baku was the home of the world's first oil well the world's first paraffin factory and the world's first oil platform the city was once captured by turkish troops in world war i and afterwards by bolsheviks along with the surrounding area the city was incorporated into the soviet union during world war ii the growing demand for oil pushed baku oil workers to reach record levels of extraction million tons baku entered a period of decline after the break up of the soviet union but has since recovered