emirate · Caucasus

Emirate of Tbilisi

736 CE – 1122 CE (approx.) · capital Tbilisi

A Muslim emirate centred on Tbilisi that ruled the heart of eastern Georgia for nearly four centuries until David the Builder took the city in 1122.

Origins

Arab armies first took Tbilisi in the 640s, and around 736 the Umayyad general Marwan ibn Muhammad made it the seat of an emir governing Georgian lands. Under the Abbasid Caliphate the emirs turned the strategic city on the Mtkvari into a largely self-governing state.

Rule and society

Tbilisi was a prosperous trading city of Muslims, Christians and Jews, with a mint, baths and markets. The emirs, notably the Jaffarid family, often defied Baghdad: Ishaq ibn Ismail's rebellion ended in 853 when the Abbasid general Bugha the Elder burned the city. Later the emir shared power with a council of leading citizens.

Decline and legacy

Weakened by Georgian pressure, the emirate fell under Seljuk control in the 1080s. In 1122 David IV of the Kingdom of Georgia captured Tbilisi after the Battle of Didgori and made it his capital.

Connections (4)

More states of Caucasus →

Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Emirate of Tbilisi. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/emirate-of-tbilisi
MLA
“Emirate of Tbilisi.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/emirate-of-tbilisi. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Emirate of Tbilisi.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/emirate-of-tbilisi.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Emirate of Tbilisi’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/emirate-of-tbilisi (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻