Abstract
An Experience of Free Port at the Black Sea: Batum (1878-1886)
Strategical significance of Batum. which was located at the O to man-Russian border in the Black Sea region, grew up in the XIX. century with the Russian advancements die Caucasus. Russia seized Batum with the Turko-Russian war at 1877-78 and according to the Berlin Agreement. During the negations in Berlin, Russia warranted to make Batum a free port in order to have its annexation accepted, and this was in interest of the Great Britain. However, after the Berlin Agreement it abolished this saws of die city, and strenghtened its sovereignty. Ottoman efforts, refuging to the West against Russia, to regain the old status was in vain. On the oilier hand, that Russians turned Barum to a fortified port caused trade of Iran, which was then to shift to the Caucasus, to continue via the Tebriz-Erzurum-Trabzon way for a long time.<
Keywords
Batum, Black Sea trade, Ottoman-Russian conflict, Georgia, Iran.