The Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus (MRNC), also referred to as the United Republics of the North Caucasus, Mountain Republic, or the Republic of the Mountaineers, was a

transcontinental Transcontinental may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Transcontinental", a song by the band Pedro the Lion from the album ''Achilles Heel'' * TC Transcontinental, a publishing, media and marketing company based in Canada, a subsidiary ...

state in

Eurasia Eurasia ( , ) is a continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. According to some geographers, Physical geography, physiographically, Eurasia is a single supercontinent. The concept of Europe and Asia as distinct continents d ...

. It encompassed the entirety of the

North Caucasus The North Caucasus, or Ciscaucasia, is a subregion in Eastern Europe governed by Russia. It constitutes the northern part of the wider Caucasus region, which separates Europe and Asia. The North Caucasus is bordered by the Sea of Azov and the B ...

and emerged during the

Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...

and existed from 1918 to 1919. It formed as a consolidation of various North Caucasian ethnic groups, including the

Abazins The Abazin, Abazinians or Abaza ( Abaza and Abkhaz: Абаза; Circassian: Абазэхэр; ; ; ) are an ethnic group of the Northwest Caucasus, closely related to the Abkhaz and Circassian peoples. Today, as a result of atrocities committ ...

Circassians The Circassians or Circassian people, also called Cherkess or Adyghe (Adyghe language, Adyghe and ), are a Northwest Caucasian languages, Northwest Caucasian ethnic group and nation who originated in Circassia, a region and former country in t ...

Chechens The Chechens ( ; , , Old Chechen: Нахчой, ''Naxçoy''), historically also known as ''Kistin, Kisti'' and ''Durdzuks'', are a Northeast Caucasian languages, Northeast Caucasian ethnic group of the Nakh peoples native to the North Caucasus. ...

Karachays The Karachays or Karachais ( or ) are a North Caucasian- Turkic ethnic group primarily located in their ancestral lands in Karachay–Cherkess Republic, a republic of Russia in the North Caucasus. They and the Balkars share a common orig ...

Ossetians The Ossetians ( or ; ),Merriam-Webster (2021), s.v"Ossete" also known as Ossetes ( ), Ossets ( ), and Alans ( ), are an Iranian peoples, Iranian ethnic group who are indigenous to Ossetia, a region situated across the northern and southern side ...

Balkars Balkars ( or аланла, romanized: alanla or таулула, , 'mountaineers') are a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group in the North Caucasus region, one of the titular nation, titular populations of Kabardino-Balkaria. Their Karachay-B ...

Ingush Ingush may refer to: * Ingush language, Northeast Caucasian language * Ingush people, an ethnic group of the North Caucasus See also *Ingushetia (disambiguation) Ingushetia is a federal republic and subject of Russia. Ingushetia may also refer ...

Mountain Jews Mountain Jews are the Mizrahi Jews, Mizrahi Jewish subgroup of the eastern and northern Caucasus, mainly Azerbaijan, and various republics in the Russian Federation: Chechnya, Ingushetia, Dagestan, Karachay-Cherkessia, and Kabardino-Balkaria. M ...

, and

Dagestan Dagestan ( ; ; ), officially the Republic of Dagestan, is a republic of Russia situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, along the Caspian Sea. It is located north of the Greater Caucasus, and is a part of the North Caucasian Fede ...

is. The MRNC encompassed the former territories of

Terek Oblast The Terek Oblast was a province (''oblast'') of the Caucasus Viceroyalty (1801–1917), Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire, roughly corresponding to the central part of Russia's North Caucasian Federal District. Тhe ''оblast'' was created ...

and

Dagestan Oblast The Dagestan ''Oblast'' was a province (''oblast'') of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire. It roughly corresponded to most of present-day southeastern Dagestan within the Russian Federation. The Dagestan ''oblast'' was created in 186 ...

within the Russian Empire. These territories now constitute the present-day republics of

Chechnya Chechnya, officially the Chechen Republic, is a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia. It is situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, between the Caspian Sea and Black Sea. The republic forms a part of the North Caucasian Federa ...

Ingushetia Ingushetia or Ingushetiya, officially the Republic of Ingushetia, is a republic of Russia located in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe. The republic is part of the North Caucasian Federal District, and shares land borders with the country o ...

North Ossetia–Alania North Ossetia–Alania (; ), officially the Republic of North Ossetia–Alania, is a republics of Russia, republic of Russia situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe. It borders the country of Georgia (country), Georgia to the south, a ...

Kabardino-Balkaria Kabardino-Balkaria (), officially the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, is a republic of Russia located in the North Caucasus. As of the 2021 Census, its population was 904,200. Its capital is Nalchik. The area contains the highest mountain in ...

, and a portion of Stavropol Krai in the

Russian Federation Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. Spanning approximately , the MRNC had a population of approximately 11.2 million. Throughout its existence, the capital of the MRNC relocated from

Vladikavkaz Vladikavkaz, formerly known as Ordzhonikidze () or Dzaudzhikau (), is the capital city of North Ossetia–Alania, Russia. It is located in the southeast of the republic at the foothills of the Caucasus, situated on the Terek (river), Terek River. ...

Nazran Nazran (; ) is the largest city in Ingushetia, Russia. It served as the republic's capital from 1991 to 2000, until it was replaced by Magas, which was built for this purpose. It is the most populous city in the republic: Etymology The name ...

and ultimately settled in Temir-Khan-Shura. The MRNC broke away from the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

after the

February Revolution The February Revolution (), known in Soviet historiography as the February Bourgeois Democratic Revolution and sometimes as the March Revolution or February Coup was the first of Russian Revolution, two revolutions which took place in Russia ...

, just before the outbreak of the

. The Russian

Volunteer Army The Volunteer Army (; ), abbreviated to (), also known as the Southern White Army was a White Army active in South Russia during the Russian Civil War from 1917 to 1920. The Volunteer Army fought against Bolsheviks and the Makhnovists on the ...

captured the state in 1919, and it ceased to exist. However, in September 1919, the

North Caucasian Emirate The North Caucasian Emirate () was a mainly Avar and Chechen Islamic state that existed in the territory of Chechnya and western Dagestan during the Russian Civil War from September 1919 to March 1920. The emirate's temporary capital was estab ...

was proclaimed as the successor of the Mountain Republic. However, in August 1920, it was captured by the

Soviet Russia The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...

, which led to an uprising. In April 1921, the

Mountain Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic The Mountain Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (; ) or Mountain ASSR () was a short-lived autonomous republic within the Russian SFSR in the Northern Caucasus that existed from 20 January 1921, to 7 July 1924. The Mountainous Republic of the ...

was established by the

Bolsheviks The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...

within the

RSFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...

, but the uprising lasted until 1925.

State formation

The Union consisted seven "states" distributed on a national basis and united under a confederative principle within the territories:

Circassia Circassia ( ), also known as Zichia, was a country and a historical region in . It spanned the western coastal portions of the North Caucasus, along the northeastern shore of the Black Sea. Circassia was conquered by the Russian Empire during ...

(including West Circassia, although the union had control only over East Circassia),

Karachay The Karachays or Karachais ( or ) are a North Caucasian- Turkic ethnic group primarily located in their ancestral lands in Karachay–Cherkess Republic, a republic of Russia in the North Caucasus. They and the Balkars share a common origi ...

- Balkaria, the Nogai steppes, and also asserted claims in

Abkhazia Abkhazia, officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a List of states with limited recognition, partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, at the intersection of Eastern Europe and West Asia. It cover ...

.«После Февральской революции 1917 г. процесс политического самоопределения привел к образованию Карачаево-Балкарского штата в составе горской республики.» (ИЭА Российской академии наук. Серия энциклопедий «Народы и культуры», «Карачаевцы. Балкарцы.» — М.: Наука, ИЭА РАН, 2014. — С. 7. — 815 с. .) The Cabinet of Ministers of the Mountain Republic comprised representatives from nearly all regions of the North Caucasus.

History

The Union of the Peoples of the Northern Caucasus was established in March 1917 and an Executive Committee was elected to oversee its operations. Abdulmajid Tapa Tchermoev was appointed as Chairman of the Executive Committee. In August 1917, the Executive Committee decided to readopt the 1847 constitution of

Imam Shamil Imam Shamil (; ; ; ; ; 26 June 1797 – 4 February 1871) was the political, military, and spiritual leader of North Caucasian resistance to Imperial Russia in the 1800s, the third Imam of the Caucasian Imamate (1840–1859), and a Sunni Muslim ...

. The independent republic was declared on 11 May 1918 at the time of the collapse of the Russian Tsarist empire during the

Russian Revolution of 1917 The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

. The new republic established a government led by Prime Minister Tchermoev, Rashid Khan Kaplanov, and Haidar Bammate.М. Вачагаев: Союз горцев Северного Кавказа и Горская республика, 2018 The capital was initially

but was later relocated to Temir-Khan-Shura after being occupied by the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

. The Republic received support from Said Shamil, the grandson of Imam Shamil, and gained international recognition from various countries. The

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

formed an alliance with Russian general

Anton Denikin Anton Ivanovich Denikin (, ; – 7 August 1947) was a Russian military leader who served as the Supreme Ruler of Russia, acting supreme ruler of the Russian State and the commander-in-chief of the White movement–aligned armed forces of Sout ...

and made efforts to reinstate Tsarist rule in the region. During the

Brest-Litovsk Brest, formerly Brest-Litovsk and Brest-on-the-Bug, is a city in south-western Belarus at the border with Poland opposite the Polish town of Terespol, where the Bug and Mukhavets rivers meet, making it a border town. It serves as the admini ...

negotiations, an effort was made to dispatch delegates to represent the Republic under Ottoman supervision. However, the Ottomans later declined this association due to an unfavorable response from the Bolsheviks. On 30 May 1918, the Bolshevik government issued a diplomatic note declaring their non-recognition of the MRNC. In March 1919, a delegation led by Tapa Tchermoeff and Ibrahim Bey Gaydarov went to Paris to participate in the

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace ...

and sought international recognition of the Republic's independence.Berzeg, Sefer E. (Mart 2003). ''Kuzey Kafkasya Cumhuriyeti 1917–1922, Kafkasya Dağlıları Birliği’nin Kuruluşu'' (I. Cilt). İstanbul : Birleşik Kafkasya Derneği. The Dagestan cavalry regiments, units within the Caucasian Native Cavalry Division, pledged their allegiance to the Mountainous Republic and Ottoman

pasha Pasha (; ; ) was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitary, dignitaries, and others. ''Pasha'' was also one of the highest titles in the 20th-century Kingdom of ...

s of Circassian descent arrived with their forces to provide assistance. An army was formed and participated in confrontations against General

. With backing from the North Caucasus Army, led by

Yusuf Izzet Pasha Yusuf Izzet Pasha (; 1876 in Yozgat – April 15, 1922, in Ankara) was an Ottoman general of Circassian origin, who served both the Ottoman Army and the Turkish Army. See also *List of high-ranking commanders of the Turkish War of Indepe ...

, the Caucasus region was captured from Soviet Russia. Following the conclusion of World War I and the withdrawal of Turkish troops, the Mountain government underwent reorganization. In late 1918, Pshemaho Kotsev was confirmed as leader of the coalition cabinet in the Mountain Congress held in Temir-Khan-Shura. Hostilities ended in January 1920 with Denikin's army defeat by the 11th Red Army. In January 1921, the Red Army occupied the Mountain Republic and established the

Soviet Mountain Republic The Mountain Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (; ) or Mountain ASSR () was a short-lived autonomous republics of the Soviet Union, autonomous republic within the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, Russian SFSR in the Northern Cauca ...

within the

Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...

Legacy

The "Congress of the Peoples of the North Caucasus", a political organization operating in the 21st century, has invoked the Mountainous Republic to advocate for the cooperation of different Northern Caucasus separatist groups in their struggle against Russia.

Prominent government figures, 1917–1919

File:Leaders of the Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus.jpg, Leaders of the MRNC, with Prime Minister

Tapa Tchermoeff Abdulmajid Tapa Tchermoev (1882 – August 28, 1937) was a North Caucasian statesman of Chechen origin, general, oil magnate and the first prime minister of the Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus. He was in office from 11 May 1918 unt ...

seated in the center of the front row. File:Tapa-chermoyev.jpg, Abdulmajid Tapa Tchermoeff, oil industrialist, first chairman of the Central Committee and first prime minister, Chechen. Died in Switzerland in 1937. File:Kaplanov Rashid-khan.jpg, Rashid Khan Kaplanov, second Chairman of the Central Committee, Minister of the Interior. Assassinated by the Bolshevik government in 1937. File:Коцев Пшемахо.jpg, Pshemakho Kotsev, second prime minister, Kabardian Circassian. Died in Istanbul in 1962. File:Haydar Bammat.jpg, Haidar Bammate, Foreign Minister, Kumyk. Died in Paris in 1965. File:Vassan-Girey Jabagiyev.jpg, Vassan-Girey Jabagiyev, Minister of Finance,

. Died in Istanbul in 1961. File:Nukh Bek Shamkhal Tarkovsky.jpg, Nukh-bek Tarkovskiy, Military Minister, Kumyk. Died in Switzerland in 1951. File:Ibrahim bey Haydarov.jpg, Ibrahim Bey Gaydarov, Minister of Posts and Telegraph, Lezgian. Died in Ankara in 1949. File:Даидбеков, Адиль-Гирей Абдул-Кадырович.jpg, alt=Adil-Gerey Daidbekov, minister of transportation, Kumyk. Died in Baku in 1946., Adil-Gerey Daidbekov, Minister of Transportation, Kumyk. Died in Baku in 1946. File:Alihan Kantemir.jpg, Alikhan Kantemir, the official representative in neighboring countries (Azerbaijan, Georgia), Muslim Ossetian. Died in Munich in 1963. File:Tadjuddin Penzulayev.jpg, alt=Tadjuddin Penzulayev, minister of justice, Kumyk. Killed by Bolsheviks in 1937. Co-author of Mikhail Bulgakov's piece "Children of Mulla"., Tadjuddin Penzulayev, Minister of Justice, Kumyk. Killed by the Bolsheviks in 1937. Co-author of

Mikhail Bulgakov Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov ( ; rus, links=no, Михаил Афанасьевич Булгаков, p=mʲɪxɐˈil ɐfɐˈnasʲjɪvʲɪdʑ bʊlˈɡakəf; – 10 March 1940) was a Russian and Soviet novelist and playwright. His novel ''The M ...

's piece "Children of Mulla".Михаил Булгаков. Фотолетопись жизни и творчества / Юрий Кривоносов. — М. : Вече, 2017. — 480 с. File:Muhiddin Penzulayev.png, alt=Muhiddin Penzulayev, minister of communications, Kumyk. Died in 1942. Brother of Tadjuddin Penzulayev., Muhiddin Penzulayev, Minister of Communications, Kumyk. Died in 1942. Brother of Tadjuddin Penzulayev.

Notes

References

Bibliography

* "Caucasian Republic Mission to the Peace Conference Appeal for Help", ''

The Morning Post ''The Morning Post'' was a conservative daily newspaper published in London from 1772 to 1937, when it was acquired by ''The Daily Telegraph''. History The paper was founded by John Bell. According to historian Robert Darnton, ''The Morning ...

'', London, Friday 4 April 1919. * J. "Obedinennyi Kavkaz" ("Vereinigtes Kaukasien"), 1–3 (30–32), München, 1954. * Baddeley, J. F., 1908, ''The Russian Conquest of the Caucasus'', Longmans, Green, and Co., London * Madeleine Henrey, ''Madeleine Grown Up'', J. M. Dent & Sons, London, 1954. * Kathleen R. Jackson, Marat Fidarov, ''Essays on the History of the North Caucasus'', HHN Media, New York, 2009. * * * Storozhenko (ed.), ''Ingushetia and Chechen Republic Map'', Northern Caucasian Aerogeodesic Company of Roskartografia, Russia, 1995. * Levan Z. Urushadze, "About the history of the question of unity of the Caucasian Peoples". J. "Amirani", XIII, Montreal‐Tbilisi, 2005, pp. 72–87. * «Союз горцев Северного Кавказа и Горская республика. История несостоявшегося государства. 1917–1920», М.М. Вачагаев, 2018 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus States and territories established in 1917 States and territories disestablished in 1922 Post–Russian Empire states History of the North Caucasus Countries and territories where Chechen is an official language Former countries of the interwar period Former countries in Europe 1917 establishments in Europe 1922 disestablishments in Europe