The Tsar made many failures as Commander in chief of the army especially at the battle of Tannenburg where the majority of the Russian second army was destroyed which forced the Russian army to retreat. This coupled with other military defeats led to mass desertions towards cities. It also led to many soldiers knowing of the Tsars failures which would have supported the claim for a revolution. The war effort also caused the Zemstva and the Congress of Representatives of Industry and Trade to grow which were used to help stimulate production and provide medical facilities. The government failed to efficiently incorporate these into the war effort which resulted in them becoming a symbol for the shortcomings in the war effort.
Extended Response 1 At the turn of the year 1905 Russia was in a state of social, political and economic turmoil. The entire system, political, social and economic was manufactured by the ruling classes to support their own privileges. Russia’s economy was imbalanced to the extent that the majority of the country lived in poverty while the Romanov’s and the Orthodox church controlled a vast fortune. In Russian society, human rights and personal freedoms for citizens didn’t exist. Instead, the Romanov’s had created a police state where capital punishment and discrimination were tolerated and even encouraged by the government so, not surprisingly, many Russians feared the absolute power of the Romanov dynasty.
One way was that there were very large payments that each city, town or kingdom had to pay to the empire. These payments consisted of currency, food and livestock. This form of collection was used extensively in both the Middle East and in Russia. In Russia the large kingdoms had populations of serves that could not supply the demand of the Golden Horde so they would simply become property of the princes or nobles using the feudal system and then the nobles would supply the Mongol Empire. It a kingdom could not supply or refused to supply the empire then the local population would be killed or the city destroyed.
Alexander wanted all religions changed to Russian Orthodoxy which angered the many religions which occupied Russia, the Jewish community, which totalled to 5 million in the 1980's, prevailed over any other religions in the Pale(along the border of Poland and Russia). Anguishing those who are deeply religious and unwilling to change their way of life. He also strived to change the vastness of nationalities within the empire, as so many different languages were spoken and due to the diverse traditions, Alexander now wanted everyone to speak and be recognised as Russian. It would have been very difficult for those who have known only one language for their entire life, and also had poor literacy ,to then continue life using another language. To guarantee these changes happened a statute was put in place(The Statute on Extreme Measures), meaning there was justification behind any action taken by the Tsar.
One of the main reasons for this opposition was the economic and social hardships Russia was going through particularly in the months after the October revolution. Food shortages plagued Russia due to problems of distribution, problems of inflation and problems of production. The railway system in Russia had virtually collapsed. This meant that food supplies or any other necessary supplies couldn’t be distributed efficiently around Russia which caused massive food shortages. Food shortages were a key problem in Russia as it meant the people were starving and desperate.
Another factor to the growth of opposition against the Tsar was due to the Rasputin becoming advisor to Alexandria as Nicholas the second went to war. During September 1915 and December there was frequent changes such as; 4 prime ministers ,5 interior ministers and 3 ministers of agriculture. This made it hard for people of Russia to keep up and it made no improvements to Russia’s society. In addition this made the Tsar hated among the people and the opposition grew against him. However, if Alexandra accepted reforms from the Duma instead of Rasputin a reduction of opposition would of
A key long term factor that resulted in huge repercussions in Russia's was Imperialism. Like all European powers of the time Russia was expanding in size, population and power. Whilst doing vast numbers of nationalities, peoples, cultures and religions were made part of Russia and faced the harsh realities of Russification. This repression of key aspects of Individuality and freedoms caused much discontent which ultimately turned bloody against their "Little Father". The act of rising up against repression isn't a modern Idea, Islam and Christianity fought for similar reasons.
How far was the impact of World War One the crucial factor in the fall of the Romanovs in February 1917. This essay will argue that the impact of World War One was a very crucial factor in the fall of the Romanovs in February 1917. The events in the Revolutions of 1905 and 1917 also show that Nicolas II was not a good leader and these events led to the fall of the Romanovs. World War One caused many problems for the Government, the army and the people at home. Having a war caused inflation, government spending rose from 4-30 million, taxation increased, and money became practically worthless and the price of food and fuel quadrupled.
How far was WWI essentially responsible for the downfall of the Romanovs in 1817? For years tension had been brewing due to many different aspects of life in Russia, like the personality of the Tsar, the inconsistency of the Duma and general weaknesses which prevented Russia in becoming a successfully developed and industrialised country. However other factors such as abandonment of the Tsars traditional supporters and the First World War would be considered very influential in building upon the social discontent and already existing issues which eventually lead to a consequential revolution as well as the end of Tsarist rule in 1917. Nicholas II, son of Alexander III, abdicated his throne and his haemophiliac son’s, who was too ill to serve as Tsar. The throne was then passed onto his brother Grand Duke Michael who refused, thus ending the Romanovs 300 year old rule over Russia.
Whereas, the White army was faced with: a divided leadership, low moral, corruption and brutality within the army and the downside of the vast geography of Russia. The White party faced many problems which caused them to be militarily and politically weak. They did not have one person in charge of the White forces. Whereas the Bolsheviks had the advantage of Lenin, the whites had Yudenich, Wrangel, Kolchak and Denikin. These men were rivals and each trying to gain control of the White party.