
Heraclius II, also known as Erekle II ( ka, ერეკლე II) and The Little Kakhetian ( ka, პატარა კახი, link=no ; 7 November 1720 or 7 October 1721 Cyril_Toumanoff.html" ;"title="ccording to Cyril Toumanoff">C. Touman ...
later in the 18th century, and continued to play an important role in Georgia during the
Imperial Russia
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor/empress, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imperial, Nebraska
* Imperial, Pennsylvania
* ...
n rule. They were confirmed in their rank by the
Tsar
Tsar (; also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar''; ; ; sr-Cyrl-Latn, цар, car) is a title historically used by Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word '' caesar'', which was intended to mean ''emperor'' in the Euro ...
’s decrees of 1825, 1828, 1829, and 1850.
On 4 July 1853, a small party under Ghazi Muhammad (the son of Murid leader,
Imam Shamil
Imam Shamil (; ; ; ; ; 26 June 1797 – 4 February 1871) was the political, military, and spiritual leader of North Caucasian resistance to Imperial Russia in the 1800s, the third Imam of the Caucasian Imamate (1840–1859), and a Sunni Muslim ...
) kidnapped Prince Chavchavadze's wife
Anna
Anna may refer to:
People Surname and given name
* Anna (name)
Mononym
* Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke
* Anna of East Anglia, King (died c.654)
* Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773)
* Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th c ...
and his sister-in-law,
Princess Varvara Orbeliani, together with their children and some others. The princess was exchanged for Shamil's son, Jamalu'd-din and 40,000 roubles on 10 March 1855.
[John F. Baddeley, The Russian Conquest of the Caucasus (New York: Russell & Russell, 1969), pp. 449-53]
Notable members
*
Garsevan Chavchavadze
Prince Garsevan Chavchavadze ( ka, გარსევან ჭავჭავაძე) (July 20, 1757 - April 7, 1811) was a Georgia (country), Georgian nobleman (''tavadi''), politician and diplomat primarily known as the Georgian ambassador t ...
, Georgian politician and diplomat
*
Alexander Chavchavadze
Prince Alexander Chavchavadze ( ka, ალექსანდრე ჭავჭავაძე, ; 1786 – 6 November 1846) was a Georgian poet, public benefactor and military figure. Regarded as the "father of Georgian romanticism", he was a pre- ...
, Georgian writer and military figure
*
Nino Chavchavadze
Princess Nino Chavchavadze (; also known as Nina Alexandrovna Griboyedova in a Russian manner) (November 4, 1812June 28, 1857) was a daughter of the famous Georgian ''knyaz'' (prince) and poet Alexander Chavchavadze and wife of Russian diplomat ...
, Georgian noble
*
Ilia Chavchavadze
Tavadi, Tavadi (Prince) Ilia Chavchavadze ( ka, ილია ჭავჭავაძე; 27 October 1837 – 12 September 1907) was a Georgians, Georgian journalist, publisher, writer and poet who spearheaded the revival of Georgian nationalism ...
, Georgian poet and Father of the Nation
*
David Chavchavadze, American writer
*
Princess Nina Georgievna of Russia
Princess Nina Georgievna of Russia () (20 June 1901 – 27 February 1974), was the elder daughter of Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia (1863–1919), Grand Duke George Mikhailovich and Princess Maria Georgievna of Greece and Denmark, Grand ...
, Russian princess
References
*
Bagrationi, Ioane (1768–1830)
Chavchavadze (Princes of Kakheti) ''The Brief Description of the Georgian Noble Houses''. Retrieved on December 20, 2007.
*
Toumanoff, Cyril
Cyril Leo Toumanoff ( ka, კირილ თუმანოვი; ; 10 October 1913 – 4 February 1997) was a Georgian-American historian, and academic genealogist who mostly specialized in the history and genealogies of medieval Georgia, Armen ...
(1967). ''Studies in Christian Caucasian History'', p. 270.
Georgetown University Press
Georgetown University Press is a university press affiliated with Georgetown University that publishes about forty new books a year. The press's major subject areas include bioethics, international affairs, languages and linguistics, political s ...
.
Noble families of Georgia (country)
Russian noble families
Georgian-language surnames
{{Georgia-noble-stub
