Yugvir Desai 24/11/2024
How significant was WW1 for Russia?
It is irrefutable that WW1 was extremely significant for Russia, particularly in the political, socio-
economic and military impacts that it had on the country. These different factors deeply affected a wide
range of people, causing short and long-term effects on the population and resulted in the
unprecedented nature of the Tsars abdication, creating a power vacuum that was filled by the
Provisional Government and then the Bolsheviks. Political impact was most important, due to the long-
term impacts that exacerbated dissatisfaction which, along with the other factors, came together
leading to strikes and chaos in Russia which was the ultimate driving force of the revolutions.
WW1 was most significant for Russia due to the political impact and reforms it caused. On 5th
September 1915, the Tsar decided to go against his advisors and took up the position of Commander in
Chief of the Russian Army due to the progressive failures such as the Battle of Tannenberg 1. This was
significant as the Tsar would be held responsible for any further failures in the war effort. When
Nichollas left for the front, the Tsarina assumed responsibility of leading Russia. Due to the strong
German roots of the Tsarina along with the deteriorating war effort led to many thinking that the Tsar
and Tsarina were conspiring with the Germans and were setting them up to fail against the German
offensive. This was significant as it tainted the Tsar's reputation, making him increasingly unpopular
among the people and losing their support by causing unprecedented social opposition. In addition, the
Tsarina often referred to Rasputin, her peasant advisor, as ‘A man sent by god’ and involved him in
political appointments which was made possible due to the Tsar’s absence during WW1 2. This allowed
for rumors, which portrayed the Tsarina as Rasputin's mouthpiece for him to spread his political
ideologies which was significant as it heightened tensions between the people and the Tsarist regime,
making it unpopular, which inevitably leads to Nicholas’s abdication on 15 th March 19173, creating a
power vacuum that’s filled by the Provisional Government and then the Bolsheviks. The Provisional
Government was formed on 1 st March 19174 and was made up of higher classes which struggled to take
1
https://www.firstworldwar.com/source/russia_tsarincommand.htm#:~:text=First%20World
%20War.com%20%2D%20Primary,Russian%20Armies%2C%205%20September%201915
(13/11/24)
2
https://alphahistory.com/russianrevolution/tsarinas-letters-1915-16/ (13/11/24)
3
https://www.york.ac.uk/history/about/news/2017/tsar-nicholas-ii/ (13/11/24)
4
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zyc72hv/revision/2#:~:text=The%20establishment
%20of%20the%20Provisional%20Government&text=The%20Provisional%20Government
%20was%20formed,until%20elections%20could%20be%20held. (13/11/24)
1
, Yugvir Desai 24/11/2024
the workers and peasants' needs into consideration, despite them making up around 86% of the
population5. This was evident as food shortages persisted leading to rationing which meant that per
person you would only receive a daily ration of 335g of bread during April which then dropped to 110g
during September6. This is linked to WW1 because the Provisional Government’s continuation of the war
by commencing the ‘June offensive’ meant that goods were constantly supplied to the front leaving the
cities to run on reserves, and the printing of money to pay for the war effort led high inflation of prices
such as grain, of which Petrograd only had a few days' worth of left. This laid at the roots of economic
problems and social upheaval 7. Due to the chaos and controversial decisions such as the continuation of
the war, the Provisional Government continued to lose popularity and conditions worsened since the
abdication of the Tsar. This was significant as it deeply affected the peasants and working classes in the
short term as their working conditions, pay and moral worsened causing strikes which significantly
affected the economic situation in Russia causing prodigious opposition and above all, desperation
which enabled radical parties such as the Bolsheviks to rapidly gain popularity. Therefore, WW1 enabled
the Bolsheviks to seize power via a revolution which was significant in the long-term as they ruled and
reformed Russia's political system for the next 74 years by creating a communist state 8. During the take-
over of power, they faced opposition from the ‘whites’ who were western backed with supplies and
armaments. This was significant as it caused long-term political differences which sowed seeds for the
cold war as a bitter relationship was built between the Bolsheviks and the West.
WW1 also had an extensive impact on Russia’s militarily. During WW1 over 15 million Russian’s were
mobilized of which 3,689,000 were wounded and over 1,811,000 killed between 1914-1918 9. This was
significant, especially for the peasants as they made up 87% of the army, as the soldiers that had to go
to the front operated in appalling conditions without necessities like munitions and clothing 10. The loss
of life was especially significant as it deeply impacted their families who had to deal with the loss 11. The
war effort also needed a constant supply of goods such as food and equipment, which was difficult to
achieve due to their inferior rail network along with the lack of skilled workers due to conscription. This
5
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/z6rjy9q/revision/4 (14/11/24)
6
The school history project, Russia under Tsarism and communism 1881-1953 pg 51
7
Jhon Keegan, The First World War (pg360)
8
https://schoolshistory.org.uk/topics/european-history/russia-soviet-union/bolshevik-rule-
1918-1924/ (14/11/24)
9
https://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/war-losses-russian-empire/ (15/11/24)
10
The First World War by David Stevenson pg 124
11
https://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/labour-russian-empire/ (15/11/24)
2
How significant was WW1 for Russia?
It is irrefutable that WW1 was extremely significant for Russia, particularly in the political, socio-
economic and military impacts that it had on the country. These different factors deeply affected a wide
range of people, causing short and long-term effects on the population and resulted in the
unprecedented nature of the Tsars abdication, creating a power vacuum that was filled by the
Provisional Government and then the Bolsheviks. Political impact was most important, due to the long-
term impacts that exacerbated dissatisfaction which, along with the other factors, came together
leading to strikes and chaos in Russia which was the ultimate driving force of the revolutions.
WW1 was most significant for Russia due to the political impact and reforms it caused. On 5th
September 1915, the Tsar decided to go against his advisors and took up the position of Commander in
Chief of the Russian Army due to the progressive failures such as the Battle of Tannenberg 1. This was
significant as the Tsar would be held responsible for any further failures in the war effort. When
Nichollas left for the front, the Tsarina assumed responsibility of leading Russia. Due to the strong
German roots of the Tsarina along with the deteriorating war effort led to many thinking that the Tsar
and Tsarina were conspiring with the Germans and were setting them up to fail against the German
offensive. This was significant as it tainted the Tsar's reputation, making him increasingly unpopular
among the people and losing their support by causing unprecedented social opposition. In addition, the
Tsarina often referred to Rasputin, her peasant advisor, as ‘A man sent by god’ and involved him in
political appointments which was made possible due to the Tsar’s absence during WW1 2. This allowed
for rumors, which portrayed the Tsarina as Rasputin's mouthpiece for him to spread his political
ideologies which was significant as it heightened tensions between the people and the Tsarist regime,
making it unpopular, which inevitably leads to Nicholas’s abdication on 15 th March 19173, creating a
power vacuum that’s filled by the Provisional Government and then the Bolsheviks. The Provisional
Government was formed on 1 st March 19174 and was made up of higher classes which struggled to take
1
https://www.firstworldwar.com/source/russia_tsarincommand.htm#:~:text=First%20World
%20War.com%20%2D%20Primary,Russian%20Armies%2C%205%20September%201915
(13/11/24)
2
https://alphahistory.com/russianrevolution/tsarinas-letters-1915-16/ (13/11/24)
3
https://www.york.ac.uk/history/about/news/2017/tsar-nicholas-ii/ (13/11/24)
4
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zyc72hv/revision/2#:~:text=The%20establishment
%20of%20the%20Provisional%20Government&text=The%20Provisional%20Government
%20was%20formed,until%20elections%20could%20be%20held. (13/11/24)
1
, Yugvir Desai 24/11/2024
the workers and peasants' needs into consideration, despite them making up around 86% of the
population5. This was evident as food shortages persisted leading to rationing which meant that per
person you would only receive a daily ration of 335g of bread during April which then dropped to 110g
during September6. This is linked to WW1 because the Provisional Government’s continuation of the war
by commencing the ‘June offensive’ meant that goods were constantly supplied to the front leaving the
cities to run on reserves, and the printing of money to pay for the war effort led high inflation of prices
such as grain, of which Petrograd only had a few days' worth of left. This laid at the roots of economic
problems and social upheaval 7. Due to the chaos and controversial decisions such as the continuation of
the war, the Provisional Government continued to lose popularity and conditions worsened since the
abdication of the Tsar. This was significant as it deeply affected the peasants and working classes in the
short term as their working conditions, pay and moral worsened causing strikes which significantly
affected the economic situation in Russia causing prodigious opposition and above all, desperation
which enabled radical parties such as the Bolsheviks to rapidly gain popularity. Therefore, WW1 enabled
the Bolsheviks to seize power via a revolution which was significant in the long-term as they ruled and
reformed Russia's political system for the next 74 years by creating a communist state 8. During the take-
over of power, they faced opposition from the ‘whites’ who were western backed with supplies and
armaments. This was significant as it caused long-term political differences which sowed seeds for the
cold war as a bitter relationship was built between the Bolsheviks and the West.
WW1 also had an extensive impact on Russia’s militarily. During WW1 over 15 million Russian’s were
mobilized of which 3,689,000 were wounded and over 1,811,000 killed between 1914-1918 9. This was
significant, especially for the peasants as they made up 87% of the army, as the soldiers that had to go
to the front operated in appalling conditions without necessities like munitions and clothing 10. The loss
of life was especially significant as it deeply impacted their families who had to deal with the loss 11. The
war effort also needed a constant supply of goods such as food and equipment, which was difficult to
achieve due to their inferior rail network along with the lack of skilled workers due to conscription. This
5
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/z6rjy9q/revision/4 (14/11/24)
6
The school history project, Russia under Tsarism and communism 1881-1953 pg 51
7
Jhon Keegan, The First World War (pg360)
8
https://schoolshistory.org.uk/topics/european-history/russia-soviet-union/bolshevik-rule-
1918-1924/ (14/11/24)
9
https://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/war-losses-russian-empire/ (15/11/24)
10
The First World War by David Stevenson pg 124
11
https://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/labour-russian-empire/ (15/11/24)
2
