Being one of the sons of Jesse of Kartli by his wife Princess Elene-Begum (a daughter of King Erekle I of Kakheti),[2] Anton was born a royal prince (batonishvili).

[2] According to Prof. Alexander Mikaberidze, therefore, the reconquest of Georgia over the Ottomans by Nader Shah in 1735 through the Ottoman-Persian War of 1730-1735 had a profound effect on Anton, for he left the court and became a monk at the Gelati Monastery in 1738.

After his dismissal, which basically meant banishment,[5] as well as 18 months of imprisonment,[2] he moved to Russia, where he reportedly succeeded in getting himself cleansed from these charges at the Most Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church on 16 March 1757,[2] and was appointed Archbishop of Vladimir on 23 November 1757 by the decree of Empress Elizabeth.

[1] As further stated by Prof. Mikaberidze, he was instrumental in reorganizing the new ecclesiastial calendar, wrote original hymns and canons, and translated numerous Slavic Orthodox works into Georgian.

[1] Responsible for directing the educational system in Kartli-Kakheti for a quarter of a century, as stated by Prof. Mikaberidze, under his guidance a new generation of Georgian artists, scientists, and writers were produced, amongst whom Ambrosi Nekreseli, Gaioz Rektori, Philip Qaitmazashvili, amongst others.