THE TSAR'S WAR WWI'S EASTERN FRONT

Tsarist Russia was unprepared when World War I began, and the disastrous experience hastened the end of the Romanov Dynasty and the rise of communist rule

- MIKE HASKEW

Russia entered World War I for several reasons. The torchbearer of pan-Slavism in the early 20th century, Tsar Nicholas II, last emperor of the Romanov Dynasty, believed his dominion was morally obligated to assist Serbia. Russia was bound by treaty obligations with France and Great Britain, and the Russian government entertained its own expansionist ambitions in Central Asia.

The Romanovs ruled Russia for 300 years and during that period a distinct class system emerged. The nobility lived in opulence along with wealthy landowners and industrialists, while the working and agrarian classes led a significantly more humble existence, earning paltry wages and surviving on subsistence farming. Other European countries had seen the introduction of reforms, particularly France with its revolution of the late 18th century, and the American Revolution during the same period saw the 13 former British colonies form an independent nation. During this time, however, Russian society remained rigid.

Unrest, reform and foreign relations

Nearly a decade prior to Russia’s entry into World War I, in 1905 Nicholas II had agreed to political and social reforms. Sometimes referred to as the First Russian Revolution, the turbulent events of 1905 were marked by the Bloody Sunday massacre in which Russian soldiers fired on their own people, widespread strikes, rioting in major cities, and general upheaval and disorder. In order to stave off disaster, Nicholas II made concessions such as the establishment of the State Duma (a lower house of representatives), tolerance for multiple political parties and the introduction of a new constitution in 1906.