Editing Kingdom of Iberia

{{Short description|Ancient Georgian kingdom of Kartli}}
{{other uses|Kingdom of Iberia (disambiguation)|Iberia (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox country
| native_name            = ႵႠႰႧႪႨႱ ႱႠႫႤႴႭ<br>''kartlis samepo''
| conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Iberia
| image_flag             = Kartli - drosha jvari.svg
| flag_type              = [[Flag of Georgia (country)#Previous flags|Flag of the kingdom]] after the [[Christianization of Iberia]]
| common_name            = Iberia, Kartli
| era                    = [[Classical Antiquity|Antiquity]]
| status                 = Status
| status_text            = {{Plain list|
*Vassal state of the [[Seleucid Empire]]
(302–159 BC)
*Client state of the [[Roman Republic]]<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rayfield |first=Donald |year=2012 |title=Edge of Empires: A History of Georgia |pages=26, 29, 417}}</ref>
(65–63 BC, 40–36 BC, 30–1 AD)
* Client state of the [[Roman Empire]]<ref>Ronald Grigor Suny. ''The Making of the Georgian Nation''. p. 15.</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Rayfield |first=Donald |year=2012 |title=Edge of Empires: A History of Georgia |pages=29–35}}</ref><ref>Braund pp.233–237</ref>
(1–129 AD, 131–260 AD)
* Vassal state of [[Sassanid Persia]]
(260–265 AD)<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rayfield |first=Donald |year=2012 |title=Edge of Empires: A History of Georgia |pages=35–36}}</ref>
* Client state of the [[Eastern Roman Empire]]<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rayfield |first=Donald |year=2012 |title=Edge of Empires: A History of Georgia |page=38}}</ref>
(298–363 AD)
* Vassal state of Sassanid Persia 
(363–482 AD, 502–523 AD)
* Direct Sassanid Persian rule
(523–580 AD)
*Annexation by Sassanid Persia
(580–588 AD)}}
| empire                 = 
| government_type        = [[Monarchy]]
<!--- Rise and fall, events, years and dates --->
<!-- only fill in the start/end event entry if a specific article exists. Don't just say "abolition" or "declaration"-->| year_start             = {{circa|302}} BC&nbsp;
| year_end               = &nbsp;580 AD
| year_exile_start       = 
| year_exile_end         = 
| event_start            = Reign of [[Pharnavaz I of Iberia|Pharnavaz I]]
| date_start             = 
| event_end              = Direct [[Sasanian Iberia|Sasanian control]] and abolition of the monarchy
| date_end               = 
| event1                 = 
| date_event1            = 
| event2                 = [[Christianization of Iberia]] during reign of [[Mirian III]]
| date_event2            = 317 AD<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rayfield |first=Donald |year=2012 |title=Edge of Empires: A History of Georgia |pages=39 |quote=The year 317 is the only one that century when a total eclipse of the sun was visible at Mtskheta. To convert before the Council of Nicaea in 325.}}</ref>
| p1                     = 
| flag_p1                = Standard of Cyrus the Great.svg
| p2                     = 
| s1                     = Principality of Iberia
| flag_s1                = Kartli - drosha jvari.svg
| image_map              = Georgian States Colchis and Iberia (600-150BC)-en.svg
| image_map_alt          = 
| image_map_caption      = [[Colchis]] and Iberia
| image_map2             = 
| image_map2_alt         = 
| image_map2_caption     = 
| capital                = {{Plain list|
* [[Armazi]]
* [[Mtskheta]]
* [[Tbilisi]]
}}
| capital_exile          = 
| latd                   = 
| latm                   = 
| latNS                  = 
| longd                  = 
| longm                  = 
| longEW                 = 
| official_languages     = 
| common_languages       =[[Greek language|Greek]]–[[Aramaic]] (language of governance, literacy and culture)<ref>A. Furtwängler, I. Gagoshidze, H. Löhr and N. Ludwig(2008) - Iberia and Rome. Page - 25-26</ref><br>[[Old Georgian]] (literacy and native language){{Sfn|History of Georgia|2012|p=165}}
| footnotes              = 
}}
{{History of Georgia (country)}}{{Not to be confused with|Kingdom of the Iberians|Iberian Union|text=the [[Kingdom of the Iberians]] or the [[Iberian Union]]}}
In [[Greco-Roman geography]], '''Iberia''' ([[Ancient Greek]]: {{lang|grc|Ἰβηρία}} ''Iberia''; {{lang-la|Hiberia}}; [[Parthian language|Parthian]]: {{transliteration|xpr|wurğān}}; [[Middle Persian]]: {{transliteration|pal|wiručān}}) was an [[exonym]] for the [[Georgians|Georgian]] kingdom of '''Kartli''' ([[Old Georgian]]: ႵႠႰႧႪႨ), known after its [[Kartli|core province]], which during [[Classical Antiquity]] and the [[Early Middle Ages]] was a significant [[monarchy]] in the [[Caucasus]], either as an independent state or as a dependent of larger empires, notably the [[Sasanian Empire|Sassanid]] and [[Roman Empire|Roman]] empires.<ref>{{cite book|author=Ehsan Yarshater|title=The Cambridge History of Iran: The Seleucid, Parthian, and Sasanian periods|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ko_RafMSGLkC&pg=PA520|access-date=18 September 2013|year=1983|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-20092-9|pages=520–}}</ref> Iberia, centered on present-day Eastern [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], was bordered by [[Colchis]] in the west, [[Caucasian Albania]] in the east and [[Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity)|Armenia]] in the south.

Its population, the '''Iberians''', formed the nucleus of the '''Kartvelians''' (i.e. [[Georgians]]). Iberia, ruled by the [[Pharnavazid dynasty|Pharnavazid]], [[Artaxiad dynasty of Iberia|Artaxiad]], [[Arsacid dynasty of Iberia|Arsacid]] and [[Chosroid dynasty|Chosroid]] [[Royal family|royal dynasties]], together with Colchis to its west, would form the nucleus of the [[unification of Georgia|unified]] medieval [[Kingdom of Georgia]] under the [[Bagrationi dynasty]].<ref>[[Ronald Grigor Suny]]. ''The Making of the Georgian Nation''. Indiana University Press, p. 13 {{ISBN|0-253-20915-3}}.</ref><ref>William Coffman McDermott, Wallace Everett Caldwell. ''Readings in the History of the Ancient World''. p. 404.</ref>

In the 4th century, after the [[Christianization of Iberia]] by [[Saint Nino]] during the reign of King [[Mirian III]], [[Christianity]] was made the [[state religion]] of the kingdom. Starting in the early 6th century AD, the kingdom's position as a [[Sassanian Empire|Sassanian]] [[vassal state]] was changed into direct Persian rule. In 580, king [[Hormizd IV]] (578–590) abolished the monarchy after the death of King [[Bakur III]], and [[Sasanian Iberia|Iberia became a Persian province]] ruled by a ''[[marzpan]]'' (governor).

The term "Caucasian Iberia" is also used to distinguish it from the [[Iberian Peninsula]] in Southwestern Europe.<ref>Mikaberidze, p. 360</ref>

==Name==
{{further|Name of Georgia (country)}}
All exonyms are likely derived from {{transliteration|fa|gorğān}} ({{wikt-lang|fa|گرگان}}), the [[Persian language|Persian]] designation of the Georgians, evolving from [[Parthian language|Parthian]] {{transliteration|xpr|wurğān}} ({{lang|xpr|[[wikt:𐭅𐭓𐭊𐭍|𐭅𐭓𐭊𐭍]]}}) and [[Middle Persian]] {{transliteration|pal|[[Sasanian Iberia|wiručān]]}} ({{wikt-lang|pal|𐭥𐭫𐭥𐭰𐭠𐭭}}), rooting out from [[Old Persian]] {{transliteration|peo|vrkān}} ({{wikt-lang|peo|𐎺𐎼𐎣𐎠𐎴}}) meaning "the land of the [[Wolf|wolves]]". This is also reflected in [[Old Armenian]] {{transliteration|xcl|virk}} ({{wikt-lang|xcl|վիրք}}), it being a source of [[Ancient Greek]] {{transliteration|grc|ibēríā}} ({{wikt-lang|grc|Ἰβηρία}}), that entered [[Latin]] as {{wikt-lang|la|Hiberia}}. The transformation of {{transliteration|peo|vrkān}} into {{transliteration|fa|gorğān}} and alteration of '''''v''''' into '''''g''''' was a phonetic phenomenon in the [[word formation]] of [[Proto-Aryan]] and ancient [[Iranian languages]]. All exonyms are simply phonetic variations of the same root ''vrk/varka'' ({{wikt-lang|peo|𐎺𐎼𐎣}}) meaning [[wolf]].<ref>[[Elguja Khintibidze|Khintibidze, Elguja]] (1998), The Designations of the Georgians and Their Etymology, pp. 85-86-87, [[Tbilisi State University]] Press, {{ISBN|5-511-00775-7}}</ref>

Historian {{ill|Adolfo Domínguez Monedero|es}} argues that the name ''Iberian'' was given by Ancient Greeks to two different peoples located at the extremities of their world (in the Iberian Peninsula and the Caucasus) due to the mythical wealth associated with them ([[Tartessos]] and the [[Golden Fleece]] of Colchis).<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Domínguez Monedero |first=Adolfo Jerónimo |date=1983 |title=Los términos "Iberia" e "Íberos" en las fuentes grecolatinas: estudio acerca de su origen y ámbito de aplicación |journal=Lucentum |issue=2 |pages=203 |doi=10.14198/LVCENTVM1983.2.10 |doi-broken-date=2024-08-27 |issn=1989-9904|doi-access=free |hdl=10045/4504 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

==History==

===Early history===
[[File:Colchis and Iberia, 1706.jpg|left|thumb|Map of Iberia and Colchis by [[Christoph Cellarius]] printed in Leipzig in 1706]]
In [[Prehistoric Georgia|earliest times]], the area of Caucasian Iberia was inhabited by several related tribes stemming from the [[Kura-Araxes culture]].

According to the [[Cyril Toumanoff]], [[Mushki|Moschians]] were the early proto-Georgian tribe which played a leading role in the consolidation of Iberian tribes largely inhabiting eastern and southern Georgia.<ref>
[[Cyril Toumanoff|Toumanoff, Cyril]] (1967). ''Studies in Christian Caucasian History'', p 80. [[Georgetown University Press]].</ref> The Moschians may have moved slowly to the northeast forming settlements as they traveled.<ref>''Georgian Soviet Encyclopedia'' (1984), v. 7, p. 146</ref> One of these was [[Mtskheta]], the future capital of the Kingdom of Iberia. The Mtskheta tribe was later ruled by a prince locally known as ''mamasakhlisi'' (“father of the household” in Georgian).

The written sources for the early periods of Iberia's history are mostly medieval Georgian chronicles, that modern scholarship interpret as a semi-legendary narrative.<ref>Stephen H. Rapp. ''Studies in medieval Georgian historiography: early texts and Eurasian contexts'', vol 601. Peeters Publishers, 2003. {{ISBN|90-429-1318-5}}, 9789042913189. P. 275. "While P’arnavaz may in fact be a fabrication, it is more feasible that over time the memory of the historical P’arnavaz accumulated a legendary facade."</ref> One such chronicle, ''Moktsevay Kartlisay'' (“[[Conversion of Kartli]]”) mentions that a ruler named [[Azo (Georgian history)|Azo]] and his people came from [[Arian-Kartli]] – the initial home of the proto-Iberians, which had been under  [[Achaemenid]] rule until the fall of the [[Achaemenid Empire|Persian Empire]] – and settled on the site where [[Mtskheta]] was to be founded. Another Georgian chronicle, ''Kartlis Tskhovreba'' (“History of Kartli”) claims Azo to be an officer of [[Alexander the Great|Alexander]]’s, who massacred a local ruling family and conquered the area, until being defeated at the end of the 4th century BC by Prince [[Pharnavaz I of Iberia|Pharnavaz]], at that time a local chief.

The story of Alexander's invasion of Kartli, although legendary, nevertheless reflects the establishment of Georgian monarchy in the [[Hellenistic period]] and the desire of later Georgian literati to connect this event to the celebrated conqueror.<ref name="Rapp">Rapp, Stephen H. (2003), ''Studies In Medieval Georgian Historiography: Early Texts And Eurasian Contexts'', pp. 141-142. Peeters Publishers, {{ISBN|90-429-1318-5}}.</ref>

===Pharnavaz I and his descendants===
[[Pharnavaz I of Iberia|Pharnavaz]], victorious in a power struggle, became the first [[List of monarchs of Caucasian Iberia|king of Iberia]] (c. 302 – c. 237 BC). According to the later Georgian chronicles, after driving back an invasion, he subjugated the neighboring areas, including a significant part of the western Georgian state of Colchis (locally known as [[Egrisi]]), and seems to have secured recognition of the newly founded state  by the [[Seleucids]] of [[Syria]]. Pharnavaz is also said to have built a major citadel, the [[Armaztsikhe]], and a temple to the god [[Armazi]], and to have created a new system of administration, subdividing the country into several counties called ''[[Eristavi|saeristavo]]s''.

His successors controlled the mountain passes of the [[Caucasus Mountains|Caucasus]], with the [[Daryal]] (also known as the Iberian Gates) being the most important of them.

{{main|Pharnavazid dynasty}}

The period following this time of prosperity was one of incessant warfare as Iberia was forced to defend against numerous invasions into its territories. Some southern parts of Iberia, that were conquered from the [[Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity)|Kingdom of Armenia]], in the 2nd century BC were reunited to Armenia and the Colchian lands seceded to form separate princedoms (''sceptuchoi''). At the end of the 2nd century BC, the [[Parnavazian|Pharnavazid]] king [[Pharnajom of Iberia|Pharnajom]] was dethroned by his own subjects, after converting to Zoroastrianism, and the crown given to the Armenian prince [[Artaxias I of Iberia|Artaxias]] who ascended the Iberian throne in 93 BC,  establishing the [[Artaxiad dynasty of Iberia]].{{sfn|Rapp|2014|p=230-231}}

===Roman period and Roman/Parthian rivalry===
{{Main|Georgia in the Roman era|Caucasian campaign of Pompey}}
{{See also|Roman-Parthian Wars}}
[[File:RomanEmpire 117.svg|thumb|upright=1.2|Iberia during the [[Roman Empire]]]]
This close association with [[Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity)|Armenia]] and [[Kingdom of Pontus|Pontus]] brought upon the country [[Pompey's Iberian campaign|an invasion]] (65 BC) by the [[Roman Empire|Roman]] general [[Pompey]], who was then at war with [[Mithradates VI of Pontus]], and Armenia; but Rome did not establish her power permanently over Iberia. Twenty-nine years later, the Romans again marched (36 BC) on Iberia forcing King [[Pharnavaz II of Iberia|Pharnavaz II]] to join their campaign against [[Caucasian Albania|Albania]].

While another Georgian kingdom of Colchis was administered as a Roman province, Iberia freely accepted the Roman Imperial protection. A stone inscription discovered at [[Mtskheta]] speaks of the 1st-century ruler [[Mithridates I of Iberia|Mihdrat I]] (AD 58–106) as "the friend of the Caesars" and the king "of the Roman-loving Iberians." Emperor [[Vespasian]] fortified the ancient Mtskheta site of Arzami for the Iberian kings in AD 75.

The next two centuries saw a continuation of Roman influence over the area, but by the reign of King [[Pharsman II of Iberia|Pharsman II]] (116–132) Iberia had regained some of its former power. Relations between the [[Roman Emperor]] [[Hadrian]] and Pharsman II were strained, though Hadrian is said to have sought to appease Pharsman. However, it was only under Hadrian's successor [[Antoninus Pius]] that relations improved to the extent that Pharsman is said to have even visited [[Ancient Rome|Rome]], where [[Dio Cassius]] reports that a statue was erected in his honor and that rights to sacrifice were given. The period brought a major change to the political status of Iberia with Rome recognizing them as an ally, rather than their former status as a subject state, a political situation which remained the same, even during the Empire's hostilities with the [[Parthia]]ns.

From the first centuries of the Christian era, the cult of [[Mithraism|Mithras]] and [[Zoroastrianism]] were commonly practiced in Iberia. Excavation of rich burials in Bori, Armazi, and Zguderi has produced silver drinking cups with the impression of a horse either standing at a fire-altar or with its right foreleg raised above the altar.<ref>Machabeli, pp. 37, 51–54, 65–66</ref> The cult of Mithras, distinguished by its syncretic character and thus complementary to local cults within [[Georgian mythology]], especially the cult of the Sun, gradually came to merge with ancient Georgian beliefs. It is even thought that Mithras must have been the precursor of St. George in pagan Georgia.<ref>Makalatia, pp. 184–93</ref> Step by step, [[Iranian peoples|Iranian]] beliefs and ways of life penetrated deeply the practices of the Iberian court and elite: the Armazian script and “language,” which is based on Aramaic (see Tsereteli), was adopted officially (a number of inscriptions in Aramaic of the Classical/Hellenistic periods are known from [[Colchis]] as well);<ref>Braund, pp. 126–27</ref> the court was organized on Iranian models, the elite dress was influenced by Iranian costume, the Iberian elite adopted Iranian personal names,<ref>Braund, pp. 212–15</ref> and the official cult of Armazi (q.v.) was introduced by King [[Pharnavaz]] in the 3rd century BC (connected by the medieval Georgian chronicle to Zoroastrianism)<ref>Apakidze, pp. 397–401</ref>

===Between Rome/Byzantium and Persia===
Decisive for the future history of Iberia was the foundation of the [[Sasanian]] (or Sassanid) Empire in 224 by [[Ardashir I]].{{sfn|Spaeth|2013|p=133}}{{sfn|Hitchins|2001|pages=464–470}} By replacing the weak Parthian realm with a strong, centralized state, it changed the political orientation of Iberia away from Rome. Iberia became a tributary of the Sasanian state during the reign of [[Shapur I]] (241–272). Relations between the two countries seem to have been friendly at first, as Iberia cooperated in Persian campaigns against Rome, and the Iberian king [[Amazasp III of Iberia|Amazasp III]] (260–265) was listed as a high dignitary of the Sasanian realm, not a [[vassal]] who had been subdued by force of arms. But the aggressive tendencies of the Sasanians were evident in their propagation of [[Zoroastrianism]], which was probably established in Iberia between the 260s and 290s.

However, in the [[Peace of Nisibis (299)|Peace of Nisibis]] (298) while the Roman empire obtained control of Caucasian Iberia again as a vassal state and acknowledged the reign over all the Caucasian area, it recognized [[Mirian III of Iberia|Mirian III]], the first of the Chosroid dynasty, as king of Iberia.<ref>Muskhelishvili, David; Samsonadze, Mikheil; Daushvili, Alexander (2009). History of Georgia: from ancient times to 2009. Tbilisi, p. 69.</ref>

===Adoption of Orthodoxy and Sassanid Persian period===
{{see also|Sasanian Iberia}}
Roman predominance proved crucial in religious matters, since King Mirian III and leading nobles converted to [[Christianity in Georgia (country)|Eastern Orthodoxy]] around 317 and declared Orthodoxy as [[state religion]]. The event is related with the mission of a [[Cappadocia]]n woman, [[Saint Nino]], who since 303 had preached Orthodoxy in the Georgian kingdom of Iberia (Eastern Georgia).

The religion would become a strong tie between [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] and Rome (later [[Byzantium]]) and have a large scale impact on the state's culture and society. Iranian elements in Georgian art gradually ceased with the adoptation of Eastern Orthodoxy in the fourth century.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/georgia-iii-art-and-archeology-|title=GEORGIA iii. Iranian elements in Georgian art and archeology|access-date=1 January 2015}}</ref>

However, after the [[Julian the Apostate|emperor Julian]] was slain during his failed campaign in Persia in 363, Rome ceded control of Iberia to Persia, and King Varaz-Bakur I (Asphagur) (363–365) became a Persian vassal, an outcome confirmed by the Peace of [[Hachdeanq|Acilisene]] in 387.<ref name="books.google.nl">Alexander Mikaberidze. [https://books.google.com/books?id=JNNQCgAAQBAJ&dq=iberia+vassal+sasanian+empire+363&pg=PA528 ''Historical Dictionary of Georgia''] Rowman & Littlefield, 6 feb. 2015  {{ISBN|978-1442241466}} p 528</ref> However, a later ruler of Kartli, Pharsman IV (406–409), preserved his country's autonomy and ceased to pay tribute to Persia.<ref name="books.google.nl"/> Persia prevailed, and Sassanian kings began to appoint a viceroy (''pitiaxae''/''bidaxae'') to keep watch on their vassal.<ref name="books.google.nl"/> They eventually made the office hereditary in the ruling house of [[Lower Kartli]], thus inaugurating the Kartli ''pitiaxate'', which brought an extensive territory under its control.<ref name="books.google.nl"/> Although it remained a part of the kingdom of Kartli, its viceroys turned their domain into a center of Persian influence.<ref name="books.google.nl"/> Sasanian rulers put the Christianity of the Georgians to a severe test. They promoted the teachings of [[Zoroaster]], and by the middle of the 5th century [[Zoroastrianism]] had become a second official religion in eastern Georgia alongside [[Eastern Orthodoxy]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=riW0kKzat2sC&q=zoroastrianism+georgia+sassanid&pg=PA22|title=The Making of the Georgian Nation|isbn=0253209153|access-date=2 January 2015|last1=Suny|first1=Ronald Grigor|year=1994 |page=22|publisher=Indiana University Press }}</ref>

The early reign of the Iberian king [[Vakhtang I of Iberia|Vakhtang I]] dubbed ''Gorgasali'' (447–502) was marked by the relative revival of the kingdom. Formally a vassal of the Persians, he secured the northern borders by subjugating the Caucasian mountaineers, and brought the adjacent western and southern Georgian lands under his control. He established an [[autocephaly|autocephalic]] patriarchate at [[Mtskheta]], and made [[Tbilisi]] his capital. In 482 he led a general uprising against Persia and started a desperate war for independence that lasted for twenty years. He could not get Byzantine support and was eventually defeated, dying in battle in 502.<ref>Mariam Lortkipanidze, Roin Metreveli, Kings of Georgia, Tbilisi, 2007, p. 41 {{ISBN|99928-58-36-2}}</ref>

===Fall of the kingdom===
{{See also|Principality of Iberia}}
The continuing rivalry between [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantium]] and [[Sasanian Empire|Sasanian Persia]] for supremacy in the [[Caucasus]], and the next unsuccessful insurrection (523) of the Georgians under Gurgen had severe consequences for the country. Thereafter, the king of Iberia had only nominal power, while the country was effectively ruled by the Persians. In 580, [[Hormizd IV]] (578–590) abolished the monarchy after the death of [[Bacurius III of Iberia|King Bacurius III of Iberia]], and Iberia became a Persian province ruled by a ''[[marzpan]]'' (governor). Georgian nobles urged the Byzantine emperor [[Maurice (emperor)|Maurice]] to revive the kingdom of Iberia in 582, but in 591 Byzantium and Persia agreed to divide Iberia between them, with [[Tbilisi]] to be in Persian hands and [[Mtskheta]] to be under Byzantine control.<ref>David Muskhelishvili (2003). ''Georgia in the 4th-8th cent'', Matiane, Tbilisi, p. 246.</ref>

At the beginning of the 7th century the truce between Byzantium and Persia collapsed. The Iberian prince [[Stephen I of Iberia|Stephan I]] (c. 590 – 627), decided in 607 to join forces with Persia in order to reunite all the territories of Iberia, a goal he seems to have accomplished. But Emperor [[Heraclius]]'s offensive in 627 and 628 brought victory over the Georgians and Persians and ensured Byzantine predominance in western and eastern [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] until the invasion of the Caucasus by the [[Caliphate|Arabs]].{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

===Arab period and restoration of the kingship===
{{Main|Arab rule in Georgia|Bagratid Iberia}}
The [[Arab]]s reached Iberia about 645 and forced its [[eristavi]] (prince), Stephanoz II (637 – c. 650), to abandon his allegiance to [[Byzantium]] and recognize the [[Caliphate|Caliph]] as his suzerain. Iberia thus became a tributary state and an Arab [[Emirate of Tbilisi|emir was installed in Tbilisi]] about 653. At the beginning of the 9th century, eristavi [[Ashot I Kuropalates|Ashot I]] (813–830) of the new [[Bagrationi]] dynasty, from his base in southwestern Georgia, took advantage of the weakening of the Arab rule to establish himself as hereditary prince (with the Byzantine title ''[[kouropalates]]'') of Iberia. A successor, [[Adarnase IV of Iberia]], formally a vassal of Byzantium, was crowned as the “king of Iberia” in 888. His descendant [[Bagrat III of Georgia|Bagrat III]] (r. 975–1014), brought the various principalities together to form a united [[Kingdom of Georgia|Georgian monarchy]].<ref>Ivane Javakhishvili (1983). ''History of the Georgian Nation'', p. 121. Tbilisi: Georgia.</ref>

==Eastern and Western Iberians==
The similarity of the name with the old inhabitants of the [[Iberian Peninsula|Iberian peninsula]], the 'Western' [[Iberians]], has led to an idea of ethnogenetical kinship between them and the people of Caucasian Iberia (called the 'Eastern' Iberians).

It has been advocated by various ancient and medieval authors, although they differed in approach to the problem of the initial place of their origin. The theory seems to have been popular in medieval [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]]. The prominent Georgian religious writer [[George the Hagiorite]] (1009–1065) wrote about the wish of certain Georgian nobles to travel to the Iberian peninsula and visit the local ''Georgians of the West'', as he called them.

==See also==
* [[Georgian monarchs family tree of Iberia]]
* [[Iberian War]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Sources==
* Braund, David. ''Georgia in Antiquity: A History of Colchis and Transcaucasian Iberia, 550 BC-AD 562'' (New York: Oxford University Press, 1994) {{ISBN|0-19-814473-3}}
* {{cite encyclopedia | article = GEORGIA ii. History of Iranian-Georgian Relations | last = Hitchins | first = Keith | url = http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/georgia-ii-history- | encyclopedia  = Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. X, Fasc. 4 | pages = 464–470 | year = 2001 }}
* {{cite book |title= The Sasanian World Through Georgian Eyes: The Iranian Commonwealth in Late Antique Georgian Literature |first=Stephen H. |last=Rapp  |publisher=Routledge |year=2014 }}
* {{cite book | last = Spaeth | first = Barbette Stanley |author-link = Barbette Spaeth| title = The Cambridge Companion to Ancient Mediterranean Religions | publisher = Cambridge University Press | location = Cambridge | year = 2013 | isbn = 978-0521113960 }}
*{{Cite book |last1=Lortkipanidze |first1=Mariam |url=https://dspace.nplg.gov.ge/handle/1234/87813|title=History of Georgia in four volumes, vol. I - History of Georgia from ancient times to the 4th century AD|last2=Japaridze |first2=Otar |last3=Muskhelishvili |first3=David |last4=Metreveli |first4=Roin |year=2012 |isbn=978-9941-19-405-4 |location=Tbilisi |publisher=National Academy of Sciences of Georgia |ref={{sfnref|History of Georgia|2012}} }}

==Sources==
* Roger Rosen, Jeffrey Jay Foxx. ''Georgia: A sovereign country of the Caucasus''
* Thomson, Robert W. ''Rewriting Caucasian History'' (1996) {{ISBN|0-19-826373-2}}
* Lang, David Marshall. ''The Georgians'' (London: Thames & Hudson, 1966)
* Schleicher, Frank. ''Iberia Caucasia. Ein Kleinkönigreich im Spannungsfeld großer Imperien.'' Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 2021.
* [[Toumanoff, Cyril]]. ''Studies in Christian Caucasian History''. Washington D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 1963

{{Historical states of Georgia |state=collapsed}}
{{Sassanid Provinces}}
{{Territories with limited Roman Empire occupation & presence}}
{{Georgia (country) topics}}

[[Category:Kingdom of Iberia| ]]
[[Category:302 establishments]]
[[Category:580 disestablishments]]
[[Category:Former countries in Europe|Iberia]]
[[Category:Former countries in West Asia]]
[[Category:Former kingdoms]]
[[Category:Provinces of the Sasanian Empire]]
[[Category:Roman client kingdoms]]
[[Category:States and territories established in the 4th century BC]]
[[Category:States and territories disestablished in the 6th century]]