The 26 Baku Commissars were Bolshevik and Left Socialist Revolutionary (SR) members of the Baku Commune. The commune was established in the city of Baku, which was then the capital of the briefly independent Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, and is now the capital of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The commune, led by Stepan Shahumyan, existed until 26 July 1918 when the Bolsheviks were forced out of power by a coalition of Dashnaks, Right SRs and Mensheviks.
Soviet poster: "We will never forget the 26 murdered by British imperialists. 1918, September 20." By unknown artist. Baku, 1925
Stepan Shahumyan, the leader of the 26 commissars
Isaak Brodsky's The Execution of the Twenty Six Baku Commissars (1925) depicting the Soviet view of the execution.
Baku, 2005. The wall of the house of the Baku Commissariat (1918)
Baku is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is 28 metres (92 ft) below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world and also the largest city in the world below sea level. Baku lies on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, on the Bay of Baku. Baku's urban population was estimated at two million people as of 2009. Baku is the primate city of Azerbaijan—it is the sole metropolis in the country, and about 25% of all inhabitants of the country live in Baku's metropolitan area.
Shirvanshah's Palace; Old City; Maiden Tower; Palace of Happiness; evening in Baku; Ismailiyya Palace; Heydar Aliyev Center; National Art Museum of Azerbaijan; Azerbaijan Carpet Museum; Azerbaijan State Academic Philharmonic Hall; Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre; Nizami Cinema Center; Ateshgah; Church of the Saviour; Heydar Mosque; view over city and Bay of Baku
Roman stone inscription in Gobustan dating back to AD 84–96
A miniature painting marking the downfall of the Shirvanshahs at the hands of the Safavids
Relics from the sunken Sabayil Castle
