Georgia’s Ancient History
Before you begin your Georgia tour, spend a little time learning about the region’s ancient history. Georgia, while still a relatively young entity (not forming a coalition with other small principalities until the 10th and 11th century), has long been considered a strategically important stretch of land. With coastal lines along the great trade route between Asia and Europe, the land has been colonized and conquered by Greeks, Turks, Persians, Macedonians, Romans, Byzantines and Arabs at different points throughout history. Between constant efforts at self-government and establishing an independent entity along with other Armenian territories, the people of the region were rarely unoccupied by foreign nations. Leading into the 18th century, the Ottoman Turks controlled the territory, but Russia moved in, annexed Georgian princedoms, and forcibly seized control from the Turks by the 1870s. Advancements in technology and economic development led to the formation of nationalism and social nationalist movements. The Third Group, comparatively the most radical group formed, gave rise to Iosif Dzhugshvili, a member who later changed his name to Man of Steel, which in Georgian is translated Stalin.
