ABSTRACT
After the fall of the First Republic, Azerbaijan was technically an independent Soviet state. In the first years of sovietization, Azerbaijan in several respects had fared well. The country's borders were largely resolved, with Nakhichevan, Ka-rabakh, and Zaqatala confirmed as parts of Azerbaijan. An onslaught on the literary and cultural intelligentsia of the country was launched, which in fact amounted to an attempt to eradicate the collective memory of the Azerbaijani people. After World War II investment and assistance from the center consequently dwindled, and Azerbaijan dropped to last place among Soviet republics in terms of industrial growth. Heydar Aliyev acceded to the post of first secretary of the Azerbaijani Communist Party, marking the beginning of one man's remarkable domination of the republic's political scene, which would last for more than three decades. Aliyev in his official proclamations was steadfast in his proclamations of loyalty to Leninist nationality policy and to the importance of the Russian language.
