To What Extent do you Agree with the View that the end of Tsarism was due to the First World War? The Impact of the First World War on Russia and the Tsar was immense. The Russian ‘Steamroller’ suffered disastrous losses at Tannenburg and the Masurian Lakes not to mention the ruinous affect of the war on home Russian soil. The war exacerbated the frustrations of Russian Civilians as the loss of young men working in the country was sorely felt. Food was scarce and prices soared.
Their anger was made evident during the peasant disturbances of 1902. The landowners were also unhappy with the terms of emancipation. They lost the free labour of their serfs and a large amount of land. As a result many were facing huge debts by 1905. Another long-term cause of the 1905 Revolution was the general disappointment with which many Russian people viewed the reforms of the previous decades.
The fall of the Tsar in Russia in 1917 was the culmination of many factors. It was clear since the beginning of his reign that Nicholas II was not suited to his role as Tsar, mainly due to his character and personality. Although Nicholas II issued the October Manifesto to pacify the discontent of people temporarily, he still had to face some problems after the 1905 Revolution. To regain the support from people, he needed to carry out the reforms in the October Manifesto. His reform included different aspect; such as political, social and economic.
To what extent was the Russo-Japanese War responsible for the 1905 Revolution? The Russo-Japanese War lasted from 1904 to 1905, and rose from both Japan and Russia’s desire for expansion and dominance. Russia suffered many great defeats in this war, against a nation that was considered inferior and was not one of the Great Powers. This humiliated the people of Russia, and caused them to lose confidence in Tsar Nicholas II, as well as causing great military, economic, and political problems for Russia. This therefore caused the Russo-Japanese War to be partly responsible for the outbreak of the 1905 Revolution.
The lack of unity especially in the high command of the white army was the reason why many of the generals such as Denikin and Yudenich refused to combine their forces for an all-out assault, and this then resulted in the total defeat of the white forces. Although the lack of unity in the whites was an important aspect for the Bolsheviks victory, we cannot forget about several other factors which were also important to the success of the reds. The most significant advantage that the Bolsheviks had during the civil war was Trotsky’s role as war commissar, without a doubt if it wasn't for Trotsky the reds might have lost the civil war. Trotsky had good management and organisation skills which he put to good use trying to turn the red army from a gang of inexperienced men into an effective fighting machine. The main he done this was using 50,000 ex tsarist officers to train and lead the red army, this proved unpopular with many Bolsheviks party members however.
How far was the Russo-Japanese War And the 1905 Revolution? During the ruin of Nicholas the 3rd Russia was suffering problems in aspects such as social turmoil, political obstacles and a rather large economic crisis as well as the Russo-Japanese .The Russo-Japanese War started in 1904 and ended in 1905, and happened because both Japan and Russia’s desire for expansion and control in Korea and Manchuria. Russia suffered many great failures in this war and was eventually debated by a nation that was considered inferior and was not one of the Great Powers aka Japan. This humiliated the people of Russia, and caused them to lose confidence in Tsar Nicholas II. So how far did the Russo-Japanese war responsible for the revelution of 1905?
Russia’s role in World War I quickly led Russia’s people to the strong dislike of their Provisional Government and further into economic downfall which continued to upset the citizens of Russia. The Bolsheviks, a left-wing political party that were socialists, began to grow in popularity among the peasants and industrial workers whose pay was very low and in most cases among the industrial workers; their working conditions were very poor and unsafe. The Bolsheviks then instigated a revolution, resulting in Bolshevik power of Russia. Bolshevik power led to further unhappiness. The months before and during the Bolshevik revolution, as well as the signing of the peace treaty at Brest-Litovsk cause turmoil among the socialists and brought Russia into civil war.
Before the PG came into power, the already dire economic, agrarian and social problems were getting worse and worse as the war continued and as a result, the majority of Russians opposed the war effort. This meant that from the beginning of their reign, the PGs decision to carry on with the war made them unpopular as food shortages and the economy got worse and worse. For example, by 1917, the price of bread had doubled while the rations halved from their original figures in 1914. This discontent was proven as early as April the 20th as a riot broke onto the streets demanding that Milyukov, the head of Russian foreign affairs and key war minister, was sacked. This was significant as it meant that in the times of potential danger for the PG, they couldn’t rely on the people to support them.
The Russo-Japanese War lasted from 1904 to 1905, and arose from Japan and Russia’s shared desire for expansion into Korea. Russia suffered many defeats in the war, against a country that was considered inferior, as well as not being one of the Great Powers. This was humiliating for the people of Russia, and caused them to lose confidence in Tsar Nicholas II, as well as causing great military, economic, and political problems for Russia. I would therefore argue that the Russo-Japanese War to be partly responsible for the outbreak of the 1905 Revolution. Huge military defeats took place in the Russo-Japanese War, which highlighted the weakness of the Russian military and caused national humiliation, which contributed to the outbreak of the 1905 Revolution.
Furthermore, there were also political causes for the outbreak of the 1905 revolution. Russia lacked an elected national parliament, unlike the rest of European countries. Because of this and the other factors which angered the Russians, demand for political change began to grow, as well as opposition did. The opposition (liberals, Social Democrats and Social Revolutionaries) had little in common except for their willingness to overthrow the Tsar and the Tsarist system. This growth in opposition and lack of political reforms also contributed to the outbreak of the revolution.