Russia in WW1 essays

Russia in WW1 essays What were the effects of World War One on Russia up to but not including February 1917? From 1914 through to 1917 Tsar Nicholas II made himself very unpopular among his people. This was due in big part to the First World War. World War One acted like a catalyst, magnifying Russias already bad problems. In 1914 Nicholas was very indecisive, this was because not expecting to be made Tsar so he had no training in decision making, diplomacy or how to rule. He showed this first on Bloody Sunday and again when world war one started. He ignored warnings of political danger and succumb to the pressures of the Duma. One of his first decisions upon entering the war was to order a partial mobilisation of troops against Austria; then when told by his generals that this was unworkable, he ordered general mobilisation. He then cancelled it and let it stand. A perfect example of how indecisive he was. The result of Nicholas inability to make decisions was that Russia was thrown into a war it was not prepared for. The lack of equipment, transportation and training left the Russian troops poised for defeat at Tannenburg and almost everywhere else. The war badly effected the lives of people in Russia. It made the poor even poorer. Millions of male peasants were being conscripted so this left lots of jobs in the factories, jobs that the war had created by needing supplies for the frontline (guns, ammunition etc.). Because there were fewer people and the factories had more needs, people were now working longer hours for the same pay. Conscription also meant there were not enough people to cultivate the land and Russia s poor infra-structure meant they cud not transport food. This meant there were food shortages so the prices of goods were continually rising but wages remained the same. This led to inflation. The standard of living in Russia went down as peoples living conditions decreased. People were going col...