Georgia (country)

• 1. Ancient Origins And Early Civilizations

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  The oldest traces of archaic humans in what is now Georgia date from approximately 1.8 million years ago. These remains belong to the Dmanisi hominins, a subspecies of Homo erectus representing the oldest-known fossils of hominins in Eurasia. The region served as a refugium throughout the Pleistocene, buffered by the Caucasus mountains and benefiting from the Black Sea ecosystem. First continuous primitive settlements date back to the Middle Paleolithic, close to 200,000 years ago. During the Upper Paleolithic, settlements developed mostly in Western Georgia, specifically in the valleys of the Rioni and Qvirila rivers. Signs of agriculture appear at least in the 6th millennium BC, especially in Western Georgia. The Mtkvari basin became stably populated in the 5th millennium BC, evidenced by cultures like the Trialetian Mesolithic, the Shulaveri, Shomu culture, and the Leyla-Tepe culture. Archaeological findings show that settlements in modern-day Georgia were responsible for the first use of fibers, possibly for clothing, more than 34,000 years ago. They also produced the first cases of viticulture dating to 6000 BC. Gold mining signs appear from the 3rd millennium BC. The Kura-Araxes, Trialeti, and Colchian cultures coincided with the development of proto-Kartvelian tribes that may have come from Anatolia during the expansion of the Hittite Empire. These tribes included the Mushki, Laz, and Byzeres. Some historians suggest that the collapse of the Hittite world in the Late Bronze Age led to an expansion of these tribes' influence to the Mediterranean Sea, notably with the Kingdom of Tabal.

• 2. Medieval Golden Age And Decline

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  The classical period saw the rise of several Georgian states, including Colchis in western Georgia where Greek mythology located the Golden Fleece sought after by the Argonauts. Archaeological evidence points to a wealthy kingdom in Colchis as early as the 14th century BC. Eastern Georgia remained a decentralized mosaic until the 4th century BC when it was conquered by Alexander the Great. This eventually led to the creation of the Kingdom of Iberia under the protectorate of the Seleucid Empire. In 337, King Mirian III adopted Christianity as the state religion of Iberia. This began the Christianization of the Western Caucasus region and anchored it firmly in Rome's sphere of influence. The Peace of Acilisene in 384 formalized Sasanian control over the entire Caucasus. Christian rulers of Iberia rebelled at times, leading to devastating wars in the 5th, 6th centuries. King Vakhtang Gorgasali expanded Iberia to its largest historical extent by capturing all of western Georgia and building a new capital in Tbilisi. In 580, the Sasanian Empire abolished the Kingdom of Iberia, leading to disintegration into feudal regions. The Roman, Persian Wars plunged the region into chaos. By the end of the 6th century, the Byzantine Empire established control over Georgian territories. In 645, Arabs invaded southeastern Georgia, starting an extended period of Muslim domination. The lack of a central government allowed the rise of the Bagrationi dynasty in the early 9th century. Prince Ashot I used infighting between Arab governors to expand his influence to Iberia. Adarnase IV managed to unify most Georgian lands and was crowned King of the Iberians in 888. In the 9th-10th centuries, Abkhazia grew its influence through military campaigns. Bagrat III unified most Georgian feudal states and was crowned in 1010 as King of Georgia. The Kingdom of Georgia reached its zenith in the 12th to early 13th centuries during the reigns of David IV and Queen Tamar. This period has been widely termed as the Georgian Golden Age. It featured impressive military victories, territorial expansion, and a cultural renaissance. David IV decisively defeated much larger Turkish armies during the Battle of Didgori in 1121. He abolished the Emirate of Tbilisi. Queen Tamar's 29-year reign is considered the most successful in Georgian history. She neutralized her opposition while embarking on an energetic foreign policy. Supported by a powerful military elite, she consolidated an empire that dominated the Caucasus. The revival of the kingdom was set back after Tbilisi was captured and destroyed by Jalal ad-Din in 1226. Devastating invasions followed from Mongol ruler Genghis Khan. George V the Brilliant expelled the Mongols and reunited eastern and western Georgia. After his death, local rulers fought for independence until total disintegration in the 15th century.

• 3. Imperial Annexation And Soviet Era

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  The Kingdom of Georgia collapsed into anarchy by 1466 and fragmented into three independent kingdoms and five semi-independent principalities. Neighboring large empires exploited this internal division. Beginning in the 16th century, various Ottoman and Iranian forces subjugated western and eastern regions respectively. Local Georgian rulers sought closer ties with Russia. In 1783, Russia and the eastern Georgian Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti signed the Treaty of Georgievsk. This made eastern Georgia a protectorate of Russia. Despite its commitment to defend Georgia, Russia rendered no assistance when Iranians invaded in 1795. They captured and sacked Tbilisi and massacred its inhabitants. Russian Imperial authorities violated key promises of the Georgievsk Treaty. On the 22nd of December 1800, Tsar Paul I of Russia signed the proclamation on the incorporation of Georgia within the Russian Empire. It was finalized by a decree on the 8th of January 1801. The Bagrationi royal family was deported from the kingdom. In May 1801, under General Carl Heinrich von Knorring, Imperial Russia transferred power in eastern Georgia. The Georgian nobility did not accept the decree until the 12th of April 1802. Those who disagreed were temporarily arrested. By the late 19th century, discontent grew into a national revival movement led by Ilia Chavchavadze. After the Russian Revolution of 1917, Georgia declared independence on the 26th of May 1918. The Menshevik Social Democratic Party won the parliamentary election. Noe Zhordania became prime minister. In 1921, the Red Army advanced into Georgia during the Russian Civil War. Filipp Makharadze established a government of workers' and peasants' soviets with himself as acting head of state. Georgia was incorporated into what would soon become the Soviet Union. Joseph Stalin, an ethnic Georgian, became the de facto leader of the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death on the 5th of March 1953. Fellow Georgians such as Lavrentiy Beria and Vsevolod Merkulov held powerful positions in the Soviet government. Stalin's Great Purge between 1936 and 1938 executed thousands of Georgian dissidents or sent them to Gulag penal labor camps. Over 700,000 Georgians fought in the Red Army to repel Axis invaders. An estimated 350,000 were killed. Nikita Khrushchev implemented a policy of de-Stalinization after Stalin's death. His purges were met with riots in Tbilisi that had to be dispersed by military force.

• 4. Post-Soviet Independence And Conflicts

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  Starting in 1988, mass protests erupted in Georgia in favor of independence. These were led by Georgian nationalists such as Merab Kostava and Zviad Gamsakhurdia. The brutal suppression by Soviet forces of a large peaceful demonstration held in Tbilisi on 4, the 9th of April 1989 proved pivotal. In October 1990, the first multi-party elections were held in Soviet Georgia. The Round Table, Free Georgia coalition secured victory. On the 9th of April 1991, shortly before the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Supreme Council declared independence. Romania became the first country to recognize Georgia in August 1991. On the 26th of May, Gamsakhurdia was elected president with 86.5% of the vote. He was soon deposed in a bloody coup d'état from the 22nd of December 1991 to the 6th of January 1992. The country then became embroiled in a bitter civil war lasting until December 1993. Simmering disputes within Abkhazia and South Ossetia erupted into widespread inter-ethnic violence. Supported by Russia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia achieved de facto independence. During the War in Abkhazia (1992, 1993), roughly 230,000 to 250,000 Georgians were expelled from Abkhazia. Around 23,000 Georgians fled South Ossetia. In 1994, Georgia faced an economic crisis with severe shortages of basics such as bread, water, electricity, and heat. Eduard Shevardnadze was named head of state in March 1992. In 2003, Shevardnadze was deposed by the Rose Revolution after allegations of fraud in the parliamentary elections on the 2nd of November 2003. Mikheil Saakashvili was elected President of Georgia in 2004. Following the revolution, reforms strengthened military and economic capabilities. According to the US Department of State, Georgia moved from a near-failed state in 2003 to a relatively well-functioning market economy in 2014. The government eradicated low-level corruption through dramatic police and institutional reforms.

• 5. Geography And Biodiversity

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  Georgia is a mountainous country situated almost entirely in the South Caucasus. It lies between latitudes 41° and 44° N, and longitudes 40° and 47° E. The Greater Caucasus Mountain Range forms the northern border. The highest mountain in Georgia is Mount Shkhara at 5,201 meters above sea level. The second highest is Mount Janga at 5,068 meters. Other prominent peaks include Mount Kazbek at 5,047 meters and Ushba at 4,569 meters. Two major rivers are the Rioni and the Mtkvari. Western Georgia's landscape ranges from low-land marsh-forests to eternal snows and glaciers. About 1,000 of the 4,000 higher plants of Georgia are endemic. The west-central slopes of the Meskheti Range in Ajaria are covered by temperate rain forests. Between 1,000 and 2,000 meters above sea level, deciduous forest becomes mixed with both broad-leaf and coniferous species. From 2,000 meters, the forest becomes largely coniferous. The tree line generally ends at around 3,000 meters. Georgia is home to about 5,601 species of animals including 648 species of vertebrates. Large carnivores living in the forests include brown bears, wolves, lynxes, and Caucasian leopards. The common pheasant is an endemic bird widely introduced throughout the rest of the world as a game bird. The Rioni River may contain a breeding population of the critically endangered bastard sturgeon. Slightly more than 6,500 species of fungi have been recorded from Georgia. There are 4,300 species of vascular plants in Georgia. It has four ecoregions: Caucasus mixed forests, Euxine-Colchic deciduous forests, Eastern Anatolian montane steppe, and Azerbaijan shrub desert and steppe.