After Kelesh Ahmed-beg was killed by his heir, Aslan-Bey Sharvashidze (or, according to George Hewitt by Sefer-bey himself, together with Nino Dadiani and the Russian military administration[1]), Sefer Ali-Bey was forced to hide out in neighboring Mingrelia under the protection of the Mingrelian princess regent Nino.
With the help of the Mingrelian nobility, Sefer Ali-Bey tried unsuccessfully, to usurp the throne of Abkhazia by using his father Ahmet-beg as a legitimate heir to the throne.
In 1809, Sharvashidze asked the Tsarist Russian Empire to take Abkhazia under its protection, with the condition that Ali-Bey be established as the new ruler of the Principality.
After decisive Russian victories during the Second Russo-Turkish War, the Russian forces were able to expel pro-Turkish Abkhazians as well as the remaining Turkish forces from the region.
Tsar Alexander I established Sefer Ali-Bey Sharvashidze as the new ruler of Abkhazia on 17 February 1810.