Rabati Castle

Rabati Castle
რაბათის ციხე
Location within Georgia
Rabati Castle (Samtskhe-Javakheti)
Former names Lomsia; Lomisa
General information
Location Akhaltsikhe, Samtskhe-Javakheti
Country Georgia
Coordinates 41°38′33.6″N 42°58′37.4″E / 41.642667°N 42.977056°E / 41.642667; 42.977056
Elevation 1,000 m (3,281 ft)
Completed 9th century[1]
Renovated 2012
Renovation cost 26 mln ₾[2]
Client Guaram Mampali[3]
Technical details
Floor area 70,000 m2 (750,000 sq ft)[2]

Rabati Castle (Georgian: რაბათის ციხე) is a fortress in Akhaltsikhe, Georgia. Originally established in the 9th century as the Lomisa Castle, it was completely rebuilt by Ottomans.[1] Most of the surviving buildings date from the 17th and 18th centuries.

History

Rabati Castle in Akhaltsikhe, view from the city

According to the Georgian Chronicles the city was established in the 9th century by Guaram Mampal, son of the King of Tao. From the 13th to the end of 14th centuries it was the capital city of Samtskhe-Saatabago, ruled by the Georgian princely (mtavari) family and a ruling dynasty of the Principality of Samtskhe, the House of Jaqeli.

In 1393 the city was attacked by the armies of Tamerlane. Despite the Turko-Mongol invasions, the fortress withstood and continued to thrive. After the Treaty of Constantinople in 1590, the whole territory of Samtskhe-Saatabago came under the rule of Ottoman Empire. Turks Mostly used to build defensive edifices. In 1752 the first mosque was built in Rabati.

Metropolitan John writes in the late 18th century that "despite the fact that a large part of the population has been Islamized, there's still a functioning Orthodox church". After the Treaty of Georgievsk between the Kingdom of Kartli and the Russian Empire was signed, the question of the fate of Akhaltsikhe arose. The first attempt to take the fortress in 1810 failed. Prince Paskevich successfully stormed the fortress 18 years later, in the great Battle of Akhalzic. After the Treaty of Adrianople in 1829, the Ottomans yielded part of Akhaltiske Region.

The fortress and its adjacent buildings were extensively rebuilt and renovated in 2011-2012 in order to attract more tourists to the area.

Panorama

Rabati Castle panorama

References

  1. 1 2 "რაბათის ციხე-სიმაგრე". იმოგზაურე საქართველოში. Retrieved 9 March 2017. (in Georgian)
  2. 1 2 "ახალციხის რაბათი – ისტორიული არქიტექტურის მეტამორფოზა". Manana Suramelashvili. 17 December 2012. Retrieved 9 March 2017. (in Georgian)
  3. ↑ "ისტორიული და არქიტექტურულ–კულტურული ძეგლები". Akhaltsikhe Municipality. Retrieved 9 March 2017. (in Georgian)
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