Constantine III ( ka, კონსტანტინე III) was

King of Abkhazia The Kingdom of Abkhazia ( ka, აფხაზთა სამეფო, tr; ) was a medieval feudal state in the Caucasus which was established in the 780s. Through dynastic succession, it was united in 1008 with the Kingdom of the Iberians, f ...

from 894 to 923 AD. He was the son and successor of Bagrat I of the Anchabadze dynasty.

Life

Constantine's reign is marked as a constant fighting for the hegemony within the Georgian territories. The increasingly expansionist tendencies of the kingdom led to the enlargement of its realm to the east. In 904 he had finally annexed a significant portion of

Kartli Kartli ( ka, ქართლი ) is a historical region in central-to-eastern Georgia traversed by the river Mtkvari (Kura), on which Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, is situated. Known to the Classical authors as Iberia, Kartli played a crucial rol ...

, bringing his borders close to the Arab-controlled Tiflis (modern-day

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...

). Soon he had to face the alliance of the King

Smbat I of Armenia Smbat I (; 850–912/14), sometimes Smbat A Martyr () was the second king of the medieval Kingdom of Armenia of the Bagratuni dynasty, and son of Ashot I. He is the father of Ashot II (known as Ashot Yerkat) and Abas I. Rule Smbat I was cr ...

and

Adarnase IV of Iberia Adarnase IV ( ka, ადარნასე IV) (died 923), or Adarnase II, was a Georgia (country), Georgian monarch of the Bagrationi dynasty who reigned in the late 9th and early 10th centuries. The son of the ''Kouropalates'' David I of Iberia, ...

. The two men collaborated in defeating Constantine III, their common relative, who competed with Adarnase for hegemony in Inner Iberia and with Smbat in

Gugark Gugark (, , ) was the 13th province of the ancient kingdom of Armenia. It now comprises parts of northern Armenia, northeast Turkey, and southwest Georgia. Etymology Etymologically, Gugark in Armenian language denotes land of Gugars. word ...

. Adarnase captured Constantine and turned him over to Smbat. Constantine was imprisoned in Ani. Smbat freed his captive in order to make an alliance against the resurgent Muslims. This alliance was facilitated by Constantine's marriage to the Smbat's daughter. This move, however, turned Adarnase against Smbat. In 912, when Emir

Yusuf ibn Abi'l-Saj Yusuf ibn Abi'l Saj (died, d. 928) was the Sajids, Sajid Emir of Azerbaijan (Iran), Azerbaijan from 901 until his death. He was the son of Abi'l-Saj Devdad. War with Armenians and Georgians Yusuf came to power in 901 by overthrowing his nephew, ...

invaded Armenia, Smbat attempted to take refuge in Abkhazia, but Adarnase did not let him cross his territories and was eventually captured and hanged at Dvin (914). Subsequently, Yusuf ibn Abi'l-Saj took the opportunity to devastate the

Tao-Klarjeti Tao-Klarjeti may refer to: * Tao-Klarjeti, part of Georgian historical region of Upper Kartli * Kingdom of Tao-Klarjeti, AD 888 to 1008 {{set index article Kingdom of Iberia Historical regions of Georgia (country) ...

. This campaign was one of the last major attempts on the part of the

Abbasid Caliphate The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 CE), from whom the dynasty takes ...

to retain its crumbling hold of the Georgian lands, which, at that time, were a patchwork of rival, native states and Muslim holdings. As a result of the campaign, Tao-Klarjeti was weakened. Constantine III used Adarnase's weakness and restored his authority over Kartli. Adarnase was relegated to his portion of the Bagratid hereditary lands in

Tao The Tao or Dao is the natural way of the universe, primarily as conceived in East Asian philosophy and religion. This seeing of life cannot be grasped as a concept. Rather, it is seen through actual living experience of one's everyday being. T ...

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'', pp. 490-493.

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 ...

. and was forced to recognize himself as a vassal of Constantine III. This was the beginning of almost sixty years of Abkhazian dominance over Tao-Klarjeti. Next year, Constantine forged an alliance with

Kvirike I of Kakheti Kvirike I ( ka, კვირიკე I) (died 918) was a List_of_monarchs_of_Kakheti_and_Hereti#Princes_of_Kakheti, Prince and Chorbishop, Chorepiscopus of First Kingdom of Kakheti#Establishment of the principality, Kakheti in eastern Georgia (co ...

. The allies invaded

Hereti The Kingdom of Hereti ( ka, ჰერეთის სამეფო, tr) was a medieval Albanian monarchy which emerged in Caucasus on the Iberian- Albanian frontier. Nowadays it roughly corresponds to the southeastern corner of Georgia's Kakh ...

(principality in the Georgian-

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

marchlands) and divided its major strongholds. Constantine III also tried to extend his influence over

Alania Alania was a medieval kingdom of the Iranian Alans ( Proto-Ossetians) that flourished between the 9th–13th centuries in the Northern Caucasus, roughly in the location of the latter-day Circassia, Chechnya, Ingushetia, and modern North Ossetia ...

by supporting their

Christianization Christianization (or Christianisation) is a term for the specific type of change that occurs when someone or something has been or is being converted to Christianity. Christianization has, for the most part, spread through missions by individu ...

Family

Constantine III married a daughter of

Issue

* Anonymous daughter, married to Ashot of Klarjeti * George II, king of the Abkhazia from 916 until 960. * Bagrat II, co-king of Abkhazia.

Genealogy

Sources.

Marie-Félicité Brosset Marie-Félicité Brosset (24 January 1802 – 3 September 1880) was a French historian and scholar who worked mostly in the Russian Empire. He specialized in Georgian and Armenian studies. Brosset's interest in the Caucasus developed while ...

, ''Histoire de la Géorgie''..

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Constantine Iii Constantine 03 9th-century kings of Abkhazia