The Nakhichevan uezd was a county (uezd) of the Erivan Governorate of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire. It bordered the governorate's Sharur-Daralayaz uezd to the north, the Zangezur uezd of the Elizavetpol Governorate to the east, and Iran to the south. The uezd's administrative center was the city of Nakhichevan (present-day Nakhchivan). The county was mostly mountainous and devoid of industry beyond salt plantations. Before the Russian Revolution it was home to more than 81,200 Muslims who formed the majority of the population, and a significant minority of 54,200 Armenians who would later be massacred or displaced during the Armenian–Azerbaijani war of 1918–1920. Originally formed from the Nakhichevan Khanate, the Nakhichevan uezd was part of the Armenian Oblast and later the governorate of Erivan. Shortly after the Bolshevik coup, the district fell under the control of the invading Ottoman army (and was briefly annexed by the Treaty of Batum) until the latter's withdrawal in late 1918—In the wake of the retreat, the district came under the control of local Muslims between 1919 and 1920, with brief periods of Armenian control in the middle of each year, ending with region's takeover by the 11th Army of Soviet Russia. Finally, the district was transformed into the Nakhchivan exclave of Azerbaijan and later partitioned with Armenia (forming parts of the latter's Syunik and Vayots Dzor provinces) whilst part of the Transcaucasian SFSR. History Background The topography of the uezd was mainly mountainous with most of the lowland located along the Aras river. The highest peaks of the uezd (Kambil at ; Damara-dag at ; and Mount Kaputjukh at ) were located along the Karabakh Range, which made up the eastern boundary with the Elizavetpol Governorate. Kyuki-dag at rose from the Sharur-Daralayaz uezd in the north. The left tributaries of the Aras (the Nakhichevan-chay, Alinja-chay, and Gilan-chay) flowed through the territory of the uezd. The population of the uezd was primarily engaged in cattle breeding and gardening, especially in the Ordubad area. There were practically no industrial plants or factories, but there were however salt plantations which produced approximately 250,000 pounds of salt per annum. The subcounties (uchastoks) of the Nakhichevan uezd in 1913 were as follows: Russian rule and World War I The Nakhichevan uezd, based in the city Nakhichevan, was originally one of the territorial administrative subunits of the Armenian Oblast in 1828–1840, created after its annexation into the Russian