Nato Songulashvili
PhD in History
TSU Ivane Javakishvili Institute of History and Ethnology
Tbilisi, Georgia
Orcid: 0000-0002-0731-3873
Nato Songulashvili
PhD in History
TSU Ivane Javakishvili Institute of History and Ethnology
Tbilisi, Georgia
Orcid: 0000-0002-0731-3873
Raphiel Eristavi and the Georgian Educational Field
(Second half of the 19th century)
From the second half of the XIX century, Georgia faced new challenges. On the one hand, it had to overcome the problems arisen from the collapse of the feudal system and establish itself in a new socio-economic environment and, most importantly, continue to fight for state independence of Georgia in a different way: to apply knowledge, education, self-discipline instead of armed demonstrations. Its demand had to be appropriate to the interests and capabilities of Georgia and the epoch. 2. On the other hand, this was the period when a part of the Georgian cultural elite tried to propagate nationalism, to raise knowledge, to get acquainted with the history of the country in wider layers of the society, to idealize the past, to awaken the awareness of the protection of national values.
The removal of serfdom significantly changed the political, social, and economic system. New demands and cha-llenges have emerged in the new environment. Not only the proletariat and the bourgeoisie but the whole society underwent fundamental transformations. Especially since the national liberation movement in Europe in the XIX century was quite strong, which led to the formation of nation-states. Georgia perceived these changes differ-rently. As an occupied part of the Russian Empire, it was naturally influenced by the ongoing events there. While the process of nation-building was underway in Europe, Georgia was looking for new ways to fight for freedom. The Georgian cultural and political elite, via raising public awareness, tried to create a common Georgian space and involve all social strata equally in the struggle for independence.
The representative of this period is Rafiel Eristavi, who made a great contribution to the formation of the Georgian national idea through his activities in various fields. Among them, a special place is occupied by his educational work, which was one of the main challenges of the era, and Rafiel Eristavi, as a representative of the Georgian cultural elite, had a great influence on this work.
Keywords: Raphiel Eristavi, Education, proletariat, bourgeoisie