Battle of Krtsanisi
| Battle of Krtsanisi | |||||||||
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| Part of Persian invasions of Georgia | |||||||||
 Battle of Krtsanisi by Valerian Sidamon-Eristavi |
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti Kingdom of Imereti
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Heraclius II Solomon II
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 Agha Mohammad Khan
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| Strength | |||||||||
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3,000 2,000 |
35,000 or 40,000 | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| 4,000 troops killed. Unknown number of wounded or captured 15,000 captives (civilians) moved to mainland Persia |
13,000 killed. Unknown number of wounded or captured | ||||||||
The Battle of Krtsanisi (Georgian: კრწანისის ბრძოლა, k'rts'anisis brdzola) was fought between the Qajars of Iran and the Georgian armies of the Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti and Kingdom of Imereti at the place of Krtsanisi near Tbilisi, Georgia, from September 8 to September 11, 1795, as part of Qajar Emperor Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar's war in response to King Heraclius II of Georgia’s alliance with the Russian Empire. The battle resulted in the decisive defeat of the Georgians, capture, and complete destruction of their capital Tbilisi, as well as the temporary absorption of eastern parts of Georgia into the Iranian Empire.
Although the Qajars were victorious and Agha Mohammad Khan kept his promise to Heraclius (Erekle) that if he would not drop the alliance with Russia and voluntarily reaccept Iranian suzerainty they would invade his kingdom, it also showed that Russia's own ambitions and agenda were set as the most important reason for Russia not to intervene at Krtsanisi, even though the latter had officially declared in the Treaty of Georgievsk of 1783 that it would protect Erekle's kingdom against any new Iranian ambitions to re-subjugate Georgia. Subsequently, in order to restore Russian prestige, Catherine would launch a punitive campaign against Iran the next year, but it was shortly recalled after her death. The following years remained turbulent and were known as a time of muddle and confusion. Reestablishment of Iranian rule over Georgia did not last long, for the shah was assassinated in 1797 in Shusha, and the Georgian king had died the year after. With Georgia laying in ruins and the central rule in Iran being concerned with the next heir to the throne, it opened the way for Georgia's annexation by Russia several years later by Tsar Paul.
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