Kojori and Azeula Fortress

Kojori is a small hill town 20 km south-west of central Tbilisi, at 1,350 metres on the forested ridge that separates the capital from Kvemo Kartli. It is administered as part of Tbilisi, yet it feels like countryside: woods, old dachas, cooler air and wide views. For centuries city people came up here to escape the summer heat, and from the 1850s it was the summer seat of the Russian viceroy of the Caucasus. Most visitors come for the ruined fortress on Azeula hill just south of the town, also called the Kojori or Agarani fortress, which looks out over the hills of Kvemo Kartli.

The path to the fortress is short and steep, and its broken walls and towers frame views in every direction. Near the town a memorial honours the Georgian military cadets who fought the Red Army on these heights in February 1921. The monastery of Udzo crowns a nearby summit, and walkers can follow forest tracks down to Asureti, the old German village in Kvemo Kartli, in several hours. Kojori is an easy half day by car or taxi.

Kojori guarded a route south from Tbilisi and was fortified early. The fortress on Azeula hill has layers from the late 11th century, but most of what stands dates from the 16th to 18th centuries. Georgian chronicles record a visit by Queen Tamar, and in the 17th century King Rostom made Kojori a residence of the royal family. From the 1850s the viceroys of the Caucasus spent their summers here. In February 1921 the heights saw heavy fighting between Georgian forces, including cadets, and the invading Red Army.