The Red Army occupation of Baku in April 1920.

The Red Army occupation of Baku in April 1920.

1920 Bolshevik Takeover

From April 27 to May 11, 1920, the 11th Army of Soviet Russia led an occupation campaign in Azerbaijan, aiming to take back the oil-rich country. The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic fell and became the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic, or Azerbaijan SSR, which ultimately became part of the larger Soviet Union when it came into existence in 1922.