Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic

Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic Armenian:Անդրկովկասի Խորհրդային Սոցիալիստական Դաշնային (Ֆեդերատիվ) Հանրապետություն Andrkovkasi Khorhrdayin Soc‘ialistakan Dashnayin (Federativ) Hanrapetut‘yun Azerbaijani:Zaqafqaziya Sosialist Federativ Sovet Respublikası Georgian:ამიერკავკასიის საბჭოთა ფედერაციული სოციალისტური რესპუბლიკა Amierk'avk'asiis Sabch'ota Pederatsiuli Sotsialist'uri Resp'ublik'a Russian:Закавказская Социалистическая Федеративная Советская Республика Zakavkazskaya Sotsalisticheskaya Federativnaya Sovetskaya Respublika
1922–1936
Flag (1925–1936) Emblem (1930–1936)
Anthem:Интернационал "The Internationale"
Location of the Transcaucasian SFSR (red) within theSoviet Union
Status	Union Republicof theSoviet Union (1922–1936)
Capital	Tiflis (Tbilisi)
Common languages	Armenian Azerbaijani Georgian Russian
Ethnic groups (1926)	30.7%Georgians 28.2%Azerbaijani Turks 22.7%Armenians 5.7%Russians 5.2%Iranian peoples 1.1%Jews 1.0%Lezgic peoples 1.0%Greeks 1.0%Abkhazians 3.4% Others
Demonym(s)	Transcaucasian
Government	FederalSovietsocialist republic
Legislature	All-Caucasian Congress of Soviets
History
• Established	12 March 1922
• Disestablished	5 December 1936
Area
• Total	186,043 km2(71,832 sq mi)
• Water	2,785 km2(1,075 sq mi)
• Water (%)	1.49%
Currency	Transcaucasian rouble,Soviet rouble
Preceded by Succeeded by SSR Abkhazia Armenian SSR Azerbaijan SSR Georgian SSR Armenian SSR Azerbaijan SSR Georgian SSR
Today part of	Armenia Azerbaijan Georgia Abkhazia South Ossetia

TheTranscaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic(Transcaucasian SFSRorTSFSR), also known as theTranscaucasian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic,or simplyTranscaucasia,was arepublicof theSoviet Unionthat existed from 1922 to 1936.

The TSFSR comprisedArmenia,Azerbaijan,andGeorgia,traditionally known as the "TranscaucasianRepublics "as they were separated fromRussiaby theCaucasus Mountains.The TSFSR was one of the four republics to sign theTreaty on the Creation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republicsestablishing the Soviet Union in 1922. The TSFSR was created ostensibly to consolidate the economic situation andBolshevikcontrol over the region. The TSFSR was dissolved upon the adoption of the1936 Soviet Constitutionand its constituent republics were elevated individually to republics of the Soviet Union.

History

The roots of a Transcaucasian condominium state trace back to the dissolution of theRussian Empirein 1918, following theOctober Revolution,when the provinces of theCaucasusseceded and formed their own state called theTranscaucasian Federation.Competing ethno-national interests and confrontation with theOttoman EmpireinWorld War Iled to the dissolution of the Transcaucasian Federation only two months later, in April 1918.

The three successor states—theFirst Republic of Armenia,theDemocratic Republic of Azerbaijan,and theDemocratic Republic of Georgia—lasted until the end of theRussian Civil Warthat was being fought across the mountains, when they were invaded by theRed Armyandsovietized.Following the proposal byVladimir Leninthe three now Soviet Republics, theArmenian,AzerbaijaniandGeorgian SSRs,were united into theFederative Union of Socialist Soviet Republics of Transcaucasiaon 12 March 1922. On 13 December that year, the FirstAll-Caucasian Congress of Sovietstransformed thisfederation of statesinto a unifiedfederal stateand renamed it into the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, though keeping formally the autonomy of its constituent republics. The congress also adopted the constitution, appointed theCentral Executive Committee(the highest legislative body between congressional sessions), and theCouncil of People's Commissars(the government).Mamia Orakhelashvili,a GeorgianBolshevikleader, became the first chairman of the Transcaucasian SFSR's Council of People's Commissars.Tbilisiwas the capital of the republic.

The republic became a founding member of theSoviet Unionon 30 December along with theRussian SFSR,theUkrainian SSR,and theByelorussian SSR.In December 1936, the Transcaucasian SFSR was dissolved and divided again among the Georgian, Armenian and Azerbaijani SSRs.

Autonomous republics within the TSFSR

Map of the Transcaucasian region during the Soviet era

After theRed Army invasion of Georgia,Abkhazia(an autonomous province within theDemocratic Republic of Georgia) was declared a Soviet Republic. In March 1922, the AbkhazRevolutionary committeerenamed the region theSSR of Abkhazia.Despite the declaration of this new Soviet Republic, its relations with Georgia and Russia had yet to be formally settled.On December 16, 1921, Abkhazia signed a treaty of alliance with the Georgian SSR codifying its status as atreaty republic(Russian: договорная республика). This agreement allowed the formation of an Abkhazia military while also establishing a political and financial union between the two Soviet republics. Thus, through Georgia, Abkhazia joined the TSFSR and was initially on an equal footing with the other republics of the federation.On February 19, 1931, Abkhazia's republican status was downgraded to that of anAutonomous Soviet Socialist Republicwithin the Georgian SSR.

TheAdjar ASSRwas established on July 16, 1921, within the Georgian SSR as a consequence of theTreaty of Kars.The treaty marking the end of theCaucasus CampaigninWorld War Iprovided for the division of the formerBatum Oblastof theKutais Governorateof the Russian Empire between Georgia and Turkey. According to the agreement the northern half with significant Georgian Muslim population would become part of the Soviet Georgia but granted autonomy.

Another autonomous republic was established in July 1920 inNakhchivan,an area bordering Armenia, Turkey and Iran, which was claimed by Armenians and Azerbaijanis. After the occupation of the region by theRed Army,theNakhchivan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republicwas declared with "close ties" to the Azerbaijani SSR. TheTreaty of Moscowand the Treaty of Kars established the Nakhchivan region as an autonomous republic under the protection of the Soviet Republic of Azerbaijan.

Heads of state

Chairs of the Union Council

Name	Dates	Party
Nariman Narimanov	March–December 1922	Communist Party of Azerbaijan
Polikarp Mdivani	March–December 1922	Communist Party of Georgia
Aleksandr Myasnikyan	March–December 1922	Communist Party of Armenia

Chairmen of the Presidium of the USSR CEC from TSFSR

Name	Dates	Party
Nariman Narimanov	1922–1925	Communist Party of Azerbaijan
Gazanfar Musabekov	1925–1938	Communist Party of Azerbaijan

Chairs of the Central Executive Committee

Name	Period	For
Mikhail Tskhakaya(1st time)	1922–1927	Georgia
Samad aga Aliyev	1922–1929	Azerbaijan
Sarkis Hambartsumyan	1922–1925	Armenia
Sarkis Kasyan	1927–1931	Armenia
Filipp Makharadze(1st time)	1927–1928	Georgia
Mikhail Tskhakaya (2nd time)	1928–1931	Georgia
Gazanfar Musabekov	1929–1931	Azerbaijan
Filipp Makharadze (2nd time)	1931–1935	Georgia
Armenak Ananyan	1931–1935	Armenia
Sultan Majid Afandiyev	1931–1936	Azerbaijan
Sergo Martikyan	1935–1936	Armenia
Avel Enukidze	March–May 1935	Georgia
Filipp Makharadze (3rd time)	1935–1936	Georgia

Stamps and postal history

Before 1923,Georgia,Armenia,andAzerbaijaneach issued their ownpostage stamps.The Transcaucasian Federation began issuing its own stamps on September 15, 1923, and superseded the separate republics' issues on October 1.

The first issues consisted of some of the stamps of Russia and Armeniaoverprintedwith a star containing the five-letter acronym of the Federation inside the points. Massiveinflationhaving set in, this was followed by an issue of the Federation's own designs, four values of a view ofoil fields,and four with a montage of Soviet symbols over mountains andoil derricks,values ranging from 40,000 to 500,000roubles.The 40,000 roubles and 75,000 roubles were then surcharged to 700,000 roubles. On October 24, the stamps were re-issued with values from 1 to 18gold kopecks.Starting in 1924, the Federation used stamps of theSoviet Union.

• 
  A 1923 stamp overprinted on the stamp of the Russian Empire
• 
  A 1923 stamp overprinted on the stamp of the Democratic Republic of Armenia
• 
  1923 40,000-roublestamp
• 
  1923 two-kopeckstamp

Most of the stamps of the Federation are not especially rare today, with 1998 prices in the US$1–2 range, although the overprints on Armenian stamps range up to US$200.As might be expected from a short period of usage, used stamps are less common than unused andcoversare not often seen.

See also

• Kars Republic
• Mountain Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic
• Lithuanian–Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic
• Far Eastern Republic
• Don Republic
• Kuban People's Republic
• Bavarian Soviet Republic
• Republics of the Soviet Union
• Komancza Republic

Bibliography

• Blauvelt, Timothy (May 2007), "Abkhazia: Patronage and Power in the Stalin Era",Nationalities Papers,35(2): 203–232,doi:10.1080/00905990701254318,S2CID128803263
• Forestier-Peyrat, Etienne (January 2018), "Soviet Federalism at Work: Lessons from the History of the Transcaucasian Federation, 1922–1936",Jahrbücher für Geschichte Osteuropas,65(4): 529–559,doi:10.25162/jgo-2017-0020,S2CID252457317
• Hewitt, B.G. (1993), "Abkhazia: a problem of identity and ownership",Central Asian Survey,12(3): 267–323,doi:10.1080/02634939308400819
• Lang, David Marshall(1962),A History of Modern Georgia,London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson
• Saparov, Ar sắc ne (2015),From Conflict to Autonomy in the Caucasus: The Soviet Union and the making of Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Nagorno Karabakh,New York City: Routledge,ISBN978-0-41-565802-7
• Suny, Ronald Grigor(1994),The Making of the Georgian Nation(Second ed.), Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press