Azerbaijani Special Corps (ASC; ), was a

military unit Military organization or military organisation is the structuring of the armed forces of a state so as to offer such military capability as a national defense policy may require. In some countries paramilitary forces are included in a nation' ...

of the Azerbaijani Democratic Republic (ADR), formed from the basis of

Caucasian Native Cavalry Division The Caucasian Native Cavalry Division (russian: Кавказская туземная конная дивизия), or "Savage Division" (russian: Дикая дивизия) was a cavalry division of the Imperial Russian Army. Formed on 23 August ...

, or so-called "Savage Division". It was the first military unit of ADR's National Army, consisting of 5,000 men who served in the

Russian Imperial Army The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...

History

, formed in 1917 was the military force of the

Transcaucasian Commissariat The Transcaucasian Commissariat was established at Tbilisi on 11 November 1917, as the first government of the independent Transcaucasia following the October Revolution in Petrograd. The Commissariat decided to strengthen the Georgian–Armenian� ...

. On 26 June 1918 government of the Azerbaijani Democratic Republic (ADR) established the Azerbaijani Special Corps, or ASC. This military unit consisted of 5,000 men who served in the

Savage Division The Caucasian Native Cavalry Division (russian: Кавказская туземная конная дивизия), or "Savage Division" (russian: Дикая дивизия) was a cavalry division of the Imperial Russian Army. Formed on 23 August ...

. Coat of arms of the ASC was a silver-colored, eight-pointed star and a crescent. Reconstruction the corps soon followed. The documents indicate that the commander-ship of the ASC was abolished. Under the order of the

Islamic Army of the Caucasus The Islamic Army of the Caucasus ( az, Qafqaz İslam Ordusu; Turkish: ''Kafkas İslâm Ordusu'') (also translated as ''Caucasian Army of Islam'' in some sources) was a military unit of the Ottoman Empire formed on July 10, 1918. The Ottoman Min ...

, signed on 13 August, ASC must have no commander in charge, and its divisions must be subordinated to the Islamic Army of the Caucasus. With the abolition of the commander-ship, high ranking officers of ASC were also dismissed. On September 2, 1918, the ASC was reestablished and lieutenant Ali-Agha Shikhlinsky became the commander of the corps, while colonel Habib Bey Salimov became the chief of staff. Initially, there were two infantry divisions within the ASC. The commander of the 1st Infantry Division was Colonel Cemil Cahit Bey, while the commander of the 2nd Infantry Division was Nazım Bey, both Ottoman officers. Each division consisted of three infantry regiments. In October 1918, the division consisted of three cavalry, one border, and one infantry regiment. The existence of the ASC was formalized after the restoration of the

Ministry of War Ministry of War may refer to: * Ministry of War (imperial China) (c.600–1912) * Chinese Republic Ministry of War (1912–1946) * Ministry of War (Kingdom of Bavaria) (1808–1919) * Ministry of War (Brazil) (1815–1999) * Ministry of Defence (Est ...

. The commander-ship of ASC and its activities were concentrated in the hands of the Ministry of War. On November 15, 1918, ASC's Chief of General Staff Habib Bey Salimov was appointed chief of staff of ADR's National Army. on December 29, 1918, Ali-Agha Shikhlinsky was appointed deputy minister of the Ministry of War. Many of the high-ranking officers of ASC were assigned to new posts. Azerbaijani Corps was abolished on January 2, 1919, with the decision of the Parliament of Azerbaijan Democratic Republic.

History

References

Further reading