Teimuraz I of Kakheti
In March 1625, Saakadze sided with the opposition in Kartli and the neighbouring Kakheti. He led Georgian forces that destroyed a Persian army at the Battle of Martqopi. Simon and his Persians fled from Tbilisi to the fortress of Aghjakala in Lower Kartli: the rebels gave Kartli to king Teimuraz I of Kakheti. On July 1 of 1625, the Persians defeated the Georgians at the Battle of Marabda. A Persian general, Isa Khan, reinstated Simon in Tbilisi, but significant parts of Kartli remained under the control of Teimuraz and Saakadze. Shah Abbas utilised the rivalry among the rebel leaders to divide them.