Impact of First World War on russia and Germany - Essay Example

166556 First World War is considered to be Russia's forgotten war, because the Bolshevik seizure of power in October 1917 sent the memory of world war into oblivion. The new rule was so traumatic that historians and people forgot that the new rule had its origin in the First World War, where economic, social, political and ideological problems got culminated into a mega incidence of communist take over. Impact of war on Russian economy and society had been tremendous and the well-rounded picture between 1914 and 1918 is yet to emerge as all the communications with the outside world ceased with the communist take over, which was so unprecedented that the intellectual community of mainly the western world shunned Russia as a leper for a long time. This was also the result of Russia being isolating itself and sending belligerent messages to the rest of the astounded world that was aghast with the termination of Tsars that led to their cold-blooded killing. The direct impact of world war started with the vast mobilisation of military and Russian population even in the farthest corners of Russia started dreading the outbreak of war with most of the able bodied men disappearing into the defence forces. Social impact of the military disasters between 1914 and 1915 was terrible for Russian population, who, till then, lived a rather deprived, but peaceful existence and most of the Russians were peasants in the far-flung areas of Russia1.There were war refugees accompanied by vast displacement of population as a result of Russian retreats in the first two years of war. It is said that more than one fifth of Russia's railway wagons were involved only in the work of evacuating people and other equipments in the summer of 1915. This had become very important to save the population from perishing in the hands of advancing Germany. More than half a million peasant households were displaced with disastrous effects. It was not easy to provide either employment or basic necessities to these displaced people and rehabilitation when the country was losing the war was extremely difficult. Military reverses as in any other country, had direct impact on ordinary people of Russia. Farmers had to leave their land and livelihood and farm machinery and this means they had no ways of continuing farming. They were unsuitable for any other life and living without a roof over their heads in Russian winter was another major problem. There was widespread chaos and confusion combined with acute shortage of food and shelter almost leading to starvation. Naturally the government was unable to meet the expenses of refugees and running a full-blooded military campaign against Germany who had prepared for this war for years. Different sections of Russian society reacted in different ways, no doubt. But all of them showed understandable desperation of not knowing when the war would end. Refugees had no idea when they would be able to return home. Educated sections of the society and the intellectuals were getting more and more alienated from the government. From hindsight it is difficult not to sympathise with the government which was under enormous stress and strain of protecting the land from the enemy attack, facing the weather conditions, clothing and keeping the soldiers armed and happy and facing the internal upheaval of a ruined economy, though the Russian elite remained committed to somehow achieving victory in the ongoing war. There are also indications that other than the military, civil administration was uncooperative in the war efforts and this slowly created rift in the ranks and lines of educated society. Government had been unable to mobilise public opinion in favour of the war it had been fighting. People were more concerned about losing their homes and hearths and were worried about their livelihoods than about the real war. Their minds were full of the hardships and difficulties they were facing with their families and ideologies did not worry them much, faced with enormous problems which did not seem to end. Unofficial street literature only accentuated problems by raising irrelevant issues like Rasputin and the German background of Tsarina and Government neither had the time nor the means of countering these unnecessary issues. Russia had comparatively a better economy, in spite of whatever the so called intellectuals said and from the economical front, it sustained itself in a much better way than many other countries that were under seize. Its industrial output was able to support the military campaign. It also had rich reserves of raw material and fuel though transporting the raw material became a major problem. Russian economy was railway dependent and most of the areas were hit and railways were affected. Also it was not easy for railways to cope up with the demands of industry and army at the same time. Now we know that the First World War was expensive in every way. It took terrible toll on human resources, industrial, social, economic and in unfortunate Russia, it also took political toll. Slowly government had to resort to printing money and taking outside loans to finance the military and this in turn, made life difficult to Russian society by creating inflation and non-availability of material. Initially the position of workers was not very pronounced2. A war time of uncertainties is the most convenient time to spread legless rumours and alarming stories because people, who are already facing enormous uncertainties usually are more receptive to such stories, which would have been ridiculed as a pack of lies under normal circumstances. A similar saga happened in Russia and terrible stories about Tsarina and government came out either by design or by connivance. Mostly these stories had their origins in the 'learned' quarters and slowly Russian society was a beehive of rumours and assumptions mostly all negative against the government and today historians are aware that the Tsar's government, or any other government for that matter, under the circumstances could have done little to improve the situation. Government was already facing difficulties in finding co-operation in the society, which once again, Bolsheviks used very effectively to gain their own end. Food supply was in dire straights as agriculture became more and more limited due to military retreats and displacement of people. Same number of people needed food with fewer number to grow and supply it and naturally this created havoc. Strength of agricultural force was steadily dwindling and by now, it was mainly women managed supported by men who were either too old or too sick to be in the army. Still agricultural surveys show that the production, thanks to those men and women, did not fall dramatically during the first years, though due to societal chaos, displacement, confusion, which would accompany all the wars, it looks as though the country was edging towards deaths due to starvation. And alarmists of Bolshevik background said so continuously. But problems arose when government had to interfere to raise the prices and get foodstuff for the ever-needy army and this was not appreciated either. It was not Finland where every man stood against the enemy. Russia was too vast and too divided to have such an effect and there were people ready to exploit and spoil the situation and even before the war, Russia was facing many challenges of her own3. Distribution of food especially with the presence of army in the west and destabilisation of peasant folk had its own story to tell. Local authorities created problems trying to prevent grain leaving their own regions and according to government policy price had to be controlled and this enhanced the disenchantment in government amongst the farmers. Earlier Russia had suffered worst food difficulties, but people had not blamed government for it. With Bolsheviks insinuation, this time, instead of standing by government during difficult times, Russians felt cheated and became angrier and angrier with the government. Russian society was ticking like a time bomb ready to explode and in 1917 the initial demonstration in Petrograd took place, ringing the first alarming bell to Tsarist regime. To some extent, this was the beginning of a social collapse in Russia. Casualties in the war were mounting and public health was in acute difficulties. More than anything else, food supply became the major cause of a societal collapse. No doubt, Russia was not the only country in Europe which was affected by war time difficulties and violence. Other countries did not have a budding communist regime to exploit the situation and doing so was considered to be unpatriotic. Those countries, even small European regimes fought tooth and nail for their freedom. Of course, Russia did the same, but socially Russian society had a very negative approach to the war4. Other states did experience a lot of difficulties and set backs, no other country went through such intense upheavals where every social, economic, political sphere was hit and industry and transport could not cope, while refugees streamed eastwards in their thousands spelling doom to ordinary Russians. The millions who died spelt doom to Tsarist administration and communists would not have found it so easy to defeat the Tsar if the First World War had not happened. Germany on the other hand was spearheading the attack and was the main country that ushered in disaster to millions and millions of ordinary people, for no great apparent reason. Germany will remain guilty in the history for the unfortunate event that left every household in Europe bereaved. It is the irony of fate that when the war ended, Tsar who had genuinely tried to protect Russia under very difficult circumstances was killed with his entire family and an entire generation of Europeans were butchered, but Kaiser Wilhelm, the real initiator of such a disaster only abdicated, but lived! The imperial power of Germany was flourishing before and during the initial years of war and a German defeat was unthinkable5. Unlike Russia, Germans supported the war, and somehow they always seem to be doing so. They are inordinately proud of their country, their race and their imperial power. German society always had a rather un-intellectual, but patriotic approach towards political problems. Very few Germans questioned the government's aggressive policy. German society was slightly power-drunk with guns, tanks, poison gas, airplanes, submarines and a rearing-to-go military power. This later resulted in single battles killing hundred thousands in both the sides. The war was extremely cost on human lives and ordinary civilians were targeted throughout. Naturally such a war depended upon the support and willingness to sacrifice of the ordinary people and Germans were more willing than Russians. In a similar way women and old people took over the agriculture and food supply was definitely short in Germany too. But scarcity did not create widespread agitation and unhappiness. Still the task was unexpectedly of a daunting magnitude. Industrial production had to keep up with the military aggression and morale at home and in the front line had to be maintained at its zenith. In spite of their pride and rather blind patriotism, the war was a catastrophe on Germany, which reeling under the terrible impact in later years. First few months were marked with enormous human and material sacrifices. Even though those were the days when Germany advanced relentlessly, it was at very dear cost of high blood toll. In 1914, Germany was an isolated power with only one faithful ally, Austria-Hungary. Social democrats were growing in strength and were challenging the imperial power. Perhaps a small war was necessary for Germany to wipe out many fractions and to build a militarily powerful nation6. But the fact existed that ordinary people were unaware of the enormous proportions that the war would take. Right wing and generals convinced the King and people of the necessity of an immediate war to restore Germany's imperial supremacy and the Austrian heir apparent Franz Ferdinand's murder which fuelled anger in all countries, gave enough ammunitions for the war. For the first couple of years Germans did well, because the war was not fought in their territory, but in other countries spelling disasters to those countries. Initial victories boosted up the pride in German society and German population was happy. Lootings and resources were pouring into Germany and there was nothing negative in German society to the ongoing war. There was a backlash on entertainment at home7. Germany was at its most aggressive in the first two years. They advanced relentlessly in Russia, sending Russian economy into an unprecedented spin with unforeseen tragedies. Perhaps Germans themselves were not prepared for a war of that proportion, having thought it would not last more than a few months. It lasted four years and the bitter aftermath for many more decades with lingering memories of dead millions and a condemned life for the wounded and mutilated. Germany which only inflicted defeat on others initially slowly started tasting it, when the tables were turned. Society was finding it difficult to keep the morale high with the ongoing war. Food supplies have become scarcer and causalities in far-flung areas were raising sending alarming signals to the German society. There was no end visible to the tragedies. Slowly almost every household in Germany wore the bereaved look. Country lived on its pride for sometime, but it lacked the lustre of initial days of pride and dignity. The middle class was finding it extremely difficult to manage during the war and it was hard-hit. Societal education, income, legal rights, livelihood, employment have all come to a standstill and war was asking for more sacrifices. War fanatics were continuously decreasing with a kind of doomed atmosphere. Salaried class was finding it almost impossible to support the remaining family and labour market had completely altered8. Artisans and small tradesmen lost their trades and joined the army only to perish. Slow frustration was setting in the society. Still there are historical facts that the society as a whole supported war efforts mistaking it as their national pride almost till the end of the war. Economy was in shambles and slowly war came home with allies attacking Germany on German soil and at last German society realised the ghastliness of war. With a societal order that had come to utter ruins, Germany had lost everything and German society understood that defeat was staring on its face. When armistice took place, most of the ordinary Germans were pleased to escape further war, though many of them wept bitterly for the lost pride. There were many differences between German and Russian society. Russian society was an embattled one, whereas German society was extraordinarily proud. Russians did not want war and Germans, as long as it was fought far away on someone else's soil and they were winning, did not dislike it at all. Russian society was exploited during war and Germans did not have that problem. Germans were prepared for the war and Russians were not. Germans wanted to proclaim their superiority and Russians had no such pride. German society was guided by proud principles9 and Russian society was unguided. Russians saved their land, but communism came to rule. Germans had to surrender with unhappy truce that later ushered in Second World War. Germans lost heavily in later days of war, but were worried more about the loss of face. German society was more aggressive and was built in militant lines. Comparatively Russian society was extremely peaceful. There was the conclusion at the end of the war where both the countries stood defeated in one way or other. Germans anyway had to be defeated, as America and allied forces became stronger and it was only a matter of time. Soldiers of even German army were fed up of the war and a considerable section of the society grew louder and louder against the war. Germans knew at last that they were not going to win the war. Russian defeat was of a totally different kind. In both the countries imperial forces were defeated. But in Russia they were defeated in a bloody way. Communism came to power for another continuous termination of Russian lives and with the advent of communism, they lost their freedom. Soldiers in Russia, at the end of war, almost remained out of war, and there was not much of support from ordinary population. Communism pulled Russia out of the war when Germany and her friends stood defeated. BIBLIOGRAPHY: 1. D.C.B. Lieven, Russia and the Origins of the First World War, Macmillan, London, 1983. 2. Frans Coetzee and Marilyn Shevin-Coetzee, Authority, Identity and the Social History of the Great War, Berghahn Books, Oxford 3. Holger H. Herwig, The First World War, Arnold, London, 1997. 4. Jay Winter, Geoffrey Parker and Mary R. Habeck, The Great War and the Twentieth Century, Yale University Press, 2000. 5. Martin Middlebrook, The Kaiser's Battle, Penguin books, London, 1978. 6. Robert L. Nelson, Ordinary men in the first world war, Journal of Contemporary History, 2004, 39, 425. 7. Roger Chickering, Imperial Germany and the Great War, 1914 - 1918, Cambridge University Press. ONLINE RESOURCES: 1. http://www.history.ac.uk/reviews/paper/waldron.html 2. http://repositories.cdlib.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgiarticle=1116&context=uciaspubs/research 3. Read More