On the other hand, it is equally generally accepted that the murder was only the immediate pretext, the “impetus” for the war, while numerous hidden factors gradually led to it, the central of which was the desire of the German Empire to dominate the world and the competing national interests of the largest European powers .

Factors in the policies of European powers

It is widely believed that all major European powers were interested in starting a war, seeing no other ways to resolve the accumulated contradictions. When considering the factors below, in order to avoid confusion, it should be remembered that of the countries listed below, Great Britain, France and Russia were part of the Entente, and Germany, Italy and Austria-Hungary were part of the Triple Alliance.

British Empire

• She could not forgive Germany for supporting the Boers during the Anglo-Boer War - Messrs.
• She did not intend to distantly observe German expansion into areas that she considered “hers”: East and South-West Africa.
• Waged an undeclared economic and trade war against Germany.
• Conducted active naval preparations in case of aggressive actions by Germany.
• Because of the potential German threat, she abandoned the policy of “brilliant isolation” and switched to the policy of forming an anti-German bloc of states.
• Control of sea routes. Britain must have a strong navy.

France

• She sought to take revenge for the defeat inflicted on her by Germany in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870.
• She intended to return Alsace and Lorraine, separated from France in 1871 following the war of 1870.
• Incurred losses in its traditional markets in competition with German goods.
• She was afraid of new German aggression.
• She sought to preserve her colonies, in particular North Africa, at any cost.

Russia

Serbia

• The newly formed state (full independence since 1878) sought to establish itself in the Balkans as the leader of the Slavic peoples of the peninsula.
• She planned to form Yugoslavia, including all the Slavs living in the south of Austria-Hungary.
• She unofficially supported nationalist organizations that fought against Austria-Hungary and Turkey, that is, she interfered in the internal affairs of other states.

Bulgaria

• She sought to establish herself in the Balkans as the leader of the Slavic peoples of the peninsula (as opposed to Serbia).
• It sought to regain territories lost during the Second Balkan War, as well as to acquire territories that the country claimed as a result of the First Balkan War.
• She wanted to take revenge on Serbia and Greece for the humiliating defeat in 1913.

Polish question

• Having no national state after the partitions of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Poles sought independence and the unification of Polish lands.

German Empire

• She sought political and economic dominance on the European continent.
• Having joined the struggle for colonies only after 1871, it claimed equal rights in the colonial possessions of the British Empire, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Portugal. She was particularly active in obtaining markets.
• Qualified the Entente as an agreement whose purpose was to undermine the power of Germany.
• She wanted to acquire new territories.

Austria-Hungary

• Being a multinational empire, due to interethnic contradictions, Austria-Hungary was a constant source of instability in Europe.
• She sought to retain Bosnia and Herzegovina, which she captured in 1908. (see Bosnian crisis 1908-1909)
• It opposed Russia, which took on the role of protector of all Slavs in the Balkans, and Serbia, which claimed the role of a unifying center of the South Slavs.

Ottoman Empire

• She sought to regain territories lost during the Balkan Wars.
• She sought to preserve the unity of the nation (in conditions of a virtually collapsing state), which is easier to do in the face of an external threat.
• In the Middle East, the interests of almost all powers collided, striving to achieve the division of the collapsing Ottoman Empire (Turkey).

Prominent political and scientific figures on the causes of the First World War

Modern historians place responsibility for the outbreak of the war, in descending order, on Germany, Austria-Hungary, Russia, Serbia, France, Britain. Some scientists focus on the role of the geopolitical ambitions of individual states, in particular Germany and Russia.

Opinions on the initiative of Nicholas II to refer the Austro-Serbian dispute to the Hague Tribunal

On July 29, 1914 (two days before Germany declared war on Russia), Nicholas II sent the following telegram to Kaiser Wilhelm II:

“Thank you for your telegram, conciliatory and friendly. Meanwhile, the official message conveyed today by your ambassador to my minister was in a completely different tone. Please explain this discrepancy. It would be right to refer the Austro-Serbian issue to the Hague Conference. I count on your wisdom and friendship"

Kaiser Wilhelm never responded to this peace initiative of Nicholas II. The French ambassador to Russia Maurice Paleologue wrote in his memoirs (pp. 155, 156):

Sunday, January 31, 1915 The Petrograd Government Bulletin publishes the text of a telegram dated July 29 last year, in which Emperor Nicholas invited Emperor Wilhelm to transfer the Austro-Serbian dispute to the Hague Court.<…>The German government did not consider it necessary to publish this telegram among the messages directly exchanged between the two monarchs during the crisis that preceded the war.<…>- What a terrible responsibility Emperor Wilhelm took upon himself, leaving Emperor Nicholas’ proposal without a single word of response! He could not respond to such a proposal except by agreeing to it. And he didn’t answer because he wanted war.

In 1915-1919 (during the First World War), both the British Ambassador to Russia J. Buchanan (Chapter 14) and some prominent foreign public figures and historians wrote about this telegram (P.132-133). In 1918, this telegram was even mentioned in the American Encyclopedia on the First World War. US Deputy Attorney General James M. Beck wrote in 1915 (translated from English):

It is a curious and suggestive fact that the German Foreign Office, in the published (autumn 1914) correspondence between the Kaiser and the Tsar, omitted one of the most important telegrams. … The German Foreign Minister then explained that they considered the telegram “not of any importance” for publication. - No comment needed! Apparently, the tsar, at the beginning of his correspondence with the Kaiser, proposed to transfer the entire Austro-Serbian problem to the Hague Tribunal. Serbia made the same proposal. ...But the world is also indebted to the Russian Tsar for the first Hague Conference, which was convened and held on his initiative...

After the First World War, this important peace initiative of Nicholas II was written about (in 1931) by Winston Churchill (P. 170), and in the 1960s by Robert Massey in his book “Nicholas and Alexandra” (P. 320), in 2003 year - English historians from the University of Cambridge. Among Russian modern historians, this peace initiative of Nicholas II is written in the famous book “History of Russia: XX Century”, ed. Doctor of History A. Zubova (p. 291).

Notes

1. Ronald G. Suny.
2. Richard G. Hovannisian. The Armenian People from Ancient to Modern Times - Vol. II. Foreign Dominion to Statehood: The Fifteenth Century to the Twentieth Century. - Palgrave Macmillan, 1997. - P. 235-238. - 493 p. - ISBN 0312101686. - ISBN 9780312101688.
3. Donald Bloxham. The Great Game of Genocide: Imperialism, Nationalism, and the Destruction of the Ottoman Armenians. - Oxford: Oxford University press, 2005. - P. 62-65. - 352 p. - ISBN 9780199226887.
4. Taner Akçam. A Shameful Act: The Armenian Genocide and the Question of Turkish Responsibility. - Macmillan, 2007. - P. 97-102. - 500 p. - ISBN 1466832126. - ISBN 9781466832121.
5. Ronald G. Suny.. - Juniata College, Pennsylvania: Juniata Voices, 2016. - P. 208-229.
6. Korganov G. G. Participation of Armenians in the World War on the Caucasian Front (1914-1918) / Trans. from fr. Yu. L. Pirumyan, E. E. Dolbakyan. - M.: MAKS Press, 2011. - P. 17. - 183 p. - ISBN 978-5-317-03563-1.
7. Vahakn N. Dadrian. Armenians in Ottoman Turkey and the Armenian Genocide (English) // Dinah L. Shelton. Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity. Vol. 1 (A-H). - Macmillan Reference, 2005. - P. 67-76. - ISBN 0-02-865992-9.
8. Taner Akçam. A Shameful Act: The Armenian Genocide and the Question of Turkish Responsibility. - Macmillan, 2007. - P. 43. - 500 p. -

Introduction

I chose the topic “Russia in the First World War” because I am interested in this period, since it greatly influenced the future fate of Russia and therefore in my work I want to consider Russia's role in the First World War. This war became a turning point in history, and not only in our country, but in world history. She was unfairly “forgotten” for 70 years. There has been very little research on the history of the First World War, and those that have been written have been written from the point of view of condemnation of the war. And I would like to objectively study this event.

In order to explore the topic more fully, I considered it necessary to understand the causes of the war; find out what caused it; trace how military operations developed; study the events of the war that became a turning point in its course; and understand how and why the Brest Peace Treaty was concluded.

Reason for war

June 15(28), 1914 In the Bosnian city of Sarajevo, Serbian terrorist Gavrilo Princip shot and killed the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife. On July 10, Austria-Hungary, suspecting the Serbian government of involvement in the murder, presented Serbia with an ultimatum demanding that it ban the activities of anti-Austrian organizations, punish the Serbian border guards who assisted the terrorists, and allow Austrian representatives into the country to participate in the investigation of the murder.

The Serbs accepted all the demands put forward, except one, which contradicted the Serbian constitution. Austria-Hungary broke off diplomatic relations with Belgrade and declared war on Serbia on July 15 (28). Her actions were supported by Germany. Emperor Wilhelm II of Hohenzollern called: “The Serbs must be dealt with, and now.” In Vienna and Berlin they were confident that the matter would be limited to a short and victorious war with Serbia. However, the war became a global war in a matter of days.

Causes and nature of the war

I will start my essay with the main causes of the First World War. The First World War arose as a result of the intensification of the political and economic struggle between the largest imperialist countries for markets and sources of raw materials, for the redivision of an already divided world. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the division of the world had already been completed, there were no territories left on the globe that had not yet been captured by the capitalist powers, there were no more so-called “free spaces” left. “It has arrived,” V.I. pointed out. Lenin, “inevitably the era of monopoly ownership of colonies, and, consequently, a particularly intensified struggle for the division of the world.” Lenin V.I. Full Collection Soch., vol. 27, p. 422.

As a result of the uneven, spasmodic development of capitalism in the era of imperialism, some countries that took the capitalist path of development later than others quickly caught up and surpassed such old colonial countries as England and France in technical and economic terms. Particularly indicative was the development of Germany, which by 1900. surpassed these countries in terms of industrial production, but was significantly inferior in the size of its colonial possessions. Because of this, the interests of Germany and England collided most often. Germany openly sought to capture British markets in the Middle East and Africa.

Germany's colonial expansion was met with resistance from France, which also had huge colonies. Very sharp contradictions between the countries existed over Alsace and Lorraine, captured by Germany back in 1871.

With its penetration into the Middle East, Germany created a threat to Russian interests in the Black Sea basin. Austria-Hungary, allied with Germany, became a serious competitor to Tsarist Russia in the struggle for influence in the Balkans.

The aggravation of foreign policy contradictions between the largest countries led to the division of the world into two hostile camps and the formation of two imperialist groupings: the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy) and the Triple Agreement, or Entente (England, France, Russia).

The war between the major European powers was beneficial to the US imperialists, since as a result of this struggle, favorable conditions emerged for the further development of American expansion, especially in Latin America and the Far East. American monopolies relied on maximizing benefits from Europe.

In preparing for war, the imperialists saw in it not only a means of resolving external contradictions, but also a means that could help them cope with the growing discontent of the population of their own countries and suppress the growing revolutionary movement. The bourgeoisie hoped during the war to destroy the international solidarity of the workers, to physically exterminate the best part of the working class, for the socialist revolution.

Due to the fact that the war for the redivision of the world affected the interests of all imperialist countries, most of the world's states gradually became drawn into it. The war became global, both in its political goals and in scale.

By its nature, the war of 1914-1918 was imperialistic, aggressive, unfair on both sides. It was a war over who could plunder and oppress more. The majority of the parties of the Second International, betraying the interests of the working people, advocated war in support of the bourgeoisie and the governments of their countries.

The Bolshevik Party led by V.I. Lenin, having determined the nature of the war, called for a fight against it, for turning the imperialist war into a civil war.

Numerous hidden factors gradually led to war, the central of which were the competing nationalist interests of the major European powers. Long before the war, a tangle of contradictions was growing in Europe between the great powers - Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Great Britain, and Russia. So, Great Britain could not forgive Germany for supporting the Boers in the Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902, and did not intend to distantly observe Germany’s penetration into the areas that it considered “its own”: East and South-West Africa.

France sought to take revenge for the defeat inflicted on it by Germany in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, and also intended to return Alsace and Lorraine, separated from France in 1871. Incurred losses in its traditional markets in competition with German goods. She was afraid of new German aggression. She sought to preserve her colonies, in particular North Africa, at any cost.

Russian empire claimed free passage of its fleet in the Mediterranean Sea, insisted on weakening or revising in its favor the regime of control over the Dardanelles Strait. She regarded the construction of the Berlin-Baghdad railway (1898) as an unfriendly act on the part of Germany. She opposed German hegemony in Europe and Austrian penetration into the Balkans. Insisted on the exclusive right of a protectorate over all Slavic peoples; supported anti-Austrian and anti-Turkish sentiments among Serbs and Bulgarians in the Balkans

German Empire As a new dynamic empire, it sought military, economic and political leadership on the continent, and, having joined the struggle for colonies only after 1871, claimed equal rights in the colonial possessions of England, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Portugal. She was particularly active in obtaining markets.

Austria-Hungary being a multinational empire, due to interethnic confrontation, the country was a constant source of instability in Europe. She sought to retain Bosnia and Herzegovina, which she captured in 1908. It opposed Russia, which took on the role of protector of all Slavs in the Balkans, and Serbia, which claimed the role of the unifying center of the southern Slavs of the empire.

In the Middle East, the interests of almost all powers collided, striving to achieve the division of the collapsing Ottoman Empire (Turkey). After the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 and until 1914, local conflicts broke out in Europe (the Balkan Wars, the Italo-Turkish War), but in a major war they didn't outgrow. By 1914, two blocks had already taken shape.

Entente bloc(formed after the Russian-French, Anglo-French, and subsequently the Anglo-Russian union in 1907): Russian Empire; Great Britain; France.

Block Triple Alliance (1882): Germany; Austria-Hungary; Italy.

Italy, however, entered the war in 1915 on the side of the Entente - but Turkey and Bulgaria joined Germany and Austria-Hungary during the war, forming Quadruple Alliance (or Central Powers bloc).

Plans of the parties. French plan the so-called “Plan XVII” was built on several erroneous assumptions. First, it was believed that the German armies would be concentrated along the Franco-German border. Secondly, the number of opposing German troops was grossly underestimated. As a result, the French plan provided for a decisive attack in Lorraine, where their main forces were concentrated. The French and British General Staffs considered the possibility of an offensive by the German army through the territory of Belgium and Luxembourg. However, it did not assume a significant depth of German entry into Belgian territory. No measures were taken to strengthen the Franco-Belgian border

Strategic Russian army plan also was not very clear. On the Russian-German front it was planned to occupy East Prussia, cross the Vistula River and take possession of its mouth. This would create favorable preconditions for actions from the territory of the Kingdom of Poland even in the Berlin direction (at the same time, the Russian command did not dare to fully use the Polish bridgehead, fearing for its political unreliability). In another strategic direction, the task was set to defeat the Austro-Hungarian armies, occupy the Carpathian passes, and cut off the Austrians’ retreat to Krakow.

July crisis. The immediate cause for the unfolding of the international crisis were the events in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914. The city of Sarajevo is the capital of Bosnia, annexed by Austria-Hungary in 1908, a significant part of its population were Serbs. June 28 - St. Vitus Day - was a holy date for the Serbs. It was on this day that the heir to the Austrian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, arrived in the city. Nationalist organizations of varying degrees of radicalism operated in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Some of them were directly or indirectly connected with the intelligence services of Serbia, Russia and other states. Ra wildly minded Serbian nationalists tended to view the Archduke as one of their main enemies, a kind of personification of anti-Serbian politics in its most odious, offensive forms.

While the car carrying the Archduke was passing through the city, an unsuccessful attempt was made on his life: the thrown bomb did not reach its target. However, the visit was not interrupted; the motorcade continued to follow the established and previously known route. The next assassin, Serbian high school student Gavrila Princip, achieved his goal - the Archduke and his wife were shot.

On July 23, 1914, the Austrian ambassador Baron Giesl presented the Serbian Prime Minister Pašić with a note that was in the nature of an ultimatum. Acceptance of Austrian demands (an answer had to be given within 48 hours) would mean Serbia’s renunciation of political independence. The note itself was composed in a deliberately offensive tone. Serbian diplomats were able, without damaging the prestige of their country, to give a satisfactory answer to all the demands, except one, regarding the admission of the activities of the Austrian police authorities on the territory of Serbia in order to suppress the anti-Austrian movement. In general, the answer was kept in conciliatory tones. However, on July 25, the Austrian ambassador left Belgrade. The relationship was severed. This was the first step towards direct conflict.

On July 28, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia and began bombing Belgrade the next day. On July 29, Russia, fearing that further compliance would lead to its loss of all influence in the Balkans, announced a partial mobilization.

On July 29, the German government threatened that if Russia did not stop mobilization, then Germany would resort to mobilization. In essence, Germany put Russian diplomacy in a hopeless situation. On July 30, Russia declared general mobilization, Austria-Hungary also decided to declare general mobilization, and Russia was presented with an ultimatum demanding that it stop military preparations. In response to the refusal of the Russian side, Germany announced August 1 war in Russia.

This start of the war turned the Schlieffen plan on its head. All attempts by the German side to provoke the French were unsuccessful. Despite the tense, tense atmosphere, the French intelligence services did not allow a single incident against German diplomatic personnel, and French troops were pulled back 30 km from the Franco-German border. Then Germany accused the French side of bombing German territory, without specifying a specific place and time. On August 3, Germany declared war on France, and immediately the shock corps of the German army violated the neutrality of Belgium and Luxembourg.

Initially, the German side wanted to demand from Belgium the right to use its territory, citing the need to save Belgian neutrality from the French and British. Belgium not only refused, but also decided to resist, which the Germans did not expect at all. The schedule for the movement of German troops according to the Schlieffen plan was disrupted.

England demanded an end to the violation of Belgium's neutrality and the withdrawal of all incoming troops. This is a requirement England remained unfulfilled, and August 4 she declared war on Germany. Accordingly, the entire British Empire found itself in a state of war with Germany.

As a result, already at the very beginning of August, three fronts were created in Europe, which retained their importance until the very end of the war. From December 1914, the Western Front stretched from the North Sea to Switzerland and had a length of about 700 km. The Eastern, or Russian, front stretched from the Baltic Sea to Romania, and the Balkan, or Serbian, front formed along the Danube and Sava rivers.

At the end of July 1914, a war began in Europe, which became one of the most large-scale armed conflicts in the entire history of mankind. More than nine million soldiers died. About five million civilians who found themselves under occupation were destroyed by disease, famine, and air raids. What goals did its participants pursue in the First World War? What preceded the armed conflict?

It is not easy to answer the question about the goals of the participants in the First World War. For some, it began as an act of retribution and punishment. For others, it became an armed conflict designed to end wars forever. It is not for nothing that it is called “Great”. Until 1914, humanity did not know larger-scale military operations. But the First War was followed by the Second, even more destructive, and after it - many small armed conflicts around the world. Those who considered the goal of the First World War to be the establishment of peace in Europe were mistaken.

Prelude

Already at the beginning of the century, the upcoming war was often discussed in Europe. Neither politicians nor writers had any idea how large-scale it would be. Even the military did not know about this. From time to time, small military campaigns took place in Europe, but they all ended quite quickly, because they were, as a rule, waged against a weak enemy. Spears could not withstand machine guns, and ancient cannons could not withstand powerful ship guns.

Among the French, hatred of the Germans grew, which arose back in the 70s of the 19th century - after Bismarck signed an agreement according to which Alsace and almost all of Lorraine passed to Germany. Meanwhile, German ambitions grew in direct proportion to industrial development. They had no colonies, no maritime power, and no influence over Asian Muslims. To gain a dominant position in Europe was Germany's goal in the First World War.

Causes

What were the goals and plans of the participants in the First World War? This question is answered in different ways. Thomas Woodrow Wilson once said that it is futile to look for the reason why the European powers went to war in 1914.

An armed conflict always gives rise to rivalry, and the logic of anti-war sentiment cannot smooth it out. At the beginning of the 20th century it manifested itself in different ways. In France, irritation grew against Germany, which annexed its lands in 1871. The Germans looked with increasing confidence towards the eastern border, cherishing territorial ambitions. Nicholas II made plans for the Balkans. Austria-Hungary tried to maintain its fragile imperial structure.

What was the prevailing mood in Great Britain before the outbreak of the First World War? Political scientists were aware of Germany's goals in the upcoming armed conflict. British journalists and writers sounded the alarm: Germany's naval power was growing rapidly.

The Kaiser dreamed of equaling Great Britain in naval power, which became one of his goals in the First World War. The personnel of the German Navy was increased by 15 thousand officers and soldiers. Churchill proposed taking a short break in building up military strength, but the Germans did not support the idea. This happened in 1912. At the same time, Serbia won the war with Turkey, dealing a strong blow to the prestige of the Germans.

In 1913, Churchill again put forward a proposal to postpone the arms race. But this time the Kaiser did not heed the advice of the British Prime Minister. The German army by that time consisted of more than 600 thousand people. What goals did the participants in the First World War pursue? First of all, the satisfaction of insatiable territorial greed.

Assassination of the Habsburg heir

On 28 June 1914, Franz Ferdinand paid an official visit to Sarajevo. Among the onlookers who gathered to gaze at the Archduke, nineteen-year-old He was present and committed an act that served as the formal reason for the hostilities that soon engulfed a large part of Europe.

The principle was not alone, but with accomplices. One of them threw a bomb at the Archduke's car. The first attempt was unsuccessful: the officers in the next car were injured. The wounded were taken to the hospital, and meanwhile the Archduke continued his trip. Gavrilo Principa He was annoyed that his accomplices were unable to complete the task. However, he ended up on the sidewalk, just ten meters from the Archduke’s car, completely by accident. Realizing that the target was moving straight towards him, he stepped forward and fired. The Archduke died from loss of blood. His wife, who accompanied him on his last trip, died with him.

Princip and his accomplices belonged to the terrorist organization Black Hand. They received weapons in Belgrade, then crossed the Austrian border into Bosnia. The victim of the conspirators was more than supportive of the interests of the national minorities inhabiting Austria-Hungary. Franz Ferdinand had a reputation as a politician who sought to change the dual nature of the empire to a triple one by including the South Slavs in the union. However, the terrorists did not know about this.

July crisis

This term in history is usually understood as the largest diplomatic clash of European states that occurred in the summer of 1914. In order to answer the question about the goals of the First World War, it is necessary to understand what the so-called July crisis was.

So, on June 28, a high-profile murder was committed in Sarajevo. The Austria-Hungarian government reacted with lightning speed. Namely, it presented an ultimatum to Serbia, which contained a demand to find and punish those responsible for the murder of the Archduke. The investigation was able to establish quite quickly that the attackers were subjects of the Hamburg Empire. Politicians believed that Austrian sentiments could only be destroyed by force. In their opinion, the Serbian authorities did everything to undermine the monarchical influence on the Balkan Peninsula.

Serbia had a huge influence on the Slavs who lived in Austria-Hungary. Therefore, the authorities believed that any separatist sentiments constituted a threat to the existence of the imperial state. The Austro-Hungarian government used the assassination of the Archduke as a justification for military action against Serbia.

At the beginning of July, the German government began to seriously fear that demands on Serbia would lead to the Russian Empire entering into an armed conflict. And this, in turn, would serve as the beginning of large-scale military operations. The fears were justified. On July 28, Austria declared war on Serbia. This date is officially considered the beginning of the First World War. It is impossible to briefly outline the goals of the powers that took part in it. Many historical works and documentaries are devoted to this topic.

It is known that on July 29, the British Prime Minister proposed convening European heads of state in order to maintain peace. However, the rulers did not have the strength or desire to stop the impending catastrophe. On July 29, the threat of artillery fire loomed over Serbia. The Russian Empire announced the mobilization of a huge population. About six million people were drafted into the army. Although there was no declaration of war on Austria that day.

Negotiations between Germany and Russia

In order to avoid the First World War, whose goals for Russia were rather gloomy, Nicholas II sent a telegram to the Kaiser. The Russian Tsar maintained a friendly correspondence with the German ruler. The telegram, in which he asked to do everything possible to stop Austria-Hungary before it went too far, was signed by Nicholas II "Niki". The Kaiser responded to the Russian Tsar in the same spirit, promising to influence the Austrians and encourage them to reach an agreement with the Russian Empire. Under the answer to Nicholas II it was written - “Willy”.

After the Tsar received a telegram from the Kaiser, he replaced the general mobilization with a partial one. Later, the Kaiser advised Nicholas II not to enter into a military conflict, so as not to involve Europe in a bloody war. By the way, it was not possible to cancel the mobilization. It was already in full swing throughout the country. And soon news arrived in St. Petersburg that Germany was preparing for war. On July 30, Nicholas II signed an order for general mobilization. The Russian public hoped that this would stop the war.

Germany sent an ultimatum to Russia demanding that it stop mobilization, but it was refused. Then she turned to France with a request to maintain neutrality. But this time, too, a refusal was received. Germany was confident that the Russian army, which the Germans considered ponderous and clumsy, could be defeated quite quickly. But the opposing forces were too great.

In France in those days, about three million soldiers were already crowded into the barracks. This meant that while the German army would advance to Russia, in the west she will be dealt a crushing blow. Perhaps even defeat. Therefore, one of the prominent German military leaders developed a plan according to which it was first necessary to defeat France and then attack the Russian Empire.

Participants

Before talking about further events, it is worth once again, and in a more condensed form, to outline the goals of the powers in the First World War. Two opposing camps into which the participants were divided: the Quadruple Alliance and the Entente. The first is Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria. The Entente is an alliance that includes Russia, France, and Britain.

Objectives of entry into the First World War

Germany sought to establish dominance first in Europe and then throughout the world. This was well known in Russia, Great Britain, and France. Over the course of several decades, the Germans built up their military power. For Austria, the goals and plans in the First World War were not so ambitious - to establish control over the Balkans.

Great Britain was haunted by certain lands of the Ottoman Empire, which by the beginning of the 20th century had weakened significantly. In addition, England sought to seize oil possessions located in Mesopotamia and Palestine. The goals were as follows: to weaken Germany, to establish dominance in Europe and, of course, to regain Alsace and Lorraine.

The Turks, who became allies of Germany, sought to seize Crimea, Iran and maintain control in the Balkans. What were Russia's goals in World War I? Just like France, it sought to weaken the influence of Germany. In addition, the Russian Empire needed free passage through the Dardanelles and Bosporus into the Mediterranean Sea. And, of course, increasing influence in the Balkans. These were the goals of countries in the First World War - a war that until 1939 was considered the most terrible, bloody, and large-scale in history.

1914

Military operations took place mainly in the French and Russian theaters of military operations. Battles were also fought in the Balkans, the Middle East, the Caucasus, China, Africa and Oceania. Every from participants in the First World War, their goals planned to achieve in just a few months. No one then imagined that the conflict would drag on for four years.

So Germany, according to the plan mentioned above, planned to capture Paris within 39 days and then immediately head east. One of the famous sayings of the German ruler: “Lunch will be in Paris, and dinner in St. Petersburg.” France intended to begin military operations with the return of Alsace and Lorraine.

The path to Paris ran through Belgium. On August 4, she captured the small state without much difficulty. True, the Belgian army unexpectedly put up quite powerful resistance, considering its numbers. But this, of course, could not delay the enemy for long. For the French, the invasion of Belgium came as a surprise, but they still managed to transfer their units quite quickly.

For some time, the French had to not only abandon the plan to return the lands once annexed by Germany, but also retreat. The German army was rapidly moving forward. The British retreated to the coast, the French were already preparing a dacha in the capital at the beginning of September. However, it ended in victory over Germany. This event had a significant impact on the further course of the war.

By the beginning of 1915, it became clear that Germany would not achieve its goals, and the armed conflict, contrary to the wishes of all its participants, would be protracted. The Germans captured Belgium and large areas of France. They failed to defeat the French within a month and go to Russia. The war promised to be long and exhausting.

Eastern front

In 1915, the retreat of the Russian army began. Galicia was lost. Until mid-spring, groups of Austrian troops were concentrated here. At the beginning of May, the enemy dealt a powerful blow to the Russian army. The Eastern Front shifted towards the Russian Empire. The withdrawal of Russian troops was completed at the end of August. During the second year of the war, Germany achieved significant military victories and captured enemy territory. But the general goal was never achieved.

1916-1918

On May 31, the Naval Battle of Jutland took place. There is still debate about who won it, Great Britain or Germany. However, the events that occurred in 1916 demonstrated the clear superiority of the Entente. In December, the German government proposed an alliance, but was refused. Over the next two years, Germany made several more attempts to capture France, but none of them were successful. The revolution that took place in Russia in 1917 had a significant impact on the course of subsequent events. The Germans concluded a truce with the new state.

Results

Not only the war itself turned out to be terrible, but also its consequences. New borders were established and long-term conflicts were provoked. The war changed the map of Europe. There was now no Russian, no German, no Ottoman empire. Neither was Austria-Hungary. The German economy has weakened greatly. The national humiliation experienced by the Germans led to revanchist sentiments, which gave rise to fascism.

After the end of the war, the world community understood: from now on, armed conflicts will be total. The war led to an arms race - to obtaining weapons capable of destroying the entire world.

At the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. The redistribution of the world between the leading capitalist countries was completed. Germany, USA, Japan were rapidly developing countries. They demanded their share.

At the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. In Europe, preparations began for a war for a new redivision of the world. The main opponents in the upcoming war: Germany and England. Controversies between them arose first in the field of industrial competition, and then because of the colonies. They began to recruit allies. Thus, two hostile blocs, two coalitions of states were formed: Entente (England, France, Russia) And Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy).

By 1914, a complex and tangled knot of imperialist contradictions had formed, which war was called upon to cut through.

World War I (August 1, 1914 – November 11, 1918)

Causes of the war:

1) the struggle for the redivision of the world.

2) suppress the growing revolutionary movement in their countries.

This war covered the territory of Europe, Asia and Africa. The population of the states involved in the war accounted for 3/4 of the world's population. 38 countries took part. For the working masses, the war turned into streams of blood and innumerable disasters. In this war, 10 million people were killed or died from wounds. 20 million were maimed, and millions more died from hunger and disease. The armed struggle on land was supplemented by air and submarine combat and chemical weapons. The birth rate fell by 21 million people.

Character First World War - an unjust, predatory war of aggression for all states taking part in it. The goal is to conquer foreign territories.

The Russian government finally wanted to resolve the “eastern” issue, to prevent the strengthening of German influence in Turkey, the Balkans and, to capture the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, Galicia, which belonged to Austria-Hungary.

Reason for war was the assassination of the heir to the Austrian and Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand. Austria-Hungary presented an ultimatum to Serbia. Serbia was unable to fulfill all its points and on July 28, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. Russia could not stand aside, since giving Serbia to Austria-Hungary meant allowing the Austro-German bloc to establish dominance over the entire Balkan Peninsula. On July 31, mobilization to help Serbia began in Russia. Germany demanded that Russia stop mobilizing troops. Russia did not do this, and then Germany, as an ally of Austria-Hungary, declared war on Russia on August 1. So on August 1, 1914, the First World War began. The city of St. Petersburg was renamed Petrograd during the war.

Our army and country were not ready for war. In the summer of 1914, we had just developed a large program to strengthen the army. The Russian army had good small arms, but in terms of the number of artillery it was inferior to Germany and Austria-Hungary. The telephone and radio were just beginning to be introduced. In general, Russia was sharply inferior to the enemy in military-economic terms. There were few military factories. Many types of weapons were not produced.

During the first months of the war, the Russian army achieved success. The war became protracted.

At the end of 1914, the first signs of an economic crisis were already visible.

The work of railway transport was disrupted. There were not enough locomotives, wagons, and rails. Almost all of the metal was used for the production of weapons.

Fuel crisis. With the outbreak of the war, the supply of English and German coal, on which the industry of Petrograd and the Baltic states operated, ceased. Then Polish coal was lost. The only source is the Donetsk coal basin. But there were not enough wagons to transport coal.

A crisis began in the metallurgical industry. Due to the lack of coal in the Southern metallurgical region, blast furnaces began to shut down.

The collapse of transport brought the Russian economy to a state of complete ruin. The locomotives and carriages purchased in England arrived in Russia late and did not completely cover the country's needs.

While people in the center of Russia were literally starving, significant food reserves accumulated in the Don, Urals, and Siberia. Donbass was filled with unexported coal, and Petrograd and Moscow were freezing due to lack of fuel. Due to the lack of wagons, the supply of ammunition and food to the army was disrupted.

In connection with the German offensive, in the spring of 1915, the evacuation of industrial enterprises from the western provinces began. However, this matter was poorly organized. The government entrusted the evacuation to the entrepreneurs themselves, who received special funds for this. But due to the lack of control, some companies associated with the Germans did not think about moving their enterprises. And the evacuated enterprises were installed in new places very slowly.

The state tried to intervene in the affairs of private industry and establish a centralized distribution of all raw materials and fuel and energy resources between Russian enterprises. For this purpose, the government created “Special Meetings” to regulate the distribution of fuel, food, and transportation issues. But all these “Special Meetings” were not able to implement any real regulation in the conditions of the feudal-bureaucratic state system and the economic backwardness of the country.

On the initiative of the leaders of the big bourgeoisie, military-industrial committees were created in the country to assist the government in developing military production. They took orders that did not correspond to the capacity and profile of their enterprises. These orders were not fulfilled either in terms of volume or terms. In general, the restructuring of industry on a war footing did not satisfy the demands of the war. In 1916, weapons production increased, but it was not enough.

The mobilization of millions of men to the front caused an acute shortage of labor. Almost half of the village’s working population was in the army. The war also consumed many horses - the main draft force of peasant farms. The undermining of the productive forces of the village led to a reduction in sown areas and yields. Agriculture fell into complete decline.

In industry, the number of enterprises producing civilian products (glass, soap, matches, textiles) decreased. There is an acute shortage of basic necessities in the country. Prices have increased. Speculation began.

For the working class, the war brought only hunger, increased working hours, and forced overtime.

The war completely paralyzed the country's financial system. Inflation has begun. 1 ruble = 27 pre-war kopecks. To finance the war, the tsarist government resorted to internal and external loans. The government's debt amounted to 80 billion rubles, which = 2/3 of the country's national wealth. Russia's dependence on Western countries has increased.

There were large casualties in the army.

In the fall of 1915, the Triple Alliance turned into the Quadruple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, Bulgaria), and Italy went over to the Entente and the Quadruple Entente arose (England, France, Russia, Italy).

In the spring of 1916, the German army directed the main attack on the French city of Verdun, however, it was not successful. During the 8 months of the siege, losses amounted to 950 thousand people (“Verdun meat grinder”). Russian troops provided assistance to the allies. The Brusilovsky breakthrough was carried out (May 22 - July 31, 1916). The commander of the Southwestern Front, Brusilov, using the “wave” attack tactics, made significant progress, liberated a large territory, forcing the enemy to transfer large reserves from France to our front.

Continued participation in the war resulted in the February Revolution for Russia, during which the main slogans were: “Down with the war!” "Of bread!"

The provisional government that replaced the autocracy did not take Russia out of the war. On the contrary, the Provisional Government launched a new offensive on the Southwestern Front, which ended in defeat and the death of 60 thousand people.

The Soviet government brought Russia out of the First World War. On March 3, 1918, the separate Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed. Our allies really didn't like that we left the war. After Russia left the war, this war did not last long. After all, previously the main front was the Russian-German front. The First World War ended in November 1918.