Bagrat III of Imereti

Bagrat III
Bagrat III, a fresco from the Gelati Monastery
King of Imereti
Reign	April 1, 1510–1565
Predecessor	Alexander II
Successor	George II
Born	September 23, 1495
Died	1565
Spouse	Elene
Issue	George II
Dynasty	Bagrationi dynasty
Father	Alexander II of Imereti
Religion	Georgian Orthodox Church

Bagrat III (Georgian: ბაგრატ III) (1495-1565), of the Bagrationi dynasty, was a King of Imereti from April 1, 1510, to 1565. He succeeded upon the death of his father, Alexander II, and faced repeated assaults from the Ottoman Turks as well as the conflicts with his ostensible vassal princes of Mingrelia, Guria, and Abkhazia who were frequently joining the enemy.

In 1512, the Ottomans invaded Imereti through its southern neighbor Samtskhe and unexpectedly struck Bagrat’s capital Kutaisi.

After the Ottoman army left Imereti, Bagrat launched a program of restoration, reorganized the church, and enforced a law condemning to death all who engaged in slave trading practiced by the Turks in conjunction with some Georgian nobles. In 1533, he persuaded Mamia I Gurieli of Guria and Mamia III Dadiani of Mingrelia to organize a combined and eventually disastrous expedition against the piratical North Caucasian tribe of Zichi which had come under the Turkish influence. Despite this setback, Bagrat now decided to deliver a blow to the Ottoman positions in southern Georgia. In 1535, he invaded the principality of Samtskhe, which was exploited by the Turks as a portal for their incursions into inner Georgian lands. At the Battle of Murjakheti near Akhalkalaki, Bagrat defeated and captured Qvarqvare V Jaqeli, prince-atabeg of Samtskhe, and annexed a bulk of his possessions to Imereti. At the request of Qvarqvare’s son Kaikhosro, the Ottoman army invaded Imereti, only to put to flight by Bagrat and his ally Rostom, prince of Guria. The prince of Mingrelia, Levan I Dadiani, however, defied Bagrat’s call to arms, and later sided with the Ottomans, even traveling to Istanbul, where he received gifts and assurances of protection.