Georgia

Georgian wine — 8,000 years of the oldest winemaking

Georgia's wine tradition (c. 6000 BCE) is the oldest in the world — Georgians were making wine in large clay vessels called qvevri buried in the ground 8,000 years ago, predating all other known winemaking by 2,000 years, and the unique qvevri method of skin-contact fermentation has been recognised by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Ancient Colchis — the land of the Golden Fleece

Colchis (c. 800–100 BCE), the ancient kingdom on the eastern Black Sea shore in modern Georgia, was famous throughout the Greek world as the destination of Jason and the Argonauts in their quest for the Golden Fleece — and the homeland of Medea — reflecting real Greek commercial interest in the region's gold, timber, and agricultural wealth.

The Golden Age of Georgia — Queen Tamar's empire

Queen Tamar's reign (1184–1213 CE) was the apogee of the medieval Georgian kingdom — the first female ruler of Georgia expanded its territory to its greatest extent, defeated every enemy, patronised the greatest poets of the Georgian tradition, and earned the title "King of Kings and Queen of Queens" in a kingdom stretching from the Black Sea to the Caspian.

Joseph Stalin — Gori's most famous son

Joseph Stalin (1878–1953 CE), born Ioseb Jughashvili in the small Georgian town of Gori, became the Soviet Union's totalitarian leader for 29 years — his collectivisation, purges, Gulag system, and WWII leadership killed tens of millions, yet in Georgia his legacy is uniquely ambiguous: polls regularly show him as the most admired figure in Georgian history.

The Rose Revolution — Georgia's democratic turn

The Rose Revolution (November 2003 CE) was Georgia's peaceful overthrow of Eduard Shevardnadze's government following fraudulent parliamentary elections — protesters carrying roses stormed parliament on 23 November, Shevardnadze resigned after Russian mediation, and Mikheil Saakashvili's pro-Western government launched sweeping reforms that transformed Georgia from a failed state into a functioning one.

The 2008 Russian-Georgian War — five days that changed Europe

The 2008 Russian-Georgian War (7–12 August 2008 CE) was Russia's first military intervention in a post-Soviet state — triggered when Georgia attacked the breakaway region of South Ossetia, Russia responded with massive force, occupied Georgian territory, and recognised the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states, setting the template for its 2014 annexation of Crimea.