Russian Origins ofWorldWar I
Using the revisionist framework of national security, this essay argues that Russia’s involvement in the First World War stemmed from Czar Nicholas II’s desire to protect the czarist political system. To support my central argument, the paper proceeds in the following manner. First, I define the revisionist framework of national security and how that relates to Russia’s perception of its internal and external threats. Next, I argue that Russia’s humiliating defeat in the Crimean War resulted in a state-led modernization campaign, which generated labor protests that challenged the czar’s authority. Then, I demonstrate how humiliating defeats in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904 created a second threat to the czar’s
…show more content…
In spite of the logistical nightmares, the spring of 1905 brought the necessary number of
Russian troops to the Far Eastern front to defeat the Japanese as the Japanese army reached exhaustion.
However, the changes wrought by industrialization and modernization from the Crimean
War brought protests and social revolution just as the Russian army reached the eastern front. Massive social protests and labor strikes forced the czar to recall his troops and push for an end to the war against the Japanese (Haimson, 2000).
This humiliating defeat in the Russo-Japanese War presented Czar Nicholas II with another threat to his absolutist autocracy: Russian liberal elites’ demand for reform of the czarist system.
The aftermath of the war forced Nicholas to issue the October Manifesto, which established a constitutional framework restricting the power of the czar (Rich, 2003). International embarrassment challenged the efficacy of the czarist system. Nicholas concluded that international humiliation
2
Connects evidence to premise of
source
…show more content…
Connects back to main thesis of the domestic sources of
Russian
foreign policy For Russia on the eve of the First World War, the revisionist framework reveals insights into
Russian Origins ofWorldWar I
References
Ascher, Abraham. 2004. The Revolution of 1905: A Short History. Stanford University Press.
Collins, D. N. 1973. “The Franco-Russian Alliance and Russian Railways, 1894-1914.” Historical
Journal 16: 777–788.
Haimson, Leopold H. 2000. “The Problem of Political and Social Stability in Urban Russia on the
Eve of War and Revolution.” Slavic Review 59(4): 848–875.
Maoz, Zeev. 2003. “Domestic politics of regional security: theoretical perspectives and Middle
East patterns.” Journal of Strategic Studies 26(3): 19–48.
McDonald, David McLaren. 1992. United Government and Foreign Policy in Russia, 1900-1914.
Harvard University Press.
Rich, David Alan. 2003. The Origins of World War I. Cambridge University Press chapter 6:
Russia, pp. 188–226.
Stemberg, JohnW. 2004. Reforming the Tsar’s Army: Military Innovation in Imperial Russia from
Peter the Great to the Revolution. Cambridge University Press chapter 12: The Challenge of
Reforming Imperial Russian General Staff Education, 1905-1906, pp. 232–252.
details the causes of the first World war and describes the first month of the war. The book clearly illustrates how a local war became an entire European struggle by a call to war against Russia. Soon after the war became a world issue.
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 is essential in the assessment of the cause of the fall of the Romanov Dynasty.
In this instance Nicholas did not understand the magnitude of his people's, more specifically the soldiers suffering while at war with Austria and Germany. Often times the war minister, Vladimir Sukhomlinov, misinformed Nicholas regarding the conditions of soldiers leaving the Russian army without food, clothing and weapons. Through this miscommunication, it left not merely the soldiers without defense, but the country defenseless along with them. As a result, “By the following spring, the shortage had grown so severe that many soldiers charged into battle without guns. Instead, commanders told them to pick up their weapons from the men killed in front lines. At the same time, soldiers were limited to firing just ten shots a day. Sometimes they were even forbidden to return enemy fire” (134). This was just one piece of the puzzle that led to the crumble of the Russian autocracy. Especially considering the fact that everyone could see their efforts for winning the war were dissipating all except for one, “. . . everyone in the tsar’s government knew it… everyone, that is, except Nicholas himself” (135). As shown in this instance, basic misconceptions can begin a ripple effect that has the power to put a country in
...oved to be singularly influential and daunting. This is, perhaps, the greatest obstacles to achieving true democracy in Russia—the authoritarian and repressive traditions that refuse to die out with the passage of time.
New York, Replika Press Pvt. Ltd. Deutscher, Isaac, Ed 1967. The Unfinished Revolution Russia1917-1967. U.S.A. Oxford University Press. Fitzpatrick, Sheila, Ed 1982.The Russian Revolution.
While most of Europe had develop strong central governments and weakened the power of the nobles, Russia had lagged behind the times and still had serfs as late as 1861. The economic development that followed the emancipation of peasants in the rest of Europe created strong industrial and tax bases in those nations. Russian monarchs had attempted some level of reforms to address this inequality for almost a century before, and were indeed on their way to “economic maturity” (32) on par with the rest of Europe. But they overextended themselves and the crushing defeats of the Russo-Japanese War in 1905 and the First World War in 1917 lost them the necessary support from their subjects and created “high prices and scarcity” which were by far “the most obvious factors in the general tension”
The Importance of Russian Weakness in World War One in Explaining the Start of the Revolution in 1917
The Russian Revolution took place during difficult time in Russia. These troubles began before World War I and lasted up until 1930's. Russia's population was made up of mostly poor, starving peasants. A small working and middle class began to rise to help industrialize Russia. But a corrupt government made it difficult for Russia to advance. This added to the turmoil. World War I placed a serious hurt on Russia. Although at first it raised national pride and enthusiasm, it quickly drained resources and poorly trained peasants quickly found themselves fighting with no weapons. This war sent over 2 million Russians to their death in 1915 alone. Turning points for the Russian revolution were the March Revolution, the November Revolution and Stalin coming to power.
War and Revolution in Russia 1914 - 1921. " BBC News. BBC, 03 Mar. 2011. The. Web. The Web.
The Russian Revolution occured in two stages/times, February nd October of 1917. As cited in document 1, "Tsar Nicholas II was overthrown and a liberal democratic government came to power." What lead to the Febraury Revolution was the peasant agriculture to the Russian population, autocracy, and the outbreak of WW1. A long-term cause was the peasant agriculture to the Russian population. As said in document 1, "For all of its history before the 20th cwntury, 80-95% of the population were poor pasants, farmers just barely scratching a living form the land. For most of that history (between 1694-1861) the majority of these peasants were enserfed." to enserf means to be aprovd of liberty and personal rights. Before 1917 peasants recieved sympathy from
Morcombe, M. and Fielding, M. 2014. The Spirit of Change: Russia In Revolution. New South Wales: McGraw-Hill.
I. A good majority of the Russian people were weary and uncontent with the way the war was going and with the Czar's rule. This uncontent, along with economic hardships, caused riots and demonstrations to break out. The Czar called for the army to put down the revolution, as they did in 1905. But the army joined the revolt and the Czar was kicked out of power soon afterwards.
The Russian revolution of February 1917 was a momentous event in the course of Russian history. The causes of the revolution were very critical and even today historians debate on what was the primary cause of the revolution. The revolution began in Petrograd as “a workers’ revolt” in response to bread shortages. It removed Russia from the war and brought about the transformation of the Russian Empire into the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic, replacing Russia’s monarchy with the world’s first Communist state. The revolution opened the door for Russia to fully enter the industrial age. Before 1917, Russia was a mostly agrarian nation. The Russian working class had been for many years fed up with the ways they had to live and work and it was only a matter of time before they had to take a stand. Peasants worked many hours for low wages and no land, which caused many families to lose their lives. Some would argue that World War I led to the intense downfall of Russia, while others believe that the main cause was the peasant unrest because of harsh living conditions. Although World War I cost Russia many resources and much land, the primary cause of the Russian Revolution was the peasant unrest due to living conditions because even before the war began in Russia there were outbreaks from peasants due to the lack of food and land that were only going to get worse with time.
"From Autocracy to Oligarchy." The Structure of Soviet History: Essays and Documents. Ed. Ronald Grigor. Suny. New York: Oxford UP, 2003. 340-50. Print.
In the years leading up to the revolution, Russia had been involved in a series of wars. The Crimean war, The Russo-Turkish war, The Russo-Japanese war and the First World War. Russia had been defeated in all except the war with Turkey and its government and economy had the scars to prove it. A severe lack of food and poor living conditions amongst the peasant population led firstly to strikes and quickly escalated to violent riots. Tsar Nicholas II ruled Russia with an iron hand while much of Europe was moving away from the monarchical system of rule. All lands were owned by the Tsar’s family and Nobel land lords while the factories and industrial complexes were owned by the capitalists’. There were no unions or labour laws and the justice system had made almost all other laws in favour of the ruling elite. Rents and taxes were often unaffordable, while the gulf between workers and the ruling elite grew ever wider.