The “Caucasian Gate” − a Determining Factor for the Emergence and Existence of the State System in Central Transcaucasia

ivane javaxiSvilis saxelobis Tbilisis saxelmwifo universiteti ivane javaxiSvilis istoriisa da eTnologiis instituti ISSN 1512-3154 axali da uaxlesi istoriis sakiTxebi 2023 № 27 gamomcemloba `universali~ Tbilisi 2023 3 Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University Ivane Javakhishvili Institute of History and Ethnology ISSN 1512-3154 Studies in Modern and Contemporary History 2023 № 27 Publishing House `UNIVERSAL~ Tbilisi 2023 2 uak (UDC) 94(100) `15/18~ + 94(100) `1918/~... a-984 mTavari redaqtori: EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: avTandil sonRulaSvili Avtandil Songulashvili saredaqcio kolegia: EDITORIAL BOARD: Irina Arabidze (Deputy Editor) Alexander Daushvili (Deputy Editor) Mikheil Bakhtadze Irakli Gabisonia Gia Gelashvili Otar Gogolishvili Nugzar Zosidze Lela Mikiashvili Vazha Kiknadze Tamar Kiknadze Aleksandre Mosiashvili Ucha Okropiridze Andžej Pukšto (Vytautas Magnus University) Gela Saitidze Lela Saralidze Khatuna Kokrashvili Dodo Chumburidze Ivane Jagodnishvili Niko Javakhishvili (Deputy editor) Otar Janelidze irina arabiZe (redaqtoris moadgile) aleqsandre dauSvili (redaqtoris moadgile) mixeil baxtaZe irakli gabisonia gia gelaSvili oTar gogoliSvili nugzar zosiZe lela miqiaSvili vaJa kiknaZe Tamar kiknaZe aleqsandre mosiaSvili uCa oqropiriZe anjei puqSto (vitautas didis universiteti) gela saiTiZe lela saraliZe xaTuna qoqraSvili dodo WumburiZe ivane jagodniSvili niko javaxiSvili (redaqtoris moadgile) oTar janeliZe gamomcemloba `universali~, 2023 Tbilisi, 0186, a. politkovskaias #4, : 5(99) 33 52 02, 5(99) 17 22 30 E-mail: universal505@ymail.com; gamomcemlobauniversali@gmail.com 4  Giorgi Leon Kavtaradze Doctor of Historical Sciences, Ivane Javakishvili Tbilisi State University, Ivane Javakishvili Institute of History and Ethnology, Chief Scientist-researcher of the Department of Ancient History The “Caucasian Gate” − a Determining Factor for the Emergence and Existence of the State System in Central Transcaucasia The great mountain range of the Caucasus, one of the most important watershed systems in the world, separates not only Transcaucasia and Cisaucasia, but also the remote and vast areas of the Middle East and Central Eurasia, representing since ancient times an insurmountable barrier, which separated the nomads of Eurasia from the civilized societies of the Middle East and the Mediterranean. Apparently, in the conflicting interdependence between the inhabitants of Ciscaucasia and Transcaucasia (in the broadest sense of these terms), the first had the function of the aggressor. The main cause of this controversy should have been the property and economic situation of the societies located in these areas; it can be said that ‘wealthy’ sedentary residents were attacked by nomadic ‘dispossesseds’. In these different or opposite parts of the world from antiquity were, on the one hand, Terra Incognita, ‘unknown, unconscious land’ or ‘the realm of barbarians’ and, on the other hand, Oikumene (οἰκουμένη), the old civilized world of common interests − “the realm of reasonable men”. Consequently, the need for control of the “Caucasian Gate”, or Dariali passage, would inevitably be on the agenda for the security of Oikumene. Central Transcaucasia, which was immediately south of the “Caucasian Gate”, would not be left outside the attention of the creators of the new political order. This explains the interrelationship between the fall of the Achaemenian state and the emergence in Central Transcaucasia of the East Georgian (Iberian) statehood. The Kingdom of Iberia is, in its essence, the real product of the Hellenistic world and therefore one of the most 97 important links of the extensive chain of states of the one and same world of the Pax Macedonica. “The Caucasian Gate” is frequently called the Pillars, Stronghold, or Iron Gate of Alexander the Great by the Classical (Greco-Roman) authors [1, 66; 2, 8]. The connection of Alexander’s name of the legend with the emergence of the Iberian statehood, known from the old Armenian and Georgian chronicles, indicates the raison d’être of this state, namely to be the outpost of the civilized world in its struggle with the tribes of Gog and Magog, who live in the Realm of Darkness beyond the Caucasian Gate [3; 4, 171-175]. Thus, the concept of Alexander’s Iron Gate [5, 15-19] was the reflection of the concrete political function of the Georgian State – the control of one of the most important strategic passes of the world. It is in this context, the words of the old Georgian chronicles ought to be considered into account, that Alexander gave the Georgians a king or a ruler and gave an ideological basis – an essential component of all states: “And ordered Alexander Azon to honor the sun and the moon and the five stars and to serve the God invisible, creator of the universe” [6, 18]. In Kartli, in the region of Armazi-Mtskheta, assumptions about the earlier existence of the royal power are contradicted by the data of the ancient Georgian chronicles: “…and this Aso was the first king of Mtskheta, a son of the king of Arian-Georgians” [7, 320], or “…this Pharnavaz was the first king in Kartli, One of the relatives of Kartlos" [6, 26]. This function of the state seems to have been one of the main decisive factors that challenged the emergence of the Georgian State in the central part of Transcaucasia in the Early Hellenistic period. The location of Georgia, south of the Great Caucasian Range, in the contact zone of the Eurasian nomads and ancient civilized societies of the Middle East, had predetermined the constant external pressure from the north, a Challenge, which for its part caused a Response – the creation of a state (i.e. the Iberian kingdom) in Central Transcaucasia. The raison d’être not only of Iberia but also of other new states of the Classical period, Albania and Lazica (the successive state of Colchis), was to become strongholds of the civilized world (Greek oikoumene or Roman Orbis Terrarum) in its struggle with the barbarian North. However, there was undoubtedly a difference between the Western political orientation (the Greek states, Roman and Byzantine empires) of Iberia and also to a certain degree of Lazica, on the one hand, 98 and the Eastern orientation (Persia, Parthia) of Albania (together with Armenia), on the other [8, 177-237]. The control of the Caucasian passes could create the most favorable opportunity for the preservation of Pax Romana in the Middle East. The Iberians (eastern Georgians) were the most important allies of the Romans in the region, having supremacy over the Caucasian Gate [9, 99-100]. The close collaboration between the Romans and the Iberians, based on their joint strategic interests as parts of the same Orbis Terrarum was the leitmotif of their interrelations. At the same time, the rulers of the Iberian Kingdom successfully used the favorable strategic location of their country to balance the pressure of the powers coming from all sides of the world, often changing the direction of their orientation. Already Tacitus noted that the Iberians were “masters of various positions” and could suddenly pour mercenaries from across the Caucasus against their southern enemies [10, 212-213]. The long-term aspiration of the medieval Georgian monarchy, which presumably is going back to the times of the Roman empire, to bring under its sovereignty not only the Caucasian Gate but all existing Caucasian passes from the Black to the Caspian Sea, is expressed in the Georgian chronicle of the eleventh century, “The Life of the Georgian Kings”, by the formula of its territorial integrity: “from Nikopsia to Daruband” [11, 96]1, i.e. from the north-eastern Black Sea littoral to the Derbent Gate (the second important pass of the Caucasus), on the western shore of the Caspian Sea. This formula, especially emphasizing the northern borderline along the Great Caucasus, enables us to interpret the main function of that kingdom in a more general context. Faced with the necessity of effective control of the Caucasian passes, which barred the way of the northern invaders, the rulers of the states of the Eastern Mediterranean-Middle Eastern area were always eager to have in Central Transcaucasia – in Iberia – a political organization with sufficient strength to fulfill such a defensive function. The concept of the Caucasian Gate predetermined the fate of the Georgian State from the Early Hellenistic time until the beginning of the nineteenth century when the annexation of Georgia by Russia meant the loss of this important function of this state. I 1 I. e., from ca Tuapse to Derbent. 99 think this function was the reason why, as pointed out by C. Toumanoff, Georgia is the only country of Christendom where the socio-political and cultural development from the Classical period to the beginning of the nineteenth century passed continuously [12, 142, 150., 443; 13, 1-3]. This overwhelming interest of the Near Eastern-Mediterranean societies in Georgia was not only caused by the abstract defensive function of this country, but mainly by its concrete location at the edge of civilized and barbarian worlds. Although Georgia and Transcaucasia were open to the influences of these two opposite models of historical development, the factor of the Great Caucasian Range determined its destination to be the stronghold of the highly developed and prosperous Middle EasternMediterranean oikoumene against the vast area of the Eurasian steppes – an embodiment of the powerful and aggressive forces with their slow rate of social, political, economic and cultural development; or in other words, to be the stronghold of the civilized South and West against the barbarian North and East [14, 134-140]. On the other hand, the northern nomads required a bridgehead for their raids toward the Middle East. The territories of Georgia and Transcaucasia represented the best opportunities for this task. The constant opposition between the barbarian and civilized peoples, aggressors and producers, brigands and creators, were two firestones with the help of which the “fire of statehood” south of the central part of the Great Caucasian Range, in Central Transcaucasia, was kindled. The current dangerous political situation in Georgia, the violation of its territorial integrity by a hostile force, is mainly due to the desire to destroy the favorable geopolitical position of the country, thus preventing the restoration of the natural, since ancient times, border that separated the above-mentioned two Worlds. This situation can for a long time deprive Georgia of the opportunity to revive its primary state function, the “meaning of its existence”. It is especially important today when the new “fault lines” between the democratic and non-democratic worlds are more visible and deep. 100 Verified sources and literature: 1. 2. 3. 4. Cl. Ptol., V, IX, Ptolemaei, Geographiae. Eusebii Hieronymi, Epistolae, LXXVII. Cary, G. The Medieval Alexander, Cambridge: University Press, 1956. Preud’homme, N. J. Ambazoukes and the Gatekeepers of the Darial Pass during Late Antiquity, International Scientific Conference: The Caucasian Gates – Northern Outpost of Georgia 25-27 June, 2021, Materials, Tbilisi, 2021. 5. Anderson, A. R. Alexander's Gate, Gog and Magog, and the Inclosed Nations. The Medieval Academy of America. Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1932. 6. Leonti Mroveli, Live of Georgian Kings, In: Life of Kartli, vol. I. The text is prepared taking into account all the main manuscripts by S. Qaukhchisvili, Tbilisi, 1955 (in Georgian), I. 7. The Conversion of Kartli, Text prepared for publication by B. Gigineishvili & V. Giunashvili, Tbilisi, 1979 (in Georgian). 8. Kavtaradze, G. L. Georgian Chronicles and the raison d'ètre of the Iberian Kingdom (Caucasica II), – Orbis Terrarum, Journal of Historical Geography, Stuttgart, 2001. 9. Syvänne, I. Military History of Late Rome 284-361, Pen and Sword, Sep 9, 2015.99-100 10. Tacitus, Annals, VI, 33. 11. D. Rayfield, Edge of Empires: A History of Georgia. London: Reaktion Books, 2012. 12. Toumanoff, C. Medieval Georgian Historical Literature (VIIth _ XVth Centuries). _ Traditio, I. Studies in Ancient and Medieval History, Thought and Religion. New York, 1943. 13. Gugushvili, A. The Chronological-Genealogical Table of the Kings of Georgia, _ Georgica, 1936. 14. Kavtaradze, G. L. Caucasian Georgia _ A Bridgehead or a Stronghold of the Modern Geopolitical Games. A Look from the Historical Perspective, – Amirani, Journal of the International Caucasological Research Institute, vol. XIV-XV, Montréal _ Tbilisi, 2006. 101 giorgi qavTaraZe istoriis mecnierebaTa doqtori, ivane javaxiSvilis saxelobis Tbilisis saxelmwifo universiteti, ivane javaxiSvilis istoriisa da eTnologiis institutis Zveli istoriis ganyofilebis mTavari mecnier-TanamSromeli `kavkasiis karibWe~ _ centralur amierkavkasiaSi saxelmwifo sistemis aRmocenebisa da arsebobis ganmsazRvreli faqtori reziume kavkasionis mTavari mTagrexili, msoflios erT-erTi umniSvnelovanesi wyalgamyofi sistema, erTmaneTisgan mkveTrad ganyofs ara mxolod amierkavkasiasa da imierkavkasias, aramed maT gadaRma mdebare axlo aRmosavleTisa da centraluri evraziis Soreul sivrceebs. igi uZvelesi xanebidanve warmoadgenda momxvdurTaTvis gadaulaxav bariers, romelic evraziis nomadebs axlo aRmosavleT-xmelTaSuazRvispireTis civilizebuli mxareebisagan aSorebda. berZnul-romauli, somxuri da qarTuli werilobiTi wyaroebis monacemTa Sejereba saSualebas iZleva vivaraudoT, rom centraluri amierkavkasiis yvelaze adreuli saxelmwifos, iberiis (qarTlis) samefos aRmoceneba-Camoyalibebis gamomwvevi erT-erTi ZiriTadi mizezi, swored kavkasionis mTavari qedis centralur nawilSi mdebare didi strategiuli mniSvnelobis mqone darialis karibWis kontrolis saWiroeba unda yofiliyo. xom cxadia, rom civilizebuli samyaros yvela drois mesveurTaTvis, momTabareTaTvis gzis gadamketi kavkasiis karibWis efeqturi kontrolis didi saWiroebis gamo, sasurveli iyo Suagul amierkavkasiaSi, iberiaSi, msgavsi funqciis SesrulebisaTvis sakmao Zalis mqone saxelmwifoebrivi organizmis arseboba. saqarTvelos dRevandeli rTuli politikuri mdgomareoba, gareSe, mtruli Zalis mier misi teritoriuli mTlianobis darRveva, mniSvnelovanwilad, Cveni qveynis xelsayreli geo- 102 politikuri mdebareobis gabaTilebis surviliT unda iyos ganpirobebuli. am mizniT Cans kavkasionis qedis gadmoRma e. w. axali damoukidebeli saxelmwifoebis Camoyalibeba, romelTa ZiriTad daniSnulebas kavkasionis mTavari qedis gayolebaze im sazRvris aRdgenisTvis xelis SeSla unda warmoadgendes, romelic ZvelTaganve civilizebul samyaros momTabare barbarosTa Semosevebisgan icavda. aRniSnuli garemoeba, Cvens qveyanas misi odindeli `arsebobis arsis~, anu xangrZlivi istoriis manZilze Camoyalibebuli ZiriTadi saxelmwifoebrivi funqciis, dRes isev xelaxla warmoqmnili ganaxlebis SesaZleblobas daakargvinebda, _ dRes, rodesac sul ufro da ufro Rrmavdeba axali `rRvevis xazebi~ demokratiul da arademokratiul samyaroTa Soris. 103 gamomcemloba `universali~ Tbilisi, 0186, a. politkovskaias #4. : 5(99) 33 52 02, 5(99) 17 22 30 E-mail: universal505@ymail.com; gamomcemlobauniversali@gmail.com 312