Tamara
GeorgiaBiography of Queen Tamar
Queen Tamar (born around the mid-1160s, died in 1207, according to revised records) was the queen of Georgia from 1184 to 1207. During her reign, Georgia achieved significant military and political successes. Georgian forces won victories at Shamkhor against the Azerbaijani Atabek Abubekr and his allies in 1194, at Basiani against the Rum Sultan Ruknaddin in 1202, and captured Kars in 1204, bringing almost the entire Transcaucasia under the rule of Tamar. The territories taken from Byzantium gave rise to the Empire of Trebizond, which remained under the political influence of Georgia for a long time. The sultan of Erzincan, the emir of Arzrum, the sultan of Klat, and the mountain lords of the North Caucasus became vassals and tributaries of Georgia.
Reign and Administration
In the early years of Queen Tamar's reign, major feudal lords advocated for the transfer of legislative power to an assembly of representatives from the upper echelons of society, leaving the queen with only executive power. After negotiations, Tamar retained the right to govern and legislate, but lost the prerogative of making sole decisions on state affairs, which were decided jointly by Tamar and the members of the supreme state council (Darbazi). The domination of the feudal elite caused dissatisfaction among the oppressed population. During her reign, Tamar harshly suppressed uprisings by Georgian highlanders who resisted the establishment of feudal order in their regions. Roads, bridges, caravanserais, fortresses, churches, and monasteries were built during her rule. Tamar supported the sciences and arts. Odes by Chakhrudzadze and Shavteli, as well as the poem "The Knight in the Panther's Skin" by Shota Rustaveli, were dedicated to her.
Marriages and Canonization
In 1185, Queen Tamar married Yuri, the son of Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky, but they separated two years later. Tamar remarried in 1189 to David Soslan, a representative of the Ossetian branch of the Georgian Bagrationi dynasty. Later, Queen Tamar was canonized by both the Georgian and Russian Orthodox Churches.
