Martyrs of Kvabtakhevi Monastery

The Martyrs of Kvabtakhevi Monastery in Georgia were killed in 1386 by the armies of Timur (Tamerlane). In the fourteenth century, during the reign of King Bagrat V (1360 to 1394), Timur invaded Georgia seven times, seizing centuries-⁠old treasures and razing churches and monasteries. His armies ravaged Kartli, took the king, queen and entire royal court captive and sent them to Karabakh. Later Timur tried to entice Bagrat to renounce the Christian faith in exchange for the throne and the release of the other captives. The king resisted for a time but, isolated from his kinsmen, began to falter and devised a scheme: to confess Islam before the enemy while remaining a Christian at heart. Satisfied, Timur let him return to the throne of Kartli and sent twelve thousand troops with him to complete the forcible conversion of Georgia. Near the village of Khunani, Bagrat secretly informed his son Giorgi of everything and called on him to destroy the invaders.

The news of the betrayal and the ruin of his army infuriated Timur, who called for immediate revenge. His followers destroyed everything in their path, set fire to cities and villages, devastated churches and forced their way to Kvabtakhevi Monastery. Monastics and laymen had gathered there when the enemy came thundering in. After forcing the gate, the attackers plundered the monastery, captured the young and strong and put the old and infirm to the sword. As the greatest humiliation, they strapped sleigh bells on the monastics and danced around them. Drunk on the blood they had shed, the barbarians gave those who remained an ultimatum: renounce Christ and live, or be driven into the church and burned alive. The faithful cried out: "Burn our flesh; in the Heavenly Kingdom our souls will burn with a divine flame more radiant than the sun." In their great humility the martyrs asked that their martyrdom not be put on display: "We ask only that you not commit this sin before the eyes of men and angels. The Lord alone knows the sincerity of our will."

Driven like beasts into the church, the martyrs raised a last prayer: "In the multitude of Thy mercy shall I go into Thy house; I shall worship toward Thy holy temple in fear of Thee. O Lord, guide me in the way of Thy righteousness." The executioners hauled in more and more wood until the flames enveloping the church blazed as high as the heavens, and the echo of crackling timber resounded through the mountains. Ensnared in a ring of fire, the blessed martyrs chanted psalms as they gave up their spirits to the Lord. The imprints of their charred bodies remain on the church floor to this day. They are commemorated on 10 April (new style; 23 April on the old calendar).