Georgian PM pays homage to public figure on 185th anniversary of birthday

Georgian prime minister Irakli Garibashvili on Tuesday paid homage to Ilia Chavchavadze - a Georgian publicist, author and a major figure of the country's 19th century national movement - on the 185th anniversary of his birthday, by saying the public figure had dedicated his life to an “awakening of the national self-consciousness” and development of “statesman thinking”.

In his remarks over the date, Garibashvili noted Chavchavadze’s thought was “still relevant and vitally necessary” for the Georgian public and would “always remain so”.

Ilia Chavchavadze dedicated his life to an awakening of the national self-consciousness of Georgians and the development of statesman thinking. His activities in all spheres of public life, his struggle for a better future of the country, paved the way that we are still following today”, Garibashvili said. 

“Today [his name] reminds us once again of the responsibility of each of us to unceasingly follow the path of selfless service to the motherland and the truth”, the head of government noted.

Born in 1837, Chavchavadze studied in St Petersburg before returning to his country - under the Tsarist Russian rule - in 1860. He led the Tergdaleulebi cultural and social movement that introduced liberal European ideas in Georgia, while also founding two of the newspapers publishing articles on the subjects.

Also known for his establishment of the Society for the Spreading of Literacy among Georgians and his role in the launch and chairmanship of the Land Bank of Tbilisi, Chavchavadze gradually became a major figure in the social, economic and cultural scenes in 19th century Georgia.

Promoting preservation and promotion of the Georgian language against ongoing processes of Russification of the local culture, he published a number of major literary works on subjects of social and cultural gaps between countryside and urban population, moral stagnation in society and more.

Chavchavadze was assassinated in 1907 while travelling in his cart outside the historical capital Mtskheta near Tbilisi, with various elements of the killing remaining unresolved by subsequent investigations.