Date of Award
5-2025
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.A.
Degree Program
History
Department
History
Major Professor
Marc Landry
Second Advisor
Alan Millett
Third Advisor
Gunter Bischof
Abstract
In June 1918, five months before the First World War ended, the German Army sent an expeditionary force led by Bavarian Colonel Friedrich Freiherr Kress von Kressenstein to Georgia. This was the last of a series of movements during the first half of 1918 which expanded Germany’s sphere of influence into the former Russian Empire. While a good deal has been written on the decision to send an expedition to Georgia, few authors have looked at what German forces actually did while in the Caucasus. This thesis looks at three under-researched aspects of the expedition: the military activity of the occupation forces, the effort to raise a Georgian Army, and the development of economic relations between Germany and Georgia during this period. In doing so it adds to the historiography of this often-overlooked topic while forming a basis for further research.
Recommended Citation
Bonaventure, Harrison, "Blood and Manganese: The German Occupation of Georgia in 1918" (2025). University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations. 3327.
https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/3327
Included in
Diplomatic History Commons, European History Commons, Military History Commons, Political History Commons
Rights
The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this dissertation or thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis or dissertation.