World War I and the Russian Revolution
World War I
The War
The massive influx of women into the workforce during World War I filled the jobs vacated by men fighting in the war. Women played a crucial role in factories, supplying food, clothing, medicine, and arms to the fighters. They drove trucks, manufactured munitions, and packed dangerous explosives. They also performed vital work as nurses in hospitals. The economy centered on the war, with its sole objective being the production of armaments. Money was scarce, the civilian population suffered, and rationing increased due to state intervention in the economy. Propaganda played a significant role in maintaining troop morale and public support, with press campaigns highlighting victories and minimizing defeats.
Political life in parliamentary countries disappeared as political parties entered into a “sacred union” for the duration of the conflict.
In July 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia following the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian empire. From then on, European nations chose sides, joining one of the two warring parties.
Phases of the War
War of Movement (1914)
Germany implemented the Schlieffen Plan, a rapid advance into the west and the occupation of northern France, while also attacking the Russian army in the east.
War of Attrition (1915-1916)
New weapons prevented significant advances, stabilizing the fronts and leading to widespread trench warfare. To wear down the enemy, attacks and battles concentrated at specific points were employed, along with submarine warfare.
Critical Events (1917)
Two key events occurred in 1917. The triumph of the Russian Revolution led to Russia’s withdrawal from the war, while the United States entered the conflict on the side of the Allies.
End of the War (1918)
The victorious Allied offensive, reinforced by U.S. troops and armaments, led to the German armistice on November 11, 1918. Several peace treaties with the defeated countries, known as the Peace of Paris, followed.
Peace of Paris
In 1918, before the war’s end, U.S. President Woodrow Wilson proposed an agenda for peace called the Fourteen Points, aiming for a just peace that would respect the integrity of nations. When the war ended, the victorious powers met in Paris in 1919 to establish peace terms. Wilson’s program was largely sidelined by the interests and desires for revenge against Germany held by the victorious nations.
The Peace of Paris (1919-1920) consisted of five treaties:
- Treaty of Versailles with Germany
- Treaty of Saint-Germain with Austria, which was separated from Hungary and Czechoslovakia. Yugoslavia was created.
- Treaty of Trianon with newly independent Hungary
- Treaty of Neuilly with Bulgaria
- Treaty of Sèvres with the Turkish Empire
The conditions imposed on the defeated were harsh, involving territorial losses and reparations. Germany felt humiliated, fostering a desire for revenge. The provisions of these treaties redrew the map of Europe.
Consequences of the War
The consequences of World War I were significant:
- Loss of human life, primarily young men who fought in the war, resulting in a high number of invalids, maimed, and orphaned.
- Social transformations, including the incorporation of women into jobs previously held by men. At the same time, the middle classes were impoverished, and a new figure emerged—the veteran struggling to adjust to civilian life.
- Territorial changes, including the birth of new states such as Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Yugoslavia, and Czechoslovakia, and the return of territories like Alsace-Lorraine to France. Germany lost its colonies.
- Disaster for Europe, not only due to material losses but also because several countries were indebted, especially to the USA. Europe lost its economic hegemony, and the U.S. became the leading world power.
The Fall of Imperial Russia and the October Revolution of 1917
Russian history was shaped by its status as a late-developing and isolated empire with an autocratic Tsarist government. Reforms, such as the liberation of the serfs (1861), failed to alleviate widespread misery. Industrialization in the late 19th century, fueled by foreign capital and technology, led to the formation of an urban proletariat.
Russia suffered a national crisis due to its military defeat in the Russo-Japanese War in 1905. The resulting economic and social consequences ignited protests, which were suppressed. Tsar Nicholas II authorized the formation of a Duma, but this attempt at reform proved ineffective.
Military disasters during World War I and the suffering of the Russian people contributed to the end of the Tsarist regime. In February 1917, a revolution dethroned Tsar Nicholas II, reinstated the Duma, and established a provisional government composed of socialists and liberals, led by Alexander Kerensky.
The weakness of the provisional government allowed the Bolsheviks, led by Lenin and Trotsky, to seize power in the October Revolution. Organized in Soviets, they stormed the government palace and established the Council of People’s Commissars. The Bolsheviks adopted the name Communist Party.
Civil War and Consolidation of the USSR
In March 1918, Russia signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. A civil war (1918-1920) erupted between the revolutionary “Reds” and the “Whites.” The Red Army ultimately triumphed.
In 1922, the USSR was formed. A constitution was approved in 1924, based on:
- A federal state composed of republics, with Russia as the dominant power.
- Concentration of all power in the hands of the Communist Party.
- A Central Executive Committee equivalent to a parliament, acting as the representative organ of popular sovereignty.
- A Congress of Soviets, representing the different territories of the USSR, which elected the government.
Capitalism was replaced with Marxist socialism. To address the economic devastation caused by the civil war, the New Economic Policy (NEP) was implemented between 1921 and 1928. The NEP reintroduced capitalist elements to stimulate productivity and encourage private initiative. Farmers could sell part of their production on the free market, and small businesses and craft cooperatives were promoted. A degree of economic stability was achieved.