The territory of the uezd roughly corresponded to the defunct Nakhichevan Khanate and was the site of large-scale Armenian repatriation from Iran, which was across the Aras river to the south.

[5] On 3 March 1918, in accordance with the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk the Russian SFSR ceded the Kars and Batum oblasts to the Ottoman Empire who had been unreconciled with its loss of those territories (which they referred to as Elviye-i Selase [tr]) since 1878.

Despite the resistance of the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic which had initially rejected the Brest-Litovsk treaty, the Ottoman Third Army was successful in occupying the oblasts, and going on to expand into the western districts of the Erivan and Tiflis governorates, including the Nakhichevan uezd.

On 26 January 1919, the governorship was confirmed by the British military headquarters based in Tiflis (present-day Tbilisi) as a means to prevent ethnic clashes between Armenian soldiers and local Muslims of up to "ten thousand well-armed men".

[9][10] Armenia's formal annexation of Nakhichevan was officially declared on 3 May 1919, after which Armenian forces commanded by Drastamat Kanayan and accompanied by British representative General K. M. Davie advanced southward into the district along the railway.

When the force had reached Davalu (present-day Ararat), Thomson ordered them to stop, believing that Armenia was encouraging the defiance of Zangezur in refusing to submit to British–Azerbaijani authority in a "severe breach of faith".

[11] Despite the apparent defeat of the Ottoman Empire, agents of the Turkish National Movement were reported to be fostering rebellion amongst the Muslims of Nakhichevan, eventually culminating in a large-scale anti-Armenian uprising in July 1919.

Some 6,000 Armenians from Nakhichevan living in the Ararat Valley managed to escape to Daralayaz, Nor Bayazet, and Zangezur (present-day Vayots Dzor, Gegharkunik and Syunik provinces, respectively).

[15] Some months after the Sovietization of Azerbaijan on 18 June 1920, Armenia issued an ultimatum to the rebels of Zangibasar (present-day Masis) some 15 kilometers southwest of Yerevan to submit to Armenian rule.

In the fight for Zangibasar, Lieutenant Aram Kajaznuni, the son of the first prime minister of Armenia was killed, however, the Armenians won the battle on 21 June,[16] with the local Muslims consisting mainly of Tatars[c] fleeing to Aralikh (present-day Aralık) in the neighbouring Surmalu uezd to avoid retribution.

On 14 July, the Armenian advance continued through Volchi vorota into the Sharur district, capturing it 2 days later whilst the locals fled across the Aras river into Iran.