Azerbaijan

A majority Moslem population dominated by Central Asian Tartars. They were excluded from mandatory military service in the Ottoman Empire, so their military aptitude and the manpower pool of military veterans was viewed as weak at best.

Dasnaks

Armenian members of the ‘Armenian Revolutionary Federation’. Often considered pro-Russian. They provided much of the manpower for volunteer groups both in the Armenian region or serving with the armies of other nations. Their volunteer units often flew solid colored banners with the party name on the top half and the phrase ‘Freedom or Death’ on the bottom half. A center device was often used.

France

During World War One, numerous Armenians joined the expanded French Foreign Legion. After World War One and during the French occupation of Anatolia, the Armenians comprised four battalions of troops and were a significant portion of the French occupation army. The French commander was a noted ‘Turk hater’ whose policies reflected his attitude.

Georgia

A small Christian nation adjacent to the Armenia. Armenians claimed some of their territory in their ‘Greater Armenia’ proclamations. For centuries they had been a rival of the Armenians. In the late 1800s, Georgia had included a large German ethnic group from Wurtemburg in their population base. This made them very pro-German. Later they formed the ‘Menshevist’ Socialist government and were pro-Bolshevik.

Great Britain

They had troops in the region dominated by the Georgians and Armenians in 1918-19. Because of the Georgian’s pro-German and later pro-Bolshevik attitude and the Azerbaijan’s Moslem background, the British heavily favored Armenian positions. When they evacuated the Trans-Caucasus region, they left their modern military equipment including artillery, armored cars and aircraft in the hands of the Armenians.

Hunchaks

An Armenian party with Marxist views called the Hunchakian Revolutionary Party. They fielded small volunteer units in the Tsarist Russian Army, later the Russian Bolshevik forces and in Armenia.

Kurds

A Moslem population who are ethnically different than the dominant Turks. They composed a significant portion of the Turkish forces employed in the Trans-Caucasus region. As such, they were viewed as being mortal enemies of the Armenians.

Ottoman Turks

The Turks were Moslems but many of their subjects were either non-Turk Moslems or non-Moslems. The Ottoman Turks were known for having many nationalities in their military units. During the immediate post war era, the Turkish army had to fight the Greeks, the French, the Armenians, the Georgians and various Russian factions. The Ottoman Army fought these opponents while it was fractionalized with units supporting various Generals. Many of these factions were united under Kermal Ataturk.

Turmoil of the War That Would Not End Part Two: The Trans-Caucasus 1918-1921

Introduction
Trans-Caucasus Players
Notes on Military Forces and Uniforms
Summary of Events and Significant Battles
Event Chronology 1905-1921
The French–Armenian War-Time Connection