Abel Makashvili

Who was Abel Makashvili?

Abel Makashvili also known as Avel Gavrilovich Makaev was a Georgian prince and soldier who served successively in the Russian, Georgian and Azerbaijani militaries and was killed by the Bolsheviks upon their conquest of Azerbaijan in 1920.

Born of an old Georgian noble family, Makashvili graduated from Elizavetgrad military progymnasium and Kazan infantry junker school. He joined the Imperial Russian army in 1877 and commanded Bash-Kadyklar infantry regiment since 1910. He was promoted to major-general in 1914 and put in charge of the 16th Mingrelian grenadier regiment from 1914 to 1917. After Georgia’s declaration of independence from Russia, Makashvili joined the national Georgian army. He served as a governor-general and military commandant of Tiflis in the years 1918-1920. Early in 1920, he was invited by the government of independent Azerbaijan to head a military school at Ganja. After Sovietization of Azerbaijan in April 1920, Makashvili was arrested by the Soviet authorities and drowned in the Caspian Sea.

Makashvili’s sons also served in the military. One of them, Vakhtang, commanded the Georgian Air Force and died during the Red Army invasion in 1921.