The history of Georgia began with the rise of early Georgian states in the west known as the kingdom of Colchis and in the east as the kingdom of Iberia, which formed the Georgian civilization and achieved its renaissance and golden age in twelfth through thirteenth centuries. The ancient Greeks knew of Colchis and it featured in the Greek legend of Jason and Argonauts who traveled there in search of the Golden Fleece.
The history of Georgia has been marked by a series of invasions and conquests. The territory of modern Georgia passed from one great empire to another. The area has been in various times part of the Roman Empire, Persia, the Arabian Caliphate, the Mongol empire and Ottoman Empire.
Georgia is one of the first countries which adopted Christianity in the 4th century. Georgia reached the peak of its political and economical strength during the reign of King David the Builder and Queen Tamar in the 12th and 13th centuries. Besides the political and military achievements, it was marked by the development of Georgian culture, including architecture, literature, philosophy and sciences.
In 1922 Georgia was incorporated into the Soviet Union, which lasted until the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991. Like many post-communist countries, Georgia suffered from the economic crisis and civil unrest during the 1990s. After the Rose Revolution, the new political leadership introduced democratic reforms.
