Although there are several reasons that contribute towards the failure of the Provisional Government, such as the shared power with the soviets, the decision to continue fighting in the First World War was the most important because it led to the loss of support of the people and perhaps more importantly the army, who they desperately needed to keep hold of, as the army protected them. The First World War was the biggest problem the Provisional Government faced, having already lost territory in places such as Poland, and the morale of the armed forces was rapidly decreasing. By continuing in the First World War, the Provisional Government lost the support of the people. Russia owed a large amount of money to several countries who had loaned money to fund the war. The foreign banks were willing to continue to loan to Russia as long as they continued fighting, therefore it can be argued that the Provisional Government was inclined to continue the fighting in the First World War.
In contrast the Tsar weakened the Duma and a progressive bloc was formed. This suggests that the Tsar is vulnerable to revolution whereas the Communist rule is repressive and very few ever speak out against it. Economically the Civil War had the greatest impact in shaping the Russian Government policies. This is because War Communism was introduced and later fine tuned into the New Economic Policy. War Communism was radical and involved the militarisation of Labour which was disliked by the people and made people focus purely on the needs of the war.
The Russo-Japanese was an important factor which lead up to the outbreak of the 1905 revolution as it was a catalyst which highlighted the fundamental weaknesses in the leadership of the Tsar. Though it was an was important factor, ultimately the outbreak of the 1905 revolution was due to a number of factors such as the long term issues such as the lack of modernisation; socially, economically and politically. The most significant cause of the 1905 revolution was the lack of modernisation. Due to the failure of modernisation in the countryside led to increase in social tension. Agriculture in Russia was far behind other great powers and peasants were suffering greatly through the repeated famines in 1902 and 1905.
Possibly the greatest vulnerability was 'the weakness within' - the constitution gave the President, the states and the military too much control, whilst proportional voting meant that the Reichstag was separated and weak. There was no single party in complete control and parties had to join together to form a government. However, each party had different goals which caused in-fighting and instability making it difficult for the Reichstag, with its many changes in power, to govern effectively. This was reflected in 376 political assassinations up to 1923. From the start there was economic instability because of the cost of World War One and there was widespread disillusion within the German people.
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. This situation only got worse as the months went on. Although the PG were fighting in the war for a good reason, to ensure financial support from the allies, many of the soldiers were unaware of this and had little idea of what they are fighting for. Subsequently they weren’t motivated to fight, generally opposed the war effort and were a weak enemy to fight against. This was proven in June as they launched an offensive on the Germans in Russia; they suffered
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.
As well as this the Trans-Siberian railway was still unfinished and this meant that Russia struggled to move its troops and supplies form west to east. At the end of the war Russia lost the southern half of Sakhalin and Port Arthur. The Russian people were humiliated and ultimately blamed Nicholas II for their loss of pride as well as territory. Even the Tsars most supportive biographer concluded that this ‘disastrous and unnecessary
Louis forced his overpopulated army into multiple wars that they did not have a possibility of success in. Tokugawa Ieysau began his rule of Japan in 1646 and ruled until his death in 1715. Tokugawa’s reign was unsuccessful mainly because of his military failures, and his oppression of farmers. Throughout the reigns of Tokugawa Ieysau , and Louis XVI, it is clear that both of their policies were unsuccessful when it comes to nobles, peasants, and military. Throughout Tokugawa’s reign, his strategy with the nobles was similar to Louis XVI.
Both the Bolsheviks and the opposition White forces were ravaged by internal weaknesses and hugely influenced by external conflict and conditions. To try and pinpoint the real reasons for the Bolsheviks success one must consider a number of conditions which led to the eventual outcome. Opposition weaknesses, geographical isolation, poor military leadership, disunity, and an incapacity to capture the mood of the nation were all explanations for their failings. The Bolsheviks ability to harness the power of popular peasant support, their unity and their strong leadership were certainly contributing factors to their success. Yet, popular support alone cannot bring military success nor can it bring stability.
Nicholas II was faced with various issues during his reign from 1894-1917. His ineffectual personality was partly to blame for his ineffectual ruling. He was not able to listen to the needs of his public, and so violent uprisings such as Bloody Sunday occurred. His response was to initiate the October Manifest and the instigation of the Russian Duma, but neither of these pleased the public and so the February revolution of 1917 occurred, which ultimately created the fall of Tsar Nicholas II. Nicholas II attempted to rule Russia as an autocrat as he believed that autocracy was the only was to save Russia from anarchy.