The Turco-Mongol Invasions and the Lords of Armenia in the 13 ...

APPENDIX B
Aapecta £f Centrifugaliam within and aaong Certain 13-
Century Raxarardoma
The 13th and 14th centuries were characterised by
eonfllcta within and among certain Caucasian naxarardoas.
In some cases these conflicts pertained to families
(£•£•» *&e s«orgian Bagratids, the Zak'arean/Mzargrcells,
the Kaxaberijea of BaSa, the Orbelean/Orbelia, the Aroroni/
Mahkanaberdelis, the Jaq.ella), in other cases, to the
"naxarardoma" of the Church(ea). The conflict within
the Georgian royal family was extremely serious and must
be mentioned not only as an example of centrlfugalism
at the very pinnacle of authority in Christian Caucasia,
but also becauae of ita deviaive ramifications. On his
deathbed, king Giorgi laaa Bagratuni (d. 1223) was promised
by his aiater Ruaudan that Giorgi's child son DaTid Lasaean
would receive the throne on his maturity. Busudan (d. oa.
1245) then became "king* of Georgia. Rather than honoring
the pledge made to her late brother, Busudan instead
banished and imprisoned David Lalaean and enthroned
her own son (also named DaTid). While co-optation of the
heir hardly was a new feature in Georgia, ita almost
inevitable result was the polarisation of the nobility
into two hoatile camps. Eventually the authority of the
"usurper* David Busudanean was challenged by the matured
embittered David Laiaean. Between 1250 and 1258, Georgia
thus had two kings simultaneously. Ihe line of David
Laaaean occupied the throne in Tiflia until 1289, but from
266