Transcaucasia in 1914

Overview

Transcaucasia is a region on the border between Europe and Asia; it is bounded to the east by the Caspian Sea and, to the west, by the Black Sea. Throughout the 19th century it had been the meeting point of three major empires: Russia to the north, Persia to the south and Turkey to the west. Through a number of wars over the course of the century Russia came to dominate much of the region – something that, in turn, drew in Britain, supporting the weakening Persian Empire.

The Trans-Caucasus was a very ethnically diverse region, with large populations of Russians, Tartars, Georgians, Armenians and Kurds. These groups lived alongside each other, but there were definite tensions between communities which occasionally flared into violence. This was overlaid on top of the higher level geopolitical tensions in the region (CAB 24/28/53).

Russian Caucasus Army

Image of the Armenian contingent in the Caucasus 1913-1916, from a printed pamphlet FO 96/212

At the outbreak of war, the border between Russia and the Ottoman Empire lay at the very southern end of Transcaucasia. The Ottomans, led by Enver Pasha, immediately attempted a major offensive to try to recapture territory lost in previous wars. This ended in a disastrous defeat at Sarikamish [Sarıkamiş].

Following this the fighting itself mainly took place further south in northern Anatolia, but Transcaucasia became an important hinterland for the Russian army containing vital lines of communication and resources.

The events of the Russian Revolution in February 1917 severely destabilised the Russian army in the Caucasus. Senior officers promised their western allies that the troops would continue to fight, and the position was better than elsewhere in Russia.

However, in the words of one British observer, while there was no overt mutiny, ‘the men confine themselves to deserting in greater numbers than was usual before the revolution and to asserting their new-found liberty by declining to perform any duties for which they felt disinclination’ (CAB 24/14/74).

Power vacuum

Image of Armenian volunteers 1913-1916 from a pamphlet FO 96/212

The further revolution in November (October) 1917 saw Russia plunge into turmoil, and a power vacuum was created when Russia lost control of Transcaucasia. There were attempts to form a Transcaucasian government in late 1917 and an armistice was agreed with the Ottomans in December (CAB 24/41/98).

Despite this, the political situation remained extremely fluid, with tensions between the various religious and national groups within the local population being augmented by rivalry between socialist groups, continued interference by the great powers and problems with large numbers of refugees and armed former soldiers.

Even observers on the ground struggled to keep up with the shifting sands; one noted ‘the welter of local political movement has been very great… phase succeeding phase in bewildering succession’ (CAB 24/38/58).

In early 1918 three nation states – Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan – were formed out of the collapsed Transcaucasian government, but in practice the situation remained far from clear and the external powers still sought to intervene across the region. (CAB 45/105)

The power vacuum in the region created both opportunities and problems for the great powers. Both Germany and the Ottoman Empire saw the region as the answer to their resource problems. Transcaucasia was rich in supplies of food, minerals and, most of all, oil, and these were exactly what the German war economy was desperately short of. (CAB 24/54/83)

The Germans sent a mission to the region to try to secure the resources for themselves, something that saw them coming to the point of conflict with the Ottomans, who were ostensibly their allies, but who were also keen to control the territory. (CAB 24/66/8; WO 106/6239)

The power vacuum also drew in the British, who were desperate to prevent their enemies controlling this resource-rich region. A small British force under General Dunsterville moved north from Persia seeking to united the local populations in opposition to the Germans and Ottomans.

The situation came to a head at Baku in August and September 1918. The British ‘Dunsterforce’ held the city with considerable local assistance, but were eventually driven out by a much larger Ottoman force. (WO 95/5042 – WO 95/5044 )

The Ottoman success in the region was short-lived; events elsewhere forced the Ottomans to seek an armistice in October 1918, and the Ottomans were forced to give up their new found control in Transcaucasia.

Continued war and turmoil

Map showing proposed Armenia and Trans-Caucasian States 1919 MPI 1/397/15

The withdrawal of the Ottoman forces from Transcaucasia left the new national states in Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan as the main points of authority. Among the Allied powers there was considerable support for these states – especially Armenia, whose creation was seen as a necessity following the atrocities committed during the war. (FO 608/84; FO 608/85)

The states themselves were, however, far from secure, and conflicts between them broke out almost immediately. The Treaty of Sèvres set out major territorial gains for Armenia at the expense of the Ottoman Empire, but this never really took shape on the ground. (FO 93/110/81)

Over the course of 1920, the Bolshevik regime in Russia began to gain ascendency over the White Russians, and the Red Army sought to regain Russian influence in Transcaucasia. To the south, the new Turkish regime in Ankara also started to re-establish control over the northern Anatolian provinces which had been granted to Armenia under the Treaty of Sèvres. Squeezed between these two powerful states, the new Caucasian republics stood little chance.

By the end of 1920, the Red Army had installed friendly regimes in all three republics, which would eventually become part of Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, a constituent of the Soviet Union (FO 371/4936; FO 371/4937). The new Turkish government successfully regained all of the territory it had lost in the region and signed a treaty with the Soviets in 1921 setting out the new borders in the region (FO 371/6895).

Key documents

Map showing territories in dispute between Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan, and the Denikin Demarcation Line 1919 FO 925/17121

• Foreign Office general correspondence relating to Caucasus FO 371/7729
• The nationality problem in the Caucasus CAB 24/14/74
• Turko-German campaign in the Caucasus 1918-1920: British military involvement WO 106/6239
• Foreign Office general correspondence relating to Russia FO 371/6895