The Toreli rose to particular prominence during the
Georgian Golden Age under
Queen Tamar (
r. 1178/1184–1213) and her immediate successors,
George IV (r. 1213–1223) and
Rusudan (r. 1223–1246). They held fiefs in south and central Georgia and, at times, governed the newly conquered north
Armenian districts on behalf of the crown. Several members of the family – one of the most important princely houses at that time – occupied important posts in the administration and army, including the dignity of
amirspasalar. A senior branch held the hereditary office of
eristavi ("duke") of
Akhalkalaki, and a junior branch –
Akhaltsikheli – that of
Akhaltsikhe. At one point in the 12th century, the former was briefly surpassed by the latter, whose influence quickly waned after the death of
Shalva and Ivane Akhaltsikheli during the
Khwarezmian invasion in 1225. The Toreli went in gradual decline during the
Mongol hegemony over Georgia in the course of the 13th century. Of the Toreli branches, the longest surviving were the
Javakhishvili, in
Shida Kartli, eventually confirmed as princes (
knyaz) of the
Russian Empire in 1850. Some Georgian historians (such as
S. Kakabadze, N. Shoshiashvili, S. Tsaishvili) have put forward a tentative hypothesis identifying the medieval Georgian epic poet
Shota Rustaveli with a member of the Toreli family. == References ==