Georgian Military Highway Travel Guide — Things to Do, Food & Hotels
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About Georgian Military Highway
Known since antiquity, this route following rivers up through the mountains became vital to Russian Imperial expansion in the late eighteenth century. The Russians improved and maintained the road well, and by 1799 the military engineers had made the road in its current form. Russian control of the Georgian Military Highway was essential to her victories in the Caucasian War (1817–1864) and thus to establishing imperial control of the whole region. After the Kingdom of Georgia was officially annexed by theRussian Empirein 1801, Tsar Alexander I ordered General Yermolov, commander-in-chief of Russian forces in the Caucasus, to improve further the road to facilitate troop movement and communications. In 1817, the completed highway was heralded as the “RussianSimplon”. However, work continued
Georgian Military Highway Travel Guide Sections
Our comprehensive guide covers 6 sections including: