Documentary evidence of soviet repression in Azerbaijan 1920–1950

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to analyze the evolution, mechanisms, and socio-political consequences of Soviet repression in Azerbaijan between 1920 and 1950 based on previously underexplored archival materials. The study seeks to identify the institutional logic of repression, the role of Soviet security bodies in restructuring political and cultural life, and the regional features that distinguished Azerbaijan from other Soviet republics. The research methodology is grounded in the principles of historicism, scientific objectivity, and systematic analysis. To address the research objectives, the study employs historiographical analysis, source-critical examination, chronological and problem-oriented approaches, and descriptive analysis. The empirical base consists of interrogation protocols, internal correspondence, operational reports, and administrative directives preserved in various fonds of the Azerbaijan Republic State Archive. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the reinterpretation of Soviet repression in Azerbaijan through a comprehensive synthesis of archival evidence that has remained insufficiently studied. The research identifies regional characteristics in investigative practices, ideological narratives, and local adaptations of all-Union directives, demonstrating how central policies were implemented at the republican level. The findings show that Soviet repression in Azerbaijan developed through several stages, including early Sovietization, the Great Terror, and the post-war period of ideological control. These processes led to the elimination of political elites, the transformation of intellectual life, and the restructuring of social institutions. The archival materials reveal that repression functioned not only as a tool of political violence but also as a long-term mechanism of social and cultural control whose consequences extended far beyond the Stalinist era.