Simon I of Kartli
| Simon I | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| King of Kartli | |
| Reign | 1556–1569 1578–1599 |
| Predecessor |
Luarsab I of Kartli David XI of Kartli |
| Successor |
David XI of Kartli George X of Kartli |
| Born | 1537 |
| Died | 1611 Constantinople, Yedikule Fortress |
| Burial | Svetitskhoveli Cathedral |
| Spouse | Nestan-Darejan of Kakheti, Queen of Kartli |
| Issue | George X of Kartli |
| Dynasty | Bagrationi dynasty |
| Father | Luarsab I of Kartli |
| Mother | Tamar of Imereti |
| Religion | Georgian Orthodox Church |
| Signature |  |
Simon I the Great (Georgian: სიმონ I დიდი) also known as Svimon (Georgian: სვიმონი) (1537–1611), of the Bagrationi dynasty, was a Georgian king of Kartli from 1556 to 1569 and again from 1578 to 1599. He spent most of his reign in an incessant war against the Persian and Ottoman domination of Georgia. During 1557 to 1569 he was known as Mahmud Khan (Persian: محمود خان, translit. Mahmūd Khān) and from 1578 to 1599 as Shahnavaz Khan (Persian: شاهنواز خان, translit. Shāhnavāz Khān)
The eldest son of the heroic king Luarsab I of Kartli and Tamar of Imereti, he commanded his father's army at the Battle of Garisi against the Persian invaders, 1556. He was proclaimed by his father co-ruler and heir apparent just prior to the action. Though Luarsab was mortally wounded, the battle was won by Simon, who soon ascended the throne on the death of his father. As the Kartlian capital Tbilisi remained in the Persian hands, Simon had a residence in Gori, whence he ruled over the territories recaptured from the occupiers. In 1559, he allied himself with another Georgian sovereign, Levan I of Kakheti, and married his daughter Nestan-Darejan. Beginning in 1560, Simon launched a series of battles to recover Tbilisi, but in April 1561 suffered a defeat at the Battle of Tsikhedidi, which cost life to his brother-in-law and ally, Prince Giorgi of Kakheti. His brother, David, recently submitted to the Safavid Shah Tahmasp I, converted to Islam, and returned with a Persian army to claim the crown. Simon blockaded Tbilisi and won the battles at Dighomi (1567) and Samadlo (1569), but he was finally defeated and taken prisoner at P'artskhisi, 1569. David, now known as Daud Khan, was made by Persians a tributary king of Kartli. Simon was sent to Persia where he refused to convert to Islam and was imprisoned at the fortress of Alamut for nine years.
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