185–189 AD: Rebellion, Intrusion, and the End of an Era

Every dynasty eventually falls. For the restored Pharnavazid line, the end came with King Amazasp II. His short reign of four years was marked by chaos, rebellion, and a geopolitical pincer movement that crushed the old order.

Amazasp II faced a nightmare scenario: internal revolt combined with external invasion. The Georgian nobility (Eristavis), tired of the King’s perceived weakness or perhaps instigated by foreign powers, rebelled against him. But they didn’t act alone.

The Coalition of Doom

The rebels invited the Alans from the North and the Armenians (then ruled by the Arsacid dynasty) from the South to invade Iberia. Amazasp II found himself surrounded. He fought bravely, but the coalition was too strong. The King was defeated and killed in battle in AD 189.

His death was a watershed moment. It marked the end of the Parnavazid dynasty that had (mostly) ruled Georgia for nearly 500 years. The victors placed a new king on the throne: Rev I, the son of the Armenian King, founding the Arsacid Dynasty of Iberia.

The Legacy

Amazasp II is often a footnote in history, but his fall reshaped the Caucasus. The arrival of the Arsacids brought Georgia closer into the Parthian cultural sphere, setting the stage for the next great conflict: the coming of the Sassanids and, eventually, the adoption of Christianity.