History Homework Essay
How far did World War One contribute to the fall of Tsar Nicholas in 1917?
In August 1914, World War One which is first called ‘The Great War’ broke out. The Russian government declared that Germany was its major threat. Under the Triple Alliance, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy agreed to support each other if attacked by either France or Russia. In 1907 Russia joined Britain and France to form the Triple Entente. Despite a huge army of 6 million, it was impossible for Russia to win the war due to its poor industrial base, corruption of the Tsar’s administrators and lack of transport system. Moreover, the Tsar as commander-in-chief happened in 1915 made the situation worse. This hugely affected the whole country with its falling economy and the critical impact on political situation,
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The country deployed 5.3 million people which are 9% of the population in 1914, and, by Christmas 1916, 15.3 million men had experienced military service. With the poor system of transport in Russia, the soldiers had to fight with no wagons, horses and first aid supplies provided. Also, the cost of fighting the war and of maintaining the armed force put a great burden on the economy. For instance, the National Budget rose eight times larger between 1913 and 1916, with higher taxes, loans and borrowing from Britain and France. In order to pay for the war, the government printed more money which led to a huge inflation, with prices rising over 200% between August 1914 and Christmas 1916. For example, if they bought 2 bags of flour in 1914, they could only buy one-third of a bag of flour with the same money they had. This meant that the people of Russia, including the peasants and workers could not afford essential goods. Therefore, the state of the economy and its effect on the people of Russia, like the food shortages and the rationing, also led the lower reputation of Nicholas