Azon ( Georgian. აზო ; Azo) - according to Georgian medieval historiography, the ruler of Kartli in the last third of the 4th century. BC e. Its historicity is highly doubtful. The name of Azon is compared with the Greek mythological hero Jason , who, according to some ancient sources of Hellenistic time, ruled in Colchis .
According to Tacitus [1] , in his time the Iberians and Albanians themselves claimed to be descended from the Thessalian Jason, who returned to Colchis (here this event is dated to the mythical era, that is, the XIII century BC).
A brief mention of it contains the essay “Conversion of Georgia”. According to this story, allegedly, Alexander of Macedon , having conquered Kartli [2] , appointed her ruler Azo, the son of a certain king Arian-Kartli, who settled in Mtskheta, becoming her first king, his gods were idols Gatsi and Haim, and he died his death, his successor was Farnavaz I.
Leonti Mroveli gives a detailed and significantly different story from the previous one about how Alexander, the king of Macedonia, after a stubborn war conquered the lands of Kartli and appointed Patrician Azon, son of Jaredos, a native of Macedonia, with an army of one hundred thousand people [3] as his governor (eristav) from the Frotatos region. By order of Alexander, Azon established the veneration of the Sun, Moon, five stars (that is, planets) and the "invisible god."
Azon destroyed the fortifications of the cities of Kartli, except for four fortresses, where he placed garrisons. He also conquered Egrisi and subdued oats ( Ossetians ), leks ( Dagestanis ) and the Khazars - this list of peoples is extremely anachronistic.
The cruel rule of Azon displeased the Kartlis. Then the Kartlian Farnavaz revolted, and "the thousand chosen horsemen" of Azon went over to his side. Farnavaz became king of Kartli, Azon fled.
Two years later, Azon returned from Greece with an army, but was again defeated by Farnavaz.
Sources:
- Leonti Mroveli. The life of the Kartli kings. M., 1979. P.28-30 and comm. on pp. 60-63.
- Appeal of Georgia, ch. 1.
Notes
- ↑ Tacitus. Annals VI 34
- ↑ from ancient sources it not only clearly follows that Alexander was not in Kartli, but the region itself is not mentioned when dividing satrapies between diadochas
- ↑ in the original the later Georgian term, moreover, Leonti Mroveli does not recognize Azon’s title of king