Relations Between Georgia and the North Caucasus in the 11th Century

Abstract

By the beginning of the XI century, feudal Georgia is a politically united state and from the socio-economic point of view, stands on a new level of development. In the 30s-50s of the 11th century, the following foreign-political tasks were faced by the state of Georgia: getting rid of the subjugation of the Byzantine Empire and gaining national sovereignty. Strengthening positions in the Caucasus and finding allies. The kingdom of Ovseti was considered one of such allies of Georgia. By this time, the political weight of the Kingdom of Ovseti had doubled. The powerful kingdom of Ovseti, which was formed in the 10th century, immediately became an active military-political force throughout the Caucasus and was accountable by the neighboring states including the Byzantine Empire, which, as a rule, always tried to use the people of Ovseti  in accordance with its interests. Georgian kings of the XI century were trying to tie a military-political union with the Kingdom of Ossetia through a dynastic marriage and include it in the anti-Byzantine coalition. The military-political and dynastic relations of Georgian kings Giorgi I and Bagrat IV with the kingdom of Ovs are one of the bright pages in Georgia-North Caucasus relations.