The Consequences of the First World War for Georgia

Abstract

The paper discusses the international political situation created after the First World War and the struggle of the small Caucasian country - Georgia for state independence. Coming out of the research, the paper draws conclusions: although during the First World War none of the opposing blocs was interested in the fate of small nations, these nations created or restored statehood as a result of this war and created future prospects for establishing themselves in the world international system. The restoration of Georgia's statehood and the establishment of the first democratic type of state were caused by the political processes during the First World War. Although the Democratic Republic of Georgia was defeated on February 25, 1921, in the struggle against the Soviet occupation, Georgia continued to exist as a republic with limited „sovereignty“ within the Soviet Union. Today's Georgian state with republican governance is historically based on the fundament of the Georgian SSR, or „Second Republic“, part of the Soviet Union, which in turn is based on the Democratic Republic of Georgia, or „First Republic“. Although these republics are qualitatively different countries, they laid the foundation for each other's existence. A kind of justification for this is the Declaration of Independence of Georgia adopted on April 9, 1991, which legally, on the basis of the March 31, 1991 referendum, is based on the Declaration of Independence of May 26, 1918.