Ananuri, Georgia

Ananuri is a castle complex on the Aragvi River in Georgia, about 45 miles from Tbilisi and occupies a wonderful location overlooking the Aragvi Valley and Zhinvali Reservoir.

It was a castle and seat of the eristavis (Dukes) of Aragvi, a feudal dynasty which ruled the area from the 13th century. The castle was the scene of numerous battles. In 1739, Ananuri was attacked by forces from a rival duchy, commanded by Shanshe of Ksani and was set on fire. The Aragvi clan was massacred. However, four years later, the local peasants revolted against rule by the Shamshe, killing the usurpers and inviting King Teimuraz II to rule directly over them. However, in 1746, King Teimuraz was forced to suppress another peasant uprising, with the help of King Erekle II of Kakheti. The fortress remained in use until the beginning of the 19th century. In 2007, the complex has been on the tentative list for inclusion into the UNESCO World Heritage Site program.

The fortifications consist of two castles joined by a crenellated curtain wall. The upper fortification with a large square tower, known as Sheupovari, is well preserved and is the location of the last defence of the Aragvi against the Shamshe. The lower fortification, with a round tower, is mostly in ruins. Within the complex, amongst other buildings, are two churches.

The older Church of the Virgin, which abuts a tall square tower, has the graves of some of the Dukes of Aragvi. It dates from the first half of the 17th century, and was built of brick. The interior is no longer decorated, but of interest is a stone baldaquin erected by the widow of the Duke Edishera, who died in 1674. The larger Church of the Mother of God(Ghvtismshobeli), built in 1689 for the son of Duke Bardzem. It is a central dome style structure with richly decorated façades, including a carved north entrance and a carved grapevine cross on the south façade. It also contains the remains of a number of frescoes, most of which were destroyed by the fire in the 18th century.

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Lunch at a "German" pub - these seem to be popular in Georgia. Our guide gave the wrong order and too much food arrived. He refused to admit his mistake - this sort of thing was to happen a number of times with him. The pub itself was pleasant enough and we had our lunch on the upstairs, outside balcony.

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We continued snaking up into the mountains following the Aragvi River Valley to the Gudauri ski resort. A pretty desolate place in summer, with most shops closed, the hotel only functioning for busloads of Japanese tourists. And to cap that, the hotel was undergoing major building works.

 

We had two overnight stops at Hotel Marco Polo at Gudauri

 

On to Gudauri

Georgia and Armenia Holiday