Mamia III Gurieli

Mamia was a younger son of George III Gurieli and his wife, Princess Tamar Chijavadze. On George's death at the battle of Rokiti against King Alexander IV of Imereti in 1684, Mamia joined his brothers in exile in Akhaltsikhe under the protection of its Ottoman governor Yusuf-Pasha. In the subsequent infighting between Mamia's elder brother Kaikhosro and his paternal uncle Malakia, the former lost his life, while the latter was deprived of his sight. Eventually, in 1689, at the request of Guria's nobility, Mamia was summoned from Akhaltsikhe and installed as prince with the pasha's support, while the blinded Malakia was made Bishop of Shemokmedi by the new Gurieli ruler. In 1690, Mamia hosted George XI, the exiled king of Kartli and a foe of Alexander IV of Imereti, but soon became suspicious of his nobles' loyalty to the guest and began a crackdown on the suspected opposition, forcing George to relocate to the Ottoman-controlled Gonio. In the incessant power struggles in Imereti, Mamia originally supported his father-in-law George Abashidze, but, in 1699, he helped Abashidze's estranged son-in-law, King Simon, return from his exile in Kartli and recover the crown of Imereti. In return, Simon agreed to divorce Abashidze's daughter Anika and marry Mamia's sister. Abashidze, supported by the Mingrelian regent George Lipartiani, marshaled his troops on the borders of Guria and requested that Gurieli kill Simon, promising to make Mamia king of Imereti. Gurieli refused to do that himself, but allowed Abashidze's agents to shoot Simon dead in a bathroom in 1701. == First reign in Imereti and Ottoman invasion ==

Pursuant to his promise, Abashidze made Mamia king of Imereti, if in name only. Abashidze controlled royal domains, revenues, and nobility, while Mamia had to sell his Gurian subjects in slavery to meet his own expenses. Later that year, Mamia felt compelled to abdicate and retire to Guria. Abashidze made himself king of Imereti and, thus, a suzerain of Guria and Mingrelia. A revolt of the troops bound to Georgia forced the Ottomans to withdraw from Georgia's interior, == Second and third reigns in Imereti ==

By 1707, the unity imposed by Abashidze on western Georgia crumbled. In 1709, Abashidze and his Mingrelian allies were defeated by his rival George VII, who enjoyed the Ottomans' support. George then raided and ravaged Guria in response of Mamia's support of Abashidze. George's corrupt rule soon became intolerable to the Imeretians; in October 1711, Mamia secured the support of the nobles of Mingrelia, Racha, and Lechkhumi and reestablished himself as king of Imereti, leaving Guria to his son George IV Gurieli. During his tenure, he banned slave-trading and opened schools in Guria. == Family ==

Mamia Gurieli was married twice. He first wed, in 1698, Princess Helen Abashidze, daughter of Prince George Abashidze. Their marriage was repudiated in 1711 and Mamia married Princess Tamar Chkheidze (died 1716), daughter of Papuna I, Duke of Racha, and former wife of Prince Papuna Mkheidze. After the death of Mamia, she married his husband's rival King George VII of Imereti, but died shortly after the marriage and was buried at Gelati. Mamia had seven children, four sons and three daughters: • George IV Gurieli (1702–1726), Regent in Guria (1711–1714), Prince of Guria (1714–1726), King of Imereti (1716); • Kaikhosro III Gurieli (died c. 1751), rival Prince of Guria (1716); • Nicholas (died 1755), Bishop of Semokmedi c. 1719; • Levan, rival regent in Guria (1711–1713); • Tamar (died 1742), who was married to George IV Dadiani from 1710 to 1714 and George VII of Imereti from 1716 to 1720; • A daughter, who married Prince Aslan-Pasha Jaqeli of Akhaltsikhe; • A daughter, who married Prince George Sharvashidze, Eristavi of Guria. == References ==