363–365 AD: The Sassanid Puppet and the Era of Submission

History is often written by the victors, but sometimes it is defined by the survivors. King Aspacures II (known in Georgian sources as Varaz-Bakur I) ruled during one of the lowest points in Iberian history. He was not a conqueror; he was a consequence.

Following the catastrophic defeat of Rome by the Persian Shah Shapur II in 363 AD, the pro-Roman King Saurmag II was ousted. Shapur didn’t want another hero on the Georgian throne; he wanted obedience. He chose Aspacures II, the second son of Mirian III, and placed him on the throne as a vassal.

The Price of the Crown

Aspacures II is a tragic figure. He was a Chosroid, a Christian, and the son of the first Christian king, yet he was forced to bow to the Zoroastrian fire. His reign was short—only two years—but it established a painful precedent: the King of Georgia as a Persian viceroy.

He was described by chroniclers as “a man of no faith,” likely because of the impossible political compromises he had to make. He had to allow Persian magi (priests) back into Mtskheta and tolerate the construction of fire temples alongside the churches his father had built. His reign was a balancing act of survival, trying to keep his people alive while the Persian “King of Kings” demanded total submission.

The Legacy of Submission

While his reign was brief, it cemented Persian influence in the eastern Caucasus for decades. Aspacures II represents the harsh reality of geopolitics: when empires collide, small nations often have to choose between martyrdom and servitude. Aspacures chose servitude so that the nation might live to fight another day.