Following the February Revolution, nationalist sentiment began to foment within Bashkiria, leading to the creation of the Bashkir Regional Bureau [ru] in June 1917.

Subsequently, in July and August 1917, the first and second All-Bashkir Qoroltays [ru] were held in Orenburg and Ufa, respectively, where a consensus was reached to create a "democratic republic on a national-territorial basis as part of federal Russia.

[6] In the village of Yelpachikha, a local Bashkir council was formed, only for its members to be killed by Bolshevik forces shortly after its establishment.

"[7] Following the capture of Orenburg by the Red Army, the Central Shuro at first chose to work with the Bolsheviks, declaring neutrality in the Russian Civil War, and adopted its own constitution, the Regulations of Autonomous Lesser Bashkiria [ru], which declared, among other things, the status of the Bashkir language as the sole official language.

Following the arrests of several government members by the Bolsheviks, a group of Bashkir youth from the Tulqyn [ru] formed their own government body, the Provisional Revolutionary Council of Bashkiria [ru], submitted a resolution "On the Autonomy of Bashkiria", and submitted it to the People's Commissariat for Nationalities for approval.

Independent Bashkir regiments had begun clashing with the Red Army, and two members of the government (Gabdulla Idebayev and Gimran Magazov) were executed by the Bolsheviks.

[11] On 1 June 1918, a letter, titled "Appeal of the Bashkir government to the people", was published, calling for armed resistance to the Red Army.

In a subsequent meeting in Samara, which also included Central Asian governments, it was decided to establish a Federation of Southeastern Muslim Regions, as part of a "Union of Eastern Russia" including Central Asia, the Alash Autonomy, Bashkiria, Siberia, Komuch, and the Orenburg and Ural Cossacks.

However, subsequent moves by Alexander Kolchak, including the forcible dissolution of the Bashkir Army and the transfer of its units to the Orenburg Cossacks, obliged the government of Bashkiria to engage in negotiates with Bolshevik forces.

A 16 February 1919 resolution by the Central Shuro affirmed the willingness of the government to work with the Bolsheviks, furthermore declaring war on the Russian State, the Orenburg Cossacks, and "all world imperialists.

the representative kurultai decided to approve autonomy within the borders of Little Bashkiria, and 9 cantons were created on its territory instead of counties — Burzyan-Tangaurovsky, Jitirovsky, Baryn-Tabynsky, Ichkin-Kataysky, Kipchak, Kuvakan, Tamyan-Kataysky, Tok-Churansky, Usergansky, which were divided into 75 volosts[57][58].