He ruled Guria, a small state in southwestern Georgia, as a client of Mamia IV Dadiani, Prince of Mingrelia, who had deposed Giorgi II Gurieli.
Prince Vakhushti's chronicle, one of the principal sources on Georgia's early modern history, refers to him as being "of a Gurieli stock", without elucidating his parentage.
On the other hand, the historian Cyril Toumanoff regarded him as a son of Giorgi II Gurieli.
[1] Vakhtang was installed as prince-regnant of Guria by the neighboring ruler, Mamia IV Dadiani, Prince of Mingrelia, who had invaded Guria and expelled his brother-in-law Giorgi II Gurieli in 1583.
He was in the Ottoman-controlled town of Gonio in 1587, when Vakhtang died, enabling Giorgi to reclaim Guria with the help of the Ottoman government.