Georgian–Armenian War
The Georgian–Armenian 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 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-brokered ceasefire was signed, leaving the disputed territory under joint Georgian and Armenian administration.
Background
Russian revolution
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, 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.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
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
In early December 1918, the Georgians were confronted with regional rebellion in the Lori area, chiefly in the village of Uzunlar. The local garrison in the village of Uzunlar was attacked by disgruntled local villagers, resulting in one Georgian soldier being killed and the remaining soldiers being disarmed and taken prisoner. The Georgians argued that Armenian soldiers from the 4th Infantry Regiment had disguised themselves as bandits and were fomenting rebellion; whereas, Armenia took the position that the events were the result of Georgia's oppressive behavior towards the local ethnic-Armenian population. In response, General Varden Tsulukidze sent a 200-soldier detachment to the area to quell the unrest. The detachment was, however, unable to provide any relief, as they were driven back by heavy gunfire.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.