Metekhi Church

Metekhi Church, dedicated to the mother of God, is one of the most important monuments in Tbilisi. The fate of the church is closely linked to that of the capital and Georgia as a whole. All the events that Tbilisi has experienced are reflected in the chequered history of the Metekhi Church.

History of Metekhi Church

The church and castle of Metekhi were built in the V century by King Vakhtang Gorgasali, the founder of Tbilisi. The castle served as the royal residence.

The existence of the royal residence castle was confirmed in the XII. Century by the historian of Queen Tamara. He writes, among other things, that on the eve of the historic battle of Shamkori, the queen walked barefoot from the Metekhi residence to the Metekhi church and prayed all night with tears in her eyes for her country.

In 1235, under Queen Rusudan, the castle and church of Metekhi were badly damaged by the Mongols. The complex was rebuilt in 1278-1289 by King Demetrius II, who also founded a monastery, and the architecture of the present church dates from this period.

At the beginning of the XVII century, the castle of Metekhi was first a Turkish and then a Persian garrison.

In the second half of the 17th century, the church was restored by Shah-Navaz, but at the same time it was converted into a gunpowder magazine.

The church only regained its original function in 1748, after King Irakli II defeated the Persian governor Abdullah Beg and expelled the Persian army from the city. In the same year, Erekle had the church restored, especially the badly damaged dome. The history of the restoration in 1748 is documented in writing on the eastern façade of the church.

In 1795, after the invasion of the Persian Shah Agha Mohammed Khan, the church was damaged again and rebuilt a few years later in 1798-1800 by the last king of Georgia - Giorgi XII.

Immediately after the annexation of Georgia by Russia, Metekhi complex, including the church, was again converted into a military base.  In 1819, under the governor-general of the Transcaucasian provinces - Alexei Yermolov - Metekhi Castle was finally demolished and a prison built in its place.

If you look closely at the facades of Metekhi church, you can see names and dates from the XIX century to the beginning of the XX century: these are the names of prisoners, because from 1819 to 1933 only prisoners could approach the Metekhi church.

Later in the Soviet era, in 1979, Metekhi church was converted into a theatre. It was not until May 1988, shortly before the collapse of the Soviet Union, that the church was re-consecrated through the efforts of Georgian Patriarch Ilia II and a cross was placed on the dome. Since then, the church has been used as a place of worship and regular services are held there.

The equestrian statue of Vakhtang Gorgasali next to the church was erected in 1967 (sculptor - Elgujah Amashukeli).

Architecture and interior of Metekhi

Metekhi Church is a late medieval cross-domed church with a height of 24.5 metres and an area of 20 × 16 metres.

As the church was often damaged and left without a dome for long periods, no frescoes have survived. However, there are numerous icons, most of which were painted in recent years: The Icon of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, St George, St Nicholas, St Abo (patron saint of Tbilisi), St Nino and St Shushanik.

In the church there is the tomb of the holy martyr Shushanik. The life of St. Shushanik was written as a hagiography by her confessor - Jacob Tsurtaveli at the end of the 5th century.

This hagiography is also the oldest literary work in the Georgian language.

Name of the church

The word Metekhi means "to break" and there are different interpretations as to why the church was given this particular name.

Here are 3 popular versions:

1. the church stands on the fragile rocks above the Kura River and there may be a connection between the name and the rock.

2. when Vakhtang Gorgasali was young, the Allans (North Caucasus) invaded Georgia and their leader Baqatar kidnapped the sister of the later king Vakhtang. When Vakhtang became king a few years later, he wanted to free his sister and challenged Baqatar to a fight.

King Vakhtang and his army stood on the side of the river where the church now stands, and the Allans and their leader Baqatar stood on the other side. When the king asked Baqatar to cross the river to fight man to man, Baqatar made him swear not to shoot him with an arrow until he came out of the water.

But when Baqatar was in the water, the king shot the arrow and killed Baqatar. Vakhtang then travelled to the North Caucasus and freed his sister. When he returned, he said "me vtekhe Pici" - I have broken my oath - and in remorse for breaking his oath, Vakhtang had the church called Metekhi built on the site.

3. this version is similar to version 2, with the difference that the king defeats the Allan army, quite fairly, without breaking the oath beforehand, and at the place where the church was later built, he shouts "Ak me Mteri vtexe" - here I have broken the enemy.

Location of the church

The church is located in the earliest settlement area of Tbilisi, above the Metekhi Bridge and on the left bank of the Kura River. The street is also called Metekhi Street, № 1.