The Provisional National Government of the Southwestern Caucasus, also known as the Kars Islamic Council, was not only the first republic founded in Anatolia but also one of the shortest-lived states in world political history. The state was founded in 1918 in the Eastern Anatolian city of Kars. The republic contained the province of Kars as well as the provinces of Ardahan, Nakhichevan (located in modern day Azerbaijan) and Batum (located in modern day Georgia).The area where this short-lived government was established was called "Elviye-i Selase," which translates as three cities. Following the 1877-78 Russo-Turkish War, which resulted in the Ottoman defeat, "Elviye-i Selase" was given to Russia as war reparations. After more than 40 years, when World War I broke out, Russia invaded a large part of Eastern Anatolia as well; however, Russia had to recall her forces in the region to the motherland due to the October Revolution in 1917.The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk of 1918, which ended the war between the Bolshevik government and the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire), terminated when Germany surrendered to the Allies, leading to a plebiscite in the region around Kars Province to determine whether it should be ceded to the Ottomans or remain as a Russian state. The people residing in the region favored Ottoman rule, and the government in Istanbul appointed a new administration and military officers in the region.The Allied victory in the Great War forced the Ottoman Empire to sit at the armistice table in Moudros with empty hands. The treaty obliged the empire to withdraw its forces from "Elviye-i Selase" despite the region being mostly inhabited by Muslim Turks. Thus, the Allies, especially the British Empire, pushed the Ottomans to withdraw to their pre-war borders.The former building for Kars governorate which was also used as the parliament building of the National Government of the Southwestern Caucasus.News of the cease-fire spread across Anatolia quickly, causing chaos in "Elviye-i Selase" as the fear of Russians among the residents was still alive. Moreover, the withdrawal of Ottoman forces made the region an open target for Georgian and Armenian attacks.To prevent a vacuum of authority in the region, Ottoman General Yakup Şevki Pasha suggested that an independent government be founded. Answering his call, the people living in "Elviye-i Selase" began to found autonomous governments in small districts called "shura." On Nov. 3, 1918, the Akhaltsikhe Government and on Nov. 5 the Islamic Shura of Kars were founded. On Nov. 15, the first Kars Congress was organized, and a temporary cabinet of eight people was established. Following the congress, the other small shuras decided to join the Shura of Kars. The second congress in Kars was held on Nov. 30 with the participation of 60 local deputies. İbrahim Aydın, commonly known as Cihangirzade İbrahim Bey, was elected as the first and only president of this short-lived democratic state. To promote the establishment of this republic internationally, the shura even sent a telegram to Japan.On Jan. 17, 1919, a new congress convened with 131 local deputies in Kars province, and the name of the "shura" was changed to the Temporary South-West Caucasus National Government. During this historic meeting, an 18-article constitution entered into force.The main goals of the state were organizing the population of the region, providing participation of the other shuras in the grand body and preventing attacks from Georgians and Armenians. The new state sent documents depicting borders and population statistics of the region to Istanbul. According to these documents, there were 1,534,824 Muslims and 227,324 Christians residing in "Elviye-i Selase." This newly founded state also had an army of 8,000 soldiers. After deputy elections, the assembly opened on March 1. On March 25, the state declared its independence and changed its name to the Provisional National Government of the Southwestern Caucasus.Although the government in Kars declared its independence, its primary goal had always been to unify Anatolia and prove that the majority population in the region was Turkish not Armenian. However, the Allies wanted to control the region and establish an Armenian state that included the Kars region. In April 1919, Britain occupied Kars, the capital of the republic and dissolved the cabinet. Cabinet members were exiled to Malta. With this occupation, the first Anatolian republic came to an end. Armenia annexed the region until Kazım Karabekir, the eastern front commander of the Ankara government, took over Kars.The Provisional National Government of the Southwestern Caucasus was the first republic founded in Anatolia. It was also one of the shortest-lived states in world history. This short-lived state, however, played an important in including the entire Kars region in the homeland as the Allies wanted to annex the region and include the land in the states of Armenia and Georgia. However, the activities of the shuras mobilized the population of the "Elviye-i Selase." Another important role of the shuras was to establish the demographic structure of the region and declare the demands of the population. With the declaration of the first republic in Anatolia, the people of Anatolia demanded to be ruled by themselves for the first time. Such consciousness deeply affected the Turkish War of Independence as well.