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აზეულას ციხე / Azeula Fortress

For all the time of its existence, fortress has changed 3 names. The original name is Agarani (historians have identified it as Kojris tsikhe). It is located on Mount Azeula (Trialeti Ridge). The exact date of construction of the fortress is unknown. According to archaeologists, it was built in the late eighth-early ninth century. It controlled the caravan route from Gardabani to Shida Kartli and from Tbilisi to Trialeti.

 

Since 1080, the fortress passes to the Seljuk Turks. Under their rule, the name Ker Oglu appears. This name is common to this day. Then the fortress passes to Emir Fadlun.

 

1118. The fortress was recaptured by David IV Agmashenebeli (the Builder) from the Ganja Emir Fadlun. After some time, the fortress again passes to the emir, then, after three months of fighting, the fortress again passed to David. In 1123, David IV gave the fortress to Prince Ioane Orbeli.

 

1177. The fortress appears in the history of the uprising against Tsar George III (the father of Queen Tamar). The princes of Orbeli (or Orbeliani) did not share something with the king, they made a noise. The rebels took refuge in the fortress, and in the same year the fortress was taken by storm. As a result, the Knizia were defeated, losing all their lands.

 

And what about without Queen Tamar (1184-1212). The chronicles mention that Tamara, who was seriously ill, spent about six months here.

 

Since the XV century, Agarani belongs to the Solagashvili family and appears in the sources as Kojris-tsikhe. The ruins of the Kabensky Monastery are relatively close by. One of the churches was a tomb of this kind.

 

In 1488, Iranian troops besieged the Kojor fortress. After that, the fortress does not particularly appear in the chronicles. Only the appearance of the palace in the XVII century is mentioned. There were no other key events in the history of the fortress.

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Uploaded on May 19, 2021
Taken on May 16, 2021