Lori Fortress ( Armenian : Լոռի բերդ ) is an 11th-century Armenian fortress located near the Lori Berd village in Lori Province , Armenia . The fortress was built by David Anhoghin to become the capital of Kingdom of Tashir-Dzoraget in 1065.
31-563: The Lori Fortress was the site where the Georgian king Giorgi III of Georgia trapped and besieged his rebellious nephew, Demna of Georgia in 1177. The fortress was captured by the Mongol commander Chagatai the Elder in 1239. As of 2024 there are restoration works going on to preserve the fortress. They are estimated to be finished after the several years. Fortress walls, two bath houses and
62-494: A campaign against Georgia in early 1163. He was joined by the Shah-Armen Sökmen II , Ak-Sunkur, ruler of Maragha , and others. With an army of 50,000 troops they marched on Georgia. The Georgian army was defeated. The enemy took the fortress of Gagi , laid waste as far as the region of Gagi and Gegharkunik , seized prisoners and booty, and then moved to Ani . The Muslim rulers were jubilant, and they prepared for
93-417: A civic building which once served as a church are planned to be restored. The fortress is built out of black tuff stone and is located on a mountainous plateau situated 1490 metres above the sea level, which lies on the intersection of Urut and Dzoraget rivers. There were once approximately 10.000 inhabitants living in the fortress. The following structures are located in it: The fortress has two bathrooms,
124-407: A larger one and a smaller one. They had a heat room, bathroom and a fitting room. The bathrooms also had a dome, which served for lighting and ventilation with clay pipes installed into city walls ensuring the system of water irrigation. The remaining civic house had a 14 x 12 layout and 5 doors. The main purpose of it remains unknown, but it was turned into the religious building later on: first into
155-584: A more aggressive one and resumed offensive against the neighboring Seljuqid rulers in Armenia . The same year he ascended to the throne, George launched a successful campaign against the Shah-Armens . It may be said that the Shah-Armen took part in almost all the campaigns undertaken against Georgia between 1130s to 1160s. Moreover, Shah-Armens enlisted the assistance of Georgian feudals disaffected with
186-536: A new campaign. However, this time they were forestalled by George III, who marched into Arran at the beginning of 1166, occupied a region extending to Ganja , devastated the land and turn back with prisoners and booty. In 1167, George III marched to defend his vassal Shah Aghsartan of Shirvan against the Khazar and Kipchak assaults and strengthened the Georgian dominance in the area. There seemed to be no end to
217-663: The Kurds , and Vahram killed. In 1064, the Seljuks occupied the city. The Shaddadids continued to rule the city as Seljuk vassals until the Georgian King George III conquered the city in 1173. In 1201–1203, during the reign of Queen Tamar , the city was again under Georgian rule. It was captured by Jalal al-Din Mangburni in 1225. Rule of Khwarezmian Empire lasted till Battle of Yassıçemen in 1230. After
248-545: The 1040s. In the 1045 attack ( Battle of Dvin ), Byzantine forces were under Constantine IX Monomachos . The Byzantines assembled a large force under the command of Michael Iasites and Constantine the Alan and allied with Armenians under the command of Vahram Pahlawuni and Liparit Orbelean. To defend the city, Abu'l-Aswar flooded the surrounding fields, limiting the attacking army's mobility and causing it to fall victim to defenders' arrows. The attackers were completely broken by
279-631: The Georgian monarchs and gave them asylum. In 1156 the Ani's Christian population rose against the emir Fakr al-Din Shaddad , a vassal of George III, and turned the town over to his brother Fadl ibn Mahmud . But Fadl, too, apparently could not satisfy the people of Ani, and this time the town was offered to the George III, who took advantage of this offer and subjugated Ani, appointing his general Ivane Orbeli as its ruler in 1161. A coalition consisting of
310-694: The battle, Georgians regained it. In 1236, the city was completely destroyed by Mongols . Dvin was the birthplace of Najm ad-Din Ayyub and Asad ad-Din Shirkuh bin Shadhi , Kurdish generals in the service of the Seljuks ; Najm ad-Din Ayyub's son, Saladin , was the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty . Saladin was born in Tikrit , Modern Iraq, but his family had originated from the ancient city of Dvin. Situated in
341-467: The beginning of the 10th century. During a major earthquake in 893 , the city was destroyed, along with most of its 70,000 inhabitants. Following a devastating Buyid raid in 1021, which sacked the city, Dvin was captured by the Kurdish Shaddadids of Ganja , and ruled by Abu'l-Aswar Shavur ibn Fadl , who successfully defended it against three Byzantine attacks in the latter half of
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#1732802183310372-459: The central square of the ancient city was the Cathedral of Saint Grigor . It was originally constructed in the 3rd century as a triple- nave pagan temple with seven pairs of interior structural supports. The temple was rebuilt in the 4th century as a Christian church, with a pentahedral apse that protruded sharply on its eastern side. In the middle of the 5th century, an exterior arched gallery
403-595: The defeat of the Saltukid-forces enabled the Georgian king to march on Dvin . The following year in August/September 1162, Dvin was temporarily occupied and sacked, the non-Christian population was pillaged and the Georgian troops returned home loaded with booty. The king appointed Ananiya, a member of the local feudal nobility to govern the town. A coalition of Muslim rulers led by Ildeniz , ruler of Adarbadagan and some other regions, embarked upon
434-516: The dynastic aristocracy away from the center of power. He died in 1184, and was succeeded by his daughter Tamar . He was buried at Gelati Monastery , western Georgia . In ca. 1155, George married Burdukhan , a daughter of the King of Alania . They had two daughters: Dvin (ancient city) Dvin ( Classical Armenian : Դուին Duin or Դվին Dvin ; Greek : Δούβιος , Doύbios or Τίβιον, Tίbion ; Arabic : دبيل , Dabīl or Doubil)
465-498: The fall of the Armenian Kingdom in 428, Dvin became the residence of Sassanid appointed marzpans (governors), Byzantine kouropalates and later Umayyad - and Abbasid -appointed ostikans (governors). Under Arsacid rule, Dvin prospered as one of the most populous and wealthiest cities east of Constantinople . Its prosperity continued even after the partition of Armenia between Romans and Sasanids, when it became
496-511: The first raids. On January 6, 642 the Arabs stormed and took the city, with many deaths. Dvin became the center of the Muslim province of Arminiya , the Arabs called the city Dabil. Although Armenia was a battleground between Arabs and Byzantine forces for the next two centuries, in the 9th century it still flourished. Frequent earthquakes and continued warfare led to the decline of the city from
527-479: The mosque (in 14th and 15th centuries), then into the church in the 18th century. This castle-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Armenia -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Giorgi III of Georgia George III ( Georgian : გიორგი III , romanized : giorgi III ) (died 27 March 1184), of the Bagrationi dynasty ,
558-487: The mutilation and soon died in prison. Once the rebellion was suppressed and the pretender eliminated, George went ahead to co-opt Tamar into government with him and crowned her as co-ruler in 1178. By doing so, the king attempted to preempt any dispute after his death and legitimize his line on the throne of Georgia. At the same time, he raised men from the Kipchaks as well as from the gentry and unranked classes to keep
589-410: The name of the city as Duin ( Դուին ), while later authors such as Samuel of Ani spell it Dvin ( Դվին ), which is the form commonly used in scholarly literature. The early medieval Armenian historian Movses Khorenatsi explains the name of Dvin as coming from a (Middle) Persian word ( *duwīn ) meaning 'hill'. In the 5th-century Armenian history attributed to Faustus of Byzantium ,
620-641: The provincial capital of Persian Armenia , and eventually it became a target during the height of the Early Muslim conquests . The palace at Dvin contained a Zoroastrian fire-temple. According to Sebeos and Catholicos John V the Historian , Dvin was captured by the Arabs in 640 during the reign of Constans II and Catholicos Ezra. During the Arab conquest of Armenia , Dvin was captured and pillaged in 640, in
651-483: The ruler of Ahlat, Shah-Armen Sökmen II , the ruler of Diyarbekir , Kotb ad-Din il-Ghazi , Al-Malik of Erzerum, and others was formed as soon as the Georgians seized the town, but the latter defeated the allies. He then marched against one of the members of the coalition, the king of Erzerum, and in the same year, 1161, defeated and made him prisoner, but then released him for a large ransom. The capture of Ani and
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#1732802183310682-511: The site is called "the hill [ blur ] in the plain of the Mecamōr called Duin" without reference to the meaning of the name. According to Erich Kettenhofen, Khorenatsi's explanation of the name resulted from an incorrect interpretation of the aforementioned passage in Faustus's history. Marie-Louise Chaumont writes that Khorenatsi's etymology became more accepted after Vladimir Minorsky pointed out
713-627: The use of the word dovīn to mean 'hill' in Persian place names. The ancient city of Dvin was built by Khosrov III Kotak in 335 on a site of an ancient settlement and fortress from the 3rd millennium BC. Since then, the city had been used as the primary residence of the Armenian Kings of the Arsacid dynasty . Dvin boasted a population of about 100,000 citizens in various professions, including arts and crafts, trade, fishing, etc. After
744-541: The war between George III and atabeg Eldiguz . But the belligerents were exhausted to such an extent that Eldiguz proposed an armistice. George had no choice but to make peace. He restored Ani to its former rulers, the Shaddadids , who became his vassals. The Shaddadids, ruled the town for about 10 years, but in 1174 King George took the Shahanshah ibn Mahmud as a prisoner and occupied Ani once again. Ivane Orbeli,
775-557: Was a large commercial city and the capital of early medieval Armenia . It was situated north of the previous ancient capital of Armenia, the city of Artaxata , along the banks of the Metsamor River, 35 km to the south of modern Yerevan . It is claimed it was one of the largest cities east of Constantinople prior to its destruction by the Mongols in the 13th century, but with an overall area of approximately 1 km , it
806-459: Was added to the existing structure. At the time that the cathedral was built, it was the largest in Armenia and measured 30.41 meters by 58.17 meters. Ornate decorations adorned the interior and the exterior of the building. The capitals of the columns were decorated with fern-like relief, while the cornices were carved in the design of three interlaced strands. The interior floor of the structure
837-508: Was appointed governor of the town. Throughout this period, the Georgian army was swelling with Armenian volunteers, enthusiastically participating in the Iiberation of their country. In 1177 George III was confronted by a rebellious faction of nobles. The rebels intended to dethrone George in favor of the king's fraternal nephew, Demna , who was considered by many to be a legitimate royal heir of his murdered father, David V . Demna's cause
868-545: Was far smaller than many of the great cities of Asia. The site of the ancient city is currently not much more than a large hill located between modern Hnaberd (just off the main road through Hnaberd) and Verin Dvin , Armenia. Excavations at Dvin since 1937 have produced an abundance of materials, which have shed light on the Armenian culture of the 5th to the 13th centuries. The earliest Armenian authors almost always give
899-433: Was little but a pretext for the nobles, led by the pretender's father-in-law, the amirspasalar ("high constable") Ivane Orbeli , to weaken the crown. George III was able to crush the revolt and embarked on a crackdown campaign on the defiant aristocratic clans; Ivane Orbeli was put to death and the surviving members of his family were driven out of Georgia. Demna, castrated and blinded on his uncle's order, did not survive
930-487: Was made up of mosaic multi-colored soft-toned slabs in a geometric pattern, while the floor of the apse was decorated in the 7th century with a mosaic of smaller stone tiles representing the Holy Virgin. It is the most ancient mosaic depiction of her in Armenia. By the middle of the 7th century, the cathedral was rebuilt into a cruciform domed church with apses that protruded off of its lateral facades. All that remains of
961-703: Was the 8th King ( mepe ) of Georgia from 1156 to 1184. He became king when his father, Demetrius I , died in 1156, which was preceded by his brother's revolt against their father in 1154. His reign was part of what would be called the Georgian Golden Age – a historical period in the High Middle Ages , during which the Kingdom of Georgia reached the peak of its military power and development. He succeeded on his father Demetrius I 's death in 1156. He changed his father's defensive policy into