Kingdom of Iberia

In this episode, we explore the Kingdom of Iberia, also known as Kartli, an ancient Georgian state that existed from the 4th century BC to the 6th century AD. We examine its strategic position between the Roman and Persian empires, the shifting alliances that shaped its political history, and the adoption of Christianity as the state religion in the 4th century. The episode also traces the kingdom’s survival after the Sasanian abolition of its monarchy, the role of the Bagrationi dynasty in preserving Iberian identity, and the linguistic origins of the name “Iberia,” revealing how Kartli helped lay the political, religious, and cultural foundations of medieval Georgia.