GeorgianSoviet

Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic, commonly known as the Georgian SSR, was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1991. It was established after the Red Army invasion of the Democratic Republic of Georgia in 1921, with its capital at Tbilisi, and joined the USSR as a founding member in 1922. The republic functioned within the centralized framework of the Soviet state, subject to the policies and leadership of the Communist Party and Moscow.

The Georgian SSR maintained a one-party system aligned with the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Its economy operated under the Soviet planned economy, emphasizing industrial development and collectivized agriculture, and it participated in the broader network of Soviet infrastructure, energy, and trade. The republic contributed to wartime efforts in World War II and experienced postwar modernization alongside social and cultural investment typical of the era.

The population of the Georgian SSR was multiethnic, with Georgians forming the majority and sizable Armenian, Azerbaijani, Russian, and other communities. The official language was Georgian, while Russian served as a lingua franca in administration and higher education. The period also included political repression, most notably during the Stalin era, along with deportations in the Caucasus, such as the 1944 removal of Meskhetian Turks.

In the late 1980s, rising national consciousness and aspirations for greater autonomy culminated in a nationwide push for independence. Georgia declared independence on April 9, 1991, as the Soviet Union dissolved. Notable figures associated with the Soviet period include Joseph Stalin, born in Georgia, who rose to the top of the USSR, and Lavrenti Beria, a Georgian who led the NKVD. The Georgian SSR left behind infrastructural and cultural institutions that shaped the early post-Soviet Republic of Georgia.