The House of Machabeli (
sing. ka, მაჩაბელი,
pl. მაჩაბლები, ''Machablebi''; ) was a
Georgian princely house (''
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 ...
'') which held a large fiefdom (''satavado'') in the province of
Inner Kartli (central Georgia) called
Samachablo
Samachablo ( ka, სამაჩაბლო ) is a Georgian historical district in Shida Kartli, Georgia (country), Georgia, which has been occupied in 2008 by Russia, lies entirely within the disputed Tskhinvali Region (controlled by the partia ...
after their family name.
History
The origin of the family is not clear. According to a traditional account, they descended from one of the princes of the Abkhaz-Georgian feudal clan of
Anchabadze who had fled the disorders in
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 ...
. Another version holds it that the Machabeli were an offshoot of the
Tavkhelidze family who adopted their dynastic name after the village of on the
Great Liakhvi River where their initial domain was located. Beginning with the 15th century, the Machabeli grew in prominence and held various important posts at the court of the Georgian kings 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 ...
. Their fiefdom, Samachablo, covered a significant portion of what is now breakaway region of the so called "
South Ossetia
South Ossetia, officially the Republic of South Ossetia or the State of Alania, is a landlocked country in the South Caucasus with International recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, partial diplomatic recognition. It has an offici ...
", and enjoyed a degree of autonomy within the Kingdom 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 ...
from c. 1470 to 1800 when Georgia was annexed to
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
* ...
. The Machabeli house was confirmed in princely dignity by the Russian
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 ...
in 1850.
Мачабели
Russian Biographic Lexicon. Retrieved on April 1, 2007.
See also
* Ivane Machabeli, Georgian writer, journalist and translator
* Georges V. Matchabelli, Georgian nobleman and diplomat
* Tamarasheni
*Abkhazi
The House of Apkhazi ( ka, აფხაზი, ; also known as Abkhazishvili) was a princely family in Georgia, a branch of the Shervashidze family from Abkhazia.
History
According to the genealogical treatise by Prince Ioann of Georgia (1768-1 ...
References
* Хаханов А. С. ( Alexander Khakhanov)
князья Мачабели
In
М. 1893.
* Pyotr Dolgorukov. '' Russian genealogy book''. – Saint Petersburg: Типография Э. Веймара, 1856. – Vol. 3. – p. 480.
Families from Georgia (country)
Noble families of Georgia (country)
Georgian-language surnames
{{Georgia-noble-stub