On October 25, 2020, during the Second Karabakh War (September 27, 2020 – November 10, 2020), as a result of hostilities, the Azerbaijani army liberated from the Armenian occupation and regained control over the city of Qubadli. On December 23, 2020, Ilham Aliyev, the president of the Republic of Azerbaijan, visited the city and raised the flag of Azerbaijan there. Qarabag.com has prepared material on the history of the administrative and territorial division of the city of Qubadli from the beginning of the XIX century to the present.

The administrative center of the Qubadli district, the city of Qubadli (formerly Kubbati, Kubat, Kubatlu, Kubatli) is located in the southeastern part of the Karabakh Highland, on the bank of the Bargushad river.
[The description of the Karabakh province compiled in 1823 by Active State Councillor Mogilev and by Colonel Ermolov II on the order of Commander-in-chief of Georgia Ermolov. Tiflis, 1866, p. 97]
[The General Map of Georgia. With the indication of postal and large carriageways, stations and the distance between these versts. St. Petersburg. 1823]
[E. Kondratenko.The Caucasian calendar as of 1917. Tiflis, 1916. Statistical Department., p. 55]
[The list of the populated locations in Azerbaijan. Edition of Namcomprod based on the materials of the agricultural censuses of 1917 and 1921, Baku, 1922, p. 43]
[The Azerbaijani SSR, administrative and territorial division.1979, p. 55]

In 1823, Qubadli was first indicated as the Tatar (Turkic) village of Kubatti. Qubadli was also indicated as the small village of Kubat on the “General Map of Georgia” of 1823.
[The description of the Karabakh province compiled in 1823 by Active State Councillor Mogilev and by Colonel Ermolov II on the order of Commander-in-chief of Georgia Ermolov. Tiflis, 1866., p. 97]
[The General Map of Georgia. With the indication of postal and large carriageways, stations and the distance between these versts. St. Petersburg. 1823]

In 1813, according to the Treaty of Gulistan, the Karabakh Khanate (including the village of Qubadli) became part of the Russian Empire.
[E. Weidenbaum. A guide to the Caucasus. Tiflis, 1888., p. 146]

In 1835, the Karabakh province and the village of Qubadli were incorporated into the Muslim Provinces of Transcaucasia of the Russian Empire.
[O. Evetsky. The statistical description of the Transcaucasian region. St. Petersburg, 1835, p. 24]

In 1840, the Karabakh province (including the village of Qubadli) was included in the newly formed Caspian region. All magals were renamed into districts and provinces were renamed into uyezds. Consequently, the Karabakh province was renamed to Karabakh Uyezd.
[The Caucasian calendar as of 1871. Tiflis, 1870. Section 2. The historical overview of the Baku governorate, pp. 44-45]

In 1846, Karabakh Uyezd, which included the village of Qubadli, was renamed to Shusha Uyezd.
[The Caucasian calendar as of 1868. Tiflis, 1868. Section 3. The historical overview of the civil institutions of the Caucasus and the Transcaucasian region., p. 398]

In 1893, Qubadli was indicated as Kubatlu in Zangezur Uyezd of the Elizavetpol governorate.
[Summary of statistical data on the population of the Transcaucasian region extracted from the family lists of 1886.  Tiflis. 1893, p. 251]
[The Complete Collection of Laws of the Russian Empire.  The second collection. Volume XLII.  Section 2.  St. Petersburg, 1871., p. 383]

During the years of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (1918-1920), the village of Qubadli was a part of Zangezur Uyezd of the Ganja governorate.
[Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (1918-1920). Legislative acts (documents and materials) of 1998, // Law on the establishment of the post of inspector of the publiс schools in Shusha, the Zangezur, the Javanshir and the Jabrayil Uyezds. No 111., p. 157]

In 1919-1920, the village of Qubadli was a part of the Karabakh Governorate-General.
[Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (1918-1920) Legislative acts (Collection of documents) of 1998// Resolution on the establishment of interim Governor-General of Javanshir, Shusha, Jabrayil and Zangezur Uyezds. No. 337., p. 389]

After the annexation of the western part of Zangezur Uyezd to Armenia in November 1920, the eastern part of Zangezur, which included the village of Qubadli became Kubatli Uyezd. 
[The history of the Formation of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region of the Azerbaijani SSR. 1918-1925: Documents and Materials.1989// From the protocol of the joint meeting of the Politburo and the Organizational Bureau of the Central Committee of the ACP (b) on November 30, 1920, pp. 44]
[The History of the Formation of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region of the Azerbaijan SSR. 1918-1925: Documents and Materials.1989// The speech of C.Ildirim, the representative of the Kubatli district, at the I Congress of Soviets of the Azerbaijani SSR. May 11, 1921, pp. 53-54]
[The administrative division of the USSR according to data as of May 1, 1924. 1924, p. 34;61]

In 1926-1929, the village of Qubadli was designated as part of the Kurdistan district. 

In 1926, Qubadli was indicated as part of the Kubatli stretch, and, in 1929, it became a part of the Pusyanski dayr (presumably the okrug) of Kurdistan Uyezd.
[The territorial and administrative division of the USSR as of January 1, 1926, 1926, p.191] 
[The administrative and territorial division of the USSR and the list of the most important settlements with a chronological list of resolutions on changing the borders of provinces, regions and republics from 1917 to 1929, 1929, p. 115]  

In 1930, Qubadli was a part of the Qubadli region of the Kurdistan Okrug.
[T.F. Aristova. Kurds of Transcaucasia (historical and ethnographic essay). 1966, p. 40]

In accordance with the resolution “On the liquidation of Okrugs” of the Central Executive Committee and the Council of People’s Commissars of the USSR of July 23, 1930, and pursuant to the eponymous resolution of the Central Executive Committee and the CPC (Council of People’s Commissars) of the Azerbaijani SSR of August 8, 1930, the Kurdistan Okrug was abolished. In the same year, the Qubadli district with the center in the village of Qubadli was withdrawn from it.
[The history of the state and law of the Azerbaijani SSR. (1920-1934) 1973, p. 412]
[The administrative and territorial division of the USSR. 10th edition. According to the data received on November 15, 1930, 1930, p. 50]

On January 3, 1932, the Qubadli district was abolished.
[The administrative and territorial division of the USSR. The changes occurred during the period from November 1, 1931 to July 1, 1932. 1932, pp. 119-120]

On March 14, 1933, the Qubadli district with the center in the village of Qubadli was established again. 
[The Azerbaijani SSR, administrative and territorial division as of January 1, 1977.1979 p. 7] 

In 1962, Qubadli received the status of an urban-type settlement.
[The USSR: administrative and territorial division of the Union Republics as of January 1965., p. 424]  

On January 4, 1963, due to the liquidation of the Qubadli district, the village of Qubadli was incorporated into the Zangelan district. However, on June 17, 1964, it again became the administrative center of the restored Qubadli district.
[The Azerbaijani SSR: administrative and territorial division. 1964., p.42]
[The Azerbaijani SSR, administrative and territorial division as of January 1, 1977.1979 p. 7] 
[The USSR: administrative and territorial division of the Union Republics as of January 1965., p. 695]  

After attaining independence of Azerbaijan (1991), the Qubadli district retained its administrative and territorial status with the centre in Qubadli.

As of 1992, Qubadli was designated as a city.
[Thomas de Waal.  Black Garden. Armenia and Azerbaijan through Peace and War. 2003, p. 241]

On August 31, 1993, Qubadli was occupied by Armenian armed formations.
[Thomas de Waal.  Black Garden. Armenia and Azerbaijan through Peace and War. 2003, p. 385]