Selim Khimshiashvili (1755 – 3 June 1815) was a Georgian nobleman of the

Khimshiashvili The House of Khimshiashvili ( ka, ხიმშიაშვილი) was the name of several Georgian noble families, with their bases in the regions of Kakheti and Adjara. A Kakhetian family was part of the princely nobility of Georgia and, then, ...

princedom and dukedom and a

Beylerbey ''Beylerbey'' (, meaning the 'commander of commanders' or 'lord of lords’, sometimes rendered governor-general) was a high rank in the western Islamic world in the late Middle Ages and early modern period, from the Anatolian Seljuks and the I ...

Adjara Adjara ( ka, აჭარა ''Ach’ara'' ) or Achara, officially known as the Autonomous Republic of Adjara ( ka, აჭარის ავტონომიური რესპუბლიკა ''Ach’aris Avt’onomiuri Resp’ublik’a ...

under the Ottoman suzerainty, but with considerable autonomy. His seizure of power in the Pashalik of Akhaltsikh and attempts to bring all of "Ottoman Georgia" under his rule led to a fallout with the sultan's government and a war which ended in Selim's death. Selimi5

Prince & Duke Selim Bey was a son and successor of Abdullah Bey, a

("the lord of the valleys") of Upper Adjara, who was killed at Aketi during his raid against the neighboring Georgian

principality of Guria The Principality of Guria ( ka, გურიის სამთავრო, tr) was a historical state in Georgia. Centered on modern-day Guria, a southwestern region in Georgia, it was located between the Black Sea and Lesser Caucasus, and was ...

in 1784. Selim Bey cherished an ambition to bring all of the Ottoman possessions in Georgia under his autonomous rule. In 1802, he capitalized on a crisis in

Akhaltsikhe Akhaltsikhe ( ka, ახალციხე ), formerly known as Lomsia ( ka, ლომსია ), is a small city in Georgia's southwestern region () of Samtskhe–Javakheti. It is the administrative center of the Akhaltsikhe Municipality and ...

and seized control of it, declaring himself a new

pasha Pasha (; ; ) was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitary, dignitaries, and others. ''Pasha'' was also one of the highest titles in the 20th-century Kingdom of ...

. His adversary, Şerif Paşa, was able to dispossess him in June 1809, but Selim staged a comeback in 1812. His staunch opposition to the central Ottoman government led him into clandestine negotiations with the

Russians Russians ( ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian language, Russian, the most spoken Slavic languages, Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church ...

through Mamia V Gurieli, Prince of Guria, whose sister was married to Selim's son Abdi Bey. In 1815, the Ottoman sultan

Mahmud II Mahmud II (, ; 20 July 1785 – 1 July 1839) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1808 until his death in 1839. Often described as the "Peter the Great of Turkey", Mahmud instituted extensive administrative, military, and fiscal reforms ...

ordered him be deposed and put to death for treason. As 15,000 Ottoman troops under Pehlivan Ibrahim Pasha, ''

serasker ''Serasker'', or ''seraskier'' (; ), is a title formerly used in the Ottoman Empire for a vizier who commanded an army. Following the suppression of the Janissaries in 1826, Sultan Mahmud II transferred the functions of the old Agha of the Ja ...

'' of

Erzurum Erzurum (; ) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. It is the site of an ...

, approached, Selim fled

to the mountains of

and entrenched himself in the castle of Khikhani, which fell after a two-month-long siege on 31 May 1815. Selim Pasha was beheaded on 3 June 1815. Selim's four sons—Abdi (Abdullah; 1786–1859),

Ahmed Ahmad () is an Arabic male given name common in most parts of the Muslim world. Other English spellings of the name include Ahmed. It is also used as a surname. Etymology The word derives from the root ( ḥ-m-d), from the Arabic (), from ...

(1781–1836), Husein, and Dede (Dursun)—took shelter in

Guria Guria ( ka, გურია) is a region (''mkhare'') in Georgia (country), Georgia, in the western part of the country, bordered by the eastern end of the Black Sea. The region has a population of 104,338 (2023), with Ozurgeti as the regional cap ...

until the Ottoman punitive force left

in 1818. Subsequently, they came to rule several areas in "Ottoman Georgia": Abdi Bey in Shavsheti (Şavşat), Ahmed in Upper Adjara, Husein in the Andzavi valley, and Dede in Taoskari. In today's Adjara, Selim is remembered as a hero. His native village Nigazeuli hosts his museum and the day of his memory, Selimoba, is marked annually in June. There is a street named after Selim Khimshiashvili in Adjara's main city,

Batumi Batumi (; ka, ბათუმი ), historically Batum or Batoum, is the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), second-largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia and the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, located on the coast ...

, where his statue was also unveiled in 2015.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khimshiashvili, Selim Pashas People from Adjara Ottoman governors of Georgia Year of birth unknown Georgians from the Ottoman Empire 1755 births 1815 deaths People executed by the Ottoman Empire by decapitation People of Adjarian descent