'To what extent was military defeats during WWI the main cause of the Feburary 1917 Revolution?'

Question 1

Introduction

Answer 1

• Prior to 1917, Russia was an autocracy ruled by the Tsar (emperor), or Nicholas II, whose family- the Romanovs- had been ruling Russia for 408 years, ending at Nicholas’ abdication in 1917.
• Nicholas had been an autocrat since 1894, and had faced a major uprising in 1905- he had survived, but afterwards had to rethink how he was going to rule Russia to secure his authority: although he had implemented the October Manifesto and the Dumas to help reinstate his authority, this was still not enough to keep his position as Tsar, and he was advised by his ministers to abdicate in 1917, leading to a revolution across Russia.

Question 2

Paragraph One (Russian Army)

Answer 2

• Despite having the longest standing army, Russia was facing some of the most notorious defeats on the Eastern Front. In August 1914, the Battle if Tannenburg against the Germans had resulted in 95,000 Russian soldiers being held captive out of 150,000, with only 10,000 managing to escape.
• It was a humiliating defeat for the Russian army. The treatment of the wounded in the Russian Army was generally poor and the army had inadequate medical supplies, leading to even higher fatality rates in the Russian Army.
• Overall, military defeats was the main cause for the February 1917 Revolution because it created a very low morale amongst Russian soldiers, leading to frustration and resentment towards leadership and especially tsardom- the Tsar had lost the support of the Army, thus had no one to defend his authority.
• However, military defeats can be argued was not the main cause of the February 1917 revolution because by 1916, the Russians are producing shells at the same rate as the Germans- a 1000% growth- and were succeeding crucial gains on the Eastern Front, meaning that the army was gradually fixing its problems, so less blame was put upon the Tsar and therefore there was less opposition against him.
• In evaluation, despite some limitations such as the Minister of War was largely blamed for Russia’s incompetence during the war: he was blamed for Russia’s lack of preparation for war, and was accused of preventing reforms in military training, meaning that the Tsar was put under less fault for Russia’s humiliating failure, overall military defeats during World War One was the main cause of the February 1917 Revolution because during the war, the Russian Army was forced out of Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia, which was extremely humiliating for the Russians, known as the ‘Great Retreat’. This resulted in many Russian soldiers to detest the Tsar and be more likely to revolt against him.

Question 3

Paragraph Two (Political Impacts of World War One)

Answer 3

• When the Tsar had left to fight on the Eastern Front, he had commanded that his wife, Tsarina Alexandria, was to control Russia in his absence, as at this point the Dumas had been dissolved. Her leadership had caused many problems and disputes among the Russian people: she was German, and as Russia was currently at war with Germany, the Russian population was largely distrustful of her- there were even allegations that she was siding with the Germans.
• She was also described to have a suspicious relationship with Rasputin, a self-proclaimed Holy Man, who she tasked to care her only son from haemophilia. Rasputin often used his relationship with the Tsarina to manipulate and take control of appointing ministers- which caused him to be majorly disliked.
• Overall, the political impacts of World War One were a cause of the February 1917 revolution because the role of Rasputin had led to a lot of opposition from the ruling elite and a loss of support from the middle class of the Tsarist Regime, which meant that people from all classes were more likely to revolt against autocracy and against the Tsar.
• However, the political impacts of World War One was not the main cause of the February 1917 revolution because Rasputin reorganised medical supplies in the Army, which gained the Tsar back some support from the army, and were therefore less likely to revolt against the Tsarist Regime.
• In evaluation, although the political impacts of World War One was important as a reason for the February 1917 Revolution because the Tsarina regularly displaced competent ministers and replaced them with those who had flattered her- in a period of 16 months, she employed four different prime ministers, five different ministers of the interior, and three different ministers of war- which made it impossible for the practices of government to be carried out effectively, which caused ministers to dislike her and then in turn the Tsar, military defeats were more important because in an effort to save money, the War Ministry had limited formal training to the “first levy” reserves meaning that the “secondary levy” reserves had inadequate training for combat, which added on to the high casualty rates in the Russian Army, which caused the Russian Army to become critical and dislike the Tsar.

Question 4

Paragraph Three (Socio/economical impact of the First World War)

Answer 4

• From the start of the war, Russia’s economic problems were gradually getting worse- and by 1917, it was more than likely that Russia was going to face an economic collapse. Due to the war effort, millions of peasant farmers had been conscripted to fight on the Eastern Front, and horses which would’ve been primarily used for farming were taken for war.
• This had lead to major shortages in raw materials and food, and in result, the prices of daily goods were rising steeply. Inflation was also increasing drastically: by 1916, inflation had reached 200 percent, making life increasingly difficult for the majority, especially the poor.
• Overall, the socio/economical impact of the First World War was a cause of the February 1917 revolution because the Dumas had dissolved during the war, meaning that the peasantry had no one to blame for inflation but the Tsar, which meant that the Tsar had lost the support of the largest social class in Russia and the peasantry were more likely to revolt against him.
• However, the socio/economical impacts of the First World War was not the main cause of the February 1917 revolution because the role of the revolutionaries was minimal- the revolution in 1914 was spontaneous and unplanned, making it less likely it was a result of a worsening economical state in Russia.
• In evaluation, whilst the socio-economic impact of the First World War was an important reason for the February 1917 Revolution because inflation resulted in the price of bread rising by 500%, despite working class wages remaining low, which resulted in both the peasantry and working class being more likely to revolt against the Tsar, military defeats was a more important reason because it’s estimated that two million Russian soldiers had been killed during the First World War, due to both offensives from the enemy and from the poor medical care within the army, which indubitably turned the majority of the Russian Army against the Tsar.

Question 5

Paragraph Four (the role of the Tsar)

Answer 5

• Finally, the role of the Tsar was an important reason for the February 1917 Revolution. The Tsar had a very narrow vision for Russia, and was incompetent at ruling- he had made it very clear he did not wish to be the Tsar, even saying that he was not prepared to rule Russia. His main focus was his family.
• In 1915, Nicholas took personal command of the army- he may have believed that, by taking charge, his army would be inspired and fight with a renewed vigour- however, the Tsar knew little about organising a large military force and about commanding, thus the trend of defeats and humiliation within the Russian continued.
• Overall, the role of the Tsar was a cause of the February 1917 revolution because Nicholas’ decision to take charge of the army meant that he was seen as directly responsible fro the military disasters inflicted on Russia.
• However, the role of the Tsar was not the main cause of the February 1917 revolution because the Tsar’s education was the promotion of autocracy, which meant that he could not envision a Russia that wasn’t ruled under an autocracy- which therefore influenced the choices he made in ruling Russia.
• In evaluation, whilst the role of the Tsar was an important reason for the February 1917 Revolution because in September of 1915, the Tsar had sacked the “popular” commander Grand Duke Nicholas and replaced the role with himself, which caused soldiers within the army to dislike him, overall military defeats was more important because historian Orlando Figes said “the war was a great democratiser”. This meant that the war had made everyone equal, and lead to the spreading of anti-tsar ideology which would ultimately result in the February 1917 Revolution.