Long ago, some people wanted a new home.
They wanted to be together. They called this place Idel-Ural. It was a very short time. Many people worked hard for it. Do you like to help others?
Long ago, some groups of people wanted a new home.
They wanted to live together as one group. They called this place Idel-Ural. Leaders met to talk about their plans. They even wrote a set of rules for the land.
But other groups did not agree with them. This caused many fights. The new group did not last a long time. The leaders had to leave to stay safe. It was a very hard time for them.
Long ago, a group of people wanted to form their own state.
They called it Idel-Ural. The name means "Volga-Ural" in the Tatar language. This state wanted to unite the Tatar, Bashkir, and Chuvash peoples. In 1917, leaders met in the city of Kazan to talk about this. They wanted to create a place where these groups could rule themselves.
In late 1917, a group called the Millät Mäclese was made. This was a national council. They wrote a set of rules for the new land. On March 1, 1918, they declared the state was real. However, many things went wrong. A man named Zeki Velidi Togan wanted a different state for the Bashkir people. Also, a group called the Bolsheviks did not support them. The Bolsheviks fought against the new state. The Red Army defeated the Idel-Ural group in March 1918. The president, Sadrí Maqsudí Arsal, had to flee to other countries to stay safe.
He traveled to many places to ask for help.
The Idel-Ural State was a short-lived attempt to create a new home for different groups. This group wanted to unite the Tatar, Bashkir, and Chuvash peoples. The name Idel-Ural means "Volga-Ural" in the Tatar language. It was meant to be a place where these people could rule themselves. This happened during a very messy time called the Russian Civil War.
Many different groups were fighting for control of the land. The idea of Idel-Ural was a way to bring people together.
Creating this state involved many important steps and meetings. In June 1917, regional leaders met in the city of Kazan. They spoke about the autonomy of the Muslim Turk-Tatars. Later, a parliament called the Millät Mäclese was formed in Ufa. This council worked on a plan to build the new state. In January 1918, they finished writing a constitution. This document was a set of rules for how the land would work.
It was written by people like Galimzian Sharaf and Osman Tokumbetov.
History shows that many people worked hard to make this dream real. On March 1, 1918, the state was officially proclaimed. However, the new state faced many hard jobs right away. A leader named Zeki Velidi Togan wanted a separate state for Bashkiria. Also, a group called the Bolsheviks began to oppose Idel-Ural. At first, the Bolsheviks had supported the idea. Later, they called the movement "bourgeois nationalism." This disagreement made the new state much weaker.
There were many specific details about where this state was located. The leaders hoped to include modern Tatarstan and Bashkortostan. They also wanted most of the Orenburg Oblast. Some even wished to reach the Caspian Sea.
The struggle became very difficult when the Bolsheviks arrested the members of the Millät Mäclese. After they were freed, the group met again in a part of Kazan. They were called the "Transbolaq Republic" by some historians. This small group was defeated by the Red Army on March 28, 1918.
Even after the state ended, its leaders kept trying to help. The president, Sadrí Maqsudí Arsal, had to leave Russia to stay safe. He escaped to Finland in 1918. From there, he traveled to Estonia, Sweden, Germany, and France. He wanted to find support from other countries for his people.
Long after these events, the United States listed Idel-Ural as one of the "Captive Nations." This shows that people still remembered the story of the Idel-Ural State.
The Idel-Ural State was a short-lived attempt at self-rule for several ethnic groups. It was also known as the Volga-Ural State or the Idel-Ural Republic. The name "Idel-Ural" comes from the Tatar language, meaning "Volga-Ural." This state aimed to unite the Tatar, Bashkir, and Chuvash peoples. It emerged during the chaos of the Russian Civil War.
This period was a time of great political change and conflict in Russia.
Creating the state required many organized political steps. In June 1917, regional leaders met in the city of Kazan. They declared autonomy for the "Muslim Turk-Tatars of Inner Russia and Siberia." Later, a parliament called the Millät Mäclese, or National Council, was formed in Ufa. This council worked to draft a plan for the new state. On 29 November 1917, following the Second All-Russia Muslim Congress, a draft for the state was accepted.
In January 1918, the Millät Mäclese adopted a formal constitution.
Several people were responsible for writing the laws of the republic. These authors included Galimzian Sharaf, Ilias and Jangir Alkin, Osman Tokumbetov, and Y. Muzaffarov. The constitution provided a framework for how the new government would function. The leaders planned to officially proclaim the state on 1 March 1918. However, this plan faced immediate and severe challenges. The movement struggled to establish itself amidst competing political interests.
Idel-Ural faced opposition from several different directions. A Bashkir revolutionary named Zeki Velidi Togan declared a separate autonomy for Bashkiria. At the same time, the Bolsheviks changed their stance. Although the Bolsheviks had initially supported Idel-Ural, they later denounced it. They labeled the movement as "bourgeois nationalism" about two months after its start. This three-way struggle between different movements weakened the Idel-Ural State significantly.
The geography of the proposed state was quite large. Nationalists hoped to include the territories of modern-day Tatarstan and Bashkortostan. They also sought to include most of the Orenburg Oblast. Some leaders even wished for the state to expand toward the Caspian Sea.
The territory was central to the identity of the people involved. They wanted a land that connected these different ethnic groups together.
The actual existence of the republic was very brief. In early 1918, the Bolsheviks arrested deputies of the Millät Mäclese. These leaders also declared the Tatar-Bashkir Soviet Socialist Republic. After the arrested deputies were released, they met again in a section of Kazan. This area was located beyond the Bolaq stream. Because of this location, Soviet historians called it the "Transbolaq Republic." This version of the republic only included parts of Kazan and Ufa. The Red Army defeated them on 28 March 1918, and the parliament disbanded in April.
Even after the defeat, the idea of Idel-Ural continued abroad. The president, Sadrí Maqsudí Arsal, escaped to Finland in 1918. He met with officials in Estonia, Sweden, Germany, and France. His goal was to seek Western support for his people's rights. Decades later, the movement remained a symbol of independence. In 1959, the United States listed Idel-Ural among the "Captive Nations" in public law. This shows how the history of the state stayed relevant in global politics.
Where will your curiosity go next?
🖼️ Images & Media (3)
More to explore
✨ What else?
Related topics you might enjoy
🔬 Go deeper
More advanced topics to explore
🪜 Step back
Simpler topics to build understanding
What is Nepedia?
A free, ad-free encyclopedia for children. Every article is written at five reading levels, so the same page works for a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old — use the level switcher above to see this one change. No account needed to read.