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CHAPTERS IN THE HISTORY OF GEORGIA 105
Transcaucasia. In place of the Viccroy in Tiflis Kerenski
appointed a committee of four—a Georgian, an Armenian,
a Tatar, and a Russian—to administer the internal affairs of
Transcaucasia ; but most of the power was in the hands of
the newly formed and virtually Socialistic workmen’s and
soldiers’ councils. Very soon acute racial animosities and
serious conflicts broke out, especially between the Armenian
Christians and the Tatar Moslems, who acted partly in
collusion with the Turks.
After the Bolshevik revolution of November 191 7 in
Petrograd the state of things became even more complicated.
The committee of four at Tiflis was replaced by a Transcau
casian Social-Democratic " commissariat " consisting of three
Georgians, three Armenians, three Tatars, and two Russians,
with a Georgian named Gegechkori as chairman. This
" commissariat " was backed by a " Transcaucasian Assembly"
or Seim, which met at Tiflis on February 23, 191 8. The
commissariat and the Seim worked hand in hand with various
workers’, soldiers’, and municipal councils, and with the
Georgian, Armenian, and Tatar " national committees."
They could not join the Russian Communists, but desired to
collaborate with the non-Bolshevik parties in Russia, and
to maintain the unity of the empire.
On the iBth of December 1917, the Russian general who
was nominally in command of the Russo-Caucasian troops
signed an armistice with the Turks ; but his troops were
gradually disintegrated by Communist propaganda and returned
to their hornes, and the Transcaucasian peoples were left to
defend their frontiers unaided, while the Turks advanced
from the west and became more and more aggressive.
On April 14, 191 8, they took Batum. On April 22nd the
Seim declared the independence of the Transcaucasian Republic.
On May 26th it decided to dissolve the republic after an
existence of five weeks. Georgia now declared itself indepen
dent, and formed an alliance with the Germans, whereupon
the country was occupied by German troops, and thus saved
from the Turks.
Then came the complete defeat of Turkey and Germany,
and the Turkish armistice was signed on October 30, 191 8.
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