In historiography, we
encounter several different versions regarding the dating of the death of
Vakhtang Gorgasali: 502-505, 490/491, 523, 532 (which is not shared and
long-forgotten) and ours - 531. All the versions of Vakhtang Gorgasali’s death
mentioned above, except for 531, fail to establish a chronological order and
provide a proper explanation for the main developments described in The Life of
Vakhtang. One of the milestones of the king’s life is his participation,
alongside a large Persian coalition force, in the war against Byzantines. This
war took place when Vakhtang was still a young man. Which Persian-Byzantine war
could it have been, considering the complete absence of military conflict
between Persia and Byzantium from 442 to 502? As for the Persian-Byzantine war
of 502-507, it is worth noting that its commencement, progress, and the truce
negotiations strangely coincide with the events that are narrated in The Life
of Vakhtang. An explanation for this and many other important issues can be found
if we accept the chronology of Vakhtang's life and reign offered by us.
