Freedom Square
Freedom Square in Tbilisi: the city's central roundabout, with the gilded St George column, the old City Hall and the start of Rustaveli Avenue.
Freedom SquarePhoto: LeontinaVarlamonva, CC0Freedom Square is the traffic hub at the centre of Tbilisi, the spot where the 19th-century city meets the old one. Six streets leave it, among them Rustaveli Avenue heading north-west and Kote Afkhazi Street, which drops down into Old Tbilisi. In the middle of the roundabout, a tall column carries Zurab Tsereteli's gilded St George spearing the dragon, unveiled in 2006. The striped City Hall with its clock tower faces the column, and the white, nine-storey Courtyard by Marriott (2002) stands on a corner wrecked in the fighting of 1991-1992. Liberty Square metro station lies right under your feet.
Most visitors cross it several times a day, as nearly every walk in the centre starts or ends here. Stand in the little Pushkin garden for the classic view of the column against City Hall, find the bronze bust of the poet, then go a few steps down Pushkin Street, where a stretch of the old town wall lies open to view. From here, head up Rustaveli Avenue to the Georgian National Museum, down to Sioni Cathedral and the baths, or uphill into Sololaki. Galleria Tbilisi, a mall opened in 2018, fills the Rustaveli corner.
History
Before the 1800s this was open ground outside the town wall, where villagers sold firewood from carts. Under Russian rule it became Erivan Square, after General Paskevich, who had captured Erivan (today's Yerevan) in 1827. A grand theatre opened mid-square in 1851 and burned in 1874. On 26 June 1907 Bolsheviks led by Kamo bombed a cash convoy here in the Tiflis bank robbery. The name Freedom Square first appeared after the 1917 revolution (some sources say 1918); Soviet rule brought Beria Square, then Lenin Square. Lenin's statue of 1956 came down in 1990 or 1991 (accounts differ), and St George rose on the same spot on 23 November 2006.
What to see and do
- The Liberty Monument: Tsereteli's gilded rider and dragon on a column ~35-44 m high (published heights vary)
- City Hall, an early 19th-century police building refaced in pseudo-Moorish style by Paul Stern at the end of the 1870s
- The Pushkin garden, planted in 1885, with a bronze bust of Pushkin from the early 1890s
- Uncovered sections of the old city wall along Pushkin Street
- The former seminary just off the square, where the young Stalin studied in the 1890s
- Liberty Square metro station, opened in 1967, with a direct exit into Galleria Tbilisi
How to visit
Getting there
Liberty Square station on metro line 1 sits beneath the square, three stops (under 10 minutes) from Station Square. The airport is ~17 km away: 25-40 minutes by car outside rush hour, or about an hour on bus 337, which is diverted during the Rustaveli Avenue works, so check its live route. From Old Tbilisi and the Abanotubani baths it is a 10-15 minute walk uphill.
When to go
Early morning for photos with light traffic, or dusk, when the statue is lit. Plan 15–30 minutes on its own here.
- Work crews have been rebuilding Rustaveli Avenue, which begins at the square, since late July 2026, with a City Hall target of the end of November 2026. Until they finish, count on barriers, diverted buses and taxis that drop you on a side street.
- Use the marked crossings: cars circle the column quickly and seldom give way to people on foot.
- Big rallies and marches often gather here and along Rustaveli Avenue; if a crowd is building, take another route.
- Every taxi driver knows the square as Tavisuplebis Moedani, which makes it the easiest pickup point in the centre.
Weather at Freedom Square
Based on the climate of Tbilisi, 0 km away. Warmest in August (32° by day), coldest in January (0° at night), with 511 mm of rain a year. Best months: Sep–Oct.
Freedom Square: FAQ
Who made the St George statue on Freedom Square?
The Georgian sculptor Zurab Tsereteli created the gilded figure of St George killing the dragon. It was unveiled on 23 November 2006, Giorgoba, the Georgian Orthodox feast of St George.
What was Freedom Square in Tbilisi called before?
In the Russian Empire, Freedom Square in Tbilisi was Erivan Square, honouring General Paskevich. Soviet authorities named it after Lavrentiy Beria in 1938 and after Lenin once Beria fell in 1953; the old name returned as Soviet rule collapsed.
Is Freedom Square the same as Liberty Square?
Yes. The Georgian name, Tavisuplebis Moedani, translates as either, and the metro station uses Liberty Square as its English name, while most maps say Freedom Square.
Why is Freedom Square important in Georgian history?
It has been the stage for the country's big political moments: independence rallies as the Soviet Union broke up, the 2003 Rose Revolution, and George W. Bush's speech of 10 May 2005 to a crowd estimated at 100,000, when a man threw a live grenade towards the stand that failed to explode.
Nearby places
Straight-line distance from Freedom Square.
