The Byzantine-Georgian wars are a series conflicts fought during the 11th century and are mainly focused on several strategic districts in the Byzantine-Georgian-Armenian marchlands.
Most of these lands had been granted by Emperor Basil II to the Georgian courapalates David III of Tao in reward for his crucial assistance in the struggle against the rebel general Bardas Sklerus (978/9).
However, David had supported another unsuccessful noble revolt led by Bardas Phocas at the end of the 980s.
As a result, David had bean forced to make Basil II the legatee of his princedom.
This agreement had destroyed a previous arrangement by which David had made his adopted son, Bagrat of Abkhazia, his heir.
When David died early in 1000, Basil had added his inheritance – Tao, Theodosiopolis (aka Karin, Karnu; the present day Erzurum), Phasiane and the Lake Van region (Apahunik) with the city of Manzikert – to the Byzantine Empire.
The following year, the Georgian prince Gurgen, natural father of Bagrat, had marched to take David’s inheritance, but had been thwarted by the Byzantine general Nikephoros Ouranos, dux of Antioch.
Despite these setbacks, Bagrat had been able to become the first king of the unified Georgian state in 1008.
With his death in 1014, his son, George I, has inherited a longstanding claim to those territories in Tao which are in Byzantine hands.
