The Caucasus Military District (russian: Кавказский военный округ, ''Kavkazskiy voenniy okrug'') was a military formation of the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...

. It was created in 1865 as the successor to the Caucasus Army, and was dissolved in 1917.

History

The Caucus Military District was created as part of the military reforms of the minister

Dmitry Milyutin Count Dmitry Alekseyevich Milyutin ( rus, Граф Дми́трий Алексе́евич Милю́тин, tr. ; 28 June 1816, Moscow – 25 January 1912, Simeiz near Yalta) was Minister of War (1861–81) and the last Field Marshal of I ...

. During the entire existence of the District, the District Commander in Chief was also supreme civil authority in the Caucasus and

Ataman Ataman (variants: ''otaman'', ''wataman'', ''vataman''; Russian: атаман, uk, отаман) was a title of Cossack and haidamak leaders of various kinds. In the Russian Empire, the term was the official title of the supreme military command ...

of Caucasian troops. In 1865 - 1881 and again in 1905 - 1917, the District Commander in Chief was also His Majesty's Viceroy in the Caucasus. On the formation of the District, the Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolayevich (who had already been His Majesty's Viceroy in the Caucasus and Commander in Chief of the Caucasus Army since December 6, 1862) became its first Commander in Chief. On August 23, 1915 (during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

), the Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich was appointed to this post, a post he held until February 3, 1917. The Caucasus Army was formed in July 1914 from units of the Caucasus Military District. This army ceased to exist in April 1917 when it was reorganized by the new

Russian Republic The Russian Republic,. referred to as the Russian Democratic Federal Republic. in the 1918 Constitution, was a short-lived state which controlled, ''de jure'', the territory of the former Russian Empire after its proclamation by the Rus ...

as the Caucasus Front, although this Front contained many of the same units and continued fighting in the same theater. This Front in turn dissolved and formally ceased to exist in March 1918.

Area

After a series of changes in 1866, 1868, 1878, 1881, 1883, 1898 and 1899, by 1914 the area of the District included seven provinces (Stavropol, Tiflis, Kutaisi, Elisavetpol, Baku, Erevan and the Black Sea) and five regions (Kuban, Terek, Dagestan, Kars and Batumi) - a total of 12 administrative divisions, of which three were in the north and nine in the Caucasus, these nine forming the Caucasian Viceroyality of which the Commander in Chief of the district was viceroy.

Composition of forces

* I Caucasus Army Corps * II Caucasus Army Corps * III Caucasus Army Corps *Fortress of

Alexandropol Gyumri ( hy, Գյումրի, ) is an urban municipal community and the second-largest city in Armenia, serving as the administrative center of Shirak Province in the northwestern part of the country. By the end of the 19th century, when the city w ...

*Fortress of

Kars Kars (; ku, Qers; ) is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province. Its population is 73,836 in 2011. Kars was in the ancient region known as ''Chorzene'', (in Greek Χορζηνή) in classical historiography (Strabo), part of ...

*Fortress of St. Michael's (

Batumi Batumi (; ka, ბათუმი ) is the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), second largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia and the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, located on the coast of the Black Sea in Georgia's ...

)

Commanders of the Caucasus Military District

* Adjutant General, General of Artillery, and (from April 16, 1878) Field Marshal Grand Duke Mikhail Nikolayevich: 1865 - July 14, 1881 *Adjutant General and General of Cavalry Prince Alexander Mikhailovich Dondukov-Korsakov: January 1, 1882 - June 3, 1890 *Adjutant General and Lieutenant General Sergey Sheremetev: June 3, 1890 - December 12, 1896 *Adjutant General and General of Infantry Prince

Grigory Golitsyn Prince Grigory Sergeyevich Golitsyn (russian: Григорий Серге́евич Голицын; 20 December 1838 – 28 March 1907) was a Russian general and statesman from the princely Golitsyn family. Biography Born on 20 December 1838 (1 ...

: December 12, 1896 - January 1, 1905 *Lieutenant General James D. Malama: January 1, 1905 - February 21, 1905 *Adjutant General and General of Cavalry Count

Illarion Vorontsov-Dashkov Count Illarion Ivanovich Vorontsov-Dashkov (russian: Илларио́н Ива́нович Воронцов-Дашков; 27 May 1837 – 15 January 1916) was a notable representative of the Vorontsov family. He served as Minister of Imperial Pro ...

: February 27, 1905 - August 30, 1914 *Adjutant General and General of Cavalry Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich: August 30, 1914 - February 3, 1917 *General of Infantry Alexander

Alexander Myshlayevsky Alexander Zakharevich Myshlayevsky (1856–1920) was a Russian general during World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the ...

: March 7, 1917 - June 2, 1917

External links

History of the Russian Imperial Army and its military forces
Military districts of the Russian Empire Modern history of Georgia (country) History of the Caucasus under the Russian Empire Modern history of Azerbaijan Modern history of Armenia 1865 establishments in the Russian Empire {{Georgia-hist-stub