Rustavelis Gamsiri
Rustavelis Gamsiri ( Georgian რუსთაველის გამზირი “ Rustaveli Boulevard”) is a main thoroughfare in the center of Tbilisi . The approximately 1.5 kilometer long avenue with a slight curve is considered the boulevard of the Georgian capital. It extends parallel to the Kura River between Freedom Square (Georgian Tawisuplebis Moedani ) and Republic Square (Georgian Respublikis Moedani ) in the Garetubani district .
history
The street was originally called Sassachlis Kutscha ( Eng . Palace Street ). It formed the center of the Russian quarter of Tbilisi, built in the 19th century , ran along the palace of the Russian viceroy, and was named Golovin Boulevard around 1841 .
Under the reign of the viceroy Prince Mikhail Vorontsov , it was expanded into a boulevard after 1848 and planted with plane trees on both sides . Prince G. Muchran-Batoni had his palace built there in 1854. Between 1865 and 1869, the governor's palace was expanded to become a viceroy palace (today the youth palace ). In 1863 the Alexandergarten was opened between the boulevard and the Kura , a large public park designed by Heinrich Scharrer and Otto Simonson . This part of the boulevard is where the Kvashveti Church and the Georgian Academy of Fine Arts are located .
This was followed by the Hotel Rossija (1884), the Military History Museum (1885, today the State Picture Gallery ), the house of the Georgian Artists' Society with a popular cellar café (1887, today the State Rustaveli Theater ), the Hotel Orient (1895, today the House of Georgian painter ) and the Treasure Opera House (1896, today State Sakari-Paliashvili Theater for Opera and Ballet ). In 1915, the group of writers Blaue Hörner was founded in the cellar café of the house of the artist society. Elegant residences of the Georgian aristocracy were built in the styles of classicism , baroque and art nouveau . Later came the Historical Museum (1923, today the State Simon Dschanaschia Museum , named after the historian Simon Dschanaschia ), the Georgian government building (1938, now the Parliament building ), a 1,200-seat cinema (1939), a department store (1975) and various Ministries added.
In addition to the thick plane roof, flower gardens, small parks and lawns, drinking water fountains and sculptures give the boulevard its own atmosphere.
In 1918, the Democratic Republic of Georgia gave the boulevard the name of the Georgian national poet Shota Rustaveli . In the Soviet Union it was named after the Russian revolutionary Vladimir Ilyich Lenin . In the late phase of the Soviet Union it was given the name from 1918.
The promenade has always been the scene of political changes in Georgia. In 1956, young protesters marched across the street with anti-government slogans. They drove away Soviet tanks during the Tbilisi massacre . In April 1989, Soviet troops killed 20 hunger strikers with poison gas and sharpened spades in front of the government building . The Tbilisi War was fought there in 1991 and 1992 , a coup by the warlords Dschaba Iosseliani and Tengis Kitowani against the elected President Swiad Gamsachurdia . The projectile impacts from tanks, artillery and rockets can still be seen on the parliament building today. In 2003 tens of thousands of people demonstrated on the boulevard against the government of Eduard Shevardnadze during the Rose Revolution and finally forced them to resign. In November 2007, there were again mass protests on the boulevard to bring about new elections for the office of President.
The boulevard is home to some of the most famous cafes in the city. These include the Vincent , which is frequented primarily by artists and students, and the Laghidse , a traditional company founded in 1904 with lemonades made from mineral water , fruit and herbal syrups in-house .
With the collapse of the Georgian economy in the early 1990s, wooden stalls selling cigarettes and drinks moved into the boulevard. Most were removed in late 2006 because they were not legal. The boulevard was closed to cars on Sundays. The place of the former wooden booths was taken by saleswomen on boxes or folding chairs offering flowers, magazines or sunflower seeds. Near the metro station Rustaveli local artists sell their paintings, icons as well as local souvenirs such as drinking horns, carvings or traditional headgear.
Prominent buildings
- Rustawelis Gamsiri 2–4: Tbilisi Department Store
- Rustawelis Gamsiri 2: State Alexander Griboyedov Drama Theater
- Rustawelis Gamsiri 3: Simon Janaschia State Museum
- Rustawelis Gamsiri 3: Gallery of Modern Art
- Rustavelis Gamsiri 5: Rustaveli Cinema
- Rustawelis Gamsiri 6: Youth Palace
- Rustavelis Gamsiri 7: House of Georgian Painters
- Rustavelis Gamsiri 8: Parliament of Georgia
- Rustawelis Gamsiri 10: High School No. 1
- Rustawelis Gamsiri 11: State Picture Gallery
- Rustawelis Gamsiri 12: Ministry of Communication
- Rustavelis Gamsiri 13: Marriott Hotel Tbilisi
- Rustavelis Gamsiri 17: Rustaveli State Academic Theater
- Rustavelis Gamsiri 19: Georgian State Institute for Theater and Film
- Rustawelis Gamsiri 25: State Sacharia Paliaschwili Theater for Opera and Ballet
- Rustavelis Gamsiri 29: Constitutional Court of Georgia
- Rustawelis Gamsiri 30: Ministry of Justice
Web links
- History of Rustawelis Gamsiri ( Memento from January 27, 2003 in the Internet Archive )
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Thea Kvastiani, Vadim Spolanski, Andreas Sternfeldt: Georgia - On the way between the Caucasus and the Black Sea . Ed .: Bernd Schwenkros, Detlev von Oppeln. 6th edition. Trescher Verlag, Berlin 2012, ISBN 978-3-89794-207-3 , pp. 158-162 .