An exhibition will open at the Exhibition Hall of the National Parliamentary Library of Georgia on 26 April, to mark the birth anniversary of Dimitri Kipiani, a great public figure and author, one of the founders of National Library.

Dimitri Kipiani was born in the village of Mereti on 26 April 1814. He graduated from a gymnasium (high school) in Tbilisi and began his career as a teacher. He participated in the 1832 Georgian plot against the Russian rule and was exiled to Siberia, where he remained for five years. Returning to Georgia in 1837, he served in various positions in the Russian administration and became a member of the Viceroy Prince Alexander Bariatinsky’s council. In 1864-1870, he served as marshal of nobility of Tbilisi province and, in 1885-1886, as the marshal of nobility in Kutaisi province. In 1876-1897, he governed Tbilisi. Dimitri Kipiani was the very person who wrote the Charter of Tbilisi Private Library and submitted it to the vicegerent for approval, on the ground of which the first book depository was founded in Tbilisi.   

Dimitri Kipiani was actively involved in the rising national movement in Georgia and became a close associate of Ilia Chavchavadze, Akaki Tsereteli and others. He helped establish the Georgian Bank for Nobility, the Society for Advancement of Learning Among Georgians, the Georgian Drama Society and others. In the late 1860s, he spearheaded the efforts to emancipate the serfs in Georgia. His articles played an important role in reviving and reforming the Georgian language, which, Kipiani believed, was a prerequisite for the revival of national consciousness. He translated many European works into Georgian as well as Georgian literary pieces into Russian. In 1882, he produced Akhali kartuli Gramatika (New Georgian Grammar), which set new standards of teaching Georgian grammar. In 1886, he gained fame with his critical response to the Russian Exarch Pavel, who anathematized the entire Georgian nation after the assassination of the rector of the Tbilisi Seminary. Kipiani was arrested for his actions and exiled to Russia, where he was murdered (possibly by Tsarist agents) in Stavropol on 5 November 1887. His funeral in Tbilisi drew enormous crowds and turned into a demonstration condemning the Russian administration of Georgia. The Holy Synod of Georgian Orthodox Church canonized Dimitri Kipiani in 2007.

The exhibition will showcase Dimitri Kipiani’s works in the Georgian and Russian languages, including translations (he was the first translator of Shakespear’s Romeo and Juliet into Georgian, which was published in the journal Tsiskari). There will also be displayed unique material from his personal archive that is held at the National Center of Manuscripts. The exhibits will include Dimitri Kipiani’s correspondence (1842-1859) concerning the foundation of Tbilisi Public Library, his service record, and an appeal to the Society for Advancement of Learning Among Georgians signed by Dimitri Kipiani and Ilia Chavchavadze.