Bagrat VII of Kartli

Bagrat VII (Georgian: ბაგრატ VII) (1569–1619), also known as Bagrat Khan, was king (mepe) of Kartli, eastern Georgia, effectively serving as a khan for the Persian shah Abbas I from 1615/1616 to 1619.

Bagrat VII
King of Kartli (more...)
Reign	1615/1616 to 1619
Predecessor	Luarsab II
Successor	Simon II
Born	1569
Died	1619(1619-00-00) (aged 49–50)
Spouse	Ana of Kakheti
Issue	Simon II
Dynasty	Bagrationi
Father	David XI of Kartli
Mother	Elene
Religion	Islam
Khelrtva

Life

Born into the Kartli line of the House of Bagration, Bagrat was the son of David XI of Kartli and his wife, Queen Elene, a relative of King Alexander II of Kakheti. He took refuge in Persia after his father was dislodged by the Ottoman invasion in 1578. He was raised at the shah’s court in Isfahan, brought up Muslim and adopted Persian customs.^[1] Later, for his efforts, he was given a fiefdom in mainland Iran.^[2] Around the mid 1590s, he assisted Farhad Khan Qaramanlu in arranging a match for Abbas I with a daughter of the Amilakhori noble family.^[2] In 1615/1616, he was installed by Abbas I as a puppet king/khan in Kartli on the deposition of his cousin, King Luarsab II the Martyr. He exercised only a limited power confined to Lower Kartli and largely relied on Persian forces. Considered as a renegade, he was disgusted by most of the kingdom’s population and, in spite of the Persian presence, he was unable to control even seemingly loyal nobility. His short reign was spent mostly in the town of Bolnisi, where he died in 1619, to be succeeded by his son, Simon II (Semayun Khan). His half-brother Khosrow was given his land in Iran.^[2]

Family

Bagrat was married to Princess Ana of Kakheti, daughter of Alexander II of Kakheti. They had the following children:

1. Simon II, King of Kartli.
2. Pahrijan-Begum, given in marriage to Shah Abbas I.