Colchide

The Colchide is a country of the Asia old, located between the Eastern end of the Black Sea, the Euxine Sea and the the Caucasus.

History

Origins of Colchide

  • At the end of, in former Asia, in the east of the Bridge Euxin (Black Sea) and in the south-west of the Transcaucasia, two kingdoms develop, that of Diaochi Daïaé and that of Kolkha (In Greek Κολχίς/Kolkhís or Kolkhis) or Colchide according to the Greek . It is there that are born the legends from Jason and the Argonautes, which went there to seek the Golden Fleece and the magician Médée. Colchide carried also some time, the name of Ééa, which is that of the island (where resided the King Éétès and his sister Circé in the legend) to the mouth of the river Phase (today Rioni). This river was regarded by the Greeks as the border between Europe and navigable Asia and its water made it possible to the sailors to go up Black Sea towards the east. This first kingdom of Colchide seems to be reversed by the Cimmériens and the Scythes towards 720 av. J. - C., then integrated into the Persian Empire Achéménide in the middle of the VI E.

Greek colonization with the Roman empire

  • the Greeks of Milet founded there colonies with the VIII edont the principal one was Diascourias, named later Sébastopolis and today Soukhoumi.

  • the kingdom of Colchide was delimited in north by the Mounts the Caucasus and corresponds roughly to the Georgia of today. Towards 330 av. J. - C., it is released from the Perses, by Alexandre Large the (-336/-323) and with the birth of the dynasty of the Pharnavazide S (which will last until in 93 av. J. - C.), it becomes the kingdom of Karthlie or Ibérie according to the Greeks.

  • Ibérie is then the possession of a dynasty Arsacides (93 with 32 av. J. - C.), then will be directed again by Pharnavazides. In 65 av. J. - C., the kingdom east conquered by Pompée (-106/-48) and under Trajan Colchide is joined together with the Roman province of the Bridge until the creation of the first kingdom of Georgia in 265 a. J. - C.

At the origins of Georgia

  • Its history continues under the name of Ibérie then of Georgia with its conquest by the Sassanides. Christianity appears in 311 there, by Sainte Ninon (or Nino or Nina) Illuminatrice (Slave martyrdom). In 337, following the conversion of the king Mirvan III (265 - 342) and of his wife Chick, it becomes the official religion of the kingdom. In 446 (or 460), Wakhtang {{Ier}} head of wolf (446 - 502), founds the dynasty Bagratide and chooses the town of Tbilissi (Old Tiflis, Thbili in Géorgien) for capital, whose name is with hot sources. It releases the country of the influence of the Sassanides and extends its kingdom to all the Transcaucasie (Georgia, Arménie, Azerbaïdjan auj.).

It makes proclaim the Autocéphalie church géorgienne. But it is finally beaten by Persians and into 502, Georgia is divided into two countries: Eastern Georgia which is added to the kingdom of Karthlie and Western Georgia, which corresponds to Colchide and which takes the name of kingdom of Lazique. At the 6th century Persians abolish the royalty in Karthlie, but they are driven out with the assistance of Byzance and the Aznaouris (noble) restore the administration and the capacity. In 654, Persians and Byzance dispute the area finally conquered by Géorgiens at the end of the VIII° century.

Kings de Lazique

Economy

Colchide was regarded by the Greeks as a country of a fabulous richness. The inhabitants of Colchide lived extraction and treatment of ores of Or, of Fer, Cuivre. They were Masters in the manufacture of objects in bronzes. One found in Western Georgia, with Mekvena, of the bronze belt buckles and the bronze axes of the beginning of X E, decorated heads of wolves.

See too

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