Givi Amilakhvari

Givi Amilakhvari (Georgian: გივი ამილახვარი) (1689–1754) was a Georgian nobleman (tavadi) with a prominent role in the politics of eastern Georgia in the first half of the 18th century. He waged a lengthy struggle against the Ottoman and Iranian encroachments, changing sides and forging various alliances as he tried to preserve autonomy for his native kingdom of Kartli as well as to prevent the ascendant Bagrationi dynasty of the neighboring Georgian kingdom of Kakheti from seizing the throne of Kartli. In the closing years of his turbulent life, Amilakhvari stood by his erstwhile Kakhetian foes and sponsored several construction projects across the country.

Givi, son of Prince Andukapar, was born of the prominent noble family of Amilakhvari, with family links to the ruling house of Bagrationi of Mukhrani. Givi's paternal grandmother was a daughter of the king Vakhtang V of Kartli. He inherited from his father a large fiefdom in Inner Kartli (Upper Kartli) called Saamilakhoro and the office of governor (mouravi) of Gori. He first appeared on the political scene of Kartli in 1722. The following year saw the overthrow of his overlord and relative, King Vakhtang VI, by the Ottomans whose occupation of Kartli would last until 1735. During these years, Givi Amilakhvari intermittently fought and cooperated with the Ottoman regime. In 1726, he used his influence to save the principal Georgian Orthodox cathedral of Sioni in Tbilisi, the Ottoman-occupied capital of Kartli, from being converted to a mosque. In 1727, he became a sanjak-bey of Upper Kartli. He then joined the Ottoman expeditions against the rebellious Georgian nobility of Kakheti and the marauding Dagestani clansmen.

...
Wikipedia