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| caption = | caption =
| date = 7–31 December 1918 | date = 7–31 December 1918
| place = ] and ] districts | place = ] (]) and ] districts
| territory = Armenia takes control of ] district, which becomes a neutral zone<br />Georgia retains ] district | territory = The disputed ] district becomes a ]
| result = Inconclusive{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}} | result = Inconclusive{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}}
| status = | status =
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| combatant1 = {{Flag|First Republic of Armenia|name=Armenia}} | combatant1 = {{Flag|First Republic of Armenia|name=Armenia}}
| combatant2 = {{Flag|Democratic Republic of Georgia|name=Georgia}} | combatant2 = {{Flag|Democratic Republic of Georgia|name=Georgia}}
| combatant3 =
| commander1 = ] | commander1 = ]
| commander2 = ]<br />]<br />] | commander2 = ]<br />]<br />]
| commander3 =
| units1 = | units1 =
| units2 = | units2 =
| units3 =
| strength1 = Less than Georgia{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=111}}
| strength1 = '''In Lori:'''</br>28 infantry ]</br>4 cavalry ]</br>26 machine guns</br>7 mountain cannons</br>supported by the Armenian population and local ]{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=111}}</br>'''In Georgia proper:'''</br>12 infantry companies at Sadakhlo{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=118}}
| strength2 = More than Armenia{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=111}}
| strength2 = '''In Lori:'''</br>2 infantry ]</br>and 2 armoured trains{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=113}}</br>'''In Georgia proper:'''</br>1,000 troops and 1 armoured train at Sadakhlo{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=113}}</br>3,500 troops at Shulaveri{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=118}}
| casualties1 = Less than 100 taken prisoner{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}}
| strength3 =
| casualties2 = Up to 1,000 taken prisoner{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}}<br />2 armored trains{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}}<br />28 cannons{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}}<br />75 machine guns{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}}<br />200 loaded freight cars{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}}
| casualties1 = Heavy{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=111–119}}<br>Less than 100 taken prisoner</br>(Hovannisian{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}})
| casualties2 = Heavy{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=111–119}}<br>About 1,000 taken prisoner</br>(Hovannisian{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}})
| casualties3 =
| notes = | notes =
| campaignbox = | campaignbox =
}} }}


The '''Armeno–Georgian War''' was a border war which was fought in 1918 between the ] and the ] over the control of territories in ], ], and ] districts. The '''Armeno–Georgian War''' was a short ] fought in December 1918 between the newly independent ] and the ], largely over the control of former districts of ], in ] (]) and ].


In March 1918, Russia signed the ] and in doing so agreed to return to the Ottoman Empire territory gained during the 1877–78 Russo-Turkish War. These territories were, however, no longer under the functional control of the Russian central government; rather, they were being administered collectively by the Georgians, Armenians and Azerbaijanis through the ]. The ] aimed to resolve the dispute, but when the conference failed to produce a resolution, the Ottomans pursued a military campaign to control the disputed territories. Under persistent attack, the Transcaucasian collective eventually dissolved with the Georgians, Armenians and Azerbaijanis declaring independent ]s in quick succession in late-May 1918. On 4 June, the Ottoman Empire signed the ] with each of the three Transcaucasian states, which brought the conflict to an end and awarded the southern half of the ethnically-Armenian Lori Province and ] district to the Ottomans. Against the wishes of Armenia, Georgia, supported by German officers, took possession of northern Lori and established military outposts along the ].
At the end of ], Armenia and Georgia had both declared their independence from the ]. Georgia controlled Lori and ], both of which were populated primarily by Armenians. Border dispute turned into open military involvement on 7 December 1918. Armenian forces made substantial gains and came within 30 miles of the Georgian capital of ], when the ] representatives in the city intervened to demand a ceasefire.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=114}} Skirmishes continued until the war finally came to an end at midnight on 31 December.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=114}}


When the Ottomans signed the ] in October, they were subsequently required to withdraw from the region. Armenia quickly took control of territory previously controlled by the Ottomans, and skirmishes between Armenia and Georgia arose starting on 18 October. Open warfare began in early December, after diplomatic efforts failed to resolve the issue of the disputed border, and continued until 31 December, when a ]-] brokered ceasefire was signed, leaving the disputed territory under joint Georgian and Armenian administration.
A neutral zone under Allied supervision was declared in the Lori and Borchalo provinces, which would later be split in half between the two states.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=121, 122}} The large Armenian population of Tiflis and other Georgian controlled regions was subject to large arrests and other forms of prosecution both during and after the war.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=118}}{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=122}} Armenia did not succeed in the nearly obtained original goal of gainging land up to the ], while the entire war took place on land controlled prior by Georgia which had made no territorial gains.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=111}} The result of the war is considered inconclusive, with the Armenian side declaring a successful liberation of Armenian territories while the Georgian side declared a successful defense against an invasion.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}}


==Background== ==Background==
In the final months of ], the ] was poised to invaded both Armenia and Georgia. After the Georgians signed the ] with ] for protection,{{sfn|Lang|1962|pp=207–208}}{{sfn|Hille|2010|p=71}} the Ottomans focused solely on Armenia. Armenia defeated the Ottoman invasion at the ] and ]. After the ], the Ottomans retreated from the ], which Georgia laid claimed to and occupied in October 1918.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=115}} Lori had a population that was 75% Armenian.{{sfn|Walker|1980|p=267}} During November and early December, the Armenians of Lori protested that Georgian troops, under the guise of "conducting investigations", were robbing food and supplies from the homes of Armenian peasants and molesting women. Similar crimes were committed by Georgian troops against Armenians behind the Georgian border at ],{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=115}} which had a population of over 90% Armenians.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ethno-kavkaz.narod.ru/axalkalaki26.html|title=Ахалкалакский уезд 1926|author=|date=|website=www.ethno-kavkaz.narod.ru|accessdate=21 April 2018}}</ref>


===Russian revolution===
Historian ] compared the Georgian occupation of Lori to a "]-style military bureaucracy".{{sfn|Walker|1980|p=267}} The historian ] wrote:
]


After the ], the ] installed the ] to govern the area.{{sfn|Mikaberidze|2015|pp=612–613}} However, following the ], the Special Transcaucasian Committee was replaced on 11 November 1917 by the ] centered in ].{{sfn|Mikaberidze|2015|p=32}} The Commissariat concluded the ] with the ] on 5 December 1917, ending localized armed conflict with the Ottoman Empire.{{sfn|Swietochowski|1985|p=119}} The Commissariat actively sought to suppress Bolshevik influence while concurrently pursuing a path towards Transcaucasian independence from Bolshevik Russia. This included establishing a legislative body, the Transcaucasian Sejm, to which the Commissariat surrendered its authority on 23 January 1918, following the dispersal of the ] by the ].{{sfn|Mikaberidze|2015|p=32}} The secessionist and anti-Bolshevik agenda eventfully brought Transcaucasian into conflict with the central government. On 3 March, the Russians signed the ] marking Russia's exit from ].{{sfn|Smele|2015|pp=226–227}} In the treaty, Russia agreed to return territory gained during the ], giving little care to the fact that this territory was under the effective control of Armenian and Georgian forces.{{sfn|Smele|2015|pp=226–227}} The ], between the Ottoman Empire and the Sejm, began on 4 March and continued until April.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=23}} The Ottomans offered to surrender all the Empire's ambitions in the Caucasus in return for recognition of the re-acquisition of the east Anatolian provinces awarded at Brest-Litovsk.{{sfn|Shaw|1977|p=326}}
{{quote|"Our history of the past two thousand years leads us to the conclusion that we could not imagine Armenia through the centuries without Lori. This would be considered all the more unimaginable today, because to cut off Lori form the body of Armenia means to dismember its entire past and its cultural treasures-to concede to looting the magnificent accomplishments of hundreds of generations through the centuries."{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=115}}}}


===Independence===
The Armenian government made attempts to solve the dispute diplomatically on 9 and 12 December, which the Georgian government rejected.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|pp=115, 116}} On 12 December, Armenian Prime Minister ] sent the following message to his Georgian counterpart ]:
During the peace conference negotiations, the Ottoman representatives placed a great deal of pressure on the Transcaucasian delegation to declare independence, as they were only willing to sign a treaty with Transcaucasian if they were independent from Russia.{{sfn|Hille|2010|p=76}} The Transcaucasian Sejm recalled its representatives on 31 March to discuss the Ottoman position.{{sfn|Hille|2010|p=76}} On 5 April, the head of the Transcaucasian delegation ] accepted the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk as a basis for future negotiations.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1997|pp=292–293}} The Sejm also declared formal independence from Soviet Russia by proclaiming the establishment of the ] on 22 April.{{sfn|Hille|2010|p=76}} Hostilities nevertheless resumed between the new republic and the Ottoman Empire, and by 25 April the Ottoman army had taken control of ] and largely returned to its pre-war positions.{{sfn|Macfie|2014|p=154}} On 11 May, a new peace conference between the Republic and the Ottoman Empire began in ]. At the conference the Ottomans further extended their demands to include ], ] and ].{{sfn|Payaslian|2008|p=150}} The Ottoman army resumed hostilities on 21 May with the ], ] and ].


]
{{quote|"The conduct of Georgian troops in Borchalu, in that part of Armenia occupied forcibly by Georgia, has created an intolerable situation. Only the immediate withdrawal of Georgian troops from that region can prevent new bloodshed and lead to the restoration of friendly, lasting relations between Georgia and Armenia. With this view the government of Armenia has the honor to propose to the government of Georgia that it remove its troops, without further delay, from that part of Armenia which lies within the Borchalu uezd. In the event of refusal or evasion on your part, the Armenian government will be obliged to take the necessary measures to protect the citizens of Armenia from the violence and lawlessness of the Georgian troops."{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=107}}}}
By this point, leading Georgian politicians viewed an alliance with Germany as the only way to prevent Georgia from being occupied by the Ottoman Empire.{{sfn|Hille|2010|p=71}} Consequently, the ] declared the independence of the ] on 24 May and two days later signed the ] with Germany, placing itself under German protection.{{sfn|Lang|1962|pp=207–208}}{{sfn|Hille|2010|p=71}} The following day, the Muslim National Council announced the establishment of the ].{{sfn|Hille|2010|p=177}} Having been largely abandoned by its allies, the ] ].{{sfn|Hovannisian|1997|pp=186–201}} On 4 June, the ] signed the ] with each of the three Transcaucasus states, bringing the conflict with the Ottoman Empire to an end.{{sfn|Payaslian|2008|p=152}} The treaty awarded the southern half of the ethnically-Armenia Lori Province and ] district to the Ottomans but did not firmly delineate the borders between the new Transcaucasus states.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=71}} In response, and to deny the Ottomans a direct route to Tbilisi, Georgian units supported by German officers took possession of northern Lori and established outposts along the ].{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=71}}


===Initial clashes===
Georgia had begun to prevent railroads from transporting foreign supplies into Armenia, resulting in famine.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=115}} On 13 December, with peaceful negotiations having failed, the government of Armenia ordered General ] to force the Georgian troops out of Lori.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=116}}
]
In early October 1918, the Ottomans pulled back from southern Lori, which eliminated the territorial buffer between Armenia and Georgia.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=73}} The Armenian military quickly filled the void by taking control of much of southern Lori on 18 October and in the absence of any resistance probed further north.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=73–75}} The first incident between Armenia and Georgia occurred the same day when an Armenian army detachment seized the railway station in the village of Kober near ], refusing a subsequent demand from the Germans that they withdraw.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=75}}{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=18}} The local ]s called for help, and the Georgian government responded by sending two ]s and a detachment of 250 soldiers, which forced the Armenians to leave Kober.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=18}} Five days later, three Armenian ] attacked and overwhelmed a German garrison near the village of Karinj. Earlier, the Georgian government in ] had received a letter from Armenian Prime Minister ] insisting that Georgia had no claims on the ], and for the sake of avoiding a catastrophic crisis for both countries, Georgian troops should leave the region. Clashes intensified from 25–27 October, with neither side gaining the advantage, until the Georgians sent a company-sized force with an armoured train to support their German allies. Just a day later, the Georgian government received a telegram from Armenia explaining that the attacks were the result of a misunderstanding and proposed that a conference be convened to resolve the border issue.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=20}} On 27 October, Armenian troops left the two villages, they had occupied, and retreated south.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=20}}


===Failed diplomatic attempts===
==War==


The terms of the ] between the Ottoman Empire and the Allies required the Ottomans pull their troops out of the Transcaucasus. The departure of the Ottomans created a ] in the border area, in particular that between Armenia and Georgia. Armenia and Georgia began bilateral talks in November 1918, with Georgia sending a special envoy to ].{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=23}} Simultaneously, Georgia invited the recently independent governments of the ] to Tbilisi for a conference with the principal aim of addressing ] and issues of common concern.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=23}} The general idea of a conference was well received by the Armenian government, however, the Armenia government took exception to the scope and quick timelines of the conference.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=23}} In particular, Armenia was not interested in discussing border issues at a conference.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=23}} Armenia indicated it would participate, recognizing the rapidly changing political environment following ], but reemphasized that they would not discuss the issues of delimitation.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=23}}{{sfn|Walker|1980|pp=267–268}} In general, however, Georgia was of the position that the border with Armenia should be inline with the border of the former Russian imperial Tiflis Province; whereas, Armenia was of the position that the border should correspond to ethnic composition or more historical boundaries.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=17}}
===Armenian Offensive===

The conference began in Tbilisi on 10 November with only the ] and the ] in attendance.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=97}} The Armenia delegation initially stated that they were unable to attend due to poor rail service between Yerevan and Tbilisi.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=24}} The Georgian delegation suggested that the conference start be postponed until 13 November to accommodate, but Armenia declined for several reasons, including the lack or readiness and clarity on several issues.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=24}} The Armenian delegation continued to postpone, and in order to accommodate the Armenians, Georgia first postponed the start of the conference to 20 November and then to 30 November.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=24}} After the final delay, the conference fell apart, and five days later, on 5 December, the Georgian mission headed by Simon Mdivani left Yerevan.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=24}} Georgia subsequently informed Armenia of its willingness to exclude the discussion of boundary disputes from a conference program but Armenia once again delayed a response, allegedly due to sabotage of telegraph lines.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=24}}

Prior to leaving Yerevan, the Mdivani mission did engage in talks with the Armenia government during which Armenia indicated a readiness to give up claims in ] and ] if the Georgians would help them in either retaking ] or assist with historical territorial claims within ]. The Georgian government, however, declined such offers, as they did not wish to become entangled in another conflict with the Ottoman army. Amidst failed negotiations, Georgia deployed troops in the villages near the border which only increased the tenseness of the situation.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=103}}{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=25}}

==Open hostilities==

===Armenian offensive===
] ]
In response to the Armenian occupation of southern Lori in October 1918, the Georgian side bolstered it's garrison in the northern parts.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=103}} The local populace was required to provide quarters and supplies for Georgian troops and became subject to searches and undisciplined behaviour by the soldiers. In Uzulnar, resistance lead to death of a local official.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=103}} A Georgian military investigation confirmed that fact and requested replacement of troops but concluded that due to the organised nature of resistance, Uzulnar was to be searched and neutralized.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=103}} By early December, rebellion was imminent in northern Lori. General Tsulukidze sent a detachment to deal with the unrests. His troops were reportedly attacked, while the Armenians claimed their village was bombarded.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=104}} According to Tsulikidze Armenian troops of the 4th Infantry Regiment operating in disguise, were instigating an insurrection.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=104}} They had disarmed a cavalry unit and the garrison at Uzulnar. Consequently a relief force was met with a barrage of fire. The following day an Armenian force of 350 men attacked two Georgian units and partisans crushed several soldiers by boulders rolled down a mountainside.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=104}} The Armenian side maintained that they had no regular troops involved until mid December.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=104}} Tsulukidze was convinced that he dealt with regular Armenian army units because orders were submitted in Russian, which was the language used by the Armenian military command.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=104}} In his view Sanahin itself was in danger. {{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=104}} Armenia took the position that the events were the result of Georgia's oppressive behavior towards the local ethnic-Armenian population.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=104}} General Goguadze, who was in charge of the armoured trains, informed the Georgian government that rails between Sanahin and Alaverdi had been sabotaged, while Tsulukidze claimed his forces were suppressed by Armenian troops at Alaverdi. The Georgian side accused Armenian villages of harbouring Armenian army units.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=105}}
Kanayan commanded a force of twenty-eight companies of infantry and four squadrons of cavalry, including reserves, and was equipped with twenty-six machine guns and seven mountain cannons. Despite the Armenians having fewer men, provisions, and ammunition than the Georgians, the Armenian forces quickly made substantial gains. On 14 December, the Armenian 4th, 5th, and 6th Regiments advanced in three columns under Colonels Ter-Nikoghosian, Nesterovskii, and Korolkov, towards the line of villages, ]-]-Opret-Hairum.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=111}} That afternoon, the Armenians had captured ], and General ] had been forced to evacuate from the Georgian headquarters at ]. By 15 December, the Armenian army captured Vorontsovka, Privolnoye, Sanahin, ], ], and the heights between Haghpat and Akhova.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=111}} The Georgians had left behind their dead and wounded. The Armenians had already captured almost a hundred Georgian soldiers, as well as many cavalry mounts, fifty freight cars, a locomotive, and several machine guns and mountain cannons.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=111, 113}}


====Borchali/Lori district====
The Armenian left flank, commanded by Ter-Nikoghosian, advanced on ] and Katharinenfeld on 16 December, while Korolov's right flank captured Hairum. An additional 500 Georgian men were either killed, wounded, or captured. On 17 December, the Georgian 5th and 6th Infantry Regiments were outflanked by the two Armenian offensives, and suffered sixty extra casualties, as well as having to abandon two ]s and twenty five machine guns. The Armenians also captured two fully equipped Georgian armored trains and Tsulukidze's ] at the station of ]. Tsulukidze had fled back to ], and by 18 December, the column under Ter-Nikoghosian had taken Bolnis-Khachen. Back in Tiflis, a state of emergency was declared.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=113}}


Still not realising the actual scale of the threat he was facing, Tsulukidze's headquarters in ] was quickly approached and besieged by regular Armenian army units resulting in heavy fighting around the railway station. The Armenians sabotaged rails and also succeeded in ambushing and trapping an armoured train that was carrying two Georgian infantry companies. Tsulukidze withdrew from Sanahin to ] — which was also being attacked by Armenian forces, using the artillery of the derailed trains to cover his troops' retreat. More Georgian reinforcements arrived on December 12, securing the heights around Alaverdi, but were unsuccessful in breaking out the ~60 Georgians who remained trapped on the rails between the two villages. Another train with reinforcements got derailed on the same day. At that point, the Georgians had less than 700 troops engaged in combat, while most of them took defensive positions in Alaverdi, equipped with a few guns and mortars. On December 14, they were encircled by an estimated 4,000 Armenian soldiers from regiments of the 1st and 2nd Rifle Divisions. Confronted with a hopeless situation, General Tsulukidze ordered a general retreat and made a successful breakout towards ].
Reinforcements of a thousand infantrymen, a cavalry squadron, and their final armored train were sent by Georgian War Minister ] to Sadakhlu on 18 December. Nonetheless, the Armenian right flank continued pursuing the main Georgian force at Sadakhlu, and also captured ] on 20 December. The Armenians had now approached the ]. Other units moved on Sadakhlu, but came under fire within range of the armored train, and sustained their first heavy losses. However, the rails to the Georgian's rear had been cut, and they were in danger of encirclement. On 22 December, the Armenians again attacked Sadakhlu and captured its station and the village outskirts, but were again forced back by the Georgian troops and their armored train. Kanayan assembled twelve companies for a full-scale offensive. On 23 December, after hours of intense fighting, the Armenians occupied the strategic village.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=113}} The Armenians took 132 Georgian POWs, over a hundred freight cars of food and munitions, 2 machine guns, and 3 trains. Casualties on the Armenian side were 7 killed and 11 wounded.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=116}}


Simultaneously, from 12 to 14 December, Georgian forces under General Tsitsianov were struck by Armenian troops around the villages of ] and ]. On 12 December, the National Guard detachment that was guarding Vorontsovka was called back to Tbilisi to participate in a military parade marking the 1st anniversary of the National Guard of Georgia. Tsitsianov's few hundred men, although heavily outnumbered, offered brutal resistance with their artillery, using ] at ]. The Armenians eventually managed to take both towns. The Georgian forces, having suffered more than 100 killed by that point, and some material, retreated towards ]. On December 14, the Armenians, who had already amassed more than 6,500 regular troops supported by thousands of armed local militia, steamrolled what resistance remained in the Alexandrovka-Vorontsovka-Privolnoye triangle. By the end of the second day of that attack, the Armenian army had captured almost all of the contested villages. Sanahin and Alaverdi also fell. Georgian defenders and refugees started to evacuate the area by train on December 17. The Georgians sustained heavy losses, leaving behind hundreds of prisoners, one train and both derailed armoured trains. The Armenian army's left flank, commanded by colonels Nikogosov and Korolkov, performed decisive flanking manoeuvers that surprised and encircled the Georgians in Ayrum and culminated in the capture of the town on December 18. Despite a successful breakout, the Georgian 5th and 6th Infantry Regiments lost around 560 men killed, wounded or taken prisoner, and about 25 machine guns and two cannons in total.
After the capture of Sadakhlu, Tsulukidze was relieved of his command and replaced by Major General ].{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=113, 114}} The Armenian army was now within 30 miles of the Georgian capital Tiflis. Armenian forces continued to advance on 24 December, but the next day the Georgians were reinforced by 1,000 new troops and airplanes, which bombed Shulaver. On 25 December, the ] delegations in Tiflis had intervened to demand the war come to an end.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=114}}


On the same day, the Armenian vanguard pushed against Sadakhlo, where Tsulukdize's forces had fortified themselves at the station and nearby strategic heights. The initial Armenian attack was repulsed, and in order to outflank the defenders, the town of ] was captured the next day. Korolkov called for all Armenian men in the area able to fight to mobilize and support the army's offensive. On 20 December, the Armenians were blockading a vital train station that connected Sadakhlo with Tbilisi, preventing further reinforcements. A day after, they massed their artillery and launched an attack on the town, only to be repulsed with heavy casualties by the defenders, who were equipped with an armoured train. Using the same train, the remaining Georgian troops broke out of the encirclement to join a defensive line further north. Following that defeat, Tsulukidze resigned and was replaced by General Sumbatashvili. The Georgian army was already mobilizing in the Lori district and started to prepare for major counterattacks.<ref></ref><ref></ref><ref>, ]</ref>
===Allied Intervention===
An Allied military commission led by Lieutenant Colonels R. P. Jordan (Britain) and P. A. Chardigny (France) had been stationed in Tiflis. Georgian Foreign Minister ] had appealed to them for intervention on 15 December. Jordan suggested all Armenian and Georgian forces withdraw from the disputed territory, which would be policed by British troops until its status was decided at the ].{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=114}} Gegechkori was in favor of a ].{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=115}}


====Akhalkalaki district====
The Armenian representatives in Tiflis were not included in these early negotiations.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=116}} The British and French had only messaged Premier Kajaznuni by 25 December, when diplomat ] was sent to negotiate. Jamalyan protested this one-sided treatment and objected to the annexation of any territories the Armenians controlled.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=116}} The Allies wired a decision to ] on 25 December. By this time, all of Lori and much of Borchalu had been controlled by Kanayan's forces:{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=116}}


Less significant were the clashes in the Akhalkalaki district. The Armenian operation was thwarted by the massive Georgian military presence and lack of support by the local Armenian population. The region was garrisoned with over 6,000 troops commanded by general ].{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=28}}{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=101}} Despite the odds, Armenian forces mounted an offensive, seizing four villages. Makashvili demanded they leave the area immediately otherwise punitive actions would take place. On 14 December the Armenians met the demand and left the villages, only to renew their attacks a few days later, this time around with cavalry support. The village of Troitskoe changed hands several times until the Georgians ultimately retook it and repelled all Armenian units from the area.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=28}}{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=102}} On 19 December Armenian forces once again attempted to take Troitskoe but were repulsed, losing 100 men to Georgian ] fire.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=28}} Due to heavy winter storms, neither side could achieve any military breakthrough in the region. Confrontations in the Akhalkalaki district ceased for the rest of the war while all Georgian troops there had to remain, on the order of high command, despite the critical situation in Lori.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=28}}
{{quote|Major General Rycroft, now in Tiflis, Chardigny of the French Mission, in company with Zhordania and in the presence of Djamalian, have decided that military activities should cease and, over the protest of Djamalian, have resolved to create a mixed commission of English, French, Armenian, and Georgian representatives to go to the front to effect this decision. The commission is to determine the number of Georgian garrisons which are to remain in the northern sector of the Borchalu uzed and the number of Armenian garrisons in the southern sector. It will also rule on the number of garrisons the Georgians will retain in Akhalkalak, with the understanding that these should be at a minimum. The Georgians are to hold their present line, while the Armenians must withdraw to the ]-] perimeter. The British will take positions between the Georgian and Armenian troops and will create a mixed administration in that district, whereas the Georgian administration in Akhalkalak will be supervised by the Allies, with the guarantee that Armenian and Muslim representatives shall be included in the administration. Soon Georgian and Armenian envoys will depart for Europe, where the final boundaries will be determined by the Great Powers.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=116}}}}


===Georgian counterattack and end of hostilities===
The decision was signed by Rycroft, Chardigny, and Zhordania, who called on both Armenian and Georgian military leaders to cease their activities. The Allies decided to impose the plan with or without the approval of the government of Armenia.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=116}} Armenian officials decided to agree to the truce, on the condition that they be allowed to send a delegation to Tiflis to resolve any ambiguities in the settlement. A ceasefire was to take place on 31 December 1918.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=117}}


====Battles at Katharinenfeld and Shulaveri====
===Final Clashes===
]
Both sides attempted to maintain favorable positions before the ceasefire came into effect. The Armenian soldiers had marched for two weeks without rest. No reinforcements could be sent by the government. The supplies of Armenian troops now mostly consisted of bread and munitions captured from the Georgians.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=117}} An outbreak of ] had also occurred. Conversely, the Georgians were able to quickly send reinforcements and plan operations now that hostilities were so close to Tiflis.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=118}}


=====Katharinenfeld=====
Several skirmishes took place from 25 to 27 December. Though the Georgian efforts had become more brazen, positions changed little during these days. On 28 December, the Georgians had made a breakthrough when a force of 3,500 instructed by Mazniashvili overtook Shulaver, as well as a number of smaller villages. The Armenians suffered 200 casualties. Over the next two days, the Armenians and Georgians fought over Sadakhlu, which changed hands several times. Eventually the two armies entrenched themselves in a stalemate, with the Armenians in station and Georgians in the town.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=118}}
The Armenian army kept advancing and occupied most Armenian dominated villages in the Lori/Borchali province, then proceeded to enter the town Bolnisi-Knachen near heavily fought Katharinenfeld and rested only a few dozen kilometers away from the Georgian capital. Even though attacking Tbilisi was not a primary goal for the Armenians it was an alarming immediate threat to the Georgian government. The mobilization order was not issued earlier than December 18 and approved only 2 days later. Commander ] was put in charge of the ill-disciplined Georgian National Guard troops in Katharinenfeld while general Akhmetashvili was appointed commander in chief of the Georgian army forces in the Lori theatre. Jugheli's 600 men encamped in a poorly and carelessly organised position without even posting guards allowing Armenian militia to sneak up on them overnight and capture several cannons and machineguns and position themselves on the roofs to surprise the Georgians. However, despite the momentum the Armenians had gained, the Georgians with Jugheli leading them while under attack managed to recapture the equipment in close combat and forced the Armenians out of town, but with heavy casualties, losing 30 killed and 70 wounded. The Armenians also suffered heavy losses during retreat with 100 killed and 100 taken prisoner when they were run down by Georgian cavalry led by Colonel ]. Georgian troops crossed the river ] with the first main objective to crush the Armenian force in the Dagheti-Samshvilde area. The Armenian troops including 500 well-entrenched militia were engaged by Georgian artillery and on 24 December the villages Dagheti, ], Khacheni and ] were captured by the Georgian army eliminating most of the resistance in the process.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=39}}


=====Recapture of Shulaveri and stalemate=====
The final confrontations took place on 31 December, before the ceasefire would come into effect at midnight. The Armenians made strategic gains at their center and right columns, but the typhus-infected left column was pushed back. Late in the afternoon, Armenian soldiers outflanked the Georgians and took the eastern heights of Sadakhlu. In addition, the Armenians had also cut the railway leading Shulaver in ].{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=118}} At the end of the day, both armies were situated along irregular lines. The north, south, and east of Sadakhlu were controlled by the Armenians, while the Georgians had advanced southwest of the village.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=118, 119}}
]
With the expulsion of Georgian troops under Tsulukidze from Sadakhlo the Armenians were effectively controlling most of the contested areas within the Borchali/Lori district, except Katharinenfeld which the Georgians had retaken. Following the demand of general ], who directly threatened an attack beyond the Khram and indirectly an attack on Tbilisi if the Georgians didn't concede and officially transfer the Akhalkalaki district to Armenia,{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=40}} the Georgians quickly switched from a defensive posture to offensive operations. The Georgian government appointed their most respected military leader general ] commander in charge of the planned Shulaveri operation while being supported by generals ] and Sumbatashvili.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=40}}{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=114}} On December 24 the Armenians defending the railway station Ashaga-Seral were surprised and overwhelmed by a Georgian cavalry charge supported by artillery fire from an armoured train. Just hours later Georgian infantry entered several villages and Little Sulaveri and secured a railway bridge while a single battalion cleared the strategic mountain between Ashaga and Shulaveri.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=40}} Those actions allowed the general staff to move closer to the frontline at the station. General Dro's forces maintained the initiative as they had the superior numbers and positions while the Georgians were still amassing sufficient force to mount decisive attacks. Instead Mazniashvili resorted to deep outflanking manoeuvers by single local infantry and cavalry detachments to prevent a coordinated Armenian advance while the main army was still assembling.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=42}} If the Armenians had launched an attack before the Georgian army arrived in full force, nothing would have prevented them from taking Tbilisi. Mazniashvili's plan was to distract with diversionary flanking manoeuvers that threatened Shulaveri and the strategically important railway connection. The Armenian commanders responded by deploying and concentrating the bulk of their army in and around Shulaveri taking up defensive positions and mobilising all available forces to oppose a potential Georgian assault on the town. Mazniashvili had succeeded with his plan. He focused what available troops he had at hand, around 1000 men, for several simultaneous attacks on the flanks seizing a number of villages around Shulaveri on December 25. To the north of Shulaveri a Georgian National Guard battalion secured a mountain directly facing the town providing a decisive strategic stronghold that oversaw most of the area. An Attack on Shulaveri itself followed almost instantly carried out by artillery and two Georgian aircraft which dropped bombs on the Armenian positions.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=42}}{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=114}} The general assault was scheduled for the next day on December 26. However the battalion that was supposed to guard the mountain, left it to resupply and rest as its soldiers felt uncomfortable to rest on the mountain itself. As a result, the Armenians retook it, only to be repulsed on the same day. Paradoxically exactly the same event occurred shortly after. The Georgians once again left the mountain for the same reason losing it a third time. The commander in charge of the battalion resigned due to the behaviour of his men. As a consequence the operation was postponed until December 27. Mazniashvili attempted to take Shulaveri with a frontal attack personally leading the assault but was repelled by the Armenian defenders.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=43}} A day later the Armenians got reinforced by another regiment and the Georgian army followed by a 2-hour artillery barrage renewed its offensive with around 3,500 men and was able to seize the strategic heights east of the town which put them in an advantageous position. Shulaveri was retaken by nightfall on the same day while the Georgian general staff entered the town on December 29. Suffering almost 200 killed and many wounded the Armenian army split in two groups and retreated.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=44}}{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=118}} One of the groups heading towards Sadakhlo along the railway line was intercepted and scattered by Georgian cavalry. The other group fell back to the village of Sioni. 24 hours later on 30 December the Georgians seized Sadakhlo after it changed hands several times and the village Lamballo.{{sfn|Andersen|Partskhaladze|2015|p=44}}{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=118}} Unaware and not timely informed by the government of a scheduled ceasefire that would begin on 1 January 1919, Mazniashvili had planned another major offensive but not earlier than January 1. The Armenians on the other hand were informed and had already prepared to retake Sadhaklo and Lamballo on December 31 and got reinforced for that operation. In the subsequent fighting on 31 December neither side achieved its goals. The Armenians were able to take Lamballo once again but failed to take Sadakhlo entrenching themselves at the nearby railway station while the Georgians kept hold of the town itself.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}} The Georgians on the other side were not able to retake Lamballo after several attempts even when reinforced. Both armies rested on irregular lines.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=119}} On 1 January 1919 hostilities ceased and the two nations' army commanders held peace talks which continued in Tbilisi. The conflict was officially ended on January 9 with the involvement of a British special envoy.


==Persecution of Armenians in Georgia== ==Persecution of Armenians in Georgia==
Throughout the war, ] citizens were heavily persecuted and many were arrested without cause. Several organizations were shut down, including charities for refugees and orphans. Armenian newspapers were banned and members of the Tiflis City Council of Armenian background were arrested. The governor of Tiflis proclaimed that every Armenian civilian was a technical prisoner of war.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=122}} Many of the arrested Georgian Armenians were extorted, and threatened with execution if they refused.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=117}} Ransom prices varied between 50 to 50,000 rubles.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|pp=117, 118}} Even after the ceasefire was declared, thousands of arrests were made on 5 January 1919.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=118}} According to the Armenian side, ] citizens, particularily those from the territories controlled by Armenian forces, were heavily persecuted and many were arrested throughout the war.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=122}} Several organizations were shut down, including charities for refugees and orphans. Armenian newspapers were banned and members of the Tiflis City Council of Armenian background were arrested. The governor of Tiflis proclaimed that every Armenian civilian was a technical prisoner of war.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=122}} Many of the arrested Georgian Armenians were extorted, and threatened with execution if they refused.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=117}} Ransom prices varied between 50 to 50,000 rubles.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|pp=117, 118}} Even after the ceasefire was declared, thousands of arrests were made on 5 January 1919.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=118}}


In January 1919, hundreds of arrested Armenian civilians were marched to ], where they were paraded as "prisoners of war". Georgia had actually captured few Armenian soldiers during the war. These parades were meant to prove the Georgian government's official narrative of the war being an astonishing Georgian victory.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=123}} According to Hovannisian, hundreds of arrested Armenian civilians were marched to ] in January 1919, where they were paraded as "prisoners of war". The Armenian government claimed that since Georgia had captured fewer Armenian soldiers during the war, these parades were meant to prove the Georgian government's official narrative of the war being an astonishing Georgian victory.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=123}}


The persecutions were even more severe in villages outside of Tiflis. In the village of ], Georgian militias committed several acts of murder, rape, and looting. Armenian peasants had been robbed of grain, crops, fabrics, livestock, and various other possessions. Several homes were also destroyed. In Belyi-Kliuch, Georgian soldiers went to an orphanage demanding women. After not finding any, the Georgians instead raped prepubescent girls.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=118}}{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=124}} They returned to the same orphanage a few days later to commit more rapes. Appeals were made to the Georgian authorities, which went ignored.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=118}} The persecutions were even more severe in villages outside of Tiflis. In the village of ], Georgian militias committed several acts of murder, rape, and looting. Armenian peasants had been robbed of grain, crops, fabrics, livestock, and various other possessions. Several homes were also destroyed. In Belyi-Kliuch, Georgian soldiers went to an orphanage demanding women. After not finding any, the Georgians instead raped prepubescent girls.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=118}}{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=124}} They returned to the same orphanage a few days later to commit more rapes. Appeals were made to the Georgian authorities, which went ignored.{{sfn|Chalabian|2009|p=118}}


==Aftermath and assessment== ==Aftermath and assessment==
{{Quote box| quote="The Georgians, for example, whose State bounds Armenia on the north, claimed some territory which, by all ethnological rules, belonged to Armenia. The two peoples came to blows in December, 1918, and, to the astonishment of those who supposed the Armenians to be a race of degraded moneymakers, these routed the Georgians, and would perhaps, have captured Tiflis, the Georgian capital, had not the Allies intervened."|align=right |width=35%|source=— ]<ref>{{cite book |last=Roberts |first=C. E. Bechhofer |author-link=C. E. Bechhofer Roberts |year=1921 |title=In Denikin's Russia and the Caucasus, 1919-1920 |publisher=] |page=14}}</ref>}}
The Allied, Georgian, and Armenian officials met to discuss a final settlement from 9 to 17 January 1919. Diplomatic and trade relations were resumed between the two republics. Prisoners were also returned on 23 January. The British created a neutral zone cenetered in the ], reaching from Sadakhlu to the pre-war border with Armenia. A commissioner general, eventually decided to be Captain A. S. G. Douglas, would administer the zone and have ultiamte authority on the number of Armenian and Georgian troops stationed within it.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=121}} The neutral zone was split into the districts of ], Vorontsoka, and ]. 43 villages within the area had large Armenian populations.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=121, 122}} The Allied, Georgian, and Armenian officials met to discuss a final settlement from 9 to 17 January 1919. Diplomatic and trade relations were resumed between the two republics. Prisoners were also returned on 23 January. The British created a neutral zone cenetered in the ], reaching from Sadakhlu to the pre-war border with Armenia. A commissioner general, eventually decided to be Captain A. S. G. Douglas, would administer the zone and have ultiamte authority on the number of Armenian and Georgian troops stationed within it.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=121}} The neutral zone was split into the districts of ], Vorontsoka, and ]. 43 villages within the area had large Armenian populations.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=121, 122}}


Consequently, the war had caused Allied perception of both Armenia and Georgia to become more negative. Many argued that independence for the Transcaucasian states would result in conflict and instability for the region. This proved to be a critical time, as their fates would be decided at the ] a few weeks after the ceasefire.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=125}}{{sfn|Walker|1980|p=268}} Consequently, the war had caused Allied perception of both Armenia and Georgia to become more negative. Many argued that independence for the Transcaucasian states would result in conflict and instability for the region. This proved to be a critical time, as their fates would be decided at the ] a few weeks after the ceasefire.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|p=125}}{{sfn|Walker|1980|p=268}}


The outcome of the war is disputed. Both the Armenians and Georgians claimed victory. Both sides also felt they would've had a decisive victory if it had not been for the ceasefire imposed by the Allies. The Armenians had succeeded in forcing the Georgians out of northern Lori, which became a neutral zone eventually split between the two republics. However, their goal had been to seize land up to the Khram River. The Armenians had advanced during most of the war, though the Georgians began a counterattack in the final days, but reached a stalemate before the ceasefire. However, the war took place entirely in lands formerly controlled by Georgia. The Armenian army also suffered fewer casualties.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=119, 125}} The outcome of the war is disputed. Both the Armenians and Georgians claimed victory. Both sides also felt they would've had a decisive victory if it had not been for the ceasefire imposed by the Allies. The Armenians had succeeded in forcing the Georgians out of northern Lori, which became a neutral zone eventually split between the two republics. However, their goal had been to seize land up to the Khram River, which captured Armenian documents had subsequently revealed in detail.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=119, 111}} The Armenians had advanced during most of the war, though the Georgians began a counterattack in the final days pushing the Armenians back, but reached a stalemate before the ceasefire. However, the war took place entirely in lands formerly controlled by Georgia. The Armenian army also suffered fewer casualties according to Hovannisian, who suggests the result of the conflict was inconclusive.{{sfn|Hovannisian|1971|pp=119, 125}}


==See also== ==See also==
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* ] * ]


==References== == References ==
{{Reflist|2}} {{Reflist|2}}


==Sources== == Sources ==
{{Refbegin}} {{Refbegin}}
*{{cite book |title= Armeno-Georgian War of 1918 and Armeno-Georgian Territorial Issue in the 20th Century|url=https://www.academia.edu/10176756|last1= Andersen |first1=Andrew |first2=George |last2=Partskhaladze|year=2015 |publisher= academia.edu}}
*{{citation |title=Dro (Drastamat Kanayan): Armenia's First Defense Minister of the Modern Era |first=Antranig |last=Chalabian |publisher=Indo-European Publishing |location=Los Angeles |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-60444-078-2|author-link=Antranig Chalabian}}
*{{citation |title=The Republic of Armenia: The first year, 1918-1919 |first=Richard |last=Hovannisian |publisher=] |location=London |year=1971 |isbn=0-520-01805-2|author-link=Richard G. Hovannisian}} *{{cite book |title= The Republic of Armenia: The First Year, 1918-1919 |last= Hovannisian |first=Richard |year= 1971 |volume= Volume I |publisher= University of California Press|location= Berkeley }}
*{{citation |title=State Building and Conflict Resolution in the Caucasus |first=Charlotte Mathilde Louise |last=Hille |year=2010 |publisher=BRILL |series=Eurasian Studies Library}} *{{citation |title=State Building and Conflict Resolution in the Caucasus |first=Charlotte Mathilde Louise |last=Hille |year=2010 |publisher=BRILL |series=Eurasian Studies Library}}
*{{citation| first=Richard |last=Hovannisian|title= The Armenian People from Ancient to Modern Times: Foreign Domination to Statehood: The Fifteenth Century to the Twentieth Century |isbn=978-0-333-61974-2 | oclc=312951712 |volume=Volume II |year=1997}} *{{citation| first=Richard |last=Hovannisian|title= The Armenian People from Ancient to Modern Times: Foreign Domination to Statehood: The Fifteenth Century to the Twentieth Century |isbn=978-0-333-61974-2 | oclc=312951712 |volume=Volume II |year=1997 }}
*{{citation |first=David Marshall |last=Lang|year=1962 |title=A Modern History of Georgia |location=London |publisher=Weidenfeld and Nicolson}} *{{citation |first=David Marshall |last=Lang|year=1962 |title=A Modern History of Georgia |location=London |publisher=Weidenfeld and Nicolson}}
*{{citation|title=The End of the Ottoman Empire, 1908-1923 |first=Alexander Lyon |last=Macfie |publisher=Routledge |year=2014}} *{{citation|title=The End of the Ottoman Empire, 1908-1923 |first=Alexander Lyon |last=Macfie |publisher=Routledge |year=2014}}
*{{citation| title=Historical Dictionary of Georgia |first=Alexander |last=Mikaberidze |year=2015 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield}} *{{citation| title=Historical Dictionary of Georgia |first=Alexander |last=Mikaberidze |year=2015 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield }}
*{{citation|title=The History of Armenia |first=S. |last=Payaslian |publisher=Springer |year=2008}} *{{citation|title=The History of Armenia |first=S. |last=Payaslian |publisher=Springer |year=2008 }}
*{{citation| first=Ezel Kural |last=Shaw| title=Reform, revolution and republic : the rise of modern Turkey (1808-1975)| series=History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey| volume=2| year=1977| publisher=Cambridge University Press| oclc=78646544}} *{{citation| first=Ezel Kural |last=Shaw| title=Reform, revolution and republic : the rise of modern Turkey (1808-1975)| series=History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey| volume=2| year=1977| publisher=Cambridge University Press| oclc=78646544 }}
*{{citation|title=Historical Dictionary of the Russian Civil Wars, 1916-1926 |first=Jonathan |last=Smele |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |year=2015}} *{{citation|title=Historical Dictionary of the Russian Civil Wars, 1916-1926 |first=Jonathan |last=Smele |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |year=2015 }}
*{{citation|first=Tadeusz |last=Swietochowski| author-link = Tadeusz Swietochowski|title=Russian Azerbaijan, 1905-1920: The Shaping of a National Identity in a Muslim Community| publisher=Cambridge University Press| year=1985| isbn=978-0-521-26310-8}} *{{citation|first=Tadeusz |last=Swietochowski| author-link = Tadeusz Swietochowski|title=Russian Azerbaijan, 1905-1920: The Shaping of a National Identity in a Muslim Community| publisher=Cambridge University Press| year=1985| isbn=978-0-521-26310-8}}
*{{citation |title=The Armenian-Georgian War of 1918 |first=Varik |last=Virapian |publisher= |location=Yerevan |year=2003 |isbn=|author-link=}} *{{citation|title=სომეხი ტყვეები 1918 წლის ომის დროს| publisher=legionerebi| year=2016}}
*{{cite book |title= Armenia: The Survival of a Nation|url= https://archive.org/details/armeniasurvivalo0000walk_c0v5|url-access= registration|last= Walker |first=Christopher |year= 1980 |edition=2nd |publisher=St. Martin's Press|location= New York }}
*{{citation|title=სომეხი ტყვეები 1918 წლის ომის დროს| year=2016}}
*{{cite book |title= Armenia: The Survival of a Nation|url= https://archive.org/details/armeniasurvivalo0000walk_c0v5|url-access= registration|last= Walker |first=Christopher |year= 1980 |edition=2nd |publisher=St. Martin's Press|location= New York}}


{{Refend}} {{Refend}}
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{{Authority control}} {{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Armeno-Georgian War}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Georgian-Armenian War}}
] ]
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Revision as of 04:35, 2 September 2021

Armeno–Georgian War
Part of the aftermath of World War I
Date7–31 December 1918
LocationBorchaly (Lori) and Akhalkalaki districts
Result Inconclusive
Territorial
changes
The disputed Lori district becomes a neutral zone
Belligerents
 Armenia  Georgia
Commanders and leaders
Drastamat Kanayan Giorgi Mazniashvili
Giorgi Kvinitadze
Valiko Jugheli
Strength
In Lori:
28 infantry companies
4 cavalry squadrons
26 machine guns
7 mountain cannons
supported by the Armenian population and local partisans
In Georgia proper:
12 infantry companies at Sadakhlo
In Lori:
2 infantry regiments
and 2 armoured trains
In Georgia proper:
1,000 troops and 1 armoured train at Sadakhlo
3,500 troops at Shulaveri
Casualties and losses
Heavy
Less than 100 taken prisoner
(Hovannisian)
Heavy
About 1,000 taken prisoner
(Hovannisian)

The Armeno–Georgian War was a short border dispute fought in December 1918 between the newly independent Democratic Republic of Georgia and the First Republic of Armenia, largely over the control of former districts of Tiflis Governorate, in Borchaly (Lori) and Akhalkalaki.

In March 1918, Russia signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and in doing so agreed to return to the Ottoman Empire territory gained during the 1877–78 Russo-Turkish War. These territories were, however, no longer under the functional control of the Russian central government; rather, they were being administered collectively by the Georgians, Armenians and Azerbaijanis through the Transcaucasian Sejm. The Trebizond Peace Conference aimed to resolve the dispute, but when the conference failed to produce a resolution, the Ottomans pursued a military campaign to control the disputed territories. Under persistent attack, the Transcaucasian collective eventually dissolved with the Georgians, Armenians and Azerbaijanis declaring independent nation states in quick succession in late-May 1918. On 4 June, the Ottoman Empire signed the Treaty of Batum with each of the three Transcaucasian states, which brought the conflict to an end and awarded the southern half of the ethnically-Armenian Lori Province and Akhalkalaki district to the Ottomans. Against the wishes of Armenia, Georgia, supported by German officers, took possession of northern Lori and established military outposts along the Dzoraget River.

When the Ottomans signed the Armistice of Mudros in October, they were subsequently required to withdraw from the region. Armenia quickly took control of territory previously controlled by the Ottomans, and skirmishes between Armenia and Georgia arose starting on 18 October. Open warfare began in early December, after diplomatic efforts failed to resolve the issue of the disputed border, and continued until 31 December, when a British-French brokered ceasefire was signed, leaving the disputed territory under joint Georgian and Armenian administration.

Background

Russian revolution

10 ruble banknote of the Transcaucasian Commissariat

After the February Revolution, the Russian Provisional Government installed the Special Transcaucasian Committee to govern the area. However, following the October Revolution, the Special Transcaucasian Committee was replaced on 11 November 1917 by the Transcaucasian Commissariat centered in Tbilisi. The Commissariat concluded the Armistice of Erzincan with the Ottoman Empire on 5 December 1917, ending localized armed conflict with the Ottoman Empire. The Commissariat actively sought to suppress Bolshevik influence while concurrently pursuing a path towards Transcaucasian independence from Bolshevik Russia. This included establishing a legislative body, the Transcaucasian Sejm, to which the Commissariat surrendered its authority on 23 January 1918, following the dispersal of the Russian Constituent Assembly by the Bolsheviks. The secessionist and anti-Bolshevik agenda eventfully brought Transcaucasian into conflict with the central government. On 3 March, the Russians signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk marking Russia's exit from World War I. In the treaty, Russia agreed to return territory gained during the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878), giving little care to the fact that this territory was under the effective control of Armenian and Georgian forces. The Trebizond Peace Conference, between the Ottoman Empire and the Sejm, began on 4 March and continued until April. The Ottomans offered to surrender all the Empire's ambitions in the Caucasus in return for recognition of the re-acquisition of the east Anatolian provinces awarded at Brest-Litovsk.

Independence

During the peace conference negotiations, the Ottoman representatives placed a great deal of pressure on the Transcaucasian delegation to declare independence, as they were only willing to sign a treaty with Transcaucasian if they were independent from Russia. The Transcaucasian Sejm recalled its representatives on 31 March to discuss the Ottoman position. On 5 April, the head of the Transcaucasian delegation Akaki Chkhenkeli accepted the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk as a basis for future negotiations. The Sejm also declared formal independence from Soviet Russia by proclaiming the establishment of the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic on 22 April. Hostilities nevertheless resumed between the new republic and the Ottoman Empire, and by 25 April the Ottoman army had taken control of Kars and largely returned to its pre-war positions. On 11 May, a new peace conference between the Republic and the Ottoman Empire began in Batumi. At the conference the Ottomans further extended their demands to include Tbilisi, Alexandropol and Echmiadzin. The Ottoman army resumed hostilities on 21 May with the Battle of Sardarabad, Battle of Bash Abaran and Battle of Kara Killisse.

A crown of approximately 40 men standing on a set of steps in front of stone balcony
Members of the Georgian National Council

By this point, leading Georgian politicians viewed an alliance with Germany as the only way to prevent Georgia from being occupied by the Ottoman Empire. Consequently, the Georgian National Council declared the independence of the Democratic Republic of Georgia on 24 May and two days later signed the Treaty of Poti with Germany, placing itself under German protection. The following day, the Muslim National Council announced the establishment of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan. Having been largely abandoned by its allies, the Armenian National Council declared its independence on May 28. On 4 June, the Ottoman Empire signed the Treaty of Batum with each of the three Transcaucasus states, bringing the conflict with the Ottoman Empire to an end. The treaty awarded the southern half of the ethnically-Armenia Lori Province and Akhalkalaki district to the Ottomans but did not firmly delineate the borders between the new Transcaucasus states. In response, and to deny the Ottomans a direct route to Tbilisi, Georgian units supported by German officers took possession of northern Lori and established outposts along the Dzoraget River.

Initial clashes

Approximately 4 soldiers, some of whom are armed, posing in front of a heavily armoured train car.
A Georgian armoured train

In early October 1918, the Ottomans pulled back from southern Lori, which eliminated the territorial buffer between Armenia and Georgia. The Armenian military quickly filled the void by taking control of much of southern Lori on 18 October and in the absence of any resistance probed further north. The first incident between Armenia and Georgia occurred the same day when an Armenian army detachment seized the railway station in the village of Kober near Tumanyan, refusing a subsequent demand from the Germans that they withdraw. The local border guards called for help, and the Georgian government responded by sending two armoured trains and a detachment of 250 soldiers, which forced the Armenians to leave Kober. Five days later, three Armenian companies attacked and overwhelmed a German garrison near the village of Karinj. Earlier, the Georgian government in Tbilisi had received a letter from Armenian Prime Minister Hovhannes Kajaznuni insisting that Georgia had no claims on the Lori district, and for the sake of avoiding a catastrophic crisis for both countries, Georgian troops should leave the region. Clashes intensified from 25–27 October, with neither side gaining the advantage, until the Georgians sent a company-sized force with an armoured train to support their German allies. Just a day later, the Georgian government received a telegram from Armenia explaining that the attacks were the result of a misunderstanding and proposed that a conference be convened to resolve the border issue. On 27 October, Armenian troops left the two villages, they had occupied, and retreated south.

Failed diplomatic attempts

The terms of the Armistice of Mudros between the Ottoman Empire and the Allies required the Ottomans pull their troops out of the Transcaucasus. The departure of the Ottomans created a power vacuum in the border area, in particular that between Armenia and Georgia. Armenia and Georgia began bilateral talks in November 1918, with Georgia sending a special envoy to Yerevan. Simultaneously, Georgia invited the recently independent governments of the Caucasus to Tbilisi for a conference with the principal aim of addressing boundary delimitation and issues of common concern. The general idea of a conference was well received by the Armenian government, however, the Armenia government took exception to the scope and quick timelines of the conference. In particular, Armenia was not interested in discussing border issues at a conference. Armenia indicated it would participate, recognizing the rapidly changing political environment following World War I, but reemphasized that they would not discuss the issues of delimitation. In general, however, Georgia was of the position that the border with Armenia should be inline with the border of the former Russian imperial Tiflis Province; whereas, Armenia was of the position that the border should correspond to ethnic composition or more historical boundaries.

The conference began in Tbilisi on 10 November with only the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic and the Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus in attendance. The Armenia delegation initially stated that they were unable to attend due to poor rail service between Yerevan and Tbilisi. The Georgian delegation suggested that the conference start be postponed until 13 November to accommodate, but Armenia declined for several reasons, including the lack or readiness and clarity on several issues. The Armenian delegation continued to postpone, and in order to accommodate the Armenians, Georgia first postponed the start of the conference to 20 November and then to 30 November. After the final delay, the conference fell apart, and five days later, on 5 December, the Georgian mission headed by Simon Mdivani left Yerevan. Georgia subsequently informed Armenia of its willingness to exclude the discussion of boundary disputes from a conference program but Armenia once again delayed a response, allegedly due to sabotage of telegraph lines.

Prior to leaving Yerevan, the Mdivani mission did engage in talks with the Armenia government during which Armenia indicated a readiness to give up claims in Akhalkalaki and Borchalo if the Georgians would help them in either retaking Karabakh or assist with historical territorial claims within Western Armenia. The Georgian government, however, declined such offers, as they did not wish to become entangled in another conflict with the Ottoman army. Amidst failed negotiations, Georgia deployed troops in the villages near the border which only increased the tenseness of the situation.

Open hostilities

Armenian offensive

Armenian troops in 1918

In response to the Armenian occupation of southern Lori in October 1918, the Georgian side bolstered it's garrison in the northern parts. The local populace was required to provide quarters and supplies for Georgian troops and became subject to searches and undisciplined behaviour by the soldiers. In Uzulnar, resistance lead to death of a local official. A Georgian military investigation confirmed that fact and requested replacement of troops but concluded that due to the organised nature of resistance, Uzulnar was to be searched and neutralized. By early December, rebellion was imminent in northern Lori. General Tsulukidze sent a detachment to deal with the unrests. His troops were reportedly attacked, while the Armenians claimed their village was bombarded. According to Tsulikidze Armenian troops of the 4th Infantry Regiment operating in disguise, were instigating an insurrection. They had disarmed a cavalry unit and the garrison at Uzulnar. Consequently a relief force was met with a barrage of fire. The following day an Armenian force of 350 men attacked two Georgian units and partisans crushed several soldiers by boulders rolled down a mountainside. The Armenian side maintained that they had no regular troops involved until mid December. Tsulukidze was convinced that he dealt with regular Armenian army units because orders were submitted in Russian, which was the language used by the Armenian military command. In his view Sanahin itself was in danger. Armenia took the position that the events were the result of Georgia's oppressive behavior towards the local ethnic-Armenian population. General Goguadze, who was in charge of the armoured trains, informed the Georgian government that rails between Sanahin and Alaverdi had been sabotaged, while Tsulukidze claimed his forces were suppressed by Armenian troops at Alaverdi. The Georgian side accused Armenian villages of harbouring Armenian army units.

Borchali/Lori district

Still not realising the actual scale of the threat he was facing, Tsulukidze's headquarters in Sanahin was quickly approached and besieged by regular Armenian army units resulting in heavy fighting around the railway station. The Armenians sabotaged rails and also succeeded in ambushing and trapping an armoured train that was carrying two Georgian infantry companies. Tsulukidze withdrew from Sanahin to Alaverdi — which was also being attacked by Armenian forces, using the artillery of the derailed trains to cover his troops' retreat. More Georgian reinforcements arrived on December 12, securing the heights around Alaverdi, but were unsuccessful in breaking out the ~60 Georgians who remained trapped on the rails between the two villages. Another train with reinforcements got derailed on the same day. At that point, the Georgians had less than 700 troops engaged in combat, while most of them took defensive positions in Alaverdi, equipped with a few guns and mortars. On December 14, they were encircled by an estimated 4,000 Armenian soldiers from regiments of the 1st and 2nd Rifle Divisions. Confronted with a hopeless situation, General Tsulukidze ordered a general retreat and made a successful breakout towards Sadakhlo.

Simultaneously, from 12 to 14 December, Georgian forces under General Tsitsianov were struck by Armenian troops around the villages of Vorontsovka and Privolnoye. On 12 December, the National Guard detachment that was guarding Vorontsovka was called back to Tbilisi to participate in a military parade marking the 1st anniversary of the National Guard of Georgia. Tsitsianov's few hundred men, although heavily outnumbered, offered brutal resistance with their artillery, using shrapnel ammunition at point-blank range. The Armenians eventually managed to take both towns. The Georgian forces, having suffered more than 100 killed by that point, and some material, retreated towards Katharinenfeld. On December 14, the Armenians, who had already amassed more than 6,500 regular troops supported by thousands of armed local militia, steamrolled what resistance remained in the Alexandrovka-Vorontsovka-Privolnoye triangle. By the end of the second day of that attack, the Armenian army had captured almost all of the contested villages. Sanahin and Alaverdi also fell. Georgian defenders and refugees started to evacuate the area by train on December 17. The Georgians sustained heavy losses, leaving behind hundreds of prisoners, one train and both derailed armoured trains. The Armenian army's left flank, commanded by colonels Nikogosov and Korolkov, performed decisive flanking manoeuvers that surprised and encircled the Georgians in Ayrum and culminated in the capture of the town on December 18. Despite a successful breakout, the Georgian 5th and 6th Infantry Regiments lost around 560 men killed, wounded or taken prisoner, and about 25 machine guns and two cannons in total.

On the same day, the Armenian vanguard pushed against Sadakhlo, where Tsulukdize's forces had fortified themselves at the station and nearby strategic heights. The initial Armenian attack was repulsed, and in order to outflank the defenders, the town of Shulaveri was captured the next day. Korolkov called for all Armenian men in the area able to fight to mobilize and support the army's offensive. On 20 December, the Armenians were blockading a vital train station that connected Sadakhlo with Tbilisi, preventing further reinforcements. A day after, they massed their artillery and launched an attack on the town, only to be repulsed with heavy casualties by the defenders, who were equipped with an armoured train. Using the same train, the remaining Georgian troops broke out of the encirclement to join a defensive line further north. Following that defeat, Tsulukidze resigned and was replaced by General Sumbatashvili. The Georgian army was already mobilizing in the Lori district and started to prepare for major counterattacks.

Akhalkalaki district

Less significant were the clashes in the Akhalkalaki district. The Armenian operation was thwarted by the massive Georgian military presence and lack of support by the local Armenian population. The region was garrisoned with over 6,000 troops commanded by general Abel Makashvili. Despite the odds, Armenian forces mounted an offensive, seizing four villages. Makashvili demanded they leave the area immediately otherwise punitive actions would take place. On 14 December the Armenians met the demand and left the villages, only to renew their attacks a few days later, this time around with cavalry support. The village of Troitskoe changed hands several times until the Georgians ultimately retook it and repelled all Armenian units from the area. On 19 December Armenian forces once again attempted to take Troitskoe but were repulsed, losing 100 men to Georgian machine gun fire. Due to heavy winter storms, neither side could achieve any military breakthrough in the region. Confrontations in the Akhalkalaki district ceased for the rest of the war while all Georgian troops there had to remain, on the order of high command, despite the critical situation in Lori.

Georgian counterattack and end of hostilities

Battles at Katharinenfeld and Shulaveri

Katharinenfeld

The Armenian army kept advancing and occupied most Armenian dominated villages in the Lori/Borchali province, then proceeded to enter the town Bolnisi-Knachen near heavily fought Katharinenfeld and rested only a few dozen kilometers away from the Georgian capital. Even though attacking Tbilisi was not a primary goal for the Armenians it was an alarming immediate threat to the Georgian government. The mobilization order was not issued earlier than December 18 and approved only 2 days later. Commander Jugheli was put in charge of the ill-disciplined Georgian National Guard troops in Katharinenfeld while general Akhmetashvili was appointed commander in chief of the Georgian army forces in the Lori theatre. Jugheli's 600 men encamped in a poorly and carelessly organised position without even posting guards allowing Armenian militia to sneak up on them overnight and capture several cannons and machineguns and position themselves on the roofs to surprise the Georgians. However, despite the momentum the Armenians had gained, the Georgians with Jugheli leading them while under attack managed to recapture the equipment in close combat and forced the Armenians out of town, but with heavy casualties, losing 30 killed and 70 wounded. The Armenians also suffered heavy losses during retreat with 100 killed and 100 taken prisoner when they were run down by Georgian cavalry led by Colonel Cholokashvili. Georgian troops crossed the river Khrami with the first main objective to crush the Armenian force in the Dagheti-Samshvilde area. The Armenian troops including 500 well-entrenched militia were engaged by Georgian artillery and on 24 December the villages Dagheti, Bolnisi, Khacheni and Samshvilde were captured by the Georgian army eliminating most of the resistance in the process.

Recapture of Shulaveri and stalemate
Georgian cavalrymen in 1918 armed with carbines and sabres

With the expulsion of Georgian troops under Tsulukidze from Sadakhlo the Armenians were effectively controlling most of the contested areas within the Borchali/Lori district, except Katharinenfeld which the Georgians had retaken. Following the demand of general Dro, who directly threatened an attack beyond the Khram and indirectly an attack on Tbilisi if the Georgians didn't concede and officially transfer the Akhalkalaki district to Armenia, the Georgians quickly switched from a defensive posture to offensive operations. The Georgian government appointed their most respected military leader general Mazniashvili commander in charge of the planned Shulaveri operation while being supported by generals Kvinitadze and Sumbatashvili. On December 24 the Armenians defending the railway station Ashaga-Seral were surprised and overwhelmed by a Georgian cavalry charge supported by artillery fire from an armoured train. Just hours later Georgian infantry entered several villages and Little Sulaveri and secured a railway bridge while a single battalion cleared the strategic mountain between Ashaga and Shulaveri. Those actions allowed the general staff to move closer to the frontline at the station. General Dro's forces maintained the initiative as they had the superior numbers and positions while the Georgians were still amassing sufficient force to mount decisive attacks. Instead Mazniashvili resorted to deep outflanking manoeuvers by single local infantry and cavalry detachments to prevent a coordinated Armenian advance while the main army was still assembling. If the Armenians had launched an attack before the Georgian army arrived in full force, nothing would have prevented them from taking Tbilisi. Mazniashvili's plan was to distract with diversionary flanking manoeuvers that threatened Shulaveri and the strategically important railway connection. The Armenian commanders responded by deploying and concentrating the bulk of their army in and around Shulaveri taking up defensive positions and mobilising all available forces to oppose a potential Georgian assault on the town. Mazniashvili had succeeded with his plan. He focused what available troops he had at hand, around 1000 men, for several simultaneous attacks on the flanks seizing a number of villages around Shulaveri on December 25. To the north of Shulaveri a Georgian National Guard battalion secured a mountain directly facing the town providing a decisive strategic stronghold that oversaw most of the area. An Attack on Shulaveri itself followed almost instantly carried out by artillery and two Georgian aircraft which dropped bombs on the Armenian positions. The general assault was scheduled for the next day on December 26. However the battalion that was supposed to guard the mountain, left it to resupply and rest as its soldiers felt uncomfortable to rest on the mountain itself. As a result, the Armenians retook it, only to be repulsed on the same day. Paradoxically exactly the same event occurred shortly after. The Georgians once again left the mountain for the same reason losing it a third time. The commander in charge of the battalion resigned due to the behaviour of his men. As a consequence the operation was postponed until December 27. Mazniashvili attempted to take Shulaveri with a frontal attack personally leading the assault but was repelled by the Armenian defenders. A day later the Armenians got reinforced by another regiment and the Georgian army followed by a 2-hour artillery barrage renewed its offensive with around 3,500 men and was able to seize the strategic heights east of the town which put them in an advantageous position. Shulaveri was retaken by nightfall on the same day while the Georgian general staff entered the town on December 29. Suffering almost 200 killed and many wounded the Armenian army split in two groups and retreated. One of the groups heading towards Sadakhlo along the railway line was intercepted and scattered by Georgian cavalry. The other group fell back to the village of Sioni. 24 hours later on 30 December the Georgians seized Sadakhlo after it changed hands several times and the village Lamballo. Unaware and not timely informed by the government of a scheduled ceasefire that would begin on 1 January 1919, Mazniashvili had planned another major offensive but not earlier than January 1. The Armenians on the other hand were informed and had already prepared to retake Sadhaklo and Lamballo on December 31 and got reinforced for that operation. In the subsequent fighting on 31 December neither side achieved its goals. The Armenians were able to take Lamballo once again but failed to take Sadakhlo entrenching themselves at the nearby railway station while the Georgians kept hold of the town itself. The Georgians on the other side were not able to retake Lamballo after several attempts even when reinforced. Both armies rested on irregular lines. On 1 January 1919 hostilities ceased and the two nations' army commanders held peace talks which continued in Tbilisi. The conflict was officially ended on January 9 with the involvement of a British special envoy.

Persecution of Armenians in Georgia

According to the Armenian side, Georgian Armenian citizens, particularily those from the territories controlled by Armenian forces, were heavily persecuted and many were arrested throughout the war. Several organizations were shut down, including charities for refugees and orphans. Armenian newspapers were banned and members of the Tiflis City Council of Armenian background were arrested. The governor of Tiflis proclaimed that every Armenian civilian was a technical prisoner of war. Many of the arrested Georgian Armenians were extorted, and threatened with execution if they refused. Ransom prices varied between 50 to 50,000 rubles. Even after the ceasefire was declared, thousands of arrests were made on 5 January 1919.

According to Hovannisian, hundreds of arrested Armenian civilians were marched to Kutaisi in January 1919, where they were paraded as "prisoners of war". The Armenian government claimed that since Georgia had captured fewer Armenian soldiers during the war, these parades were meant to prove the Georgian government's official narrative of the war being an astonishing Georgian victory.

The persecutions were even more severe in villages outside of Tiflis. In the village of Bolnis-Khachen, Georgian militias committed several acts of murder, rape, and looting. Armenian peasants had been robbed of grain, crops, fabrics, livestock, and various other possessions. Several homes were also destroyed. In Belyi-Kliuch, Georgian soldiers went to an orphanage demanding women. After not finding any, the Georgians instead raped prepubescent girls. They returned to the same orphanage a few days later to commit more rapes. Appeals were made to the Georgian authorities, which went ignored.

Aftermath and assessment

The Allied, Georgian, and Armenian officials met to discuss a final settlement from 9 to 17 January 1919. Diplomatic and trade relations were resumed between the two republics. Prisoners were also returned on 23 January. The British created a neutral zone cenetered in the Borchaly Uyezd, reaching from Sadakhlu to the pre-war border with Armenia. A commissioner general, eventually decided to be Captain A. S. G. Douglas, would administer the zone and have ultiamte authority on the number of Armenian and Georgian troops stationed within it. The neutral zone was split into the districts of Uzunlar, Vorontsoka, and Alaverdi. 43 villages within the area had large Armenian populations.

Consequently, the war had caused Allied perception of both Armenia and Georgia to become more negative. Many argued that independence for the Transcaucasian states would result in conflict and instability for the region. This proved to be a critical time, as their fates would be decided at the Paris Peace Conference a few weeks after the ceasefire.

The outcome of the war is disputed. Both the Armenians and Georgians claimed victory. Both sides also felt they would've had a decisive victory if it had not been for the ceasefire imposed by the Allies. The Armenians had succeeded in forcing the Georgians out of northern Lori, which became a neutral zone eventually split between the two republics. However, their goal had been to seize land up to the Khram River, which captured Armenian documents had subsequently revealed in detail. The Armenians had advanced during most of the war, though the Georgians began a counterattack in the final days pushing the Armenians back, but reached a stalemate before the ceasefire. However, the war took place entirely in lands formerly controlled by Georgia. The Armenian army also suffered fewer casualties according to Hovannisian, who suggests the result of the conflict was inconclusive.

See also

References

  1. ^ Hovannisian 1971, p. 119.
  2. Hovannisian 1971, p. 111.
  3. ^ Hovannisian 1971, p. 118.
  4. ^ Hovannisian 1971, p. 113.
  5. ^ Hovannisian 1971, pp. 111–119.
  6. Mikaberidze 2015, pp. 612–613.
  7. ^ Mikaberidze 2015, p. 32.
  8. Swietochowski 1985, p. 119.
  9. ^ Smele 2015, pp. 226–227.
  10. Hovannisian 1971, p. 23.
  11. Shaw 1977, p. 326.
  12. ^ Hille 2010, p. 76.
  13. Hovannisian 1997, pp. 292–293.
  14. Macfie 2014, p. 154.
  15. Payaslian 2008, p. 150.
  16. ^ Hille 2010, p. 71.
  17. Lang 1962, pp. 207–208.
  18. Hille 2010, p. 177.
  19. Hovannisian 1997, pp. 186–201.
  20. Payaslian 2008, p. 152.
  21. ^ Hovannisian 1971, p. 71.
  22. Hovannisian 1971, p. 73.
  23. Hovannisian 1971, pp. 73–75.
  24. Hovannisian 1971, p. 75.
  25. ^ Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 18.
  26. ^ Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 20.
  27. ^ Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 23.
  28. Walker 1980, pp. 267–268.
  29. Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 17.
  30. Hovannisian 1971, p. 97.
  31. ^ Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 24.
  32. ^ Hovannisian 1971, p. 103.
  33. Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 25.
  34. ^ Hovannisian 1971, p. 104.
  35. Hovannisian 1971, p. 105.
  36. Armeno-Georgian War of 1918 and Armeno-Georgian Territorial Issue in the 20th Century, Andrew Anderson
  37. The Republic of Armenia Volume I: 1918-1919, Richard G. Hovannisian
  38. INDEPENDENT GEORGIA (1918-1921), David Marshall Lang
  39. ^ Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 28.
  40. Hovannisian 1971, p. 101.
  41. Hovannisian 1971, p. 102.
  42. Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 39.
  43. ^ Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 40.
  44. ^ Hovannisian 1971, p. 114.
  45. ^ Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 42.
  46. Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 43.
  47. ^ Andersen & Partskhaladze 2015, p. 44.
  48. ^ Hovannisian 1971, p. 122.
  49. Chalabian 2009, p. 117. sfn error: no target: CITEREFChalabian2009 (help)
  50. Chalabian 2009, pp. 117, 118. sfn error: no target: CITEREFChalabian2009 (help)
  51. ^ Chalabian 2009, p. 118. sfn error: no target: CITEREFChalabian2009 (help)
  52. Hovannisian 1971, p. 123.
  53. Hovannisian 1971, p. 124.
  54. Hovannisian 1971, p. 121.
  55. Hovannisian 1971, pp. 121, 122.
  56. Hovannisian 1971, p. 125.
  57. Walker 1980, p. 268.
  58. Hovannisian 1971, pp. 119, 111.
  59. Hovannisian 1971, pp. 119, 125.

Sources

  • Andersen, Andrew; Partskhaladze, George (2015). Armeno-Georgian War of 1918 and Armeno-Georgian Territorial Issue in the 20th Century. academia.edu.
  • Hovannisian, Richard (1971). The Republic of Armenia: The First Year, 1918-1919. Vol. Volume I. Berkeley: University of California Press. {{cite book}}: |volume= has extra text (help)
  • Hille, Charlotte Mathilde Louise (2010), State Building and Conflict Resolution in the Caucasus, Eurasian Studies Library, BRILL
  • Hovannisian, Richard (1997), The Armenian People from Ancient to Modern Times: Foreign Domination to Statehood: The Fifteenth Century to the Twentieth Century, vol. Volume II, ISBN 978-0-333-61974-2, OCLC 312951712 {{citation}}: |volume= has extra text (help)
  • Lang, David Marshall (1962), A Modern History of Georgia, London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson
  • Macfie, Alexander Lyon (2014), The End of the Ottoman Empire, 1908-1923, Routledge
  • Mikaberidze, Alexander (2015), Historical Dictionary of Georgia, Rowman & Littlefield
  • Payaslian, S. (2008), The History of Armenia, Springer
  • Shaw, Ezel Kural (1977), Reform, revolution and republic : the rise of modern Turkey (1808-1975), History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey, vol. 2, Cambridge University Press, OCLC 78646544
  • Smele, Jonathan (2015), Historical Dictionary of the Russian Civil Wars, 1916-1926, Rowman & Littlefield
  • Swietochowski, Tadeusz (1985), Russian Azerbaijan, 1905-1920: The Shaping of a National Identity in a Muslim Community, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-521-26310-8
  • სომეხი ტყვეები 1918 წლის ომის დროს, legionerebi, 2016
  • Walker, Christopher (1980). Armenia: The Survival of a Nation (2nd ed.). New York: St. Martin's Press.
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