The Importance of Russian Weakness in World War One in Explaining the Start of the Revolution in 1917
The outbreak of war was greeted in Russia, as elsewhere, with a
spontaneous wave of patriotic hysteria. In fact, with its chronic
socail problems, weak economy and narrow base of political support
Russia and the tsarist regrime were deeply vulnerable to the strains
of a long, draining conflict. The effects of World War One was
combinely contributed too all of the three systems of Russia, i.e.
The political, economic, and military.
The military defeats casued Russia's downfall. The reason why this
happened, was because even though the Russian army was big, it was
poorly equipped. They only had enough weapons for one person between
three (approxiatmatey) people. So that means there were three men to
one rifte and when one person died the next men would pick up and
fight, also many people only had a stick or nothing at all to fight
with, which in turn was not going to win them anything. This problem
helped to lost two major battles in 1914. Which made morale low within
in the military but also among the civilian's too. Also, because the
Tsar had taken power of the army, the defeats became his responsible
and therfore, people were losing faith with the government and it was
looking very bad for them too. The effects of losing where having a
bad effect on the government and on the people. It could not go on
like this. Tsar's biggest downfall was taking on the army. All the
where having effects on other areas like the economy.
As the Tsar unscripted over 15 million mento the army, there was not
enough men to work in factors and on forms, this caused large problems
in Russia because this lead to shortages of food and materials, which
effected the peasants because they where poor anyway. This caused much
pressure on them. Also because the railway wasn't up to much. It was
very poor and it could not supply the troops or the towns, which
this was the seen to be “freedom” for them as they began to get what
With the coinciding of a revolution on the brink of eruption and the impacts of the First World War beginning to take hold of Russia, considered analysis of the factors that may have contributed to the fall of the Romanov Dynasty is imperative, as a combination of several factors were evidently lethal. With the final collapse of the 300 year old Romanov Dynasty in 1917, as well as the fall of Nicholas II, a key reality was apparent; the impact that WWI had on autocratic obliteration was undeniable. However, reflection of Russia’s critical decisions prior to the war is essential in the assessment of the cause of the fall of the Romanov Dynasty. No war is fought without the struggle for resources, and with Russia still rapidly lagging behind in the international industrialisation race by the turn of the 20th century, the stage was set for social unrest and uprising against its already uncoordinated and temporarily displaced government. With inconceivable demands for soldiers, cavalry and warfare paraphernalia, Russia stood little chance in the face of the great powers of World War One.
Understanding the role Bolsheviks play in affecting Britain's soldiers and citizens during World War One first requires background information on both Russian interests and Russia's relationship to Germany. Russia entered World War One after Germany declared war against Russia due to an alliance system between Germany and Austria. The Russians had little success in repelling the Germans, illustrated by the disaster at Tannenberg where more than 30,000 Russians soldiers died (Sherow). Germany subsequently made large gains into Russian territories. Tsar Nicholas II had no choice but to abdicate the throne in March 1917, allowing the Bolsheviks to take power (Sherow). It is very important to note that the Germans allowed "prominent Bolsheviks like Lenin and Trotsky" to pass by rail through their country "to start a revolution and knock Russia out of the war" (Simpson). Due to the Bolshevik revolution not completely coming from a democratic mandate from the people, Britain shows extreme suspicion towards Russian motives henceforth.
Nicholas II ruled Russia from 1894-1917 and was to be its final tsar. He ascended the throne under the impression that he would rule his whole life as it's undisputed leader. Accompanied by his wife, Alexandra, they lived a comfortable life of luxury while the country suffered around them. Nicholas was determined to rule as harshly as his father; however, he was a very weak and incompetent character who did not posses the qualities capable of guiding Russia through its time of turmoil.
Revisionist historians have also benefited from the post-glasnost era and hence have both greater access to more sources as well as the advantage of hindsight. To understand the reasons for the collapse of the Provisional Government it is crucial to be aware of the events leading up to the October Revolution and the atmosphere politically and socio-economically at the time. The year 1917 was a turbulent year of strikes, bad harvests and inflation. ' Week by week food became scarcer'[1] and any that was available usually went to the soldiers. Russian agriculture was primitive and machinery was rarely used hence production was not efficient.
When the war first began in 1914 the tension between the Tsar and his people eased immensely from the extreme burst of patriotism. In the early stages of the war Russia’s efforts were met by success but by August 1914 Russia had started its decline. By the fall of 1915 Russian forces had been completely driven out of Poland and in September 1915 the Tsar decided to appoint himself as commander-in-chief of the Russian Army. This meant that the performance of the Russian Army now completely reflected back on Nicholas II himself. Not only was there trouble on the Eastern Front but the war was causing trouble on the home front as well. Russia’s National Budget rose eightfold between 1913-1916, financed out of higher taxes, loans and borrowing from allies Britain and France. In order to maintain the war effort the Russian government started to print more money causing inflation with prices rising over two hundred percent between August 1914 and Christmas 1916. The huge loss of life and military humiliations undermined domestic support and in 1917 Russian government was facing a massive crisis and you can see how this seriously took a toll on the Tsarist regime.
Tsarism during the period after the 1905 revolution and the March revolution of 1917 faced a ‘wave of social discontent’ (Hobsbawm, 1995, p. 57). This was no surprise, as there was many who during that period had thought that there was a ‘straight road [to] a socialist future’ (Hobsbawm, 1995, p. 57). However many saw that there was not the means to happen in Russia at the time. Hobsbawm plants the idea of a Bourgeoisies revolution and the class struggles, combined with Karl Marx’s ideas about the impending revolutions. Centralised in Europe was the ideas of socialism and revolution. Hobsbawm reflects the ideas of the time, that they were ‘helpless’ by 1914 and by 1916 the majority followed. This was just the popular opinion of the time of the Russian public. Although he jumps between times, starting with the October revolution then jumping to the ‘overthrow(ing) of Tsarism’ (Hobsbawm, 1995, p. 57) then back to the post October revolution. This does not affect the readability of the section. It gives a well-rounded description of the period to form a good base for Part II.
I recollect as a child how I cherished the way my mom took care of me and made all my executive decisions. I recall getting excited about my weekly allowances and about her picking out my clothes for school. However, when I became a teenager I wanted my independence. I know longer wanted her to buy my clothing and I wanted to financially support myself by getting a job. I was so tired of her telling me what to do and how to do it that I revolted. At first it was difficult trying to establish independence in my mother's house, but after a while it seemed as if I had won the battle. Unbeknownst to me that battle would be short-lived and ultimately my mom won the war. Basically, I had constructed my own crazy revolution against my mother. You see a revolution is “a fundamental change in political organization; especially: the overthrow or renunciation of one government or ruler and the substitution of another by the governed .Activity or movement designed to affect fundamental changes in the socioeconomic situation (Webster Dictionary).”One revolution that is said to have inspired communism was the Russian Revolutions of 1917.
future leader of the Soviet Union as a “dress rehearsal” for the 1917 revolution. The most important difference is that the 1905 revolution failed to destroy the autocracy in Imperial Russia. A combination of reasons can explain why this revolution failed at overthrowing the Tsar Nikolas the Second. The revolutions participants were not revolutionaries that wanted to overthrow the Tsar, it was not started by revolutionary groups. The military and military context played an important role to the revolution’s failure, and the autocracy’s reforms gave compromise to the protestors who could be satisfied with the changes. These factors show why the 1905 revolution failed to destroy the autocracy.
Causes of the Russian Revolution Consider the following causes of the October 1917 Russian Revolution: Poor Living and Working Conditions Effects of the First World War The Appeal of Lenin and the Bolsheviks The Limitations of the 1917 Provisional Government Was any one of these causes more important than the others to the Bolsheviks’ seizure of power in 1917? Explain your answer. A1. When the Bolsheviks seized power in the October Russian Revolution, the country was in complete turmoil. Every one was unhappy about something and things weren’t going so well for the Royal family and the aristocracy.
Wood, A. (1986). The Russian Revolution. Seminar Studies in History. (2) Longman, p 1-98. ISBSN 0582355591, 9780582355590
The Russian Revolution was a historical moment that had occurred during the 1900s. It all started when the Czar of Russia was overthrown from his throne and was executed. Ever since, Russia 's government, economy, and society has changed. Five texts were provided to portray whether the French Revolution was a success or a failure. This paper will only focus on three of the sources, including Animal Farm, by George Orwell, “Education, Literacy, and the Russian Revolution”, by Megan Behrent, and “the Reasons For The Failure of The Russian Revolution”. All of these texts provide information for either claim, but are also limited in providing further examples. As a result, the Russian Revolution was a failure because the peasants of Russia lacked
Few people had enough to eat or support themselves and were on the brink of death. On top of that, Czar Nicholas II, the leader of Russia, often abused his position in order to violate the Russian constitution called Duma and change laws to his own benefit and to help his friends and supporters get into the top governments. When World War One started, unlike most other countries, war production did not help get the country back on its feet. Instead, war production ensured that those at home in Russia did not get enough to eat while those fighting abroad got the food and supplies needed to fight. As agriculture’s worth kept on decreasing, more and more Russians left their country farms to work in weapon making factories and shops.... ...
Russia and WWI The administrative system of the Russian government has deteriorated. great. I will be back. The present government has lost the will power and confidence.
These are some of the many reasons, along with the Romanov family’s inability to lead either troops in modern warfare or the Russian population into a modern industrialised society, that brought about the inevitability of the 1917 Russian revolution and thus, the USSR.