Abstract:
There is a document kept in the Central Military Archive of Poland
relating the situation in Georgia in 1920. The document represent
the report of Lieutenant General Juzef Pozecki, dated April 8,
1920 and sent to the Supreme Command of the Polish Army.
At the beginning of the document General Pozecki notes that he
has left for Georgia and, specifically for Tbilisi for personal purposes.
A fragment of the General’s letter confirms the sympathy of Georgians
for Poland and Polish people in general: “As a Polish General, I
felt the utmost courtesy and kindness on the part of Georgians”, he
writes. But the Civic Guard didn’t make a good impression on him.
The reason was the appearance of soldiers going along the street for
the change of the guard. They happened not to wear uniforms and
carried the weapons the way they liked. He confirms that there are
many former officers of the imperial army in Georgia who, due to the
lack of sympathy for the current government, have refused to serve
in the National Armed Forces.
The General writes that while being in Tbilisi he met with the
Deputy Minister of War, General Gedevanov – an acquaintance of his.
The conversation between the two generals concerned possible Russian
aggression against the South Caucasus and military readiness
of Georgia.
The General says in his letter that in Tbilisi there are already a
lot of refugees from Vladikavkaz. Part of the letter tells about the
overall situation in Tbilisi at that time. He notes that food and various
goods are cheaper than in Constantinople but emphasizes that
bread and sugar are in short supply, although other products are
available. He also writes that there are no clothes and dry goods.
The document highlights the plight of the intelligentsia, who are
impoverished and distressed and tells about scarcity of well-maintained
roads, rarity of trams and weak, flickering electric light.
Despite all the above, the General writes that life in Tbilisi,
compared with the times of Russian domination is calm. At the end of his letter the general writes that on his way back
to Constantinople, he met the delegation of Titus Philipovich in Batumi.
