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Georgia

 Flag of Georgia

Last reviewed: 7 April 2008

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HISTORY

Georgia's recorded history spans over 4,000 years. Georgia was well known to both the ancient Romans and Greeks and featured in the Greek legend of Jason and the Argonauts, who travelled there in search of the Golden Fleece. Much of Georgia's early history was linked to the struggle between Rome and Parthia (Persia), and later the Ottoman and Mongolian empires. The Georgians converted to Christianity in 337 AD.

Georgia's long line of kings and queens helped shape modern Georgia. King David the Builder and his daughter Queen Tamar the Great are amongst the most famous. In 1122 AD King David made Tbilisi Georgia’s capital and the reign of Queen Tamar was known as the golden era – the peak of Georgia’s cultural and military strength.

On 8 January 1801, Tsar Paul I of Russia signed a decree on the incorporation of Georgia within the Russian Empire. During the civil war which followed the Russian Revolution of October 1917, several outlying Russian territories declared independence. Georgia established the independent Democratic Republic of Georgia on 26 May 1918. It was recognised by Soviet Russia (Treaty of Moscow (1920) and the major Western powers in 1921. In February 1921 the Red Army invaded Georgia and after a short war occupied the country. The Georgian government was forced to flee. Guerrilla resistance between 1921-1924 was followed by a large-scale though unsuccessful uprising in August 1924.

In 1936, Georgia became the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic. During World War II, Georgia contributed almost 700,000 fighters to the Red Army, half of whom were killed. Stalin's successful appeal for patriotic unity eclipsed Georgian nationalism during the war and diffused it in the years following. On 9 March 1956, hundreds of Georgian students were killed when they demonstrated against Khrushchev. Towards the end of the late 1980s there were increasingly violent clashes between the Communist authorities, the resurgent Georgian nationalist movement and nationalist movements in Georgia's minority-populated regions (notably South Ossetia). On 9 April 1989, Soviet interior troops were used to break up a peaceful demonstration outside the modern day Parliament building in Tbilisi. Twenty Georgians were killed and hundreds wounded. The event radicalised Georgian politics, prompting many - even some Georgian communists - to conclude that independence was preferable to continued Soviet rule.

Post-communist Georgia, 1990–2003

On 28 October 1990, opposition pressure resulted in open, multiparty and democratic parliamentary elections. These were won by the "Round Table" coalition headed Zviad Gamsakhurdia, who became the head of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Georgia. On 31 March 1991, Gamsakhurdia organised a referendum on independence, which was approved by 98.9% of the votes. Formal independence from the Soviet Union was declared on 9 April 1991.

Gamsakhurdia (deceased 1994) was elected president on 26 May 1991 with 86% of the vote. He was subsequently widely criticised for what was perceived to be an erratic and authoritarian style of government, with nationalists and reformists joining forces in an uneasy anti-Gamsakhurdia coalition. The situation came to a head on 22 December 1991, when armed opposition groups launched a violent military coup d'etat, which led to Gamsakhurdia to flee Georgia. The new government invited Eduard Shevardnadze, formerly Soviet Foreign Minister under Gobachev, to become the head of a State Council - in effect, president - in March 1992.

BBC News Country Timeline: Georgia

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Contacts

Georgia, Tbilisi, British Embassy

Address:

British Embassy
GMT Plaza
4 Freedom Square
Tbilisi, 0105

Telephone:

+ 995 32 274747 (Main Embassy Switchboard)
+ 995 32 274775 (Visa/Consular Enquiries)

Fax:

+ 995 32 274792 (Main Embassy)
+ 995 32 274779 (Visa/Consular Section)

Office hours:

GMT:
Mon-Fri: 0500-0900 1000-1300

Local Time:
Mon-Fri: 0900-1300 1400-1700

Daylight saving: Georgia does not change its clocks.

Website: http://ukingeorgia.fco.gov.uk/en/

South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands, Governor's Office