George VII (Georgian: გიორგი VII; alternatively known as George VI) (died February 22, 1720), of the Bagrationi Dynasty, was King of Imereti (western Georgia) in the periods of 1707–11, 1712–13, 1713–16, and 1719–1720.

Reign

An illegitimate son of Alexander IV of Imereti, George was declared, with the approval of the Ottoman government, a rightful king of Imereti by the loyal party of nobles in 1702, though it was not until 1707 that he was able to wrest the crown from the usurper Giorgi-Malakia Abashidze (George VI). In October 1711, a noble revolt deposed him in favor of Mamia III Gurieli who forced George to retire to Kartli, eastern Georgia. Later, with the support of the Turkish pasha of Akhaltsikhe, he defeated Mamia at the Battle of Chkhara in June 1712. Deposed again in November 1713, George resumed the throne upon Mamia’s death in January 1714, only to be forced, in 1716, by the rebellious nobles led by Prince Bejan Dadiani into exile to Constantinople. George succeeded in garnering the Ottoman support, and regained the crown in 1719. Yet, his reign proved to be short-lived; in February 1720, he was assassinated by the plotters led by Prince Simon Abashidze.

George VII (Georgian: გიორგი VII) (died 1405 or 1407) was king of Georgia from 1393 to 1407 (alternatively, from 1395 to 1405).

George was the son of the king Bagrat V and his first wife Elene of Trebizond (died of bubonic plague, 1366). Bagrat appointed him co-ruler in 1369.

In November 1386, King Bagrat was defeated and taken prisoner by the Mongol warlord Timur Leng. Prince George organized a successful resistance to the next incursion and released his father. In 1393, Bagrat died and George assumed full royal powers. He spent most of his reign fighting Timur who led seven more expeditions against the stubborn Georgian kingdom from 1387 to 1403, leaving the country in ruins. Finally, in 1403 George had to make peace with the fierce enemy, recognising Timur as a suzerain and paying him tribute, but retaining the right to be crowned as a Christian monarch. He was killed in battle against the Turkmen nomads, apparently of the Kara Koyunlu clan.

George VII may have died childless, as his brother, Constantine I became the next king.

Imereti (Georgian: იმერეთი) is a region in Georgia situated along the middle and upper reaches of the Rioni river. It consists of the following Georgian administrative-territorial units:

Significant towns and regional centres include Samtredia, Chiatura (manganese production centre), Tkibuli (coal mining centre), Zestafoni (known for metals production), Vani, Khoni, and Sachkhere. Traditionally, Imereti is an agricultural region, known for its mulberries and grapes.

The 800,000 Imeretians speak a Georgian dialect; they are one of the local culture-groups of the ethnically subdivided Georgian people.

In late antiquity and early Middle Ages the ancient western Georgian kingdom of Egrisi existed on the territory of Imereti. Its king declared Christianity as an official religion of Egrisi in 523 AD. In 975-1466 Imereti was part of the united Georgian Kingdom. Since its disintegration in the 15th century, Imereti was an independent kingdom.