Wikipedia:Today's featured article/November 13, 2021
The Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic (TDFR) was a short-lived state in the Caucasus that included most of the territory of present-day Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, and parts of Russia and Turkey. The region was part of the Russian Empire, but as this dissolved in 1917 with the February and October Revolutions the Transcaucasian Commissariat took over in Transcaucasia. In March 1918, as the First World War continued, the Commissariat initiated unsuccessful peace talks with the Ottoman Empire, which had invaded the region. Russia withdrew from the war later that month, conceding parts of the Transcaucasus to the Ottomans. Faced with an Ottoman offensive, on 22 April 1918 the Commissariat dissolved itself and established the TDFR. Akaki Chkhenkeli (pictured) served as both prime minister and foreign affairs minister. The Ottoman Empire immediately recognized the TDFR, which directed its legislature, the Seim, to hold peace talks. These broke down and, fearing fresh Ottoman attacks, Georgian delegates in the Seim declared independence on 26 May. Armenia and Azerbaijan each declared themselves independent on 28 May, ending the federation. (Full article...)