Robert C. Money, Journal of a tour in Persia, during the years 1824 & 1825 (1828)

Robert Money was an officer in the British East India Company's Civil Service. In 1824 he traveled, in the company of a British colonel, from Bushire to Shiraz, Persepolis, Isfahan, Tehran, Hamadan, Kermanshaw and Baghdad. He wrote numerous letters desciribing his experiences and encounters to his parents, who later transcribed them and published as "Journal of a tour in Persia, during the years 1824 & 1825" (London, 1828). Below is an excerpt from one such letter, written in early August 1824, when Money and his companions reached Shiraz.

We found the caravanserai a good one, with private rooms where the Prince retires when he comes to

shoot and hunt, and adjoining it a small fort where the villagers live, and large hummaums. We slept there on the terrace, and remained the next day. The thermometer, in the rooms, we found to be only 82 and 83 at twelve o'clock; and we have determined therefore on living there. 

We rode back to Shiraz in the evening. A curious scene took place on the top of the caravanserai during our dinner. Ibrahim Beg came with a most grave visage, and holding, or rather lugging by one ear a Georgian slave, begged [British] Colonel S. to receive him as a present; adding, that he had educated him and looked on him as his son, that he had been twenty years in his service, knew how to read and write, &c. &c. The poor fellow seemed to wish it. S. thanked him, but said he could not possibly accept the slave. 

In the evening Ibrahim came up again, and said, "Well, my heart is much lighter: I have given the man his liberation." The Georgian soon followed with a countenance expressive of great gratitude, begged the Colonel to put his seal with several other witnesses in the presence of his former master, and then said that he had three or four hundred rupees in ready cash, and one thousand sheep, all which he left to his master Ibrahim Beg. The Beg added, "What! you'll leave me then, and the two children you have brought up?" He said, " he loved his master, but home was dearer to him: that he would go and kiss his two children, and leaving every thing he possessed to his master would go to Georgia." 

[...] Many Georgian slaves have been begging for Ibrahim Beg's intercession with their masters, since they see he is so inclined. They say they will not quit their masters; but that it is very cruel that their children should, though their mothers are Persians and free, be liable to be sold and transferred to any master a capricious man may choose to give them.

Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, Les Six Voyages... (1676) - Part 1

Jean-Baptiste Tavernier (1605 – 1689) was a French gem merchant and traveler, who had made six voyages to Persia and India between the years 1630 and 1668. In 1675, Tavernier, at the behest of his patron Louis XIV, published his famous travelogue "Les Six Voyages de Jean-Baptiste Tavernier" (1676) which was translated into English in 1678. The part excerpted here deals with the eastern Georgia. Tavernie devotes another section of his book to Western Georgia, which he calls "Mengrelia," and I will post it separately.

GEORGIA, which others call Gurgie, or Gurgistan, extends Eastward to the Caspian Sea; and upon the West is bounded by Mountains that, part it from Mengrelia. Formerly it was a Kingdom, all the Inhabitants whereof were Chriftians, of the Armenian and of the Greek Church, but of late the Mahometans have got footing among them. And the King of Persia having filled them full of Divisions, has made two Kingdoms of it, which he calls Provinces, over which he has placed two Governors. They are generally Princes of the Country, who must turn Mahometan before they can be admitted to that Dignity. When they are advanced, they take upon them the title of Kings and while they have any issue, the King of Persia cannot dispossess their Children. 

The most Potent of these two Kings, is he that resides at Teflis, who in the Language of the Country is called the King of Cartele [Kartli]. The present King is the last that has continued a Christian, with his four Sons; the Eldest of which, the King of Persia having enticed to Court, partly by Promises, and partly by Presents, has won to Mahometism [Islam]. Immediately thereupon , he caused him to be declared King of the other Province. 

Thcse two Kings have each of them a Guard of Mahometan Horsemen under their own pay, and at present I believe there are in both Kingdoms near upon 12000 Mahometan Families. 

The King of Teflis coins Money in the King of Persia's Name; and the Silver which he coins, is in Spanish Reals, French Crowns, and such other Money, which the Armenians bring out of Europe for their Goods. As to the Justice of the Countrey, neither the King himself, nor the Mahometans have any thing to do with it. A thief is acquitted, paying seven-fold what he has stole; two parts whereof go to the Party robbed, one part to the Judges, and four parts to the King. If the Thief has not wherewithal to make restitution, he is sold: If the Product do not yet equal the Sum, if he have a Wife and Children, they sell the Wife, and if that will not do, then they sell the Children; But if the Party robbed be so merciful as to forgive the Thief his share, then neither the King nor the Judges can demand anything for their share. If a man commit a Murder, they condemn him to die, and deliver him up into the hands of the Kindred of the Party slain to do Execution as they please themselves. However, it is in their power to pardon him, if he be able to give sixty Cows or more to the next a-kin to the Party killed. In matter of Debt, a Creditor has power to seize upon all the estate of the 

Debtor; and if that will not satisfy, he may sell his Wife and Children. 

The Chriftians of Georgia arc very ignorant, especially in Matters of Religion. They learn that little they know, in the Monasteries, as also to write and read, and generally the Women and Maids are more knowing than the Men, not only because there are more Religious Houses for Women than for Men, but also because the Boys are bred up to labour, or sent to the Wars. For if a Virgin grows up, and happens to be handsome, someone or other presently endeavors to steal her, on purpose to sell her into Turkey, Persia, or the Territories of the great Mogul [India.] So that to prevent their being stolen, their Fathers and Mothers put them very young into Nunneries where they apply themselves to study, wherein, if they attain to any proficiency, they usually stay as long as they live; after that, they profess, and when they come to a certain Age, they are permitted to Baptize, and to apply the holy oils, as well as any Bishop or Arc-Bishop can do. 

The Georgians are very great Drinkers, and Nature has fitted them a Country that produces good store of Wine. They love the strongest Drinks best; for which reason, at their Feasts, both men and women drink more Aqua vita [hard liqueur] than Wine. The women never eat in public with their Husbands, but when the man has invited his Friends, the next day the Woman invites her companions. And it is observable that at the Women's Festivals there is more Wine and Aqua vita drank than at the men's. The Guest no sooner enters into the Dining-room, but he is presented with 2 or 3 Dishes of Sweet-meats, and a Glass of half a pint of Aqua vita to excite his Appetite. They are great Feeders upon Onions and Herbs, which they eat raw out of the Garden. The Georgians are also great Travelers, and very much addicted to Trade; they are very dexterous in shooting with Bow and Arrows, and are accounted the best Soldiers in all Asia. They compose a great part of the King of Persia's Cavalry, who keeps them in his Court at peculiar pay, and relies very much upon their fidelity and courage. There are several also in the Service of the Great Mogul.

The Men are very well complexioned and very well shaped; and for the Women, they are accounted the fairest and most beautiful of all Asia, and therefore out of this Country it is that the King of Persia chooses all his Wives, being not permitted to marry a Stranger. Teflis, where the Women have more liberty than in any part of Asia, is the Capital City of Georgia, well situated, large and well built, where there likewise is a great Trade in Silk. 

Austen Henry Layard, Early adventures in Persia, Susiana, and Babylonia (1894)

Austen Henry Layard (1817 – 1894) was an English traveller, archaeologist, cuneiformist, art historian, draughtsman, collector, author, politician and diplomat, best known for his travel to Iraq and Iran in 1839-1842, excavations of Nimrud and of Niniveh, and the discovery of the library of Ashurbanipal in 1851. The excerpt below is from his 1839-1840 journey through Iran, where he encountered many Georgians and even travelled in a Georgian disguise for safety.

I had been suffering for some days from a severe attack of intermittent fever, and, in addition, from dysentery. As I felt very weak and scarcely fit to cross the Luristan Mountains by difficult tracks almost impassable to horses, where the population was as scant as it was hostile to strangers, and where I might find myself even unable to procure food, I decided upon proceeding at once to Isfahan, where I hoped to obtain some rest and medical advice before continuing my journey. I had been going through many hardships. The heat was still almost unbearable in the burning rays of an August sun, and I was obliged to travel during the day. My only bed had been for long but a small carpet, and I could never take off my clothes, which were in a very ragged condition. My food had consisted of little else than sour curds, cheese, and fruit. It was not surprising, consequently, that my health should have suffered. 

We had now entered the district of Fereydan, or Feridun, a considerable part of which belonged to the great Bakhtiyari chief, Mehemet Taki Khan. We stopped at the principal village in it, which bore the same name, and which contained about one hundred and fifty houses. It was inhabited by a Georgian colony, which had been established there by Shah Abbas. These Christians had retained their native language and their religion. They were industrious, and their villages, which were numerous and surrounded by gardens and orchards, had a prosperous appearance. They were to be recognised at once by their features, which differed from those of the surrounding populations. Their women went unveiled, and many among those whom I saw were strikingly handsome. An abundance of water from the mountains, carried by innumerable water-courses and subterranean channels to all parts of the plain, irrigated a vast number of melon beds, producing fruit of excellent quality, which was sent for sale to Isfahan and elsewhere. 

A kind of clover, bearing a small fragrant flower, was also largely cultivated. We did not reach Adun, a Christian village where I had decided upon passing the night, until after dark. We were not hospitably received, and had much difficulty in getting a room. When at last we had succeeded in finding one, it was immediately crowded by idlers who came to gaze at the stranger, the news of whose arrival had spread through the place. Even the courtyard was filled with people who were waiting their turn to enter my room to stare at me. The women had congregated in numbers on the flat roof of the house, whence they could look down upon me through a hole in the ceiling which served for a chimney. I was placed to so much inconvenience by the men who crowded round me, that I was forced to threaten to drive them out with a thick stick. When at last they departed I stationed Ali at the door, who kept guard with a drawn sword and would not allow any one to enter. The women could not be induced to withdraw, but remained on the roof watching my proceedings until I settled myself for the night. 

Joseph Philippe Ferrier, Caravan Journeys and Wanderings in Persia, Afghanistan... (1856)

This is a follow up to my earlier post on the small village of Abbasabad (coordinates - 36.360796, 56.387723) that was populated by the descendants of the Georgians resettled by Shah Abbas of Iran in the 1610s. The earlier post was based on the travelogue of James Baillie Fraser (1783 – 1856), a Scottish travel writer and artist who had travelled in Iran in 1821. 

The new excerpt is from the travelogue of Joseph Philippe Ferrier, a French soldier in the Persian service. An ambitious and talented man, Ferrier had spent many years (1839-42, 1846-50) in Iran and was a keen observer of local society and culture. He had maintained a journal on his experiences in Iran and, in 1856, Captain William Jesse obtained original unpublished manuscript and translated it into English. It was published under the title of "Caravan Journeys and Wanderings in Persia, Afghanistan, Turkistan, and Beloochistan" (London: John Murray, 1856).

Abbasabad, May 17th— five parasangs* —six hours and a half - the first parasang through a plain, the remainder by a sandy road winding through some low hills. As the locality was said to be dangerous, we were off early, lighted by the moon till sunrise. When a Persian sets out upon a journey he says, “God is merciful ;” and if he is taken prisoner by a Turcoman he exclaims, “It was my fate.” But this time the pilgrims got off with the fright, and we arrived in safety at Abbasabad.

This village stands on an eminence, and consists of forty-five houses surrounded by a mud wall. We found the inhabitants in a state of consternation, for the Turcomans had attacked them on the previous evening, and carried off two men and six women. Shah Abbas the Great, anxious to make the road to Meshed safe, and have the country near it cultivated, built at every five parasangs a caravanserai-shah, or a village, in which he settled one hundred and forty-three families accustomed to the military service: there are now only thirty-two. Abbasabad was one of these villages.

The inhabitants were originally Georgians and Christians, but, with few exceptions, became subsequently Mahomedans [Muslims], and only eight or ten preserve their ancient faith: as they have constantly intermarried, they still retain the Georgian type. They pay no taxes, and the Shah continues to allow them annually a hundred tomauns, which Shah Abbas granted to them in perpetuity. Travellers are obliged to pay for everything they may provide, even though furnished with a firman. But they are, nevertheless, in a miserable plight, and refrain from improving their condition, because they are afraid of being taxed to such an extent as to neutralise any benefits that might arise from their exertions; and though they could bring their land into cultivation by turning a good stream, they prefer living from hand to mouth, and buying their provisions at Shah-rood or Subzavar, and selling them at a large profit to the passing caravans. 

Another village of Georgians was founded by Shah Abbas, an hour’s distance north-east, but the inhabitants have been all carried into slavery by the Turcomans.



* Parasang was a historical Iranian unit of itinerant distance. Its length varied according to terrain and speed of travel but in the 19th century, one parasang was equal to about 3 British miles.

Sir Justin Sheil, Glimpses of Life and Manners in Persia (1856)

Sir Justin Sheil (1803–1871) was a British general and diplomat, who had spent much of his career in the service of the British East India Company. Born in Britain in 1803, he was educated at Stonyhurst and joined the 3rd Bengal Infantry in 1820. He spent the next thirteen years in India before being sent to represent the Company interests in Persia. In 1836 he was appointed secretary to the British legation in Persia, and in 1844 he succeeded Sir John McNeill as envoy and minister at the shah's court. He held this until his retirement in 1854. While in Persia (as well as traveling through Russia and the Ottoman Empire), Sheil kept a detailed journal that his wife later edited and published under the title of "Glimpses of Life and Manners in Persia" (London: John Murray, 1856).

Tiflis is another Vladikafkaz (key) on the southern side of the Caucasus. We were glad to arrive at this capital of the Transcaucasian provinces, which is close to the foot of the mountains, and situated on both sides of the river Kur. Some sixty years ago it was sacked by the Shah of Persia, Agha Mahommed Khan, the founder of the dynasty of Kajar, who carried a large portion of the inhabitants, Georgians and Armenians, into slavery. I saw at Tehran a few of these unhappy captives, who all had been forced to embrace Mahommedanism [Islam], and many of whom had risen to the highest stations; just as the Circassian slaves in Constantinople became pashas, seraskiers, capitan-pashas, &c. 

Tiflis has entirely recovered from this shock. It is now a most thriving, active, and bustling city, and will doubtless, when the day arrives for the development of free trade in the dominions of the Czar, become a rich emporium of commerce, situated as it is midway between the Black Sea and Caspian, and on the high road between Russia, Persia, and Asia Minor. The official part of the town is full of imposing buildings, and the native portion is equally well stored with busy shops,crowded by the motley population. Prince Woronzow's fostering care has not allowed this important part of the territory under his jurisdiction to remain without its share of his patronage. In spite of the pre-occupation of a war, not always successful, with the mountaineers, he is said to have planned many valuable institutions, to which are to be added a large and handsomely built theatre for the performance of operas, not completed at the time of our visit, besides a small theatre, for Russian comedies and farces. All these improvements evince his anxiety to promote civilization among the Georgians and Armenians. The Military Governor of Tiflis was an Armenian of Georgia, General Baibetoff [Vasili Bebutov]; a man of experience, who had distinguished himself in the campaigns of Turkey and Persia in former years. It sounded strange to find an Armenian occupying this high post, but Russia is more cosmopolite than England. A stranger of the gate is readily admitted within the temple; but it will require a change in English ideas before we find a Canadian or Maltese Governor of India, or the Cape of Good Hope. Is this facility the result of enlightenment, or does it proceed from the dearth of native talent?

If I were to form my opinion from the Georgian ladies visible in the street, which, except one evening that we went to the theatre, was the only place I had an opportunity of beholding them, I should be forced to declare that their beauty has obtained a greater reputation than it deserves. They certainly are fair, with high complexions, natural or artificial, and regular features, all of which perhaps entitle the owners to the meed of beauty; still the entire absence of animation or expression deprives the countenance of attraction. They look well, however, in their pretty dresses while young. The Armenians, when out of doors, wrap themselves up in white veils, or rather cloaks, which have a graceful effect.

At Tiflis we were lodged, as usual, at the house of an Armenian merchant. He was a man of much reputed wealth. His house was furnished with great richness, and at a cost that may be imagined when it is considered that the whole of the furniture was brought from St. Petersburg. It was much too expensive to be profaned by use, being exclusively reserved either for compulsory guests, like ourselves, or marriage and other feasts. The part of the habitation occupied by our host and his family was very humble, and far from clean.

Next to its conquerors [Russians], the Georgians are the master caste of this country. It is said that between the Georgians and the Armenians, who are found here in great numbers, there is a wonderful contrast in character and manners. The Georgian is bold, turbulent, reckless, extravagant; the Armenian is mean, cringing, timid, always intent on gain, and, unlike a Georgian, in keeping what he gains. The same characteristics mark him in Persia and Turkey, and I am told everywhere else; for, like the gipsy, he is a wanderer on the face of the earth, and is to be found in every part of Asia. He is consequently an abundant and pleasant harvest to all needy pashas, khans, hakims, and minor functionaries of misrule, easily reaped, gathered, and gleaned.

It is as unsurpassable topers [drinkers], as well as for their military qualities, which have always been acknowledged, that the Georgians have acquired notoriety. At their frequent drinking parties it is said they will pass several days and nights, almost without intermission, in quaffing the productions of the vineyards of Kakheti, a district in the mountains east of Tiflis. This wine is by no means of bad quality; it is of a deep red colour, so deep that one fancies it has been tinged with some dye to produce so intense a hue. They are said to consume incredible quantities of wine on these occasions, and in a fashion that would put to shame the drinking triumphs of Ireland, recorded by Sir Jonah Barrington, in days of old, when intoxication was the standard of spirit. The drinking-vessel is a cow's horn, of considerable length, and the point of honour is to drain it at a draught. The brethren and convivial rivals of the Georgians in the neighbouring provinces of Imeretia and Mingrelia, instead of a horn, use a delicately-hollowed globe of walnut tree, with a long narrow tube at the orifice. It holds fully a pint, and like its companion, the horn, the contents are consumed at a single gulp. How these globes are hollowed is as great a marvel as the construction of the ingenious Chinese puzzle of ball within ball.

[...]

Traveling in Georgia is neither luxurious nor commodious, still it immensely surpasses all our experience of Southern Russia, particularly in the Mahommedan [Muslim] portion of the province. If horses were scarce at the post-houses, chickens and lambs, yoghourt and kymak, those savoury preparations from milk so cherished all over Asia, were abundant. The invasive hordes of the post-houses, too, we heard, were less numerous, ferocious, and bloodthirsty, but we pressed on without stop or stay through a pretty country with groves of oak-trees scattered about, which afforded food for enormous droves of swine, in whose flesh the Georgians take special delight. When we arrived at the high mountains near the lake Gookcha, we left our carriage and walked up the pass. On reaching the summit of this high range, which forms the limit of Georgia proper, we had a noble prospect. On the left, at our feet, lay the beautiful lake of Sevan, the first sheet of water we had seen on this journey; before us were spread Armenia and the plains of Erivan, expanding far to the south; while on the right, dark, towering, and frowning, lay the Karadagh, the Black Mountains, beyond Kars, stretching towards the Black Sea. At this interesting spot the postmaster had hospitably resolved not to confine our gratification to the pleasure of sight, and had prepared for us a most notable breakfast; at which we reveled on strawberry jam, made fresh from the fruit on the mountains, and the far-famed salmon trout, just out of the lake. Long after dark, at the conclusion of a toilsome journey over a detestable road, we reached Erivan....

[After visiting Armenia and spending time in Persia, Sheil and his wife travelled through eastern Ottoman Empire on his way to Istanbul. Along the way he encountered the Laz people]

The Turk of Trebizond is a very different person from the genuine Osmanli. The distinction is so visible and so great, as to create a strong belief of his being a Greek in disguise—the descendant, in short, of the old Greek population. Though affecting to be real Osmanlis, that is, the offspring of the Turkish invaders, collected together by the house of Osman, they are by the latter called Laz, that being the name of the population between Trebizond, Batoon, and Gooriel. I am informed that the Laz are probably allied in race with the Mingrelians and Imeretians, to whom they are said to bear a resemblance in dialect. 

Among the real Turks their reputation is low, to be called a Laz being held as a term of reproach equivalent to an imputation of a want of faith, honour, or religion. A Laz, as a Turkish proverb says, will at any time " kill a man for an onion." There cannot be a greater contrast than that between the "Trebizanli" Laz, or Greek, and the lazy fanatic Turk of Erzeroom, laden with conceit and ignorance. The native of Trebizond is said to be full of activity and energy; he is cheerful and lively; unlike everything Turkish, he puts his gun on his shoulder and trudges over the mountains in quest of game. Still more curious and un-Turkish, you meet him on Friday with a party of his comrades, sauntering amid the beautiful environs of his native city, accompanied by a fiddler and singer, with whom he does not disdain to join in chorus. It is suspected that on these occasions the merrymakers are supported by something which gives inspiration to the fiddle and song.

James Baillie Fraser - Narrative of a Journey into Khorasan (1821)

James Baillie Fraser (1783 – 1856) was a Scottish travel writer and artist who had travelled widely across India, Iran and Ottoman Empire, drawing picaresque watercolours. Born in Scotland, he began to travel after turning sixteen years old. After Guiana and West Indies, Fraser visited India in 1813 and stayed for five years. In 1821 he decided to return to Britain travelling across Iran and Ottoman Empire.  During this journey he sketched and kept a diary that was published as "Narrative of a Journey into Khorasan in the Years 1821 and 1822" in London in 1825. During his trip across the Khurasan region of Iran, he came across a small village of Abbasabad (coordinates - 36.360796, 56.387723) was populated by the descendants of the Georgians resettled by Shah Abbas of Iran in the 1610s.

The village of Abbassabad presents an interesting object to the traveller ; its origin was singular, and the destinies of its inhabitants are as singularly deplorable. Upon the high road connecting two capitals of great resort, there existed a great space, barren and desert by nature, always endangered, and often rendered impassable to travelers by the incursions of the fierce Toorkomans [Turkmen] of the north so that communication between them was at times totally interrupted. 

Khurasan in North eastern Iran.
Icon shows the location of Abbasabad
(courtesy of Google Maps) 

In this dangerous and desolate track no one would voluntarily settle; yet a connecting point was obviously required, and the want was felt by every sovereign of the country, whether powerful or weak. It was Shah Abbas the first who provided for this inconvenience in a way highly characteristic of that sovereign's policy : he transplanted one hundred Georgian families from their rich native soil, to wither on the barren salt marshes of Khorasan, with as little remorse or consideration as he would have changed the horse he rode, or the clothes he wore. He, however, provided for their safety, and even for their maintenance; and, on the whole, made their situation as comfortable as the nature of it would admit. He built them a fort, as well as a large and fine caravanserai, in a spot where, while they remain upon their guard, no attempt of their enemies can harm them; he assigned them fixed wages, and supplied the wants they could not provide for by agriculture; an employment from which they must be debarred, as well from the barren nature of their soil, as from the exposure to attack which it would involve. The fort is situated on a little earthy hillock, not far from, but not commanded by, the

The environs of Abbasabad
(courtesy of Google Maps)

neighboring hills; and it overlooks the caravan serai, which is built on the slope just below it, forming a sort of outer court connected with it; a fine rill of fresh water runs from below the fort, through the court of the caravanserai, supplying that necessary of life in a way that no enemy can interrupt. The caravanserai itself is a substantial and spacious building, having about fifty good chambers in the interior area, with stabling and cover for many hundreds of cattle, and niches in the thick walls for their keepers and other travelers: it had solid gates, to bar the entrance of a foe, but they have been three times burned, and had not been replaced since the last time; the fort, however, so completely commands the area, that except by surprise no considerable harm could be effected. At the distance of one third of a mile there are the ruins of an old fort, and village, destroyed long ago in some of the troubles of the land, which now serve but as a lurking place for the robbers who come hither to plunder. 

Ruins of Shah Abbas' caravanserai at Abbasabad
(courtesy of Google Maps)

The sufferings of this Georgian colony since their transportation hither have been very severe; the greater part have lost either their lives or liberties, at one time or other by the incursions of the Toorkomans, and at present there are not in the little mud fort more than two hundred souls great and small, of which thirty or forty are men; and of those who are grown up, there is not one who has not been taken prisoner two, three, or more times, and either made their escape, or been ransomed back. I saw several who had thus escaped, and others who had at this time relatives in the hands of their enemies ; one youth had seen both his brothers killed two years before ; the father of another had gone only three days before to Muzeenoon, for corn and straw, and had not been since heard of The Toorkomans, they said, were continually about their village, and the fountains of fresh water near it, in more or less force. The wages and supplies granted to them in former reigns [17th century] have been stopped in this [19th century]; they occasionally receive thirty khurwars of grain, which is all they have to live upon, except what they earn at the risk of their lives and liberties, by the supply of caravans ; all the articles they furnish, as corn, straw, flour, etc. being brought from Muzeenoon: fire-wood alone they gather in the neighbourhood. 

They complain bitterly of their lot, and would fain leave the place, but this is extremely difficult ; for none are permitted to depart, and if any one be caught attempting to run away, he is brought back and severely beaten for it. It is still more difficult for a family to leave such a place, particularly as an officer of government continually resides there. One of the people with whom I conversed described the misery of their situation very feelingly, and even strikingly. "Set down as we are," said he, " in the midst of a wilderness, with a boundless salt desert on one side, on the others hills of brown rock or grey earth perfectly unprolific, the change of seasons passes almost unknown to us." "I know not winter," continued he, " from spring or summer, but by the complaints of my children, and the cold it brings ; the wretched patch of corn you see beneath the walls seldom comes to maturity ; if enemies do not destroy it, friends do. We have a single fig-tree near yonder hill, which in kindly seasons yields much fruit, but the Toorkomans gather it oftener than we do, and there is not another tree of any sort near us; we have attempted to rear shoots in that garden, but to no end; they have always been violently destroyed. We dare not keep any sheep ; each of us may possess one or two goats, and perhaps an ass : horses and camels no one dreams of; it would only be rearing them for the Toorkomans. We are always on the alert against these cruel enemies, yet are we constantly suffering in our families, having fathers, wives, sons, or daughters, carried off, and never heard of more. As for me, I have been three times in their power, twice I escaped, and was ransomed the third time at a ruinous price : most of my kindred have gone the same way ; but what are we to do? We cannot run away, for should we be caught our punishment is dreadful, and if we escape, our fault is visited upon our families, and fear of the consequences to them makes us submit to every thing." 

The range of this poor creature's ideas, with regard to the rest of the world, was circumscribed like his personal liberty : he believed that there existed few places so magnificent as the caravanserai of his native village. " Have you," said he, " any thing like this in the "desert places of your country ?" When I told him that with us no such things were required ; that there were no Toorkomans, no robbers of men ; that each man there reaped that which he sowed, in peace and security, that there was no need of arms, nor did any body walk with guns, swords, or daggers ; that no such things as wars or rebellion had for a long time been known among us ; "Is that indeed the case ?" exclaimed the poor fellow with earnestness, " Oh the take me with you to that land." 

It is said that the Toorkomans do not now a days come often into the caravanserai, though formerly that was frequently done ; not long ago, four hundred men made an attempt to surprise the fort ; they alighted at nightfall in the ruined village, where two hundred remained ; and the rest got undiscovered into the caravanserai, and hid themselves in its huge recesses, intending to wait there till morning, when the villagers for the most part all come out ; then to seize them, and rushing into the fort, to take possession of it also ; the noise attending which bustle should be a signal for the rest to come to their assistance. The plot was, however, discovered and the village saved by accident ; one of the villagers chancing to go down to the caravanserai, saw the keen eyes and wild features of a Toorkoman, with his drawn sword gleaming on him from a recess ; he challenged, and receiving no answer fired his matchlock, and alarmed the fort : the garrison turned out with the arms they possessed, and fired from the walls upon the Toorkomans, who now began to appear, and who finding their scheme frustrated, retreated precipitately, leaving three killed in the place. 

The next morning as we viewed the country around, from the eminence of the fort, we could not wonder at the despair of the miserable inhabitants who are bound to it for life: A kubbeer, or salt desert, like the bed of an evaporated sea, glittering with saline efflorescence, stretched in boundless desolation to the south and southeast, islanded by a few rugged rocks ; and all to the north and west ridges of earthy hillocks or bare rocky cliffs bounded the view without one point of verdure to rest the weary eye. We quitted this wretched place, with sincere commiseration for its inhabitants, at half past one on the 13th, keeping up the same precaution as on our last march, there being several very dangerous spots just on our road, particularly two springs of sweet water much frequented by these formidable marauders, and Mahomed Allee with myself and two or three other horsemen rode in advance, among the earthy hillocks... 

Pietro della Valle, "An Account of Georgia," (1627) - Part 2

Pietro della Valle (1586–1652) was an Italian Renaissance traveler who left detailed accounts of Georgia and the Georgian communities in Persia. He was born into a distinguished noble family in Rome and received a thorough education in the arts and sciences. In 1611, he participated in the Spanish expedition against the pirates on the Barbary coast and later visited the Holy Land in 1614–1616. On his return journey, he decided to continue his travels and joined a caravan traveling to Persia, where he offered his services against the Ottomans to Shah Abbas. He spent the next five years in Persia before returning with his Georgian wife to Italy. Della Vale wrote a series of letters to a friend in Naples, which remains one of the best sources on 17th-century Persia. Besides his descriptions of Persian society and culture, he also left detailed observations on the Georgians living in Persia and seemed to have been impressed by their personal qualities, courage, and civilized courtesy. His notes contain information on the plight of the Georgian royal family in Persia and on the composition and arms of the Georgian forces in battle.

In 1627 Pietro della Valle presented the following account of Georgia to His Holiness Pope Urban VIII. The second part of the letter describes the fates of Kings Teimuraz of Kakheti and Luarsab of Kartli as well as the devastating Persian invasion, led by Shah Abbas I, of Kakheti in 1614-1616 that resulted in more than one hundred thousand Georgians being deported to the Safavid realm. 

For this translation, I used the 18th century English translation and French edition of Voyages de Pietro Della Valle, gentilhomme romain dans la Turquie, l'Egypte, la Palestine, la Perse, les Indes Orientales, et autres lieux (Paris, 1745), VIII, 375ff.

In the present age, either as a punishment for their sins, or otherwise by permission of the Most High, the Georgians have been sorely oppressed; and that, more than to any other cause, owing to their disorganization and feuds: hence, notwithstanding they yet have considerable power, they have lost a great part of that they formerly possessed. For, of the six Princes which I have described, one descended from their ancient [Shah]s, whose dominions bordered on Armenia and Cappadocia in the neighborhood of Tabril and the confines of Media, and who served against his will, at one time in the armies of the Turks, at another in those of Persia, in their continual wars, had his territories by degrees incorporated with those of the Turks, who finally seized upon the whole of them, under the vain pretext of his being the fomenter of these troubles. I am told that there yet exists a young Prince of his family who lives at the court of the Grand Seignior [Ottoman sultan], soliciting there in vain, as an indemnification for the dominions ravished from him, the government of some province.

Shah Abbas of Persia

Of late years, upon a fresh war breaking out between the Persians and Turks, shortly before my travelling into Persia, two other Georgian Princes of the ancient royal house were spoiled of their principalities; and, although not utterly ruined, were reduced to a wretched condition. Possibly, however, some new revolution, which is not unlikely to happen, may reinstate them. These two Sovereigns are the Princes Teimuraz and Luarsab, both whom, their territories lying on the frontiers of Persia, were in measure dependent on that empire. The greater part of the Princes of Georgia even were accustomed to receive their education at the court of that power, and these two latter passed several years of their infancy there. In the war of which I speak, while peace was negotiating between the Persians and Turks whilst yet the armies of either power were in presence of each other, and while, whom these Princes depended on was yet under discussion, each claiming them as his vassals, the [Shah Abbas I] of Persia affirmed to the Turkish ambassador that they constantly owned allegiance to him, and that as a proof they waited on him in his camp as often as required. The ambassador, who would not allow his claim, answered, that if they were thus submissive, it might be proved by his summoning them at the instant.

Upon this the [Shah] summoned them, but these Princes, seeing the Turkish army so close upon them, were fearful of declaring themselves, and prevaricated first with one then with the other, excusing themselves handsomely towards the Persians, but refusing to enter their camp. This piqued the Persian exceedingly, and brought him into a degree of disrepute among the Turks; he, however, dissembled his resentment at the instant, as he could do no other; but after the Peace was concluded and the Ottoman army withdrawn, he, by his usual intrigues, managed to effect a disunion between Luarsab and Teimuraz, such even as almost to engage them to resort to arms, notwithstanding their affinity, for Teimuraz had espoused as a second wife the sister of Luarsab; extremities, however, were prevented, while their two armies were on foot, by the interposition of certain noblemen, their vassals, who represented to and satisfied them of the division being fomented by the [Shah] of Persia, for the purpose of ruining both. Upon looking into the intrigue, they discovered that this [Shah] had secretly conveyed a letter or order to either, couched in the selfsame terms, exhorting each to attack, make away with the other, and seize upon his dominions, in which attempt he pledged to succor him, and maintain him in possession of the territories he should conquer: professing to each he addressed the strongest friendship and the greatest aversion to his adversary, on many accounts which he suggested. Notwithstanding this elucidation, so easy of deception is this nation, it failed to put them on their guard, or teach them wisdom.

In addition to this, the [Shah] fomented discord between Teimuraz and his mother, or at least excited mistrust. This princess, called Ketevan Dedopali, or Queen Ketevan, possessed great abilities, was of exemplary conduct, related to Luarsab, and being a widow, had governed the state for years during the minority of Teimuraz, and had valiantly defended it against her cousin Constantine Mensa, a Mahometan  [Muslim] Prince, who, upon the death of her husband, Daud, the brother of Constantine, had mercilessly and cruelly massacred her old father Alexander [King of Kakhetia in 1605 at Dzegami]. After him another brother attempted an invasion of the state, and would have succeeded but for her giving him battle, defeating him, and putting him to death, together with a number of persons who supported him. Upon these several accounts she was exceedingly esteemed and loved by the people. The [Shah] of Persia, to excite mistrust in the mind of Teimuraz, insinuated that his mother intended to marry a certain officer, whom, for his valour and prudence, she had employed in different departments of the government; and that in such case, she would contrive the ruin of Teimuraz for the purpose of securing the principality to the children she might have by her second husband.

Teimuraz nourishing this idea, and ignorant of the snare laid for him, put this officer, the best stay of his country, to death, and withdrew all authority from his mother; afterwards this young man, unexperienced and not beloved by his nobility, found himself encircled with trouble. For the [Shah] of Persia excited fresh discontent in the state, and rendered him contemptible in the eyes of the nobles on account of his being a child, treating them on their visits to Persia with the greatest distinction and familiarity, making them considerable presents, and in everything which regarded their religion, admitting perfect toleration; so that by degrees they became attached to this monarch, weaned of their affection for their natural sovereign, and esteemed as the height of felicity their having him for lord.

Teimuraz I and his wife Khoreshan.
A sketch from the album
of Roman Catholic missionary
Cristoforo Castelli

After employing such artifices for some time, the [Shah] of Persia, in 1613, fell all at once upon Georgia with a large army, under pretense of Teimuraz having married the Princess Chaurascian [Khoreshan], sister of Luarsab [King of Kartli], who had previously been promised to him. Wherefore, on his arrival upon the frontiers of the dominions of Luarsab and Teimuraz, he ordered these two Princes to come to his camp, to render account of this and bring him the bride, stating his firm resolution of possessing her, and insisting on the dissolution of her marriage with Teimuraz, which already had been consummated; as if such a practice were allowable with the Christians as with the Mahometans [Muslims].

The Georgian Princes were astonished at this unexpected summons, and what augmented their confusion was the treachery of a number of noblemen, who afforded a free passage to the troops of Persia, and introduced them into the heart of the country; into which, without this perfidy, from the natural fortifications which surround it, and its difficult passes, it would have been impossible for him to have penetrated. These Princes, exceedingly perplexed, knew not what measures to adopt, and Luarsab, resolving on obedience, surrendered himself, and was sent by the Persian [shah] into the province of Astarabad [Gorgan], on the Caspian Sea, a considerable distance from Georgia, where he was placed under the care of the khan of that province, and treated rather as a guest than a prisoner, being allowed to go wherever he chose. The [Shah] of Persia did not cause any devastation upon entering the territories of Luarsab, but established there as a governor a certain Riarei, or Bagrat Mirza [son of King David XI], either an uncle or cousin of Luarsab, who had some years before turned Muslim in Persia. He had a son [Simon II/Semayun Khan] who was a Muslem as well as his father, but born in this religion, who governed in that country when I was there, not indeed as a sovereign prince, but as a khan and vassal of the [Shah] of Persia, the better part of whose forces were commanded by officers of the Christian faith, which likewise was the religion of the chief part of his subjects.

After Luarsab had resided in this manner for some years in Astarabad, that he might be more secure of his person, the [Shah] of Persia caused him to be removed to Farsistan, or Persia Proper, one of the provinces the most distant from Georgia, where he was closely confined for some time in a fortress, at a short distance from the capital, called Shiraz. At last in 1621, or about that time, when his subjects had the greatest hopes of his liberation, and the [Shah] appeared most anxious to see and be favourable to him, exactly the reverse occurred. For this sovereign [Shah Abbas] all at once was disgusted with the Prince, in consequence of the revengeful insinuations of one Maura [Mouravi Giorgi Sakadze], a man of highest consideration among the Georgians, and very powerful, whose sister Luarsab had either promised to marry, or after marrying had repudiated, who persuaded the [Shah], with whom he was high in savour, that he never could maintain a secure and peaceable possession of the dominions of Luarsab as long as he lived; for being so well beloved by his people, they would constantly nourish hopes of seeing him again their sovereign, as long as he existed, their hearts and good-will being wholly his. Instigated by this motive, or else from the discovery of a conspiracy about this time among the Georgians to destroy him, [Shah Abbas] resolved on quashing their hopes, which, in case of any insurrection, might cause these people to appear in array against him, and caused Luarsab to be strangled in prison with the bow-string.

Teimuraz was more caudous, never trusting himself to the custody of the [Shah] of Persia, declaring when called upon, that he was apprehensive of his anger, as he was  offended; that it was impossible for him to part with his wife, as neither the Christian religion nor his own honour allowed him to give her up to another; but in order to satisfy [the shah] of his submission, he sent to him his own mother with his two unmarried sisters, and two young children, his offspring by the lady contested. This measure was adopted by Teimuraz under expectation that Princess [Queen] Ketevan, his mother, a woman of consummate ability, and who had several times before negotiated different affairs in Persia with the [Shah], with whose manner and disposition she was perfectly acquainted, would be able to appease that Monarch, and procure him peace. The measure, however, was fruitless, the [Shah] being inexorable, and appearing to be passionately attached to the Princess Chaurascian [Khoreshan] and well knowing that Teimuraz neither could nor would listen to the insolent proposal made to him of giving her up, he insisted on Teimuraz appearing before him. But as the Prince refused obedience, the [Shah] retained [Queen] Ketevan, and sent her, together with her children and grandchildren, to the city of Shiraz, where, when I was there, she was maintained with the respect due to her rank. After this the [Shah] of Persia entered Georgia with his army, that is to say the province of Kakheti, the realm of Teimuraz, which was made accessible by the treason of several nobles who sided with [the shah] in hopes of great rewards and opened to him the most difficult passages through the mountains.

Teimuraz perceiving his enemies all at once in the midst of his country, without any army on foot to oppose them, or time to raise one, was fearful of trusting himself to subjects whose fidelity he had full reason to suspect, and having no other resource, he, with his wife and a number of Georgians, who faithfully adhered to him, betook themselves to flight; first taking refuge in the more interior and strongest part of the country of Imereti, where this Prince first reigned, and afterwards flying to Odisci [Mingrelia], that is [the realm of the] Dadian.

Many noblemen under false hopes voluntarily submitted to the [Shah] of Persia, and apostatizing enrolled themselves under his banners. Others of more generous disposition, but who had no time to flee, were overcome by force. Thus the whole people, in immense numbers, became the prey of the the conqueror. The [Shah], upon his entrance into Georgia, after observing the natural strength of its fortifications, and reflecting on the injury to which he would be exposed from the inhabitants provided they should become united and under a good government, was not only undesirous of retaining the country, but conceived it best to withdraw thence the whole of his army as soon as possible. He was, however, unwilling to miss the advantage he obtained by the subjugation of such a numerous people, of infinitely greater value than the country itself; and duly weighing the desolation which would follow the entire depopulation of a whole province, he caused all the inhabitants, males as well as females, to leave their houses, noblemen as well as commoners [roturiers], young and old of all descriptions, causing them to take with them their most valuable effects, as many as they could, and placing them in front of his army, he marched them rapidly into his own dominions, afterwards distributing them among those provinces that farthest from Georgia and less populated. Hence the provinces of Kerman or Caramania, Mazanderan, on the Caspian Sea, and several others of that empire, are now principally inhabited by Georgians and Circassians, for a number of Circassians but a short time before, from a dearth of provisions in their own country, passed into that of Teimuraz, and became the vassals of this Prince in common with the Georgians, living and intermarrying with them. These, therefore, were treated in the same manner as the Georgians, and, alike dispersed over the different provinces of Persia, enjoy equal liberty with the other subjects of the crown. Although they are found in many other provinces, in Farsistan and Mazanderan, they are in such numbers that throughout whole cities and districts there are no other inhabitants. For their subsistence the [Shah] grants them lands, for which they pay, in common with the Mahometan [Muslim] subjects, an inconsiderable tax [tribut]. These people, who form the chief of the inhabitants of these provinces, preserve their religion, which, however, is rather unrefined [fort grossier] Christianity, owing to their having no priests or ministers to instruct them, or at least so small a number as to be insufficient for the tuition of such a multitude of people variously dispersed; and even such as these [priests] are so ignorant themselves, as to be of little utility. Many noblemen, however, impatient of hardships, and most of the soldiers, with several among the people, moved by ambition and avarice, in order to participate the bounty of the [Shah] largely dealt out to those who change their religion, and some induced by necessity, have turned Mahometans, and still continue to do so. By means of these the army of Abbas has been frequently augmented; he employing these slaves [esclaves], as they are called, as a counterpoise against and to restrain the insolence of the Qizilbash. The number of these [Georgian] renegades in his service, exclusive of Armenians and Circassians, reaches 30,000. Some of them hold commands in the army, have governing positions, and have risen to various dignities, even to those of sultans and khans.

Distinct from these Georgians, who are free in Persia, there is moreover an infinite number not only of the common people, but of the nobility who in the disorder consequent on the invasion of the Persians into their country, were made slaves by the Persians. So many are there of this description, that there is not a house of any consequence in Persia that is not full of men and women of this country. Not a satrap but has his wives entirely of the Georgian nation, the women of that country being famous for beauty, and even the [Shah] has scarcely any other for his attendants, his palaces swarming with them, as well females as men. All of these nearly have abjured their religion, either in fact or in semblance, under the impression common among them that God knowing the secrets of the heart, it is enough they should remain faithful internally to their religion, and that it matters not what profession they outwardly make.

This unfortunate measure of transporting the inhabitants of Georgia was attended by the most dreadful disorders and excesses. Murders, people dying of starvation, robberies, rapes, children stifled in despair by their own parents, or thrown by them into rivers, Others massacred by the Persians for want of good complexions, others again torn from their mothers' breasts, and thrown into the streets and highways, to become the prey of wild beasts, or be trodden to death by the horses and camels belonging to the army, which for a whole day together trampled upon carcasses: such is the picture of this shocking expedient; and afterwards, how agonizing the separation of parents from their children, husbands from their wives, brothers from their sisters, divided from each other, and forwarded to different provinces! So numerous were these wretched ruined people on this occasion that they were publicly sold at a cheaper rate even than cattle [bêtes]. But let us draw a veil over this frightful scene, and proceed to speak of Teimuraz….