On the Issue of the Caucasian Union in the 1920s-1930s

Abstract

The paper analyses the futile attempts of the political elites of the independent Caucasus
states created at the end of the First World War (Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and the
Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus) to create the united Caucasus during their
presence in power and then in political emigration in the 1920s and 1930s, and also the
attitude of influential European politicians towards this matter. The merits of the ‘main
dreamers’ fighting for the integrity of the Caucasus – Akaki Chkhenkeli, Ali Mardan Bek
Topchibashev, and Haidar Bamatov (Bamat) – have been outlined. The article discusses the
factors that created fertile ground for the existence of their dream, on the one hand, and
examines the real circumstances and objective reasons that hindered the realization of the
ideas and actions of the historical figures working in the period under the lens. The work
emphasises that, despite separate impediments (especially disagreement over boundaries and
the annexationist policy of Turkey and Russia), the idea of Caucasian unity in the 1920s was
based on the solid background created by the three main cultures that coexisted harmoniously
over the centuries: 1. Religion - Judaism, Christianity, Islam; 2. Caucasian rule of thinking
and 3. Caucasian mentality. Based on the research, we conclude that the happy future of the
Caucasian people is linked to the unity of the Caucasus as it was in the case of the European
Union.