History of the Caucasus

Nazi Germany attempted to capture the Caucasus region of Soviet Union in 1942 by a two-pronged attack towards both the western bank of the Volga (intended to seize the city of Stalingrad) and southeast towards Baku, a major center of oil production.

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia became independent nations.

The Caucasus region has become the setting of territorial disputes in the post-Soviet era, which lead to the establishment of unrecognized states of Artsakh, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia.

[4] Diauehi is a possible locus of Proto-Kartvelian; it has been described as an "important tribal formation of possible proto-Georgians" by Ronald Grigor Suny (1994),[5] although other scholars have suggested that it may have been proto-Armenian (based on the etymology of the name).

[note 1] Throughout the 16th century, the Caucasus continued to serve as a battleground between Persian and Ottoman forces, with the two great powers attempting to gain control over the region.

In 1555, this culminated in the Peace of Amasya, whereby Ottoman and Persian forces agreed to establish formal spheres of influence in the region.

[10] As a result of the Treaty, the Safavid Empire (Persia) assumed control over lands East of the Surami Highlands, including the Georgian kingdoms of Kartli and Kakheti.

In 1801, a few years after the assassination of Agha Mohammad Khan, capitalizing on the eruption of instability in Iran, the Russians annexed eastern Georgia (Kartli-Kakheti).