Alexander II of Imereti

Alexander II (Georgian: ალექსანდრე II, "Aleksandre II") (died April 1, 1510) was a king of Georgia in 1478 and of Imereti from 1483 to 1510.

In 1478, he succeeded on the death of his father, Bagrat VI as king of Georgia, namely of its two major regions, Imereti in the west and Kartli in the east. However, he failed to secure the succession, being expelled from either parts of the kingdom by a rival prince Constantine II. Alexander retired to the mountainous western provinces of Racha and Lechkhumi. Persistent in his attempts to regain the crown, he was able to recover Imereti after Constantine’s defeat at the hands of Qvarqvare II Jakeli, a powerful atabeg of Samtskhe, in 1483, but lost the capital Kutaisi to Constantine again a year later. In 1488, Alexander took advantage of the Ak Koyunlu Turkoman invasion of Kartli, and seized control of Imereti. In 1491, Constantine had to recognise his rival as independent sovereign, and to confine himself to the government of Kartli. The peace between the two Georgian kingdoms was not to last long though, and, in August 1509, Alexander invaded Kartli, taking a fort-city Gori and the surroundings. News from Imereti, that had been raided by the Ottomans at Alexander’s absence, made the king to return to Kutaisi, and Gori was soon taken back by David X of Kartli.

He married in 1483 Tamar who died on March 12 1510. Soon, on April 1, Alexander also died, being buried with her wife at the Gelati Monastery near Kutaisi. They were survived by four children:

* Bagrat III, who succeeded Alexander as king of Imereti
* Prince David (born 1505)
* Prince Vakhtang (died circa 1545)
* Prince Khusro
* Princess Elene, who married a noble Sargis Mikmetzidze (died 1551)

External links

* [http://www.4dw.net/royalark/Georgia/imerati3.htm Kings of Imereti at the "Royal Ark" website]