Caricature of European powers on the eve of World War I
1914 – 1918 – period of participation Russian Empire in the First World War.
Beginning of the First World War
The reason for the outbreak of World War I was the assassination of the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, Franz Ferdinand, in Sarajevo by a Serbian terrorist. After the terrorist attack, the Emperor of Austria-Hungary issued an ultimatum to the Serbian government, and after Serbia refused to accept its conditions, declared war on it. Russia supported Serbia and announced mobilization. Austria-Hungary, in turn, enlisted the support of Germany, and on August 1, 1914, the German Empire declared war on Russia.
Fighting on the Eastern Front
Russian army in the First World War
Fighting in 1914
In 1914, the main hostilities took place in Western Front. Germany concentrated its main forces against France, and Russia did not have time to complete mobilization and was faced with a shortage of ammunition.
In the summer of 1914, the 1st and 2nd Russian armies, commanded by Generals Rennenkampf and Samsonov, launched an offensive against East Prussia. The Southwestern Front under the command of General Ivanov completed a successful offensive, capturing Galicia and defeating the troops of Austria-Hungary, thereby saving Serbia from defeat from the superior forces of the Austrians.
Fighting in 1915
In 1915, Germany transferred its main forces to the eastern front, trying to take Russia out of the war. In April-June 1915, Russian troops were driven out of Galicia, and in June-August 1915 - from Poland, but Russia was not defeated. On August 10, 1915, Nicholas II removed Prince Nikolai Nikolaevich, popular among the troops, from command and assumed the duties of Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army, which subsequently negatively affected the authority of the emperor.
Fighting in 1916
In May-July 1916, the Brusilov breakthrough took place - a successful offensive of the Russian army in Galicia against the Austrians. That same year, Romania entered the war with the Central Bloc, but was almost immediately defeated by Austrian troops, which only worsened the situation on the Eastern Front.
Events of 1917
In 1917, a revolution broke out in Russia. The emperor announced his abdication from the throne. The provisional government that replaced the emperor told the allies to continue the war with the Central Powers until victory. In June 1917, Russia launched an offensive against Austria-Hungary, but due to the collapse of the army and revolutionary propaganda it ended in failure. After the defeat of the Russian troops and the complete disintegration of the army, large-scale operations at the front were no longer carried out.
Results of the First World War in Russian history
The defeats of the Russian army and the unsuccessful decisions of the imperial government led to public discontent, which resulted in the revolution of 1917. As a result, Russia emerged from the period 1914–1918 defeated in the war, with a destroyed statehood and a beginning revolution.
Assessments of the period 1914 - 1918 by historians
Russian historians, for example, A. A. Danilov, assess the period 1914-1918 - the period of the First World War - mostly negatively. Russia was drawn into a world war for which it was poorly prepared and for which it had no definite goals.
First World War 1914 – 1918
Plan:
2. Companies 1915-1916
3. Events of 1917-1918
1. The beginning of the First World War. 1914
The main reason for the First World War was the sharp aggravation of contradictions between the leading countries of the world due to their uneven development. An equally important reason was the arms race, on the supply of which the monopolies received super-profits. The militarization of the economy and the consciousness of huge masses of people took place, and sentiments of revanchism and chauvinism grew.
The deepest contradictions were between Germany and Great Britain. Germany sought to end British dominance at sea and seize its colonies. Germany's claims to France and Russia were great. The plans of the top German military leadership included the seizure of the economically developed regions of northeastern France, the desire to tear away the Baltic states, the “Don region”, Crimea and the Caucasus from Russia. In turn, Great Britain wanted to maintain its colonies and dominance at sea, and take away oil-rich Mesopotamia and part of the Arabian Peninsula from Turkey. France, which suffered a crushing defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, hoped to regain Alsace and Lorraine and annex the left bank of the Rhine and the Saar coal basin.
Austria-Hungary nurtured expansionist plans for Russia (Volyn, Podolia) and Serbia. Russia sought to annex Galicia and take possession of the Black Sea straits of the Bosporus and Dardanelles.
By 1914 the contradictions between the two military-political groupings of the European powers - the Triple Alliance and the Entente - escalated to the limit. The Balkan Peninsula has become a zone of particular tension. The ruling circles of Austria-Hungary, following the advice of the German emperor, decided to finally establish their influence in the Balkans with one blow to Serbia. Soon a reason was found to declare war. The Austrian command launched military maneuvers near the Serbian border. The head of the Austrian “war party,” heir to the throne Franz Ferdinand, made a demonstrative visit to the capital of Bosnia, Sarajevo. On June 28, a bomb was thrown at his carriage, which the Archduke threw away, demonstrating his presence of mind. On the way back, a different route was chosen. But for some unknown reason, the carriage returned through a labyrinth of poorly guarded streets to the same place. A young man ran out of the crowd and fired two shots. One bullet hit the Archduke in the neck, the other in the stomach of his wife. Both died within minutes.
The terrorist act was carried out by Serbian patriots Gavrilo Princip and his associate Gavrilović from the paramilitary organization “Black Hand”.
July 5, 1914 Following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the Austrian government received assurances from Germany to support its claims against Serbia. Kaiser Wilhelm II promised the Austrian representative Count Hoyos that Germany would support Austria even if the conflict with Serbia led to war with Russia. On July 23, the Austrian government presented an ultimatum to Serbia. It was presented at six in the evening, a response was expected within 48 hours.
The terms of the ultimatum were harsh, some seriously hurting Serbia's pan-Slavic ambitions. The Austrians did not expect or desire that the terms would be accepted. On July 7, having received confirmation of German support, the Austrian government decided to provoke war - an ultimatum was drawn up with this in mind. Austria was also encouraged by the conclusions that Russia was not ready for war: the sooner it happened, the better, they decided in Vienna.
The Serbian response to the ultimatum of July 23 was rejected, although it did not contain unconditional recognition of the demands, and on July 28, 1914. Austria declared war on Serbia. Both sides began to mobilize even before a response was received,
August 1, 1914 Germany declared war on Russia, and two days later on France. After a month of mounting tension, it became clear that a major European war could not be avoided, although Britain still hesitated.
A day after the declaration of war on Serbia, when Belgrade was already bombed, Russia began mobilization. The original order general mobilization- an act tantamount to a declaration of war - was almost immediately canceled by the tsar in favor of partial mobilization. Perhaps Russia did not expect large-scale actions from Germany.
On August 4, German troops invaded Belgium. Luxembourg had suffered the same fate two days earlier. Both states had international guarantees against attack, but only Belgium's guarantees provided for the intervention of a guaranteeing power. Germany made public the "reasons" for the invasion, accusing Belgium of being "not neutral" but no one took it seriously. The invasion of Belgium brought England into the war. The British government presented an ultimatum demanding an immediate cessation of hostilities and withdrawal German soldiers. The demand was ignored and all the great powers - Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Russia and England - were drawn into the war.
Although the great powers had been preparing for war for many years, it still took them by surprise. For example, England and Germany spent huge amounts of money on building a navy, but bulky floating fortresses played a minor role in the battles, although they undoubtedly had strategic importance. Likewise, no one expected that infantry (especially on the Western Front) would lose the ability to move, being paralyzed by the power of artillery and machine guns (although this was predicted by the Polish banker Ivan Bloch in his work “The Future of War” in 1899).
In terms of training and organization, the German army was the best in Europe. In addition, the Germans burned with patriotism and faith in their great destiny, which had not yet been realized. Germany understood better than anyone the importance of heavy artillery and machine guns in modern combat, as well as the importance of railway communications.
The Austro-Hungarian army was a copy of the German army, but was inferior to it due to the explosive mixture of different nationalities in its composition and mediocre performance in previous wars. The French army was only 20% smaller than the German one, but its manpower was barely more than half. The main difference, therefore, was the reserves. Germany had a lot of them, France had nothing at all. France, like most other countries, hoped for a short war. She was not ready for a prolonged conflict. Like the rest, France believed that movement would decide everything, and did not expect static trench warfare.
Russia's main advantage was its inexhaustible human resources and the proven courage of the Russian soldier, but its leadership was corrupt and incompetent, and its industrial backwardness made Russia unsuited to modern warfare. Communications were very poor, the borders were endless, and the allies were geographically cut off. It was assumed that Russian participation, declared as pan-Slavic crusade", represented a desperate attempt to restore ethnic unity under the deteriorating tsarist regime. Britain's position was completely different. Britain never had a large army and was dependent on naval forces even in the 18th century, and traditions rejected a "standing army" from even more ancient times. The British army was thus extremely small, but highly professional and had the main goal of maintaining order in overseas possessions. There were doubts whether the British command would be able to lead a real company. Some commanders were too old, however, this deficiency was also inherent in Germany.
The most striking example of the misjudgment of the nature of modern warfare by the commands of both sides was the widespread belief that the most important role cavalry. At sea, traditional British supremacy was challenged by Germany. In 1914 Britain had 29 capital ships, Germany - 18. Britain also underestimated enemy submarines, although it was especially vulnerable to them due to its dependence on overseas supplies of food and raw materials for its industry. Britain became the main factory for the Allies, as Germany was for its own.
The First World War was fought on almost a dozen fronts in different parts of the globe. The main fronts were the Western, where German troops fought against British, French and Belgian troops, and the Eastern, where Russian troops confronted the combined forces of the Austro-Hungarian and German armies. The human, raw material and food resources of the Entente countries significantly exceeded those of the Central Powers, so the chances of Germany and Austria-Hungary to win a war on two fronts were slim. The German command understood this and therefore relied on a lightning war.
The military action plan, developed by the Chief of the German General Staff von Schlieffen, proceeded from the fact that Russia would need at least a month and a half to concentrate its troops. During this time, it was planned to defeat France and force it to surrender. Then it was planned to transfer all German troops against Russia. According to the Schlieffen Plan, the war was supposed to end in two months. But these calculations did not come true.
At the beginning of August, the main forces of the German army approached the Belgian fortress of Liege, which covered crossings across the Meuse River, and after bloody battles captured all its forts. On August 20, German troops entered the capital of Belgium, Brussels. German troops reached the Franco-Belgian border and in a “border battle” defeated the French, forcing them to retreat deeper into the territory, which posed a threat to Paris. The German command overestimated its successes and, considering the strategic plan in the West completed, transferred two army corps and a cavalry division to the East. In early September, German troops reached the Marne River in an attempt to encircle the French. In the Battle of the Marne River September 3-10, 1914. Anglo-French troops stopped the German advance on Paris and even a short time managed to launch a counteroffensive. One and a half million people took part in this battle. Losses on both sides amounted to almost 600 thousand people killed and wounded. The result of the Battle of the Marne was the final failure of the “lightning war” plans.
The weakened German army began to “burrow” into the trenches. The Western Front, stretching from the English Channel to the Swiss border, by the end of 1914. stabilized. Both sides began building earthen and concrete fortifications. The wide strip in front of the trenches was mined and covered with thick rows of barbed wire. The war on the Western Front turned from a maneuver to a positional one.
Advance of Russian troops in East Prussia ended unsuccessfully, they were defeated and partially destroyed in the Masurian swamps. The offensive of the Russian army under the command of General Brusilov in Galicia and Bukovina, on the contrary, pushed the Austro-Hungarian units back to the Carpathians. By the end of 1914 there was also a respite on the Eastern Front. The warring parties switched to a long trench war.
On November 5, 1914, Russia, England and France declared war on Turkey. In October, the Turkish government closed the Dardanelles and Bosphorus to the passage of Allied ships, practically isolating Russia's Black Sea ports from outside world and causing irreparable damage to its economy. This move by Turkey was an effective contribution to the war efforts of the Central Powers. The next provocative step was the shelling of Odessa and other southern Russian ports at the end of October by a squadron of Turkish warships.
The declining Ottoman Empire gradually collapsed and over the course of the last half century lost most of its European possessions. The army was exhausted by unsuccessful military operations against the Italians in Tripoli, and the Balkan Wars caused further depletion of its resources. The Young Turk leader Enver Pasha, who as Minister of War was a leading figure on the Turkish political scene, believed that an alliance with Germany would best serve his country's interests, and on August 2, 1914, a secret treaty was signed between the two countries. The German military mission had been active in Turkey since the end of 1913. She was tasked with reorganizing the Turkish army.
Despite serious objections from his German advisers, Enver Pasha decided to invade the Russian Caucasus and launched an offensive in difficult weather conditions in mid-December 1914. The Turkish soldiers fought well, but suffered a severe defeat. However, the Russian high command was concerned about the threat that Turkey posed to Russia's southern borders, and German strategic plans were well served by the fact that this threat in this sector pinned down Russian troops that were in great need on other fronts.
2. Companies 1915-1916
The year 1915 began with an intensification of military actions by the warring parties.
Symbolizing the emergence of sinister new means of warfare, on January 19, German Zeppelins began raiding the east coast of England. Several people died in the ports of Norfolk, and several bombs fell near the royal house at Sandringham.
On January 24, a short but fierce battle took place off Dogger Bank in the North Sea, during which the German cruiser Blücher was sunk and two battlecruisers were damaged. The British battlecruiser Lion was also seriously damaged.
On February 12, the French launched a new offensive in Champagne. The losses were enormous, the French lost about 50 thousand people, having advanced almost 500 yards. This was followed by a British offensive on Neuschtal in March 1915 and a new French offensive in April in an easterly direction. However, these actions did not bring tangible results to the Allies.
In the east, on March 22, after a siege, Russian troops captured the Przemysl fortress, which dominated the bridgehead on the San River in Galicia. Over 100 thousand Austrians were captured, not counting the heavy losses suffered by Austria in unsuccessful attempts to lift the siege.
Russia's strategy at the beginning of 1915 amounted to an offensive in the direction of Silesia and Hungary while securing reliable flanks. During this company, the capture of Przemysl was the main success of the Russian army (although it managed to hold this fortress only for two months). At the beginning of May 1915, a major offensive by the troops of the Central Powers began in the East.I
The strike forces of the 11th German Army under Field Marshal Mackensen, supported by the 40th Austro-Hungarian Army, went on the offensive along a 20-mile front in Western Galicia. Russian troops were forced to leave Lvov and Warsaw. In the summer, the German command broke through the Russian front near Gorlitsa. Soon the Germans launched an offensive in the Baltic states and Russian troops lost Galicia, Poland, part of Latvia and Belarus. The enemy was preoccupied with the need to repel the impending attack on Serbia, as well as to return troops to the Western Front before the start of a new French offensive. During the four-month campaign, Russia lost 800 thousand soldiers alone as prisoners.
However, the Russian command, switching to strategic defense, managed to withdraw its armies from the enemy’s attacks and stop its advance. Concerned and exhausted, the Austro-German armies went on the defensive along the entire front in October. Germany faced the need to continue a long war on two fronts. Russia bore the brunt of the struggle, which provided France and England with a respite to mobilize the economy for the needs of the war.
On February 16, 1915, British and French warships began shelling Turkish defensive structures in the Dardanelles. With interruptions caused in part by bad weather, this naval operation continued for two months.
The Dardanelles operation was undertaken at the request of Russia to launch a diversionary attack on Turkey, which would relieve pressure on the Russians fighting the Turks in the Caucasus. In January, the Dardanelles, a strait about 40 miles long and 1 to 4 miles wide, connecting the Aegean Sea with the Sea of Marmara, was chosen as a target.
The operation to capture the Dardanelles, opening the way to an attack on Constantinople, figured in the Allied military plans before the war, but was rejected as too difficult. With Turkey's entry into the war, this plan was revised as possible, although risky. Initially, a purely naval operation was planned, but it immediately became clear that it was necessary to undertake a combined one. sea and land operations. This plan found active support from the English First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill. The outcome of the operation - which, if successful, would have opened the "back door" to Russia - was questioned by the Allies' reluctance to commit large enough forces at once and the choice of largely outdated warships. At the beginning, Türkiye had only two divisions to defend the strait. At the time of the Allied landings, it had six divisions and outnumbered five Allied divisions, not counting the presence of magnificent natural fortifications.
Early on the morning of April 25, 1915, Allied troops landed at two points on the Gallipoli Peninsula. The British landed at Cape Ilyas, at the southern tip of the peninsula, and the Australians and New Zealand units advanced along the Aegean coast about 15 miles to the north. At the same time, the French brigade launched a diversionary attack on Kumkala on the Anatolian coast.
Despite barbed wire and heavy machine-gun fire, both groups managed to seize a bridgehead. However, the Turks controlled the heights, as a result of which the British, Australian and New Zealand troops were unable to advance. As a result, as on the Western Front, a lull established itself here.
In August, British troops landed at Suvla Bay in an attempt to capture the central part of the peninsula opposite the pass. Although the landing in the Gulf was sudden, the command of the troops was unsatisfactory, and the opportunity for a breakthrough was lost. The offensive in the south also proved unsuccessful. The British government decided to withdraw troops. W. Churchill was forced to resign as First Lord of the Admiralty.
On May 23, 1915, Italy declared war on Austria, signing a secret treaty with the Allies in London in April. The Triple Alliance, which linked Italy to the Central Powers, was denounced, although at this time it refused to declare war on Germany.
At the beginning of the war, Italy declared its neutrality on the grounds that the Triple Alliance did not oblige it to take part in a war of aggression. However, the main reason for Italy's actions was the desire to gain territorial gains at the expense of Austria. Austria did not want to make the concessions that Italy sought, such as giving up Trieste. Moreover, by 1915, public opinion began to swing in favor of the Allies, and both former pacifists and radical socialists, led by Mussolini, saw an opportunity to bring about a revolution in the face of the lack of stability in society during the war.
In March, the Austrian government took steps to
to meet Italy's demands, but it was already too late. Under the Treaty of London, the Italians got what they wanted, or most of what they wanted. Under this treaty, Italy was promised Trentino, South Tyrol, Trieste, Istria and other predominantly Italian-speaking regions.
On May 30, the Italians began military operations against Austria with the launch of an offensive by the 2nd and 3rd armies under the overall command of General Cadorna in the northeast direction.
Italy had very disabilities to conduct war, its army had low combat effectiveness, especially after the Libyan company. The Italian offensive floundered and the fighting in 1915 became positional.
The year 1916 began with the offensive of Russian troops in the Caucasus. On February 16, they took the Turkish fortress of Erzurum. Meanwhile, in England, parliament approved a law on universal conscription, which was strongly opposed by trade unions and Labor. Conservatives and some liberals, led by D. Lloyd George, voted for the introduction of the law. And a food riot broke out in the capital of Germany - there was a catastrophic shortage of food in Berlin. In the same year, the battles of Verdun and the Somme River ended.
These battles were the bloodiest during the war on the Western Front. They were characterized by the massive use of artillery, aviation, infantry, and cavalry and did not bring success to either side. The main reason for this balance was the unconditional advantage of defensive methods of warfare over offensive ones.
The Verdun Offensive signified the desire of the Chief of the German General Staff, Falkenhayn, to deliver a decisive blow on the Western Front, which was postponed in 1915 after the successes achieved in the East. Falkenhayn believed that Germany's main enemy was England, but at the same time he recognized that England could not be conquered, partly because an offensive in the English sector had little chance of success, and also because a military defeat in Europe would not England from the war. Submarine warfare was the best hope for realizing this possibility, and Falkenhayn saw his task as defeating the British allies in Europe. Russia seemed already defeated, and the Austrians showed that they could cope with the Italians.
That left France. Given the proven strength of the defenses in trench warfare, Falkenhayn abandoned the idea of trying to break through the French lines. At Verdun, he chose a strategy of war of attrition. He planned a series of attacks to lure out the French reserves and destroy them with artillery. Verdun was chosen partly because it was on a salient and disrupted German communications, but also because it was important historical significance this large fortress. As soon as the battle began, the Germans were determined to capture Verdun and the French to defend it.
Falkenhayn was right in his assumption that the French would not give up Verdun easily. However, the task was complicated by the fact that Verdun was no longer a strong fortress and was practically deprived of artillery. Nevertheless, the French, forced to retreat, maintained their forts, while reinforcements filtered through a very narrow corridor that was not exposed to German artillery fire. By the time General Petain, commanding the Second Army, was sent to Verdun at the end of the month to lead its defense, the immediate threat had passed. The German crown prince, who commanded the army corps, scheduled the main offensive for March 4. After two days of shelling, the offensive began, but by March 9 it was stopped. However, Falkenhayn's strategy remained the same.
On June 7, the Germans captured Fort Vaux, which controlled the right flank of the French positions at Verdun. The next day they captured Fort Tiomon, which had already changed hands twice since the offensive began on June 1. It seemed that an immediate threat loomed over Verdun. In March, the Germans failed to achieve a quick victory at Verdun, but they continued their attacks with great persistence, which were carried out at short intervals. The French repulsed them and launched a series of counterattacks. German troops continued their offensive.
On October 24, General Nivelle, who took over the 2nd Army after Petain became commander-in-chief, launched a counteroffensive near Verdun. With the start of the Somme offensive in July, German reserves were no longer sent to Verdun. The French counterattack was covered by the “creeping artillery attack,” a new invention in which infantry advanced behind a gradually moving wave of artillery fire according to a precisely timed schedule. As a result, the troops captured the initially set objectives and captured 6 thousand prisoners. The next offensive was hampered by bad weather at the end of November, but was resumed in December and became known as the Battle of Luvemen. Almost 10 thousand prisoners were taken and more than 100 guns were captured.
In December, the Battle of Verdun ended. About 120 divisions were crushed in the Verdun meat grinder, including 69 French and 50 German.
During the Battle of Verdun, on July 1, 1916, after a week of artillery preparation, the Allies launched an offensive on the Somme River. As a result of the exhaustion of French troops at Verdun, British units became the main part of the offensive forces, and England became the leading Allied power on the Western Front.
The Battle of the Somme saw the first appearance of tanks, a new type of weapon, on September 15th. The effect of the British vehicles, which were initially called “land ships,” was quite uncertain, but the number of tanks taking part in the battle was small. In the fall, the British advance was blocked by swamps. The Battle of the Somme River, which lasted from July to the end of November 1916, did not bring success to either side. Their losses were enormous - 1 million 300 thousand people.
The situation on the Eastern Front was more successful for the Entente. At the height of the battles near Verdun, the French command again turned to Russia for help. On June 4, the Russian 8th Army under the command of General Kaledin advanced into the Lutsk area, which was considered as a reconnaissance operation. To the surprise of the Russians, the Austrian defense line collapsed. And General Alexei Brusilov, who exercised overall command of the southern sector of the front, immediately intensified his offensive, bringing 3 armies into battle. The Austrians were soon put into panic flight. In three days, the Russians captured 200 thousand prisoners. The army of General Brusilov broke through the Austrian front on the Lutsk - Chernivtsi line. Russian troops again occupied most of Galicia and Bukovina, putting Austria-Hungary on the brink of military defeat. And although the offensive dried up by August 1916, the “Brusilovsky breakthrough” suspended the activity of the Austrians on the Italian front and greatly eased the situation of the Anglo-French troops at Verdun and the Somme.
The war at sea came down to the question of whether Germany could successfully resist England's traditional superiority at sea. As on land, the presence of new types of weapons - aircraft, submarines, mines, torpedoes, radio equipment - made defense easier than attack.
The Germans, having a smaller fleet, believed that the British would seek to destroy it in a battle, which they therefore tried to avoid. However, the British strategy was aimed at achieving other goals. Having relocated the fleet to Scala Flow in the Orkney Islands at the beginning of the war and thereby establishing control over the North Sea, the British, wary of mines and torpedoes and the inaccessible coast of Germany, chose a long blockade, being constantly ready in case of an attempt to break through the German fleet. At the same time, being dependent on supplies by sea, they had to ensure security on ocean routes. In August 1914, the Germans had relatively few battleships based abroad, although the cruisers Goeben and Breslau had successfully reached Constantinople early in the war, and their presence contributed to Turkey's entry into the war on the side of the Central Powers. The most significant force, including the battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, was destroyed during the fighting off the Falkland Islands, and by the end of 1914 the oceans were - at least on the surface - cleared of German raiders.
The main danger to ocean trade routes was not combat squadrons, but submarines. As the war progressed, Germany's inferiority in capital ships forced her to increasingly concentrate her efforts on submarines, which the British, carrying heavy losses in the Atlantic, was seen as an illegal means of warfare. Ultimately, the policy of unrestricted submarine warfare, which proved almost disastrous for England, indirectly brought death to Germany, since it was the direct reason for the entry of the United States of America into the war in 1917.
On May 7, 1915, the huge American liner Lusitania, on a voyage from New York to Liverpool, was sunk by a torpedo attack by a German submarine off the Irish coast. The steamer quickly sank, and with it, about 1,200 people went forever into the cold waters of the ocean - almost three-quarters of all those on board.
The sinking of the Lusitania, whose speed was thought to make it invulnerable to torpedoes, necessitated a response. The fact that the Germans gave a cautious warning to the Americans not to sail on this ship only confirmed that the attack on it was most likely pre-planned. It caused sharp anti-German protests in many countries, primarily in the United States. Among the dead were almost 200 American citizens, including such famous figures as millionaire Alfred Vanderbilt. This sinking had big influence to President Woodrow Wilson's policy of strict neutrality, and from that time on, US entry into the war became a potential possibility.
On July 18, 1915, the Italian cruiser Giuseppe Garibaldi sank after being torpedoed by an Austrian submarine. A few days earlier, the English cruiser Dublin was attacked in a similar way, but she managed to escape despite serious damage. The French fleet, based in Malta, fell to the task of implementing a blockade in the Adriatic Sea. Austrian submarines were active, and after the loss of the battleship Jean Bart in December 1914, the French were wary of releasing their heavy ships, relying on cruisers and destroyers. German U-boats also entered the Mediterranean in the summer of 1915, and the Allies' position was complicated by the task of protecting the numerous transports and supply ships making raids to and from the Gallipoli Peninsula, and later to Thessaloniki. In September, an attempt was made to block the Strait of Otranto using nets, but German submarines managed to pass under them.
Military operations in the Baltic intensified. Russian sailors disabled a German minelayer, and a British submarine torpedoed the cruiser Prinz Adalbert.
Naval forces Russia, supplemented by several British submarines, as a rule, successfully thwarted German plans to land troops in Courland and prevented the installation of mines. British submarines also tried to disrupt the supply of iron and steel from Sweden to Germany, later sinking 14 ships engaged in these shipments in 1915.
But the British losses also grew. By the end of 1915 total number The number of British merchant ships sunk by German submarines exceeded 250.
The Battle of Jutland between the British and German fleets in the summer of 1916 led to large mutual losses, but in strategic terms it changed little. England retained superiority at sea and the blockade of Germany continued. The Germans had to return to submarine warfare again. However, its effectiveness became less and less, especially after the United States entered the war.
3. Events of 1917-1918
The 1917 revolution was a turning point in human history. It had a significant influence on the course of the world war.
After the victory of the February Revolution, a Provisional Government was formed in early March 1917, which, together with the Soviets, exercised real power in the country.
In area foreign policy The Provisional Government advocated the continuation of the world war, despite the difficult situation in Russia. On April 18, a note from Foreign Minister P. N. Milyukov was published to the governments of the Entente countries about Russia’s continuation of the war and its fidelity to its allied obligations. This note and the intensification of military operations at the front caused a powerful demonstration on April 20-21 by soldiers of the Petrograd garrison and city workers against the policy of continuing the war, demanding the resignation of Miliukov. At the end of April, Miliukov and Guchkov were forced to resign.
After the April crisis of the Provisional Government, a second coalition government was formed. The post of Minister of War in it was taken by A.F. Kerensky, and M.I. Tereshchenko became Minister of Foreign Affairs. Disagreements over war and peace again dominated the many political issues.
Right-wing parties, officers and generals, government officials, and major entrepreneurs were ready to continue the war. Supporters of Russia's liberal-democratic development sought to achieve an honorable peace. Left and left-radical forces expressed an irrepressible desire to turn the world war into a world revolution.
In June 1917, a new offensive of the Russian army began under the overall command of Brusilov. The morale of the army improved somewhat after the February Revolution, despite Bolshevik propaganda, but the offensive itself was dictated by political considerations. Success could force the Germans to agree to peace. Failure could help strengthen the position of German revolutionary socialists supporting Russia. The offensive was poorly prepared and ended in a heavy defeat for Russia. During 18 days of fighting at the front, about 60 thousand soldiers and officers died.
After the suppression of the mass uprising of workers and soldiers of Petrograd on July 4, 1917, power completely passed to the Provisional Government. Appointment of General L. G. Kornilov as commander in chief Russian army was met with approval in the West, however, Kornilov attempted a military coup, which ended in failure for the monarchists, the military - supporters of continuing the war.
After the October Revolution of 1917, the Bolsheviks were one of the first to adopt the Decree on Peace, which reflected their intention to withdraw from the world war. At the end of the year, the Council of People's Commissars began unprecedented separate negotiations with Germany.
According to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Soviet Russia recognized Germany as the territory of the Baltic states, Poland, and part of Belarus. She pledged to renounce claims to Finland, transfer Kara, Batum, Ardagan to Turkey, make peace with the Ukrainian Central Rada, democratize the army, disarm the fleet, renew the old trade agreement, and pay reparations to Germany in the amount of 6 billion marks. Thus, Soviet Russia lost a territory of 800 thousand square meters. km, where 26% of the population lived. The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk meant Russia's withdrawal from the war. It operated until November 1918. After the November revolution in Germany, the All-Russian Central Executive Committee suspended its operation.
On April 6, 1917, the United States officially declared war on Germany. In his speech addressed to Congress with a request to approve the adoption of this declaration, President Wilson denied that the United States had any territorial claims and argued that it was necessary to save the world for democracy. His policies received the approval of an overwhelming majority - only 6 people voted against in the Senate and 50 (out of 423) in the House of Representatives.
The immediate reasons for the change in Wilson's policy towards Germany were its resumption at the end of January 1916 of unlimited submarine warfare against both neutral and allied ships, and the revelation of the Germans' attempt to persuade Mexico to go to war against the United States. Up to this point, official US policy had been strict neutrality, which most Americans approved of.
Meanwhile, in Europe, the Allies launched their planned large-scale offensive in the spring of 1917. On April 9, the British 3rd Army began fighting near Arras in Artois. The offensive was initially successful - it was captured most of Vishli mountain range. English gas had a paralyzing effect on German artillery- he killed horses carrying ammunition. But the spring offensive of the French army in the Reims area was unsuccessful. The Germans were well prepared, and the French units were thrown against barbed wire and a shower of machine gun fire. By May 7, the French, having suffered heavy losses, had advanced only 4 miles.
In the summer of 1917, British troops carried out a successful offensive in Flanders, but their efforts at Ypres were unsuccessful.
In the autumn, German troops under the command of General Gouthières captured Riga, encountering weak resistance from the demoralized Russian army. By occupying the island of Ezel in October, the Germans secured a dominant position in the Baltic. However, soon the British, having launched a series of attacks on German battleships, forced the German fleet to retreat. In November 1917, the British occupied German East Africa. That same fall, American troops arriving in Europe began fighting in France.
In March, the Germans made a desperate attempt to break through the Allied defenses in the Somme River area. Thanks to the Brest-Litovsk Treaty with Russia, Germany transferred significant forces to the West. However, it was clear that the successful start of the operation was short-lived, especially as American troops began to arrive in France in increasing numbers.
Despite the extremely unfavorable strategic position, Germany made new attempts to seize the initiative in the war. In April, General Ludendorff launched an offensive in Flanders, 7 British submarines were sunk in the Baltic, major battle unfolded on the Marne. But Germany's forces were already running out. On August 8, British and French troops launched an offensive to relieve German pressure on Amiens. By the second half of September, the Allies crossed the Somme and approached Saint-Quentin. The Germans were once again on the Siegfried Line, from which they had begun their spring offensive. This Allied operation was the most successful of the entire war on the Western Front. The autumn of 1918 brought with it serious geopolitical changes. Bulgaria capitulated in September, and Turkey capitulated on October 31. On November 3, Austria signed an armistice. The bloc of central powers practically no longer existed. The war was approaching its logical end.
The inevitability of defeat forced Germany to look for ways to end the war. Created on September 30, 1918, the new German government with the participation of Social Democrats turned to the United States with a request for an armistice based on Wilson’s “14 points.” At the same time, German troops, by decision of the command, began a major naval operation, which was supposed to show that German forces had not yet exhausted, on October 30, the German military squadron, located in the harbor of the city of Kiel, received an order to go to sea and attack the English fleet. The sailors, exhausted by the war, realizing the adventurism of the order, refused to obey the order, on November 3, 1918, demonstrations of sailors, soldiers and workers began in the city of Kiel , which soon grew into an uprising. The city fell into the hands of the rebels, the rebels created the Council of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies. Following Kiel, councils arose in other cities. A revolution began in Germany.
On the night of November 10, Wilhelm 2 fled to the Netherlands. Post of Reich Chancellor Max. Badensky handed it over to the first Social Democrat Friedrich Ebert.
On November 9, an armed uprising took place in Berlin, the participants of which captured the city by mid-day. A coalition government was formed - the Council of People's Representatives (SNU), which included representatives of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and the Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany (NSPD). The new government carried out a number of democratic reforms: abolished martial law, abolished some reactionary laws, and proclaimed freedom of speech, press, and assembly. This government ended the war by signing an armistice agreement with the Entente powers on November 11. With the formation of the SNU, the first stage of the November Revolution ended. In Germany, the monarchy was overthrown and a “Social Republic” was proclaimed.
The First World War had a catastrophic effect on the economic situation of Germany and extremely aggravated the socio-political situation in the country. The war cost the German people dearly: 2 million Germans were killed, more than 4.5 million were wounded, 1 million were captured. The country was suffocating in the grip of economic ruin, high prices, hunger, and taxes increased monstrously. The beginning of the November Revolution was a natural manifestation of the deepest crisis in German society.
The approaching military collapse coincided with a revolutionary crisis in Austria-Hungary. The general political strike in the Czech Republic on October 14, 1918 grew into a national liberation democratic revolution. On October 28, when it became known that the Austro-Hungarian government had agreed to accept the peace terms proposed by President Wilson, the National Committee, created in the summer of 1918, announced the creation of the Czechoslovak state. On October 30, the Slovak National Council announced the separation of Slovakia from Hungary and its annexation to the Czech lands. The formation of the Czechoslovak state ended the long struggle of the two fraternal peoples for national liberation. On November 14, 1918, the National Assembly, formed by expanding the membership of the National Committee, declared Czechoslovakia a republic and elected Tomas Masaryk as president.
The revolutionary actions of the soldiers of Istria, Dalmatia, and Croatia led to the separation of all South Slavic provinces from Austria-Hungary. On December 1, 1918, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was formed. It included Serbia, Slovenia, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Croatia, Dalmatia, part of Macedonia and Montenegro. The new state was a constitutional monarchy led by the Serbian royal dynasty of Karadjordjević, and the king had the right, together with the parliament (assembly), to legislative power. At the same time, Northern Bukovina announced its annexation to Ukraine, and Galicia - to Poland. In October 1918, the once dual Austro-Hungarian Habsburg monarchy effectively ceased to exist. On November 3, the new Austrian government, on behalf of the now defunct Austria-Hungary, signed the terms of the armistice dictated by the Entente. Two more new states appeared on the map of Europe - Austria and Hungary. On November 16, the National Council of Hungary proclaimed Hungarian Republic. During the emerging democratic revolution, tendencies to create a more just structure of society dominated. Representatives of the independent and radical parties came to power. The government was headed by Count M. Karolyi. Democratic transformations began: general equal and direct suffrage by secret ballot was established, laws on freedom of assembly, unions, and political organizations were adopted. Large-scale agrarian reform was planned.
However, in Hungary, unlike Austria, where a democratic revolution also took place, the strong influence of the Communist Party remained, mainly consisting of Hungarian prisoners of war, led by Bela Kun, who had returned from Russia and had attended Bolshevik universities there." The communists called for a socialist revolution and the establishment of a dictatorship of the proletariat according to the Soviet model. They began active work to expand their influence in the Soviets created throughout the country. In 1919, the communists managed to seize power in the country for a short time.
Early in the morning of November 11, 1918, in the saloon car of the headquarters train of the Commander-in-Chief of the Entente forces, Marshal Foch, which stood near the Retonde station in the Compiegne Forest, a truce was signed by representatives of the armed forces of Germany and its allies. The war ended with the defeat of the countries of the German bloc. At 11 o'clock that same day, 101 artillery salvos rang out in Paris, signaling the end of the First World War.
In its scale and consequences, the First World War had no equal in the entire previous history of mankind. It lasted 4 years, 3 months and 10 days (from August 1, 1914 to November 11, 1918), covering 38 countries with a population of over 1.5 billion people. 70 million people were mobilized into the armies of the warring countries.
The war required colossal financial costs, which were many times greater than the costs of all previous wars. There is no scientifically sound estimate of the total cost of the First World War. The most common estimate in the literature is given by the American economist E. Bogart, who determined the total cost of the war at 359.9 billion dollars in gold.
The growth of military production was achieved at the expense of peaceful industries and overexertion National economy, which led to a general breakdown of the economy. In Russia, for example, 2/3 of all industrial production went to military needs and only 1/3 remained for consumption by the population. This gave rise to commodity hunger, high prices and speculation in all warring countries. The war caused a reduction in the production of many types of industrial products. The smelting of cast iron, steel and non-ferrous metals, the production of coal and oil, and the production of products in all sectors of light industry decreased significantly. The war destroyed the productive forces of society, undermined economic life peoples
Agriculture was especially badly damaged. Mobilization into the army deprived the village of its most productive labor force and taxes. Cultivated areas have decreased, crop yields have fallen, and the number of livestock and its productivity have decreased. In the cities of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Russia, there was an acute shortage of food, and then real famine broke out. It even spread to the army, where food standards were reduced.
The war required the mobilization of all material resources and showed the decisive role of the economy. During the armed struggle, it was characterized by the massive use of a variety of military equipment. The industry of the warring countries gave the front millions of rifles, over 1 million light and heavy machine guns, over 150 thousand guns, 47.7 billion cartridges, over 1 billion shells, 9200 tanks, 183 thousand aircraft.
The war brought unprecedented hardships and suffering, general hunger and ruin, and brought all of humanity to the brink of abyss and despair. During the war, there was a massive destruction of material assets, the total cost of which amounted to 58 billion rubles. Entire areas (especially in Northern France) were turned into desert, 9.5 million people were killed and died from wounds, 20 million people were injured, of which 3.5 million were left crippled. Germany suffered the greatest losses. Russia, France and Austria-Hungary (66.6% of all losses), the US accounted for only 1.2% of total losses. Famine and other disasters caused by the war led to an increase in mortality and a decrease in the birth rate. The population decline for these reasons was: in Russia 5 million people, in Austria-Hungary 4.4 million people, in Germany 4.2 million people. Unemployment, inflation, rising taxes, rising prices - all this exacerbated need, poverty, and extreme insecurity for the vast majority of the population of the warring countries.
At the same time, the profits of the German monopolies by 1918 amounted to 10 billion gold marks, and the American monopolies received income for 1914-1918. 3 billion dollars.
The First World War should be considered as a milestone in the world historical process. The immediate result of the war and one of its most far-reaching consequences was the complete collapse of the multinational empires - Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian, Russian. It caused an unprecedented scale of the revolutionary and national liberation movement, intensified the confrontation between totalitarianism and democracy, contributed to the emergence of various political regimes, and significantly redrew the map of the world.
Until recently, due to certain political and ideological reasons and dogmatic attitudes, it was generally accepted that the October Revolution of 1917 in Russia was a turning point in the history of human civilization and opened its new era. It was viewed as an independent, isolated phenomenon that stood at the origins of the global historical process V modern history.
However, the October Revolution and the subsequent series of European revolutions were organically connected with the First World War and the peculiarities of the socio-economic and socio-political development of each country. There is plenty of evidence for this. Firstly, the war put on the agenda not only at the front, but also in the rear, the problem of human physical survival. Secondly, the short-sighted policy of the governments of the warring countries, which did not take care of social protection of the working population in war conditions and the observance of at least the appearance of justice in the distribution of its burdens between the “tops” and “bottoms” of society, steadily undermined the patriotic feelings of peoples and pushed them towards revolution. Thirdly, the weakening of all structures of state power and the transformation of the “man with a gun” into a real participant political life countries created additional preconditions for military confrontation, sharply reducing the chances of achieving a socio-political compromise.
Thus, the October Revolution, like other revolutions in this period of history, was generated by the First World War and internal specific reasons in each of the countries where revolutionary upheavals occurred.
Literature:
1. Berdichevsky Ya.M., Ladichenko T.V. The World History. 3rd edition. Zaporozhye 1998
2. “History of state and law foreign countries"Ed. O.A. Zhidkova and N.A. Krasheninnikova. Moscow 1998
3. Z.M. Chernilovsky “General history of state and law.” Moscow, 1996
Comment to the fragment
Same thing again. The decision on Russia's entry into the war. You propose it as a cause, but the effect is not clearly indicated: what kind of “fragile peace that has just been established” is destroyed? Are you talking about? Gone into a general phrase! But if Russia’s entry into the war had been interpreted as a consequence of certain events, then it would have been a different matter. But in any case this would force you to describe the exact facts from foreign policy history... I can’t count it as PSS.
Comment to the fragment
This statement could be assessed as a cause-and-effect relationship if it were not so general. It is not clear what actions we are talking about (except for Russia’s entry into the war, but this was 2.5 years before February 1917), what inaction? It seems that all your statements require greater specificity.
Comment to the fragment
The situation is similar. The Feb. people by the power that dragged them into the war." The cause-and-effect relationship must be formulated in the essay in clear logic: there is a certain fact 1, which entails fact 2.
Comment to the fragment
And I cannot count this statement as a cause-and-effect relationship. What exactly “could not be given to the people by the Provisional Government”? Where is the fact? What actions of the Bolshevik leader were due to this inability of the “capitalist ministers”? The first or already the second (coalition) composition? In general, I can say that your most important problems are with the designation of cause-and-effect relationships.
Comment to the fragment
I consider this statement as a historical fact relating to this period - along with the World War, the February Revolution, the abdication of the monarch, the dispersal of the Constituent Assembly. You confidently score 2 points according to the K-1 criterion.
Actual
the arrest of the ministers of the Provisional Government took place in the Winter Palace, and not in the Tauride Palace
Comment to the fragment
This is the formulation of Lenin's historical role. It brings you a point according to the K-2 criterion (together with the thesis above - about taking the course of “seizing power by force”). But: I still think that many important details are missing (for example, “April Theses”, the First All-Russian Congress of Soviets, the events of July-September, which led to the process of Bolshevization of the Soviets, the creation of the Military Revolutionary Committee, etc.), which overall creates the impression about a certain superficiality of your narrative. The thesis about initiating the revolution follows the thesis about the dispersal of the Constituent Assembly.... It is clear that these are speech points, but still?
8 out of 11
1914 – 1918
Show full text
1914 – 1918 - this was a difficult time for Russia, when the country took part in the First World War, which actually destroyed it.
When discussing this period, one cannot fail to mention this historical figure like Nicholas II. As emperor, he was never able to solve the problems that had faced the Russian government for decades: the lack of land of peasants and their poverty-stricken situation, improving the working conditions of workers, modernizing Russia, etc. Having not yet coped with the tasks of the internal life of the country, Nicholas II makes a decision on Russia’s entry into a war that will ruin it and destroy the fragile peace that has just been established in it.
Such actions (and inaction) of the emperor cause famine, riots, speculation in bread and other products. After all, in Russia begins February Revolution, which was the result of people's dissatisfaction with the authorities that dragged them into the war. Already March 2, 1917 Nicholas II abdicated the throne in favor of his brother, who a day later also abandoned it.
1914-1918
Period 1914-1918 one of the most difficult periods in Russian history. One of the main events of that time was the First World War, which exacerbated contradictions within Russian society. A national crisis has broken out in the country; it has affected all aspects of society: in politics this is “ministerial leapfrog” - frequent changes of ministers, criticism of the government by the IV State Duma, the creation« Progressive Bloc" (1915)a coalition of the majority of Duma factions demanding the creation of a government of “people's trust; in the economy: a drop in production, in the social sphere: an increase in worker strikes and unrest among peasants. All this led the country to the Great Revolution of 1917, the overthrow of the monarchy and the Bolsheviks coming to power.
The First World War began in the summer of 1914. The reason for it was the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, in the city of Sarajevo. By the beginning of the war, two opposing blocs had emerged in the world: the Triple Alliance and the Entente, which included Russia. Military campaign 1914 showed that the war would be protracted.The 1915 campaign was unsuccessful for Russia and as a result, Nicholas II decided to head the Supreme High Command. The 1916 campaign was more successful for Russia.A.A. played a huge role in this. Brusilov. The offensive he led went down in history under the name “Brusilovsky breakthrough.” In May 1916, his troops broke through the enemy’s defenses in several places at once and advanced 150 km to the West.The consequence of Brusilov's breakthrough was the cessation of Germany's attacks on Verdun and the transfer of reinforcements to the eastern front.
The most important events of the period from February to October were the April, June and July political crises of the Provisional Government, which came to power after the abdication of Nicholas 2, and the defeat of the Kornilov revolt. These political crises were stages of the growing national crisis in the country. The revolution developed rapidly. The Bolshevik party led by V.I. Lenin gained great popularity in the country. During the struggle, Lenin formulated the main strategy of the party; slogans understandable to the people were put forward: “Land to the peasants!”, “Factory to the workers!”, “Peace to the peoples”!October 25, 1917 IN AND. Lenin, together with his comrades, organizes an uprising and seizes power. On January 5, the Constituent Assembly is convened, but it refuses to recognize the decrees of the Bolsheviks, so Lenin and the Bolsheviks disperse it. These actions of the Bolsheviks lead to the beginning of the civil war in Russia.
For Russia, due to internal problems caused by the revolution, the First World War ended with the signing of the Brest Peace Treaty on March 3, 1918. After the Bolsheviks came to power, Trotsky became People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs.Participating in separate negotiations with the powers of the “quadruple bloc”, he put forward the formula “we stop the war, we don’t sign peace, we demobilize the army,” which was supported by the Bolshevik Central Committee(V.I. Lenin was against it). Somewhat later, after the resumption of the German offensive, Lenin managed to achieve the acceptance and signing of the terms of the Brest-Litovsk Peace Treaty, which was difficult for Russia.
The First World War was a great test for Russian society, changing its economy, politics, social psychology and the individual consciousness of people. Most historians are of the opinion that there is a direct connection between the events of August 1, 1914 and the death of the monarchy in February 1917 in Russia.As historian A.P. Zhilin wrote: “The war led to the collapse of the most powerful European states and the emergence of a new geopolitical situation in the world.” Russia's separate withdrawal from the war led to the intervention of the Antana countries during the civil war on the side white movement and to the isolation of Soviet Russia from summing up the results of the war.
On the topic: methodological developments, presentations and notes
1914-1918 1st World War 9th grade test
The material is good to use when testing knowledge on the topic “World War 1” in both the 9th and 11th grades. Contains all the main dates, events and information about the main actors and war heroes...
Crossword “First World War 1914-1918”
The First World War (July 28, 1914 - November 11, 1918) is one of the most large-scale armed conflicts in human history. This name was established in historiography only after...
Average general education
Line UMK I. L. Andreeva, O. V. Volobueva. History (6-10)
Russian history
The First World War: writing a historical essay for the Unified State Exam
On the centenary of the end of the First World War, we present to your attention an analysis of the essay on the Unified State Exam in History - 2019.The participation of the Russian Empire (after the abdication of Nicholas II of the Russian Republic) in the First World War lasted from August 1, 1914 to March 3, 1918.
Indication of events (phenomena, processes)
Russian troops led by General P. K. Rennenkampf defeated the German army at Gumbinen in 1914.
In 1915, special commissions were created in the Russian Empire: special meetings on defense, fuel, food and transport.
The Congress of Representatives of Trade and Industry in 1915 initiated the creation of military-industrial committees (MIC).
In the summer of 1915, the Central Military-Industrial Complex was created, headed by the Octobrist leader A.I. Guchkov.
The unification of the Duma parties (from moderate right-wing nationalists to the Cadets) into the “Progressive Bloc” occurred in August 1915.
In 1916, Russian troops managed to carry out a successful offensive operation under the command of General A. A. Brusilov, called the “Brusilovsky breakthrough”.
Historical figures and their role
On July 29, 1914, Nicholas II sent a telegram to Wilhelm II, in which he proposed to refer the Austro-Serbian issue to the International Court of Arbitration in The Hague. Wilhelm II did not respond to this proposal.
On August 2, 1914, Nicholas II prepared a manifesto on the war, as well as a personal imperial decree, in which he appointed Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolaevich Supreme Commander-in-Chief.
In December 1916, close royal family G. E. Rasputin was killed by Grand Duke Dmitry Pavlovich together with Prince F. F. Yusupov and the leader of the Black Hundreds V. M. Purishkevich.
On December 17, 1916, Nicholas II, by his decree, interrupted the work of the State Duma until February of the following year. The State Duma was never convened again.
On April 18, 1917, Foreign Minister P. N. Milyukov addressed the allies with a note, promising that Russia would fight until victory.
Cause-and-effect relationships
Already by 1915, the tsarist government was unable to stop the economic crisis and conduct successful military operations, which prompted the liberal-bourgeois public to make claims to power (creation of the military-industrial complex, etc.).
The increase in production volumes in the military industry by 1916 led to the decline of other industries due to a shortage of metals and fuel.
The active mobilization of the male peasant population had a negative impact on the state Agriculture: working men and draft power (horses) were taken from the village to the front, which worsened the cultivation of fields, harvesting, etc.
The decline of agriculture and the emerging transport crisis gave rise to a sharp deterioration in the food situation in major cities Russian Empire.
The “Progressive Bloc” essentially became an opposition parliamentary group opposing the tsarist government, and, moreover, had a majority in the Duma, which was a consequence of the growing crisis of power.
Hard daily life in the trenches, diseases and epidemics contributed to the decline in the morale of the soldiers.
Assessing the impact of events on the further history of Russia
Russian participation in the First World War in 1914-1916. led to a severe economic crisis in the country, which, combined with military defeats of the army and the emperor’s reluctance to change anything in governing the country, led to a strong decline in authority royal power, both in the eyes of the common people and the political elites: the popular element was ready to sweep away the monarchy, consecrated by centuries-old tradition.