Sagdukht ( ka, საგდუხტი) was a 5th-century

queen consort A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king, and usually shares her spouse's social Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and status. She holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles and may be crowned and anointed, but hi ...

Iberia The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, compri ...

, natively known as

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 ...

in eastern

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, as wife of King Mirdat V. She was a daughter of Barzabod, a

Mihranid The Mihranids were an Iranian peoples, Iranian family which ruled several regions of Caucasus from 330 to 821. They claimed to be of Sasanian, Sasanian Persian descent but were of Parthian origin. History The dynasty was founded when a certain Mi ...

ruler of

Gardman Gardman (), also known as Gardmank' or Gardmanadzor, was one of the eight cantons of the ancient province of Utik' in the Kingdom of Armenia and simultaneously, together with the canton of Tuch'katak, an Armenian principality. It roughly corres ...

. Sagdukht is primarily known from the Georgian chronicle, written by

Juansher Juansher was the Mihranids, Mihranid prince of Caucasian Albania, ruling the principality from 637 to 669. He was the son and successor of Varaz Grigor (). During his reign, Juansher changed his allegiance thrice. He started out as a subject to ...

c. 800, relating life of King

Vakhtang I Vakhtang I Gorgasali ( ka, ვახტანგ I გორგასალი, tr; or 443 – 502 or 522), of the Chosroid dynasty, was a king (''mepe'') of Iberia, natively known as Kartli (eastern Georgia) in the second half of the 5th and firs ...

, the son of Mirdat and Sagdukht. She is also mentioned as Sahakdukht in the works of the 13th-century Armenian historian

Vardan Vardan (; Vartan (disambiguation), Vartan in Western Armenian transliteration, pronounced in both Eastern and Western Armenian), Varden (disambiguation), Varden ( ka, ვარდენ) in Georgian language, Georgian, is an Armenian name of Midd ...

. Modern historians such as

Ivane Javakhishvili Ivane Alexandres dze Javakhishvili ( ka, ივანე ჯავახიშვილი; 23 April 1876 – 18 November 1940) was a Georgian historian and linguist whose works heavily influenced the Kartvelian studies, modern scholarship of the ...

Simon Janashia Simon Janashia ( ka, სიმონ ჯანაშია; July 13, 1900 – November 5, 1947) was a Georgia (country), Georgian historian and public figure. He was a professor of history and one of the founding members of the Georgian Academy of ...

, and

Cyril Toumanoff 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 ...

identify her with the Sahakdukht recorded in a Georgian inscription on an icon from the Jvarisa church in the village of Znakva. According to Juansher's chronicle, Sagdukht's hand was sought and obtained by Mirdat—then heir apparent to his reigning father King Archil—who was captivated by Sagdukht's beauty and also sought to ensure the peace between Iberia and Gardman, the Rani ( Arran) of the Georgian source. The couple settled at Mirdat's appanage of

Samshvilde Samshvilde ( ka, სამშვილდე, ) is a ruined fortified city and archaeological site in Georgia, in the country's south, near the homonymous modern-day village in the Tetritsqaro Municipality, Kvemo Kartli region. The ruins of the ...

, where Sagdukht converted to Christianity and built the church of Sioni. Sagdukht gave birth to two daughters, Khvarandze and Mirandukht, and one son, Vakhtang. After Mirdat's death, Sagdukht assumed regency for her underage son under the protection of her father. Later, according to Juansher, Sagdukht and Khvarandze were temporarily left in government of Kartli during Vakhtang's absence on a military expedition against the

Alans The Alans () were an ancient and medieval Iranian peoples, Iranic Eurasian nomads, nomadic pastoral people who migrated to what is today North Caucasus – while some continued on to Europe and later North Africa. They are generally regarded ...

in the

Caucasus Mountains The Caucasus Mountains * * Azerbaijani: , * * * * * * * * * * * is a mountain range at the intersection of Asia and Europe. Stretching between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, they are surrounded by the Caucasus region ...

References

{{Reflist 5th-century queens consort Queens consort from Georgia (country) Converts to Christianity from Zoroastrianism Mihranids 5th-century Iranian people Regents of Georgia