Simon II Gurieli (also Svimon; ka, სიმონ
ვიმონII გურიელი, died 1792
), of the western Georgian
House of Gurieli
The House of Gurieli () was a Georgian princely ('' mtavari'') family and a ruling dynasty (dukes) of the southwestern Georgian province of Guria, which was autonomous and later, for a few centuries, independent. A few ducal rulers of the dynas ...
, was
Prince of Guria from 1788/89 to 1792.
Biography
Simon Gurieli was the eldest son of
Giorgi V Gurieli, Prince of Guria, who abdicated in Simon's favor due to his old age and political instability in the principality. Shortly after he acceded to the princely throne, Simon repaired to the
Ottoman provincial capital
A capital city, or just capital, is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state, province, department, or other subnational division, usually as its seat of the government. A capital is typically a city that physically encomp ...
of
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 ...
for negotiations with the local pasha Isaq to ease Turkish pressure on Guria. On his way back, Simon's entourage was ambushed by the
Muslim Georgian clansmen of
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 ...
, and the prince was taken captive by the Adjarian chieftain
Selim Bey, who released Simon after the latter agreed to marry off his 5-year-old daughter Kesaria to Selim's son Abdi Bey.
In a civil war in the neighboring
Kingdom of Imereti
The Kingdom of Imereti ( ka, იმერეთის სამეფო, tr) was a Georgian monarchy established in 1455 by a member of the house of Bagrationi when the Kingdom of Georgia was dissolved into rival kingdoms. Before that time, I ...
, whose monarchs claimed suzerainty over Guria, Simon supported
David II, but he then made common cause with the eventual winner
Solomon II. In 1790, the king of Imereti as well as princes-regnant of Guria and
Mingrelia
Mingrelia or Samegrelo ( ka, სამეგრელო, tr ; ) is a historic province in the western part of Georgia, formerly known as Odishi. It is primarily inhabited by the Mingrelians, a subgroup of Georgians.
Geography and climate
Mingr ...
signed a treaty of alliance with
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 ...
, ruler of the eastern Georgian kingdom of
Kartli-Kakheti, in which Erekle was recognized as chief and doyen of the Georgian potentates.
When Simon died in 1792, his younger brother
Vakhtang
Vakhtang ( ka, ვახტანგ) is a masculine Georgian given name of Persian language, Persian origin. Originally from "vahrka-tanū," meaning "wolf-bodied." Some sources argue that the meaning of the name could possibly be a representation ...
took advantage of Simon's heir
Mamia who was still underage, and seized the government of Guria.
Family
Simon was married to Princess Marine (died 4 March 1814), daughter of the influential Imeretian nobleman, Prince Kaikhosro Tsereteli. He had three daughters and one son:
* Princess Kesaria (1785–1861), married the Muslim Georgian nobleman Abdi-Bey Khimshiashvili (died 1859), son of
Selim-Bey;
* Princess Elisabed (also known as Lisa; born 1786), married Prince
Ivane Abashidze (died 1822);
* Prince
Mamia V Gurieli (1789–1826), Prince-regnant of Guria;
* Princess
N., married to
Tariel Dadiani Tariel "Taia" Dadiani ( ka, ტარიელ აიადადიანი; ), of the House of Dadiani, was Prince of Mingrelia from 1793 to 1794 and in 1802 as a rival to his elder brother, Grigol Dadiani, whose rule was marred by the long-st ...
of Mingrelia.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simon 02 Gurieli
House of Gurieli
1792 deaths
18th-century people from Georgia (country)
Year of birth unknown