WEBVTT - Queen Tamar's Revenge

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of iHeartRadio and Grim

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<v Speaker 1>and Mild from Aaron Manky. Listener discretion advised just one

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<v Speaker 1>quick note of housekeeping before we begin. We are back

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<v Speaker 1>at Rain on me over at the Noble Blood Patreon

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<v Speaker 1>that is patreon dot com, slash, Noble Blood Tales and

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<v Speaker 1>me Danish sports and Caramadnqua. My friend and actor and

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<v Speaker 1>writer are going through every episode of the CW series Rain,

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<v Speaker 1>which is ostensibly about Mary, Queen of scott So join

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<v Speaker 1>us over there. The patreon also has stickers, exclusive March

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<v Speaker 1>and episode scripts. But of course the best possible support

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<v Speaker 1>is just listening, so thank you so much. In movies,

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<v Speaker 1>there is an undeniable difference between the way feminine and

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<v Speaker 1>masculine rage is portrayed. Masculine rage often manifests in more

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<v Speaker 1>physical violence or audible expressions of emotion in battle cries

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<v Speaker 1>or fistfights, outbursts that are usually pretty self explanatory think

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<v Speaker 1>Brave Heart or the entirety of the Fast and Furious franchise.

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<v Speaker 1>Feminine rage, however, when it's shown in popular culture, is

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<v Speaker 1>almost always a little bit weirder and I think sometimes

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<v Speaker 1>more interesting. In October of last year, the BBC published

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<v Speaker 1>an article called Female Rage the Brutal New Icons of

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<v Speaker 1>Film and TV. In the article, the author argues that

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<v Speaker 1>women in film have a history of being viewed as

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<v Speaker 1>weak or passive, with the rare instance of violence typically

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<v Speaker 1>only instigated in direct response to an attack by a

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<v Speaker 1>male counterpart. But the author goes on to write that

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<v Speaker 1>in recent years, directors have utilized female violence quote in

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<v Speaker 1>a way that calls gendered state bareotypes into question and

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<v Speaker 1>champions female rage, particularly over male aggression. This is true

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<v Speaker 1>and seen in movies like Jennifer's Body or in the

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<v Speaker 1>Showtime series Yellowjackets. Female rage isn't something that necessitates physical

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<v Speaker 1>violence in order to be fully captured on screen. Immediately,

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<v Speaker 1>my mind turns to the now pretty ubiquitous gift of

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<v Speaker 1>Margot Robbie giving herself a manic, if not slightly unhinged

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<v Speaker 1>smile in the mirror as Tanya Harding in the movie

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<v Speaker 1>I Tanya. If you haven't seen the film, there's a

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<v Speaker 1>moment where Tanya is desperately smearing rouge on her cheeks,

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<v Speaker 1>her face already flushed with anger and embarrassment. Tanya closes

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<v Speaker 1>her eyes, takes a breath, and then forces herself to

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<v Speaker 1>smile in the mirror. Practicing a smile in the mirror

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<v Speaker 1>is It's something that most of us have done, particularly

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<v Speaker 1>those of us with social anxiety, checking in to make

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<v Speaker 1>sure that we can pass off as calm and collected

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<v Speaker 1>before heading off into the world. Only Margot Robbie's smile

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<v Speaker 1>at that moment is anything but easy. It looks almost painful.

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<v Speaker 1>She's bearing her teeth. Her eyes shine not with excitement,

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<v Speaker 1>but with the specific type of pent up frustration that

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<v Speaker 1>only comes from being buried alive under the consequences of

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<v Speaker 1>actions outside one's control. She's raging, but she's smiling, and

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<v Speaker 1>it's impossible to look away. It's an unfortunate fact of

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<v Speaker 1>history that women are rarely given the opportunity to act

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<v Speaker 1>upon their anger. Women who act as men would in

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<v Speaker 1>certain situations are dismissed as being shrill or irrational at best,

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<v Speaker 1>or murdered at worst. The very word hysterical comes from

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<v Speaker 1>the Greek word hysteria, meaning uterus. In fact, up until

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<v Speaker 1>nineteen eighty, hysteria was a legitimate diagnosis in the Diagnostic

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<v Speaker 1>and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, because calling an entire

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<v Speaker 1>sex dramatic was far easier than actually researching the very

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<v Speaker 1>real medical issues that female bodies suffer. But I digress.

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<v Speaker 1>All this is to say, for millennia, women have had

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<v Speaker 1>to control their anger, keep it under lock and key,

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<v Speaker 1>lest their grievances cause them to be physically hurt or

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<v Speaker 1>disregarded entirely as people. And I can think of no

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<v Speaker 1>better historical figure that exemplifies that situation than the twelfth

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<v Speaker 1>century ruler, Queen Tamar of Georgia. Given the throne at

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<v Speaker 1>just eighteen years old, the young george and Queen was

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<v Speaker 1>forced to marry a man she hardily knew, just to

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<v Speaker 1>be able to keep her power. Then, after years of

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<v Speaker 1>being constantly disrespected in an unhappy marriage, when the court

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<v Speaker 1>finally granted her a divorce, what did her ex husband do? Oh,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, just the usual organized a coup to dethrone

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<v Speaker 1>her and take Georgia for himself. But Tamar couldn't scream,

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<v Speaker 1>she couldn't punch, she couldn't even fire the court who

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<v Speaker 1>insisted that she marry that man in the first place,

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<v Speaker 1>not if she wanted to continue her reign anyway. So

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<v Speaker 1>instead she did as generations of women had done before

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<v Speaker 1>and would continue to do for generations. Long after she

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<v Speaker 1>was gone. Queen Tamar closed her eyes, took a breath,

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<v Speaker 1>forced a smile upon her face, and got to work.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm Danish schwartz, and this is noble blood. The year

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<v Speaker 1>was eleven seventy seven. To orient you in Western history.

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<v Speaker 1>In England, King Henry the second was dealing with the

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<v Speaker 1>fallout of the Great Revolt, while his wife Eleanor of

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<v Speaker 1>Aquitaine was under house arrest. To the east, across the

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<v Speaker 1>Black Sea, the Kingdom of Georgia was in the midst

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<v Speaker 1>of its own struggle for power. Most historians would categorize

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<v Speaker 1>this period in time as being part of Georgia's Golden Age,

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<v Speaker 1>which took place between the eleventh and thirteenth centuries. It

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<v Speaker 1>was a period known for its unprecedented economic and cultural growth.

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<v Speaker 1>But Golden or not, there's hardly an age in history

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<v Speaker 1>in which the right to rule isn't being fought over.

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<v Speaker 1>In eleven seventy seven, King George the third of Georgia

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<v Speaker 1>was the kingdom's sovereign, but that year his nephew conspired

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<v Speaker 1>with a group of rebellious noblemen to take the throne

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<v Speaker 1>for himself. The coup would ultimately be stopped by George

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<v Speaker 1>and his court, but the attempt was enough to rattle

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<v Speaker 1>the king into taking action to secure his legacy. Having

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<v Speaker 1>no sons of his own, George took the only action

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<v Speaker 1>he could to solidify his family's claim to the throne,

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<v Speaker 1>breaking tradition and for the first time in Georgia's history,

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<v Speaker 1>naming a woman, his eldest daughter Tamar, as his co

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<v Speaker 1>ruler in eleven seventy eight. And as you can imagine,

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<v Speaker 1>the Georgian court wasn't thrilled with a woman ruling over

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<v Speaker 1>their kingdom, but King George was not blind to that.

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<v Speaker 1>Hence the introduction of Tamar first as his co ruler.

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<v Speaker 1>It served as what we might today call a soft

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<v Speaker 1>launch to her reign, introducing the country and nobles to

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<v Speaker 1>the idea of a woman ruler without fully throwing her

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<v Speaker 1>to the wolves all on her own, and so together

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<v Speaker 1>they did rule successfully for six years. As a unit,

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<v Speaker 1>the father and daughter led the kingdom into an era

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<v Speaker 1>of economic stability and military success. Together their throne seemed impenetrable,

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<v Speaker 1>and then George died in eleven eighty four, and the

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<v Speaker 1>wolves that had been held back for so long finally

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<v Speaker 1>caught the scent of fresh prey. After the death of

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<v Speaker 1>Tamar's father, the Georgian Court quickly made their true thoughts

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<v Speaker 1>on Tamar as a ruler known. The court made several

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<v Speaker 1>demands of their queen, the first of which was to

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<v Speaker 1>hold a new, separate coronation. The point of this new

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<v Speaker 1>coronation would be to specify that Tamar's right to rule

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<v Speaker 1>was given by the Court, not by the divine right

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<v Speaker 1>of God. That way, she would ultimately feel more beholdened

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<v Speaker 1>the Georgian Court and their opinions on how she was

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<v Speaker 1>to govern the people. The second coronation was just one

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<v Speaker 1>of many concessions Tamar would need to make in order

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<v Speaker 1>to maintain her throne. Another compromise came when she agreed

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<v Speaker 1>to appoint a man named Michel Maryanishte as her High Chancellor.

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<v Speaker 1>If this work Game of Thrones, you can think of

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<v Speaker 1>Michael as a little finger figure. Michael was an ambitious

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<v Speaker 1>man to the point of being self serving in his

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<v Speaker 1>role within the Georgian Court, But he knew that he

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<v Speaker 1>held the court's favor, and so he used that to

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<v Speaker 1>persuade Tamar into giving him the role of High Chancellor.

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<v Speaker 1>With whispers of rebellion, echoing off the palace walls. Tamar

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<v Speaker 1>grit her teeth and reluctantly gave Mikel the position, if

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<v Speaker 1>only to keep those surrounding them from actively conspiring her downfall.

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<v Speaker 1>And while his appointment did quell the majority of talk

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<v Speaker 1>to forcibly take Tamar off the Georgian throne, it inversely

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<v Speaker 1>emboldened some of the court members to make even more

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<v Speaker 1>outlandish requests of their queen. The final concession Tamar was

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<v Speaker 1>forced to make was arguably the most radical of all.

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<v Speaker 1>The leader of the Georgian Noble Party, no doubt inspired

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<v Speaker 1>by Michael's success persuading Tamar into conceding him the position

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<v Speaker 1>of High Chancellor, demanded that a second palace be erected

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<v Speaker 1>next to Tamr's. This palace would house the Georgian nobility

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<v Speaker 1>and allow them to decide matters of governance without the

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<v Speaker 1>Queen's input. Essentially, the leader of the Noble Party was

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<v Speaker 1>asking for the Queen to build them their own castle

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<v Speaker 1>so that they could rule the kingdom and she could

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<v Speaker 1>pop in from time to time as a figurehead for

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<v Speaker 1>the state with no actual power. Because if she had

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<v Speaker 1>given Michael an inch, the Georgian court were now going

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<v Speaker 1>to ask for a mile. The suggestion for these two

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<v Speaker 1>parallel palaces proved to be the final straw for Tamar.

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<v Speaker 1>It was not only a metaphorical slap in the face,

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<v Speaker 1>but the request proved to her how close to powerlessness

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<v Speaker 1>she was in the eyes of the Court after all

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<v Speaker 1>the concessions she had made. In retaliation, she gave the

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<v Speaker 1>order to have the Leader of the Nobles imprisoned for

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<v Speaker 1>his request. The Court in turn threatened to depose the

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<v Speaker 1>Queen should she execute her prisoner, which led to negotiations

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<v Speaker 1>and ultimately a compromise between both parties. After being stripped

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<v Speaker 1>of his titles and position, the former Leader of the

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<v Speaker 1>Nobles was released, and instead of a separate palace to

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<v Speaker 1>be built for the sole governing body of the Georgian Court,

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<v Speaker 1>the Queen and the Court came together to form what

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<v Speaker 1>was to be called the Darbasi, a special council that

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<v Speaker 1>would allow both parties to convene and make decisions for

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<v Speaker 1>the state together. So, finally, after a rocky start to

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<v Speaker 1>her reign as sole Sovereign of Georgia, Tamar and the

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<v Speaker 1>Georgian Court finally seemed at relative peace with one another.

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<v Speaker 1>Tamar no longer felt the constant hum of rebellion within

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<v Speaker 1>her ranks, and she allowed herself a moment to breathe

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<v Speaker 1>in and enjoy the quiet that came after a well

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<v Speaker 1>fought victory, though unbeknownst to her, the court not be

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<v Speaker 1>sated for long. Her next battle was coming, and this

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<v Speaker 1>time it was in the form of a man named

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<v Speaker 1>Yuri Bogolyuski. The formation of the Darbasi was quickly followed

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<v Speaker 1>by the Council's first request that Tamar find a suitable

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<v Speaker 1>husband to fill the gaping empty spot next to her

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<v Speaker 1>on her throne, because, of course, that was their first request.

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<v Speaker 1>In addition to simply wanting an heir to continue the

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<v Speaker 1>royal line, the Darbasi no doubt hoped that a husband

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<v Speaker 1>would create an advantageous political alliance with a neighboring kingdom,

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<v Speaker 1>and even if Tamar had advocated for herself to make

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<v Speaker 1>decisions in conjunction with the council, ultimately her input on

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<v Speaker 1>the matter was of little consequence to the Darbasi, which

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<v Speaker 1>is why as soon as a man who happened to

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<v Speaker 1>check all the right boxes made himself known to the court,

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<v Speaker 1>the Council was quick to approve the match. The lucky

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<v Speaker 1>man was Yuri Bogolyuski, the son of a Russian prince

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<v Speaker 1>who had amassed a respectable military reputation. Considering he was

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<v Speaker 1>just twenty four years old, Tamar was vehemently against the betrothal,

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<v Speaker 1>understandable considering a she had never met the man, and

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<v Speaker 1>b all she knew about him was that he had

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<v Speaker 1>been exiled by his uncle and that he was living

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<v Speaker 1>with a nomadic tribe of people known as the Kipchaks

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<v Speaker 1>of her since not exactly the resume of a prince charming,

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<v Speaker 1>but the Darbazi was insistent, and as soon as the

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<v Speaker 1>young suitor found his way to Georgia, the two were

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<v Speaker 1>wed in eleven eighty five, and Yuri took his place

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<v Speaker 1>as king next to Tamar. And then, against all odds,

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<v Speaker 1>something incredible happened. The two fell in love, had a

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<v Speaker 1>hand and full of kids, and lived happily ever co

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<v Speaker 1>ruling as king and queen side by side over an

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<v Speaker 1>age of prosperity. Except no, of course they didn't, because

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<v Speaker 1>this is noble blood, and I'm sure you know political

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<v Speaker 1>marriages like that rarely end well when a so called

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<v Speaker 1>prince charming comes along. Unfortunately for Tamar. Her marriage to

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<v Speaker 1>Yori was just the beginning of her problems. The first

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<v Speaker 1>of their many issues was a problem that had been

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<v Speaker 1>conveniently left off of Yuri's suitor resume. He liked to

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<v Speaker 1>drink a lot. One of Tamar's chroniclers wrote, quote the

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<v Speaker 1>Russian when drunk was utterly debauched and utterly depraved. He

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<v Speaker 1>even went in for sodomitic behavior. End quote. Needless to say,

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<v Speaker 1>their marriage did not produce any children. Some historians argue

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<v Speaker 1>that the marriage its self was likely never even consummated.

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<v Speaker 1>Yuri would blame their childless marriage on Tamar being infertile,

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<v Speaker 1>but as we will later see, that was not the case,

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<v Speaker 1>and it goes without saying. But even if she were

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<v Speaker 1>incapable of having children, it would be no one's fault.

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<v Speaker 1>If anything, the only one at fault would be the

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<v Speaker 1>man who felt the need to openly defame his wife

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<v Speaker 1>to her entire kingdom. Yuri was nothing if not petty

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<v Speaker 1>with a capital P. From the moment they were wed,

0:16:31.000 --> 0:16:34.920
<v Speaker 1>Tamar spent nearly every meeting she had with the Darbazi

0:16:35.320 --> 0:16:39.160
<v Speaker 1>begging for a divorce. At one point, Tamar even sent

0:16:39.400 --> 0:16:42.840
<v Speaker 1>monks to scold her husband in an attempt to curb

0:16:42.960 --> 0:16:47.000
<v Speaker 1>some of his more unsavory behaviors, but ultimately it was

0:16:47.160 --> 0:16:51.680
<v Speaker 1>no use. Yuri's only saving grace came two years later,

0:16:51.840 --> 0:16:55.880
<v Speaker 1>when finally, in eleven eighty seven, the Darbazi granted her

0:16:55.960 --> 0:17:00.240
<v Speaker 1>a divorce and Yuri was sent packing to Constantinople with

0:17:00.320 --> 0:17:04.280
<v Speaker 1>a hefty sum of gold and jewels in compensation for

0:17:04.359 --> 0:17:07.880
<v Speaker 1>their failed marriage. And that should have been the end

0:17:07.960 --> 0:17:10.680
<v Speaker 1>of the story for Uri. But if you couldn't tell

0:17:10.720 --> 0:17:14.440
<v Speaker 1>by the fact that he spread rumors of Tamar's infertility

0:17:14.880 --> 0:17:18.679
<v Speaker 1>just to save face for their failed marriage. He wasn't

0:17:18.720 --> 0:17:22.960
<v Speaker 1>one to let sleeping dogs lie. But we will get

0:17:23.000 --> 0:17:27.240
<v Speaker 1>back to him later. After their divorce, Tamar was once

0:17:27.280 --> 0:17:31.160
<v Speaker 1>again without a husband and without a way to secure

0:17:31.320 --> 0:17:36.719
<v Speaker 1>the Georgian royal line. But for once, things actually seemed

0:17:36.720 --> 0:17:40.359
<v Speaker 1>to be looking up for Tamorrow. By eleven eighty seven,

0:17:40.560 --> 0:17:43.840
<v Speaker 1>the High Chancellor that she had been once forced to appoint,

0:17:44.240 --> 0:17:49.320
<v Speaker 1>Mikhail mari Anishte, had since passed away. That same chronicler

0:17:49.359 --> 0:17:53.800
<v Speaker 1>I quoted earlier remarked here quote nobody grieved neither great

0:17:53.880 --> 0:17:58.960
<v Speaker 1>nor small, for everyone loathed him end quote. But what

0:17:59.160 --> 0:18:03.440
<v Speaker 1>was especially fortunate about his death? For Tamar was that

0:18:03.480 --> 0:18:06.960
<v Speaker 1>now she had greater freedom to choose her next suitor.

0:18:07.640 --> 0:18:11.080
<v Speaker 1>This time she did marry for love, choosing a man

0:18:11.160 --> 0:18:14.240
<v Speaker 1>who just so happened to be the foster son of

0:18:14.320 --> 0:18:17.159
<v Speaker 1>her aunt in a session prince by the name of

0:18:17.359 --> 0:18:22.440
<v Speaker 1>David Soslin So. Two years after her divorce was finalized,

0:18:22.560 --> 0:18:26.919
<v Speaker 1>Tamar married David in eleven eighty nine. But even a

0:18:27.000 --> 0:18:30.640
<v Speaker 1>love match wouldn't stem the wave of trouble that her

0:18:30.680 --> 0:18:35.040
<v Speaker 1>first husband, Yuri, had brewing on the horizon. After his

0:18:35.200 --> 0:18:41.280
<v Speaker 1>exile to Constantinople, Yuri was quick to reconnect with Georgian allies,

0:18:41.800 --> 0:18:45.760
<v Speaker 1>friends he had made during the brief years of his marriage.

0:18:45.800 --> 0:18:50.280
<v Speaker 1>With their help, the jilted ex husband began to formulate

0:18:50.400 --> 0:18:54.040
<v Speaker 1>a plan, one that would, in theory, put him back

0:18:54.119 --> 0:18:58.720
<v Speaker 1>on the Georgian throne he thought he deserved. In eleven

0:18:58.840 --> 0:19:03.960
<v Speaker 1>ninety one, Urori formally launched his attack against Tamar with

0:19:04.080 --> 0:19:08.119
<v Speaker 1>the help of his Georgian supporters. The attack was to

0:19:08.160 --> 0:19:11.480
<v Speaker 1>be held on two fronts, one that would be led

0:19:11.560 --> 0:19:14.840
<v Speaker 1>in the capital to the east and another that would

0:19:14.880 --> 0:19:19.600
<v Speaker 1>take the kingdom's stronghold in the southern districts, and his

0:19:19.800 --> 0:19:23.560
<v Speaker 1>plan may have worked had Tamar not heard of the

0:19:23.640 --> 0:19:27.560
<v Speaker 1>rebellion before Yuri and his men even set foot on

0:19:27.840 --> 0:19:32.960
<v Speaker 1>Georgian soil. As upset as Tamar, no doubt was, at

0:19:32.960 --> 0:19:36.240
<v Speaker 1>the news that her ex husband was orchestrating a coup

0:19:36.280 --> 0:19:40.000
<v Speaker 1>to dethrone her. I hope at least some part of

0:19:40.080 --> 0:19:45.119
<v Speaker 1>her felt vindicated in her initial resistance against marrying Yuri

0:19:45.200 --> 0:19:48.920
<v Speaker 1>in the first place. She had been right, he was

0:19:49.000 --> 0:19:54.080
<v Speaker 1>a terrible husband. The Darbazi were so obsessed with marrying

0:19:54.119 --> 0:19:57.359
<v Speaker 1>her off to the first qualified suitor that came along,

0:19:58.200 --> 0:20:02.440
<v Speaker 1>and now he was attempting to take down the entire kingdom.

0:20:02.840 --> 0:20:07.000
<v Speaker 1>She couldn't necessarily say I told you so, But ordering

0:20:07.040 --> 0:20:10.119
<v Speaker 1>her new husband to lead the defensive troops at the

0:20:10.200 --> 0:20:15.560
<v Speaker 1>capitol hopefully felt just as good. While her husband guarded

0:20:15.600 --> 0:20:19.160
<v Speaker 1>Tamar in the capital, her new high Constable was sent

0:20:19.280 --> 0:20:22.959
<v Speaker 1>to the south with the majority of their forces. Yuri

0:20:23.040 --> 0:20:26.600
<v Speaker 1>and his compatriots were ill equipped to face a Georgian

0:20:26.680 --> 0:20:30.200
<v Speaker 1>militia that was ready for them, and so the southern

0:20:30.359 --> 0:20:34.480
<v Speaker 1>rebels were decimated almost as soon as they began their attack.

0:20:35.400 --> 0:20:38.440
<v Speaker 1>Upon hearing the fate of their forces in the south,

0:20:39.040 --> 0:20:43.000
<v Speaker 1>those in the capital quickly began to abandon their ranks,

0:20:43.440 --> 0:20:47.399
<v Speaker 1>and it wasn't long before the lead commanders and Yuri

0:20:47.520 --> 0:20:53.359
<v Speaker 1>himself were captured, and finally, after years of Tamar being

0:20:53.440 --> 0:20:56.640
<v Speaker 1>subject to the orders of men who claimed to know

0:20:57.080 --> 0:21:00.560
<v Speaker 1>what was best for her and for her kingdom, all

0:21:00.560 --> 0:21:05.240
<v Speaker 1>eyes turned to her, the Queen, to decide exactly what

0:21:05.280 --> 0:21:14.200
<v Speaker 1>they should do next. In the wake of URI's failed coup,

0:21:14.600 --> 0:21:18.400
<v Speaker 1>George's queen was left to decide her former husband's fate.

0:21:19.160 --> 0:21:23.359
<v Speaker 1>Many probably expected Tamar to execute him after his arrest.

0:21:23.880 --> 0:21:27.680
<v Speaker 1>Kings before her had surely done more violence for lesser

0:21:27.680 --> 0:21:31.600
<v Speaker 1>crimes against the crown. Her own allies all but offered

0:21:31.720 --> 0:21:35.159
<v Speaker 1>Tamar Yuri's head on a silver platter in exchange for

0:21:35.359 --> 0:21:39.600
<v Speaker 1>their own freedom. But the Queen was not so easily swayed.

0:21:40.280 --> 0:21:44.000
<v Speaker 1>She would have her revenge exactly how she saw fit.

0:21:45.040 --> 0:21:49.360
<v Speaker 1>In the end, there would be no bloodshed. It may

0:21:49.440 --> 0:21:54.919
<v Speaker 1>seem a bit anticlimactic, but Tamar was famously against execution

0:21:55.200 --> 0:21:59.400
<v Speaker 1>and torture, and so in the end she decided to

0:21:59.440 --> 0:22:02.639
<v Speaker 1>stick to her guns or not, as it were, and

0:22:02.840 --> 0:22:05.840
<v Speaker 1>simply strip the nobles who had fought against her of

0:22:05.880 --> 0:22:10.760
<v Speaker 1>their titles and their lands. And Yuri well, he was

0:22:10.800 --> 0:22:15.359
<v Speaker 1>sent once again back on a boat to Constantinople, only

0:22:15.440 --> 0:22:20.880
<v Speaker 1>this time without his generous alimony. You might find yourself

0:22:20.920 --> 0:22:24.840
<v Speaker 1>a little disappointed in the lack of dramatic ending to

0:22:24.920 --> 0:22:29.320
<v Speaker 1>this fairly epic episode from history. After all, Tamar had

0:22:29.359 --> 0:22:32.640
<v Speaker 1>been through. Its natural for us as a modern audience

0:22:33.040 --> 0:22:36.239
<v Speaker 1>to want Catharsis, to want to see her get a

0:22:36.280 --> 0:22:41.040
<v Speaker 1>more concrete revenge against the deranged ex who literally tried

0:22:41.080 --> 0:22:44.359
<v Speaker 1>to take away her kingdom. If this were a movie,

0:22:44.480 --> 0:22:46.960
<v Speaker 1>I imagine that would be the sort of notes that

0:22:47.000 --> 0:22:50.399
<v Speaker 1>the writer would get from the studio head. Bigger ending,

0:22:50.600 --> 0:22:55.560
<v Speaker 1>more Catharsis. But I like to think Tamar's revenge against

0:22:55.640 --> 0:23:00.520
<v Speaker 1>Yuri was held not in her desire for violence against him,

0:23:00.600 --> 0:23:04.040
<v Speaker 1>but in her determination to create a better life for

0:23:04.119 --> 0:23:08.560
<v Speaker 1>herself without him in it. Tamar would go on to

0:23:08.600 --> 0:23:12.280
<v Speaker 1>have two children with her second husband, David, both of

0:23:12.320 --> 0:23:16.280
<v Speaker 1>whom would take the Georgian throne. During their lifetimes. Tamar

0:23:16.400 --> 0:23:20.600
<v Speaker 1>and David would lead the kingdom through several more military successes,

0:23:21.119 --> 0:23:24.520
<v Speaker 1>and her legacy would be one that lauded her as

0:23:24.640 --> 0:23:28.040
<v Speaker 1>more than just being the first female sovereign of Georgia.

0:23:28.880 --> 0:23:32.439
<v Speaker 1>In my mind, Tamar got exactly what she wanted in

0:23:32.480 --> 0:23:36.280
<v Speaker 1>the end, there was no bloodshed. Instead, she got to

0:23:36.320 --> 0:23:39.680
<v Speaker 1>live the rest of her life with Yuri as merely

0:23:39.840 --> 0:23:44.160
<v Speaker 1>an afterthought. In the words of a poet, it isn't love,

0:23:44.440 --> 0:23:49.080
<v Speaker 1>it isn't hate, It's just indifference. For Tamar of Georgia,

0:23:49.200 --> 0:23:52.520
<v Speaker 1>a woman who had been forced into roles carved for

0:23:52.600 --> 0:23:56.240
<v Speaker 1>her by men for their own gain, her revenge against

0:23:56.280 --> 0:23:59.360
<v Speaker 1>her ex husband was not going to be what defined

0:23:59.400 --> 0:24:03.720
<v Speaker 1>her legacy. Her greatest revenge was the very fact that

0:24:03.760 --> 0:24:06.840
<v Speaker 1>she got to live the rest of her life rarely,

0:24:07.000 --> 0:24:10.320
<v Speaker 1>if ever, thinking about him at all. She didn't have

0:24:10.400 --> 0:24:14.320
<v Speaker 1>to compromise her stances or principles. She got to be

0:24:14.520 --> 0:24:24.680
<v Speaker 1>exactly the kind of ruler she wanted. That is the

0:24:24.800 --> 0:24:28.479
<v Speaker 1>legendary reign of Queen Tomar of Georgia. But stick around

0:24:28.560 --> 0:24:31.200
<v Speaker 1>after a brief sponsor break to hear a little bit

0:24:31.200 --> 0:24:46.119
<v Speaker 1>more about her legacy. In doing research for this episode,

0:24:46.200 --> 0:24:50.000
<v Speaker 1>I was initially curious as to why Tomorrow is so

0:24:50.160 --> 0:24:54.000
<v Speaker 1>often only referred to as Tamar of Georgia instead of

0:24:54.200 --> 0:24:58.600
<v Speaker 1>Queen Tamar of Georgia, since as the ruling sovereign, that

0:24:58.800 --> 0:25:02.120
<v Speaker 1>is the title she should take technically have. But when

0:25:02.200 --> 0:25:05.639
<v Speaker 1>I dug deeper, I realized it's a much bigger can

0:25:05.720 --> 0:25:09.960
<v Speaker 1>of worms. As it turns out, in the Georgian language

0:25:10.000 --> 0:25:14.760
<v Speaker 1>there are no grammatical genders, so when sources cite Tamar

0:25:15.000 --> 0:25:18.520
<v Speaker 1>as being the Queen of Georgia, they are imposing the

0:25:18.600 --> 0:25:23.480
<v Speaker 1>gender rules from their own language into Georgian history. In reality,

0:25:23.600 --> 0:25:28.120
<v Speaker 1>Queen Tamar could just as likely be King Tamar, depending

0:25:28.200 --> 0:25:31.440
<v Speaker 1>on the translator or the language of the text it's

0:25:31.480 --> 0:25:36.200
<v Speaker 1>being translated into. But despite the accuracy of her title,

0:25:36.680 --> 0:25:40.119
<v Speaker 1>one interesting piece of information I found actually had to

0:25:40.119 --> 0:25:44.520
<v Speaker 1>do with the currency minted during her reign. The pieces

0:25:44.640 --> 0:25:49.880
<v Speaker 1>found during the period clearly list David Tamar's second husband

0:25:50.280 --> 0:25:54.320
<v Speaker 1>below her name, so even though he was technically the

0:25:54.440 --> 0:25:59.080
<v Speaker 1>King of Georgia, the currency made sure to specify that

0:25:59.320 --> 0:26:03.960
<v Speaker 1>Tamar as queen was the true ruler of Georgia and

0:26:04.080 --> 0:26:08.360
<v Speaker 1>he was more of a consort. It's interesting to consider

0:26:08.480 --> 0:26:14.040
<v Speaker 1>how translations of historical document affect our perceptions of history,

0:26:14.560 --> 0:26:18.560
<v Speaker 1>even on these most basic levels. In thinking about a

0:26:18.680 --> 0:26:22.400
<v Speaker 1>language without gendered grammar, it makes you wonder how much

0:26:22.440 --> 0:26:25.399
<v Speaker 1>weight we put onto these titles to begin with, and

0:26:25.440 --> 0:26:28.840
<v Speaker 1>how much our perception of history is based on the

0:26:28.960 --> 0:26:33.199
<v Speaker 1>language we're using when reading or listening about it in

0:26:33.280 --> 0:26:50.879
<v Speaker 1>the first place, just food for thought. Noble Blood is

0:26:50.920 --> 0:26:56.040
<v Speaker 1>a production of iHeartRadio and Grim and Mild from Aaron Mankee.

0:26:56.520 --> 0:27:00.720
<v Speaker 1>Noble Blood is created and hosted by me Danish, with

0:27:00.880 --> 0:27:06.680
<v Speaker 1>additional writing and researching by Hannah Johnston, Hannah Zwick, Mira Hayward,

0:27:06.880 --> 0:27:11.000
<v Speaker 1>Courtney Sender, and Lori Goodman. The show is edited and

0:27:11.200 --> 0:27:16.240
<v Speaker 1>produced by Noemi Griffin and rima Il Kahali, with supervising

0:27:16.320 --> 0:27:21.919
<v Speaker 1>producer Josh Thain and executive producers Aaron Manke, Alex Williams,

0:27:21.920 --> 0:27:26.800
<v Speaker 1>and Matt Frederick. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the

0:27:26.880 --> 0:27:31.200
<v Speaker 1>iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your

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<v Speaker 1>favorite shows.