Tiflis Theological Seminary opened in 1817. In 1838, the Swiss architects brothers Giovanni and Giuseppe Bernardazzi built a new building for the seminary opposite Paskevich-Erivansky Square (modern
Freedom Square, Tbilisi). In 1872, as part of a
Pan-Slavism initiative under the leadership of
Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich, a ban was introduced on the use of the
Georgian language for teaching in seminaries, as the seminary was seen as a hotbed of Georgian nationalism. All instruction was to take place in
Russian instead. In 1903, construction began on a new complex of buildings in the
Vake neighborhood of Tiflis, headed by architect Alexander Rogoisky. The seminary moved in 1912, and the old building became a hotel. It did not last long, though; in the chaos of the
Russian Revolution, the buildings were requisitioned in 1917. The seminary may have operated on a temporary basis for a time, but it too eventually closed in the following years. One of old buildings in the complex used by the seminary was repurposed to house the
Art Museum of Georgia in 1950, the location it still occupies. The two main courses of instruction were
Orthodox theology and rhetoric. Various related topics were also taught, including
Church Slavonic, history, mathematics, literature,
French, and
German. ==See also==