Hierarch18th century

Dositheus of Tbilisi

died 12 September 1795

January 25New Calendar

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February 7Old Calendar

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Commemorated as

The Holy Hieromartyr Dositheus, Archbishop of Tbilisi

Life

Dositheus (Georgian: დოსითეოზ თბილელი, Dositeoz Tbileli; died 12 September 1795) was a hierarch of the Georgian Orthodox Church who served as metropolitan bishop, or archbishop, of Tbilisi. He was canonized as a martyr after he was killed by Iranian soldiers during the sack of Tbilisi in 1795.

Before his death he served as priest-confessor to Queen Darejan Dadiani, consort of King Heraclius II of Georgia. He is commemorated on January 25 and on September 12, the date of his martyrdom.

Troparion2 hymnsReadHide

TroparionTone 4

By sharing in the ways of the Apostles,
you became a successor to their throne.
Through the practice of virtue, you found the way to divine contemplation, O inspired one of God;
by teaching the word of truth without error, you defended the Faith,
even to the shedding of your blood.
Hieromartyr Dositheus, entreat Christ God to save our souls.

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

TroparionTone 4

In truth you were revealed to your flock as a rule of faith,
an image of humility and a teacher of abstinence;
your humility exalted you;
your poverty enriched you.
Hierarch Father Dositheus,
entreat Christ our God
that our souls may be saved.

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

Timeline3 momentsReadHide

18th centuryService in TbilisiDositheus serves as metropolitan bishop (archbishop) of Tbilisi and as priest-confessor to Queen Darejan Dadiani, consort of King Heraclius II of Georgia.
September 1795Battle of Krtsanisi and sack of TbilisiAgha Muhammad Khan Qajar's army, numbering some thirty-five thousand soldiers, defeats Georgian forces at Krtsanisi and breaks into Tbilisi, sacking the city.
12 September 1795MartyrdomQajar soldiers find the elderly Dositheus kneeling before the icon of the Virgin Mary at Sioni Cathedral and throw him into the Kura River, where he dies.

Contributions & Legacy

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Historical Context

In 1795 the Iranian ruler Agha Muhammad Khan Qajar led an army against Georgia. According to the OCA Synaxarion, thirty-five thousand Persian soldiers marched toward the kingdom that year.

Following the Battle of Krtsanisi in September 1795, Qajar's forces broke into Tbilisi. Sources describe the sack as catastrophic: an eyewitness account records the slaughter of women and children and more than a thousand corpses found in a single structure, with buildings still smoldering. The army withdrew laden with spoil and carrying off some fifteen thousand captives.

Among those killed in the city was Dositheus, the archbishop of Tbilisi.

Martyrdom

When Qajar soldiers entered Sioni Cathedral, they found the elderly Dositheus there. According to historical records, he was kneeling before the icon of the Virgin Mary when the soldiers threw him into the Kura River, causing his death.

He was subsequently canonized as a hieromartyr, with his commemoration fixed on September 12, the date of his martyrdom.

Relics & Shrines

Dositheus was martyred at Sioni Cathedral in Tbilisi, a church first built in the sixth and seventh centuries and rebuilt by King David the Builder in 1112. The cathedral was damaged during the Persian invasion of 1795, and its wooden iconostasis burned; a stone iconostasis was created in the 1850s to replace what had been destroyed.

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Georgian soldiers martyred at the Battle of Krtsanisi in the same 1795 Qajar Persian invasion that brought about his martyrdom at the fall of Tbilisi.

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Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Jan 25