The son of Andrei Bogolyubsky, Yuri, is much less known than his father. However, it is correct to say so in relation to Russian history. Actually, Yuri (Georgy) Andreevich did not play any significant role in Russia. But in Georgia - quite.
Yuri-Georgy arrived at the court of the Georgian queen Tamara in 1185. It was his candidacy that was chosen by the council of the nobility. Tamara ascended the throne in the same year 1185 after the death of her father. And her inner circle insisted on an early wedding.
Why was Yuri chosen? It should be noted that after the murder of his father, he lived for a long time with one of the Polovtsian khans (in the annals he is called “King Sevenge”). There was no doubt about the origin of Yuri. On the other hand, there was not even any influential force behind him.
Contemporaries described the wedding of Tamara and Yuri as an unusually magnificent sight. However, its status in the Georgian kingdom is still unclear. According to assumptions, Yuri commanded an army, with which he made several successful campaigns, including against the Persians.
Pretty soon, disagreements began between the young spouses. What caused them is not entirely clear. But in the chronicles, a fierce denunciation of Yuri's vices, very numerous, suddenly began. Tamara allegedly endured her husband's behavior for more than two years, they tried to convince him. But instead of coming to his senses, he began to torture the queen's messengers.
Here, however, it should be borne in mind that Tamara's supporters wrote about this, who were looking for an excuse for a divorce (an extremely rare event at that time, literally out of the ordinary).
Perhaps the differences between the spouses were really insurmountable. But this was not influenced by the vices of Yuri Andreevich (although this cannot be ruled out), but rather the struggle of various groups of the nobility. This is evidenced by the further course of events.
In 1188, Yuri was exiled to Constantinople. A few years later, he arrived in the city of Erzurum - presumably, the queen's ex-husband followed a certain plan. In this city, detachments of the Georgian nobility, opposition to the rule of Tamara, began to gather. They occupied Kutaisi, where the son of Andrei Bogolyubsky was proclaimed tsar. In the end, the queen's army defeated his troops. Yuri was taken prisoner, but was forgiven.
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However, even after that, Yuri continued the struggle, now having secured the support of the rulers of the states that were located on the territory of modern Azerbaijan. And again he was defeated - in 1193. After that, information about the further fate of Andrei Bogolyubsky's son is lost.
