He was the son of Vakhtang V, whom he succeeded as a ruler of Kartli in 1676.
As with many other Georgian rulers, he had to nominally accept Islam and take the name of Shahnawaz II before being able to be confirmed as a viceroy by Shah Solayman I. However, Georgians continued to consider him as their king under his Christian name Giorgi (or "George" in English).

When nearly half-century-long peaceful relations between Kartli and its Persian suzerains significantly deteriorated.
George attempted to centralise loose royal authority in Kartli and weaken the Persian influence.
He patronised Catholic missioners and had correspondence with Innocent XI.
After the Ottoman defeat in the Battle of Vienna George XI hoped to exploit that Empire's new weakness.
In a letter to Innocent XI dated April 29, 1687 he vowed to be a Catholic King and declared his readiness and willingness and that of his troops to obey any order of the Roman Pope.
According to Catholic missionaries George remained until his death a faithful Catholic.

In 1688, George headed an abortive coup against a Persian governor of the neighboring Georgian region of Kakheti, and attempted, though vainly, to gain an Ottoman support against the Safavid overlordship.
In response, Shah Solayman deposed George and gave his crown to the rival Kakhetian prince Erekle I, who then embraced Islam and took the name Nazar-Ali Khan.
Abbas Qoli-Khan, the beglarbeg (governor general) of Ganja, was placed in charge of the government in Kakheti and commissioned to reinforce Erekle's positions in Kartli.
George fled to Racha in western Georgia, whence he made several attempts to reclaim his possession.
In 1696, he managed to stage a temporary comeback and helped his brother Archil to temporarily regain the crown of Imereti in western Georgia, but was eventually forced to withdraw from Kartli again.
In 1694, following the death of Solayman, there was a change in the government in Georgia: Abbas-Quli Khan was accused by his rivals of supporting George XI.
On the orders of the new shah Soltan Hosayn, he was promptly arrested by Erekle and sent to Isfahan under guard, while of his possessions were confiscated.
Qalb-Ali Khan was appointed Abbas-Quli Khan's successor as Persian governor of Kakheti.
However, the strife in Georgia as well as the Safavid empire in general forced Husayn to make peace with George who was summoned to Isfahan in 1696.
The shah entrusted him with restoring order along the eastern frontiers of the empire and appointed him beglarbeg of Kerman in 1699.
It was the beginning of an illustrious but, ultimately, tragic career in the service of the Safavids.

George, aided by his brother Levan, by 1700 had reestablished the shah's sovereignty in Kerman.
As a reward, George was restored to the throne of Kartli in 1703, but was not allowed to return to his country.
Instead, he was soon assigned to suppress the Afghan rebellion in May 1704.
He was granted the title of Gurgin Khan by the Shah and was appointed the viceroy of Kandahar province and sipah salar (commander-in-chief) of the Persian armies.
While he was in the field, he entrusted the administration of his country of Kartli to a nephew, the future King Vakhtang VI.
Gurgin managed to crush the revolts of Afghan tribes and ruled Kandahar with uncompromising severity.
He subdued many of the local leaders and sent Mirwais Khan Hotak, a powerful chieftain of the Ghilji Afghans (Pashtuns), in chains to Isfahan.
However, Mirwais Khan managed to gain the favour of the Shah and even to arouse his suspicion against the beglarbeg.
Determined to bring about the overthrow of Gurgin, Mirwais Khan staged a carefully planned coup.
On April 21, 1709, when the majority of the Georgian troops under Gurgin's nephew, Alexander, were away from Kandahar on a raid against the rebels, Mirwais invited Gurgin on a banquet at his country estate at Kokaron in Kandahar City and assassinated him.
The assassinator was supposedly an Afghan warrior, Younis Kakar, one of a tribal chiefs of Mirwais Khan Hotak.
Gurgin's small escort was also massacred and Mir
He was the son of Vakhtang V, whom he succeeded as a ruler of Kartli in 1676. As with many other Georgian rulers, he had to nominally accept Islam and take the name of Shahnawaz II before being able to be confirmed as a viceroy by Shah Solayman I. However, Georgians continued to consider him as their king under his Christian name Giorgi (or "George" in English).
When nearly half-century-long peaceful relations between Kartli and its Persian suzerains significantly deteriorated. George attempted to centralise loose royal authority in Kartli and weaken the Persian influence. He patronised Catholic missioners and had correspondence with Innocent XI. After the Ottoman defeat in the Battle of Vienna George XI hoped to exploit that Empire's new weakness. In a letter to Innocent XI dated April 29, 1687 he vowed to be a Catholic King and declared his readiness and willingness and that of his troops to obey any order of the Roman Pope. According to Catholic missionaries George remained until his death a faithful Catholic.
In 1688, George headed an abortive coup against a Persian governor of the neighboring Georgian region of Kakheti, and attempted, though vainly, to gain an Ottoman support against the Safavid overlordship. In response, Shah Solayman deposed George and gave his crown to the rival Kakhetian prince Erekle I, who then embraced Islam and took the name Nazar-Ali Khan. Abbas Qoli-Khan, the beglarbeg (governor general) of Ganja, was placed in charge of the government in Kakheti and commissioned to reinforce Erekle's positions in Kartli. George fled to Racha in western Georgia, whence he made several attempts to reclaim his possession. In 1696, he managed to stage a temporary comeback and helped his brother Archil to temporarily regain the crown of Imereti in western Georgia, but was eventually forced to withdraw from Kartli again. In 1694, following the death of Solayman, there was a change in the government in Georgia: Abbas-Quli Khan was accused by his rivals of supporting George XI. On the orders of the new shah Soltan Hosayn, he was promptly arrested by Erekle and sent to Isfahan under guard, while of his possessions were confiscated. Qalb-Ali Khan was appointed Abbas-Quli Khan's successor as Persian governor of Kakheti. However, the strife in Georgia as well as the Safavid empire in general forced Husayn to make peace with George who was summoned to Isfahan in 1696. The shah entrusted him with restoring order along the eastern frontiers of the empire and appointed him beglarbeg of Kerman in 1699. It was the beginning of an illustrious but, ultimately, tragic career in the service of the Safavids.
George, aided by his brother Levan, by 1700 had reestablished the shah's sovereignty in Kerman. As a reward, George was restored to the throne of Kartli in 1703, but was not allowed to return to his country. Instead, he was soon assigned to suppress the Afghan rebellion in May 1704. He was granted the title of Gurgin Khan by the Shah and was appointed the viceroy of Kandahar province and sipah salar (commander-in-chief) of the Persian armies. While he was in the field, he entrusted the administration of his country of Kartli to a nephew, the future King Vakhtang VI. Gurgin managed to crush the revolts of Afghan tribes and ruled Kandahar with uncompromising severity. He subdued many of the local leaders and sent Mirwais Khan Hotak, a powerful chieftain of the Ghilji Afghans (Pashtuns), in chains to Isfahan. However, Mirwais Khan managed to gain the favour of the Shah and even to arouse his suspicion against the beglarbeg. Determined to bring about the overthrow of Gurgin, Mirwais Khan staged a carefully planned coup. On April 21, 1709, when the majority of the Georgian troops under Gurgin's nephew, Alexander, were away from Kandahar on a raid against the rebels, Mirwais invited Gurgin on a banquet at his country estate at Kokaron in Kandahar City and assassinated him. The assassinator was supposedly an Afghan warrior, Younis Kakar, one of a tribal chiefs of Mirwais Khan Hotak. Gurgin's small escort was also massacred and Mir
George XI of Kartli