110
In early June, the first group appeared to be in a stronger position than the
others. Having securing Transcaucasus, the British established a demarcation line,
which left the North Caucasus to Denikin and his collaborators, and issued a
statement to the population in which they labelled any kind of anti-Denikin
movement as Bolshevik. This step provoked reaction and hostilities against
Denikin, and against the British.
300
But, because of the military might of Denikin
they managed to keep their authority in the region.
The most popular and powerful group of the other three groups was the
religious one led by Gotsinskiy and Uzun Haji
301
. Following the arrival of the
Denikin and the collapse of the Mountaineer Republic Uzun Haji continued his
struggle and declared a theocratic state, the North Caucasian Emirate in Upper
Chechnya, modelled on Shamil’s state. Although initially he had co-operated with
Bolshevik forces against Denikin, he in fact hated all Russians indiscriminately,
and treated them all as enemies. Moreover, because of his co-operation with
Denikin, he wrote to Mikail Halilov that whoever symphatised with the Cossacks
would be eternally damned and would fall under the ‘rage of God’.
302
Nevertheless,
Uzun Haji died in March 1920, and Gotsinskiy took over and developed the
military might into the strongest of the four factions.
300
Denikin, Ocherki, Vol.IV, 135.
301
Uzun Haji, (1848-1920). He was born in the village of Salty in Dagestan. He took a religious
education and opened his own religious school in Salty in 1882. Because of his anti-tsarist activities
and struggle for liberation exiled to the Siberia, to stay in a labour camp in 1892. Then, by the help
of the Muslim merchants of Astrakhan he retuned and stayed in Astrakhan until the February
Revolution.
302
Takho-Godi, 110-111.
111
The nationalist groups of the time were forced to leave the North Caucasus.
While some of them were trying to establish contacts and find help in European
capitals, others stayed in Baku and Tiflis, the nearest place to the North Caucasus,
and searched for the ways of establishing contact with the other Caucasian
republics in order to survive the struggle of independence. Nevertheless, they lost
their ‘authority and power’ over the peoples of the North Caucasus and waiting for
the initiative of any kind of a rebellious movement.
Among these four groups, the Bolsheviks used the situation most skilfully
and agitated the hostility of religious groups against the Volunteer Army.
Meanwhile, because of Denikin’s supremacy, the leadership cadre was forced to
leave the region for Baku and organized the North Caucasian ‘socialist group’
there. In autumn, this group attempted to set up a comprehensive anti-Denikin
organization and Celâl Korkmazov established contacts with the ‘nationalist’
leaders Haydar Bammat and Ali Khan Kantemir, and managed to conclude an
agreement, in which the establishment of a ‘North Caucasian Defense Council’
303
was proposed.
The agreement aimed to embrace all components of the North Caucasus
against Denikin. This Council was given the duty of organizing military activity
against the occupying forces first and then, after defeating the enemy, would be the
core of the possible national government. In order to obtain the participation of
religious groups into the Council, Celâl Korkmazov and Ali Khan Kantemir
303
For the Defense Council see Bammat, “Revolution,” 18-9, Kosok, “Revolution and Sovietization
II,” 53. Some other names like Ahmet Tsalikhov and Nuri Pasha were also took active parts in this
Council.
112
travelled to Lavasha, the base of Ali Haji and convinced him to act together with
the other groups against Denikin.
Thanks to this umbrella organization, the anti-Denikin front in the region
was strengthened. Actually almost from the beginning the Bolsheviks dominated
the Council and exploited this situation successfully. Moreover, in order to control
the whole region, they established the Bureau for Establishing the Soviet
Domination in the North Caucasus. This consisted of Ordzhonikidze, Kirov,
Stopani, Mdivani and Nerimanov, and was directed centrally. As a result of the
activities of this Council and the increasing Bolshevik military presence, Denikin
was forced to leave the region in February 1920 and in March the remainder of the
troops under his command were evacuated to the Crimea with extensive allied
assistance. The Bolsheviks or the Red Army gained control of the region without
any difficulty. Revolutionary committees controlled by the Bolsheviks quickly
spread over the territory, even into villages. “Formed rapidly on the ground, they
were the initial military, political authorities in the North Caucasus.”
304
The next step for the Bolsheviks was the liquidation of the Defence
Council. At first, Council had moved to Petrovsk and on 11 April 1919, by the vote
of Bolshevik members, was dissolved itself and turned into the Revolutionary
Committee of the whole Caucasus. The non-Bolshevik members of the Council
were dismissed and executed. The troops loyal to the Council were disbanded and
the Bolshevik policies of divide-and-rule for controlling the region were initiated.
304
Blank,15.
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