Democratic Republic of Georgia

Initially, DRG was a protectorate of the German Empire. However, after the German defeat in World War I, the country was partially occupied by British troops, who were sent there to counter a proposed Bolshevik invasion. The British had to leave in 1920 because of the Treaty of Moscow, in which Russia recognized Georgia's independence in exchange for DRG not hosting forces hostile to Russia's interests.^[1] Now that Western European powers were no longer present in Georgia, in February 1921 the Bolshevik Red Army proceeded to invade the country, leading to DRG's defeat and collapse by March of that year, with Georgia becoming a Soviet republic. The Georgian Government, led by Prime Minister Noe Zhordania, moved to France where it continued to work in exile. The government-in-exile was recognized by France, Britain, Belgium, and Poland as the only legitimate government of Georgia until the 1930s, when growing Soviet power and political processes in Europe made it impractical to do so indefinitely.^[2]


Although short-lived, DRG continues to be an inspiration for modern day Georgia due to its legacy of democracy and pluralism.^[3] DRG was one of the first countries in Europe to grant women the right to vote as enshrined in the Georgian constitution, which was "unusual in most European constitutions at the time".^[4] Several women of varying backgrounds were elected to the Georgian parliament,^[5] as were representatives of nine ethnicities, including Germans, Russians, Armenians, Azerbaijanis, and Jews.^[6] DRG also saw the founding of Georgia's first fully fledged university, thereby realizing a longstanding goal cherished by generations of Georgian intellectuals whose efforts were, up to that point, consistently frustrated by the Imperial Russian authorities.^[7]

Demographics[edit]

Forming principally on the territories of the Tiflis and Kutais governorates, as well as the Batum Oblast and Sukhumi Okrug, the Georgian Democratic Republic following the Treaty of Batum consisted of 1,607,000 Georgians, 535,000 Armenians, 200,000 Muslims, and 510,000 others, totalling 2,852,000 inhabitants.^[24]


By 1921, following the fall of the Armenian and Azerbaijani republics and Georgia's reacquisition of the Lori and Zakatal districts, the population reached 2,677,000 according to a Soviet source, with an urban population of 475,000 (17.7%). This is supported by the results of the 1926 Soviet census in Georgia some 5 years later which indicated a population of 2,667,000, indicative of the loss of the aforementioned Lori and Zakatal districts to neighbouring Armenia and Azerbaijan respectively.^[25]

Economy[edit]

When the DRG was proclaimed, the Georgian economy was not in a strong position. While economic issues were a Europe-wide issue in 1918 (owing to the First World War), as a new state Georgia faced considerably more difficulties.^[30] There were two main issues immediately facing Georgia: economic dependence on Russia, and the need to industralise a largely agrarian society.^[31] Further causing issues was a lack of direction from the Georgian government, which also tried to implement a socialist-based policy into economic matters, despite lacking the financial backing to keep the economy stable.^[32]


As part of the Russian Empire Georgia had been partially industrialised, with natural resource extraction becoming a major feature of exports from the region. However, as historian Stephen F. Jones has noted, imperial Russian policies served the metropolitan needs and imperial integration and there was no regional "strategy of economic development beyond state production of raw materials, the development of transport, military supplies and specialized crops such as tea, tobacco, and cotton."^[31] This was also seen on an ethnic scale: the overwhelming amount of traders and business-owners in Georgia were ethnic Armenian, while the administration was composed largely of ethnic Russians. Ethnic Georgians mainly remained in agriculture or took up unskilled labour positions in the cities. This division of labour between ethnic groups proved difficult to reconcile once the DRG was established, and in the aftermath of the Georgian–Armenian War in December 1918 anti-Armenian sentiment throughout Georgia made the Armenian-dominated business class reluctant to help implement needed changes to improve the economy.^[33]


Agriculture had been the dominant feature of the Georgian economy, and would remain as such throughout the existence of the DRG. Approximately 79% of the population worked on the land, though the methods used were outdated and far from efficient. This caused food shortages in the cities, and despite 81% of all arable land being used for grains, imports were also required, as was a ban on exporting food products like grain, fruits and vegetables.^[34]


The manganese industry at Chiatura was of great importance to European metallurgy, providing about 70% of the world supply of manganese in the early 20th century. Traditionally, Georgia served also as an international transportation corridor through the key Black Sea ports of Batumi and Poti.^[31] However the First World War had a devastating effect on this industry as well. The Black Sea had been blockaded throughout the war, severely limiting the amount of exports. This led to a drastic reduction in economic activity in Georgia: the workforce at Chiatura dropped from 3,500 in 1913 to 250 in 1919, with the numbers only starting to rise in 1920. Emerging markets in Brazil and India also meant that the Chiatura mines were less important on a global scale, further weakening their output.^[35]


The lack of international recognition and the government's only partially successful policy in the field hindered the economic development of the DRG and the country suffered an economic crisis. Some signs of improvement were observed towards 1920–1921.