The first known member of the family, Siaush Saakadze (died c. 1606), was a loyal officer in the service of Simon I of Kartli, who gave him the office of mouravi of Tbilisi in the 1580s. His son, Giorgi Saakadze (the Grand Mouravi; c. 1570 – 1629) pursued a contradictory and turbulent career. He dominated the political life in eastern Georgia for years, and ended up his life in exile in the Ottoman Empire. His last surviving son, Ioram (died 1664) returned to Georgia, and was conferred with the titles of prince and tarkhan by Rostom of Kartli early in the 1640s. His descendants assumed the surname of Tarkhan-Mouravi. Their fiefdom centered on the village of Akhalkalaki and the Tedzami river valley in Inner Kartli.