Story of Georgia – all stories
All stories at a glance. Open any story above in the explorer to read every card with its full text.
Statehood & identity
The Georgian Church regained its independence · 12 March 1917
On 12 March 1917, after the fall of Tsarism, Georgian clergy and laity restored the autocephaly of the Georgian Church, ending 106 years under the russian Church.
Georgia declares independence · 26 May 1918
On 26 May 1918 Georgia declared independence. The First Republic's 1921 constitution, among Europe's most progressive of its time, guaranteed equal rights and abolished the death penalty.
Long Live Independent Georgia · 1783 – today
Georgia's repeated struggle for independence, from the 1783 treaty with the russian Empire through annexation, the 1918 republic, Soviet rule, 9 April 1989 and the 1991 restoration to today's protests.
Long Live Independent Georgia (Part 2) · 1783 – today
Georgia's fight to be free, again and again: from the 1783 treaty and 1801 annexation through the First Republic, Soviet rule and the 1991 restoration to today's call to free political prisoners.
“The will of the Georgian nation has been fulfilled!” · 9 April 1991
On 9 April 1991, after a referendum in which 99.08% voted yes, Georgia's Supreme Council restored the independence first proclaimed on 26 May 1918.
Why is Georgia Europe?
An explainer on why Georgia belongs to Europe – through culture, history, geography, identity and EU integration – and why its European future is now in danger.
Resistance: history
From Treaty to Annexation · 1783–1814
How the 1783 Treaty of Georgievsk, meant to protect the Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti, was followed by russia's annexation in 1801 and the abolition of the Georgian Church's autocephaly in 1811–1814.
25 February 1921 · 25 February 1921
On 25 February 1921 the Red Army entered Tbilisi, ending the Democratic Republic of Georgia after five weeks of resistance – an invasion Soviet propaganda recast as “liberation” and “true independence”.
14 April is Mother Tongue Day in Georgia · 14 April 1978
In 1978 a Soviet draft constitution dropped Georgian as the official language. On 14 April tens of thousands protested in Tbilisi and won its reinstatement – the origin of Mother Tongue Day.
9 April 1989 · 9 April 1989
On 9 April 1989 Soviet troops violently broke up a peaceful independence rally on Rustaveli Avenue in Tbilisi, killing 21 people – a tragedy that became a turning point toward Georgia's independence.
What happened on April 9, 1989 · 9 April 1989
A short explainer on the night of 9 April 1989, when Soviet troops attacked peaceful demonstrators in Tbilisi with spades and gas, killing 21 people – and why Georgia still remembers it.
The forgotten war in Abkhazia · 1992–1993
The 1992–1993 war in Abkhazia: its political background, russia’s military role, the fall of Sokhumi on 27 September 1993 and the documented ethnic cleansing of Georgians.
33 years since the fall of Sokhumi · 27 September 1993
Marking 33 years since Sokhumi fell on 27 September 1993: the road to war in Abkhazia, russia’s role, the ethnic cleansing of Georgians and the hybrid-warfare model it established.
5 days of war. 18 years of occupation. · August 2008
How russia prepared and launched its August 2008 invasion of Georgia, from years of escalation to the EU-mediated ceasefire, and why the occupation of Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali Region continues.
Why “Caucasus War” is the wrong term
Why “Caucasus War”, the term widely used in German for the August 2008 war, is misleading: it depoliticizes russia’s invasion of Georgia and obscures the occupation and imperial context.
Resistance today
Gavrilov's Night · 20 June 2019
On 20 June 2019, russian Duma member Sergei Gavrilov led a session from the Georgian Speaker's chair. The anti-occupation protest that followed was violently dispersed by police that night.
How the Georgian Dream Regime Criminalizes Protest · 2025
After imposing fines of 5,000 Lari on protesters, the Georgian Dream government suspended the citizen-funded funds that helped pay them, claiming they were “encouraging criminals”.
“Georgian Dream” Parliament Passed 5 New Laws · 1 April 2025
On 1 April 2025, the Georgian Dream parliament passed five laws on foreign funding, broadcasting, gender, civil society consultation and treason – together narrowing civic space and press freedom.
This Is What a State of Violence Looks Like · 24 July 2025
On 24 July 2025, police forcibly evicted dozens of families – mostly people displaced from Abkhazia in the 1990s – from a building in Tbilisi's “Africa Settlement” after it was sold to private developers.
“Georgian Dream’s” Legal Crackdown Is Speeding Toward Full Autocracy · 2025
A series of legal changes by Georgian Dream criminalizes protest, allows preventive detention and travel bans, and would let the government ban opposition parties – described here as a dictatorship in legal form.
Georgian Dream Moves to Strip the Diaspora of Voting Rights · 2025
Georgian Dream proposes abolishing voting abroad in parliamentary elections. Closing polling stations at embassies and consulates would disenfranchise over a million Georgians – a diaspora in which the ruling party won just 17.1% in 2024.
Jailed for Standing on a Sidewalk · 2025
Sandro Megrelishvili became the first person sentenced under Georgia's new laws restricting freedom of expression – for peacefully protesting while standing on a sidewalk.
A Small Country with a Strong Democratic Will · 2024–2025
Since 28 November 2024, Georgians have protested every day for a full year against the halt of EU accession talks and a disputed election – despite violence and increasingly repressive laws.
Academic Freedom Under Attack · 2026
Georgian Dream's so-called higher education reform puts universities under political control. Ilia State University's admission places were cut from 4,207 to 300, and many humanities and social science programs face removal.
People
They Never Surrendered · 1921–1924
After the Soviet invasion of 1921, Colonel Kakutsa Cholokashvili led armed resistance from the mountains, fought in the 1924 uprising and died in exile; today he is a National Hero of Georgia.
“Searching for light in endless darkness.” · 2024
21-year-old musician Mate Devidze was arrested at a peaceful pro-European protest in Tbilisi and convicted of assaulting police officers, although video footage shows no violence on his part.
Truth Has a Price, and Mzia Amaghlobeli Is Paying It · 2025
Journalist Mzia Amaghlobeli, founder of “Batumelebi” and “Netgazeti”, was arrested during protests on a widely disputed charge of assaulting a police officer and went on hunger strike in protest.
Georgisches Zentrum
im Ausland e.V.
LEGAL NOTICE
Georgisches Zentrum im Ausland e.V.
Mariannenstraße 8, 10999 Berlin, Germany
Email: info@gzaeurope.org
Phone: 000000
REGISTER & RESPONSIBILITY
Authorised board member: Elguja (Giorgi) Kakabadze
Register court: Amtsgericht Charlottenburg (Berlin)
Register number: VR 42077 B
In 1801, russia issued a manifesto abolishing Georgian statehood.
In 1802, russian troops detained the unarmed Georgian nobility inside an Orthodox church and forced them to swear allegiance to the russian Emperor.
Also in 1802, the first uprising against russian rule took place.
From 1801 onward, russia persecuted the Georgian language and attempted to replace it with russian.
From 1801 onward, russia destroyed ancient Georgian historical monuments.
Between 1811 and 1814, under the pretext of a “shared Orthodox faith,” russia abolished the approximately 1,300-year-old autocephaly of the Georgian Church.
After 1801, Georgians were persecuted, oppressed, mistreated and humiliated by russia.
From 1801 onward, russia violently suppressed numerous uprisings, dismantled existing Georgian administrative structures and reorganised Georgian territory into governorates.
From 1801 onward, russia resettled Georgians to the far eastern regions of the russian Empire while settling other population groups on Georgian territory.
From 1801 onward, russia suppressed free thought and ideas concerning Georgian independence.
In 1918, Georgia freed itself from the russian Empire and became one of Europe’s first states governed by social democrats.
From 1918 onward, the Bolsheviks attempted to overthrow the Georgian state.
In 1920, the first attempt to Sovietise Georgia took place.
On 7 May 1920, Soviet russia recognised Georgia’s independence.
In 1921, Soviet russia violated the treaty it had concluded with Georgia and occupied the country.
In 1924, the uprising for Georgian independence was violently suppressed.
Between 1921 and 1937, a large proportion of Georgia’s intellectuals were executed.
In 1956, protests by Georgian students were violently suppressed, with up to 150 young people killed.
In 1978, an attempt was made to abolish the status of the Georgian language.
On 9 April 1989, a peaceful demonstration was violently and bloodily suppressed.
In 1991, Georgia declared its independence.
In 1992–1993, according to this account, russia provoked the conflict in Abkhazia and subsequently became directly involved as a party to the conflict.
In 1992–1993, according to this account, russia also provoked the Georgian civil war and supported putschists against the legitimate government; the text states that senior russian KGB officials were among the insurgents.
During the war in Abkhazia, numerous Georgians were brutally tortured and killed on ethnic grounds.
Evacuation aircraft were shot down on several occasions.
In 2006, ethnic Georgians were deported from russia on cargo aircraft and subjected to degrading treatment.
From 2008 onward, provocations began in the Tskhinvali region and preparations for war commenced.
On 1 August 2008, the evacuation of Tskhinvali began.
In August 2008, fire was opened on Georgian checkpoints.
On 6 August 2008, russian troops occupied the Roki Tunnel and deployed in the Tskhinvali area.
On 7 August 2008, Georgia entered the war.
The Third Century of russian Imperialism
Georgian resistance to russia has a long history. Since the nineteenth century, russia has sought to erase Georgia from the political map. It first attempted to do so in 1801, when Georgian statehood was abolished.
In 1918, Georgia succeeded in freeing itself from the russian Empire and establishing a progressive social-democratic state. However, the new incarnation of the russian Empire — Soviet russia — refused to accept this. In 1921, in violation of international rules, it occupied Georgia and forcibly incorporated the country into the Soviet Union.
Yet this did not extinguish the desire for freedom. Despite extensive repression, Georgia witnessed several uprisings against Soviet rule, which were violently suppressed by russian and Soviet forces.
In 1991, the Georgian people finally achieved their aspiration to live in an independent state and to rejoin their historic European family.
The struggle for freedom, however, is not over. russia, still bound to nineteenth-century imperial ideas, continues to seek to bring Georgia back into its sphere of influence through aggressive means.
Today, we have an opportunity to make our voice heard in Europe, so that Georgia is not left alone in its resistance to russian imperialism!
20% of Georgia’s territory is occupied by russia