David IV (called the Builder, r. 1099-1125)…

David IV (called the Builder, r. 1099-1125) initiates the Georgian golden age by driving the Turks from the country and expanding Georgian cultural and political influence southward into Armenia and eastward to the Caspian Sea.

This era of unparalleled power and prestige for the Georgian monarchy concludes with the great literary flowering of Queen Tamar's reign (1184-1212).

At the end of this period, Georgia is well known in the Christian West (and relied upon as an ally by the Crusaders).

Outside the national boundaries, several provinces are dependent to some degree on Georgian power: the Trabzon region on the southern shore of the Black Sea, regions in the Caucasus to the north and east, and southern Azerbaijan.

The Mongol invasion in 1236 marks the beginning of a century of fragmentation and decline.