LETTERS AND MEMOIRES OF MIKHEIL MAKARASHVILI

Abstract

In addition to Nikolozi (Nikusha), Lieutenant General Ilia Makarashvili, husband of Nino Durmishkhani, son-in-law of Giorgi Zhuruli, the Minister of Finance and Trade and Industry of the First Republic of Georgia, had two more sons. Giorgi died at an early age. Their youngest son - Mikhail was born in 1903. In a memoir written in French, Mikhail writes: “I was born on October 7, 1903 in the old style (October 20 in the new style) in Jilalogli - a small town on the border of Georgia and Armenia. My parents were here at that time - my father served in the city garrison. I was baptized in Arbo and lived there with my grandmother and grandfather.” Enrolled in Tbilisi State University, Mikheil went to Europe in 1922 to continue his studies with other Georgian young people. Mikheil Makarashvili recalls: “I left my homeland in 1922, as soon as I turned 19 years old, in order to strengthen
my engineering education abroad. Since I was determined to return, I did not take any archival documents related to our family with me. To be honest, I didn’t even think about it then. If, by the grace of God, you will ever have the opportunity to go to Georgia, and if you do, I doubt that you will be able to return them, especially since my only sister - Ira, is no longer young, and the papers may simply have been lost.” As he notes in a letter dated September 30, 1922, Mikheil Makarashvili left for Europe from Batumi. In Batumi, they confiscated his student certificate, which he was very upset about. Mikheil arrived in Istanbul (Constantinople) from Batumi. From here he went to The Hague, where he stayed with unknown Georgians - Tskitishvili and Dekanozovi. In a letter dated December 11, 1922, Mikheil Makarashvili, who was in Germany, informed his family that he was going to visit his uncle Giorgi Zhuruli in Berlin for Christmas. For some time he stopped in the German city of Karlsruhe. As mentioned in one of the letters, Mikheil was invited to the table together with two Georgians – M. Kaukhchishvili and Jashi, someone named Archili and Eliava, but they did not come to the party.
Mikheil Makarashvili had a very close relationship with Mikheil Muskhelishvili (Michel Mouskhely), a Georgian lawyer working in France, who later became a professor at Strasbourg University. The idea of creating an European union belonged to him. From the letter sent to the name of the family, dated September 3, 1926 it is clear that Mikheil Makarashvili traveled to Monte-Carlo and Nice together with Mikheil Muskhelishvili. Another letter dated July 10, 1927 confirms the close relationship between Mikheil Makarashvili and Mikheil Muskhelishvili. As Mikheil Makarashvili notes, when he wrote the letter, the future Georgian professor of the University of Strasbourg was with him and he sent his regards to the Makarashvili family in Georgia. Mikheil Makarashvili and Mikheil Muskhelishvili met often, however, due to Muskhelishvili’s work situation, the friends separated for some time. In the letter sent by Mikheil Makarashvili from France, dated 1938, it is mentioned that Misha Muskhelishvili had just arrived from Egypt and he was going to return to Cairo.
Mikheil Makarashvili often reported his friend’s success to family members and relatives living in Georgia. In one letter dated 1946, he mentioned that Mikheil Muskhelishvili was already a professor. Before emigrating, Mikheil Makarashvili had a close relationship with prominent representatives of Georgian society. Among them, the outstanding Georgian artist Elene Akhvlediani, who would paint Mikheili’s portrait.
Mikheil Makarashvili first studied in Germany (Heidelberg University), and then continued his studies at the University of Grenoble (France) (1927-1928). He lived at different times in Fontainebleau and Grenoble, and finally settled in Paris. In 1948, Mikhail suffered greatly from the death of his mother. On the anniversary, per his request, in the church (he does not mention the church, although it is possible that he is talking about the shrine named after St. Nino in Paris), a service was held to commemorate the soul of Nino Zhuruli.
Mikheil Makarashvili got married in emigration. In Grenoble’s Notre-Dame Cathedral, he married the Polish lady Elizabeth Glass, with whom he had two children, Giorgi and Ines. Both children of Mikheill and Elizabeth Glass were born in Monteneblo.
Mikheil Makarashvili, who was in immigration, often met figures who came to Europe to popularize Georgian culture. In 1966, together with his wife, he attended the performance of the Georgian ballet group “Gorda”, where he met one the most talented representatives of Georgian ballet art, Vera Bintadze.
Mikheil Makarashvili died in December 1967 at the age of 64. He was buried at Leuville Georgian cemetery. Mikheil Makarashvili, who was an immigrant, had not cut ties with his homeland. He wrote to his family. Dozens of letters of Mikheil Makarashvili sent from France are preserved in the Art Palace of Georgia, in the Makarashvili Foundation. Most of them are written in Russian. In his letters, the son of General Ilia Makarashvili tells about his life as an immigrant to his family members in his homeland. Mikheil Makarashvili’s cards contain very interesting information about representatives of the Georgian intelligentsia living abroad. Having settled in France, Mikhail wrote in French his memories about his family and the years he spent in Georgia. Mikheili’s grandfather, a famous public figure - Durmishkhan Zhuruli, his wife Ketevan Namoradze, whose name is associated with the foundation of the Batumi Theater, and the residence of Mikheili’s father - Lieutenant General Ilia Makarashvili come to life in the memories. The memoirs contain very interesting information about the origin of the Makarashvili family, about the Russian-Ottoman war of 1877-1878, about Nikoloz Makarashvili, who was Mikheil’s older brother, who died in the clash at Shamkori station in 1918. The manuscript of the memoirs, in French, is kept in Peru, namely in the city of Lima, in the family of Giorgi (Gogi) Makarashvili, the son of Mikheil Makarashvili. Mr. Giorgi sent us a copy of Mikheil Makarashvili’s manuscript, for which we express our sincere gratitude. Part of the Georgian translation of the memoirs was published by the famous Georgian poet, journalist and scientist P. Natsvlishvili, who was the first to meet Giorgi (Gogi Makarashvili), who was living in Peru. At our request, the full version of the text written by Mikheil Makarashvili was translated from French into Georgian by the Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Georgia to the Republic of France, Honorary Doctor of Gori State University, Gocha Javakhishvili.