Battle of Choloki (1918)

Battle of Choloki
Part of Caucasus campaign
Georgian soldiers standing next to the Armored train, 1918 Choloki.
Date 8 April 1918 Location Choloki Result Transcaucasian victory
Belligerents
Transcaucasian Commissariat	Ottoman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Giorgi Mazniashvili	Wehib Pasha
Strength
400 People's Guards armored train with 90 soldiers 4 machine guns 6 artillery pieces	7,000 soldiers
Casualties and losses
4 dead 25 wounded	80 dead 600 wounded 2 prisoners 20 guns

The Battle of Choloki was a battle between the Ottoman Empire and Transcaucasian troops on the Caucasian front of the World War I.

On March 3, 1918, between Soviet Russia and Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottomans and Bulgaria, the Brest-Litovsk Armistice Agreement was signed, according to which Russia withdrew from the World War I. According to the truce, Russia had to give Batumi and Kars districts to the Ottoman Empire. At that time Transcaucasia was actually independent from the RSFSR and was governed by Transcaucasia Seim and Transcaucasia Commissariat, although it had not declared independence. The Ottoman Empire demanded the surrender of the territories belonging to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk from the Transcaucasian government as well. The Seim tried to solve the problem with Ottomans through diplomatic means. For this purpose, the Trebizond Peace Conference was started on March 12, 1918. The negotiation did not have a positive result. In parallel with the negotiations, the Ottoman army started military operations to occupy the disputed territories.

In March, the 9th, 6th and 3rd Ottoman armies under the command of Mehmed Vehib Pasha attacked the Caucasus. On March 31, 1918, the Ottomans captured Batumi.^[1] The 4th Infantry Legion (Commander Tsereteli) stationed in the city fled to Ozurgeti, and the 2nd Infantry Legion (Commander Colonel Karalashvili) fled to Chakvi. The Chairman of the National Council of Georgia, Noe Zhordania, instructed Giorgi Mazniashvili to immediately go to Natanebi Station and prevent the Ottomans from advancing to the Choloki River here. Mazniashvili took over as chief of staff on April 1.

On April 2, Mazniashvili sent an armored train to Chakvi to relieve the besieged 2nd infantry legion, which was cut off by the Ottomans and was awaiting capture. Ottoman infantry was fortified east of Kobuleti, along the railway, and a thousand of their cavalry were stationed at Chakvi station. Armored personnel arrived at Chakvi station at 9 o'clock in the morning and destroyed the Ottomans entrenched at the station with machine gun fire. Karalashvili's legion took advantage of this and retreated with few casualties. This legion, which consisted of 500 soldiers, was demoralized and Mazniashvli sent it to Lanchkhuti, in reserve, which was to be filled with volunteers gathered by Isidore Ramishvili. Mazniashvili divided the 4th infantry legion into four thousand units and distributed them in Likhauri, Shemokmedi, Vashnari and Ozurgeti. At the Supsa station there was a horse battery under the command of Poruchiki Karaev. Mazniashvili had 4 machine guns, 6 buglers, an armored train with 90 soldiers and 400 National Guardsmen at his disposal.

The front line started from the port of Shekvetili and continued to the village of Shemokmedi. It was bordered by the Black Sea on the right, and the Adjara-Guria mountains on the left. Along the entire length, from the sea to Ozurgeti, the banks of the Choloki and Natanebi rivers were almost impassable for the army. Only locals who knew the paths could go there. This section had only two exits: Railway bridges over Natanebi and Choloki and cart-road through Likhauri to Ozurgeti. Mazniashvili started filling the army with local volunteers. Isidore Ramishvili helped him in this. In the countryside, almost everyone had a gun, and a few rifles were needed for distribution.

On April 3, an armored train derailed south of Choloki. The road was spoiled by the righteous. During the attack on the track, the Georgian side was opened fire at, to which the advanced detachment of Georgian scouts responded with fire too, killing two of the enemy and capturing several guns.^[2] On April 4, the Ottomans captured Kobuleti.^[3] including one officer and wounded several others. The Ottomans then retreated.^[4] Noe Zhordania, Irakli Tsereteli, Vlasa Mgeladze and others came to encourage the fighters in Natanebi and spoke words. On April 5, at eight o'clock in the evening, the Georgian side received intelligence that a relatively small part of the Ottoman Gallipoli 2nd Division was moving towards Ozurgeti with cart-road and a larger part, 7,000 soldiers, along the railway towards Natanebi. The Ottomans laid a barricade on the railway bridge of the Ochkhamuri river, which confirmed that they were going to launch the main attack from the side of the Natanebi. By blockading the railway, they hoped to leave the Georgian armored train inoperable. Mazniashvili built a railway from Choloki bridge into the forest in one day. In the evening of April 6, the Ottomans opened artillery fire.

On April 8, the Ottoman army passed Ochkhamuri, but did not go through the valley and took refuge in the forest between Ochkhamuri and Choloki. Mazniashvili ordered the armored train to retreat. The armored personnel carrier was supposed to be in the rearguard, but then he shared the plan of Vladimir Goguadze, the head of the armored personnel carrier: to break into the enemy's positions and conduct a battle. The battle began at five o'clock in the morning on April 7. An armored train broke into the ranks of the enemy. But the Georgian side did not open fire either from the train or from the trenches, because it had received such an order. Only the artillery, which was handed over to Kargaretli, opened fire on the opponent.

When the Ottomans approached the train, The Georgians opened fire from the train as well as from trenches. The Ottoman soldiers found in the open field were killed in large numbers. At 11 o'clock, after six hours into the battle, an Ottoman dragster hit the armored car and threw the first car of the train off the tracks, and another attack was made on the armored car by a new thousand from the west. Goguadze had run out of hope and pressed the button with which the armored personnel carrier was supposed to explode, the enemy would only be left with iron fragments, but the wire leading from the remote control to the mine was broken and the mine did not come into action. In the meantime, Akaki Urushadze, who was sent to ask for additional help, came to Mazniashvili and a 400-man detachment of the Gori Guard joined the battle. The Ottomans finally broke and began to retreat. The Georgians came out of the trenches and reached the fleeing enemy to the bridge of Ochkhamuri before 4 o'clock in the day.

The Ottoman army retreated 4 kilometers. In the battle, 3 people were killed and 25 wounded on the Georgian side.^[5] On the side of the Ottomans, according to Mazniashvili's estimate, up to 500 people were killed, and according to other Georgian military leaders, up to 1000 people were killed. According to Dr. Vakhtang Gambashidze, the Ottomans were transporting 600 wounded soldiers to Batumi. According to "Georgia" newspaper, 80 were killed on the Ottoman side, 2 soldiers were captured. Georgians captured 20 rifles.^[6]

Many locals showed heroism in the battle: Aleksandre Gorgoshidze and Porfile Gorgoshidze were awarded the George Cross for their heroism in battle; Heroism was shown by the chief conductor Simon Skamkochaishvili, according to the story, the soldier Bolkvadze, who went on reconnaissance, was suddenly attacked by a group of Ottoman soldiers, killed 4 and took 4 prisoners. On April 13, 1918, Vladimir Goguadze became the first Georgian to receive the title of national hero.

The success achieved at the Choloki bridge was overshadowed by other units of the Georgian army. A small army of Ottomans (one brigade with artillery) marched towards Ozurgeti, a thousand people camped in Likhauri did not resist, left their positions and retreated towards the city. This caused a panic, the army and state institutions left Ozurgeti and began to retreat towards Chokhatauri and the Ottomans freely occupied the abandoned city. In addition to Ozurgeti, the Ottomans took Chanieti, Likhauri, Makvaneti, Tsilimta, part of Melekeduri, and advanced in the direction of Vashnari. They attacked Shekari from Gakiruli, but they could not enter Shekari due to the resistance of the population. Mazniashvili managed to place the reserve army in Lanchkhuti at the Nasakiral pass and block the Chokhatauri road. On April 11, Mazniashvila tried to attack Ozurgeti and the Battle of Vashnari took place, but in the end the military actions were stopped by German diplomatic intervention and a temporary truce. The Ottomans left Ozurgeti according to the terms of the truce on June 7.

• Sharadze, G., "Return", Vol. III, Tbilisi: "Science", 1992. — p. 438-446.

• Mazniashvili, G., "Memories: 1917-1925", Tbilisi: State Publishing House, 1927. — p. 22-57.