Reconquest of Georgia and the rest of the Caucasus Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar

the capture of tbilisi agha mohammad khan. qajar-era persian miniature british library.

agha mohammad khan @ same time marched directly on tbilisi, half of army crossed aras river with, though other estimations mention 40,000 instead of 35,000, , attacked heavily fortified georgian positions of heraclius ii , solomon on southwestern limits of city. abandoned several of nobles, heraclius ii managed mobilize around 5,000 troops, including 2,000 auxiliaries neighbouring imereti under king solomon ii, member of georgian bagrationi dynasty , distantly related heraclius ii. georgians offered desperate resistance , succeeded in rolling series of iranian attacks on september 9 , 10. after that, said traitors informed iranians georgians had no more strength fight , qajar army cancelled plan of going iran, had. on september 11, agha mohammad khan led all-out offensive against georgians. amid artillery duel , fierce cavalry charge, iranians managed cross kura river , outflanked decimated georgian army. heraclius ii attempted mount counterattack, had retreat last available positions in outskirts of tbilisi. nightfall, georgian forces had been exhausted , destroyed. last surviving georgian artillery briefly held advancing iranians allow heraclius ii , retinue of 150 men escape through city mountains. fighting continued in streets of tbilisi , @ fortress of narikala. in few hours, agha mohammad khan in full control of georgian capital sacked , population massacred. iranian army marched laden spoil , carrying off 15,000 captives. georgians had lost 4,000 men in battle, iranians 13,000; third of total force.

an eye-witness, having entered city several days bulk of iranian troops had withdrawn, described saw:

i therefore pursued way, paved were, carcases, , entered tiflis gate of tapitag: consternation on finding here bodies of women , children slaughtered sword of enemy; nothing men, of whom saw more thousand, should suppose, lyind dead in 1 little tower! (...) city entirely consumed, , still continued smoke in different places; , stench putrefying, heat prevailed, intolerable, , infectious.