second standing, the third on horseback, and the fourth on camels. Georgians, lacking firearms, suffered heavy casualties, but the impetus of their attack pierced the Qizilbash lines and spread confusion among the enemy. As the Iranians began to flee, a small group of Georgian troops pursued them while others began to plunder the Qizilbash camp. At this moment, the Iranian reinforcement numbering 20,000, led by Shahbandeh Khan of Azerbaijan, arrived charging the befuddled Georgians; in the resultant confusion, Prince Teimuraz Mukhranbatoni was killed but the rumor spread that King Teimuraz I had been killed, further demoralizing the Georgian host. The Georgians were defeated, losing about 10,000 killed and wounded, including 900 mountaineers from the Duchy of Aragvi. Among the dead were the nine brothers Kherkheulidze who defended the royal banner to the last, as well as the prominent nobles – Baadur Tsitsishvili and David Jandieri, nine Machabelis, seven Cholokashvilis, bishops of Rustavi and Kharchisho. Furthermore, Zurab Eristavi, the mighty Duke of Aragvi, was severely wounded. The Iranians suffered heavy losses as well, losing some 14,000 men, including Amir Guneh Khan of Erivan – deadly wounded by Manuchar III Jaqeli. Following the battle, Saakadze again led the Georgian resistance and turned to guerrilla war, eliminating some 12,000 Qizilbashes in the Ksani Valley alone. Among the dead was Shahbandeh Khan of Azerbaijan, while Qazaq Khan Cherkes was captured. The Georgian Uprising of 1625 debunked Shah Abbas’ plans of destroying the Georgian states and setting up Qizilbash khanates in Kartli and Kakheti. Losing half of his army forced Shah Abbas I to let vassals rule eastern Georgia. He abandoned plans to cleanse it of Christians. George Saakadze (1942) is a Soviet Georgian historical drama film directed by Mikheil Chiaureli, depicting the heroic struggle of the Georgian nation against the Ottoman and Safavid hordes during the first quarter of the seventeenth century. The film is based on the six-volume novel, The Grand Mouravi (1937–1958), of Anna Antonovskaya. Demographic, material, economic and cultural losses inflicted to the Kingdom of Kakheti by the hordes of the Qizilbashes, during the first quarter of the seventeenth century, were irreparable. Population of the Kingdom dwindled to 50,000–60,000, while Gremi and Zagemi were almost completely devastated and never fully recovered from the blow dealt by the invaders. Hundreds of villages, castles and churches were razed to the ground or badly damaged. Yet still, fierce resistance resulted in Georgians preserving statehood,