Georgian Colony in Moscow

a settlement of Georgians that came into being at the end of the 17th century in the vicinity of the village of Voskresenskoe on the Presnia River as a result of the strengthening of diplomatic and cultural ties between Georgia and Moscow. After Vakh-tang VI emigrated from Georgia in 1724 with a large retinue, the population of the Georgian colony rose to 3,000. The names Bol’shaia and Malaia Gruzinskaia (Great and Little Georgian) streets serve as reminders of the “Georgian suburbs.”

The colonists were granted special privileges in the discharge of obligations to the state, as well as a degree of autonomy; this enabled them to launch a significant cultural effort in Moscow. In the late 17th century King Archil II founded a Georgian printing plant in the village of Vse-khsviatskoe. The scholar Vakhushti Bagrationi pursued his career in Moscow, completing his fundamental work on the history of Georgia, as did the celebrated poets David Guramishvili and Mamuk Baratashvili. The Georgian colony in Moscow played a large role in broadening and strengthening the political and cultural bonds between Russia and Georgia and maintained that role during the first half of the 19th century.