By answer (inktomi.hknet.com - 202.67.238.253) on Tuesday, November 21, 2000 - 06:47 pm:

With reference to any two wars involving Russia in your history course, explain:
a. why Russia entered the wars;
b. how Russia was affected by the wars. (1999 HKCEE)

Main points:
a) Background causes for Russia to enter the Russo-Japanese War
o The Russian expansion towards Manchuria after the Second Anglo-Chinese war (1858)
o The main promoter of the Triple Intervention brought about Japan's antagonism
o The continual expansion of Russia in Manchuria after 1898 directly antagonised Japan
o The rejection of Japan's advice to divide Korea between Russia and Japan after the Boxer Uprising (1900?01)

Background causes for Russia to enter the First World War
o As a member of the Triple Entente
o To support Serbia as a protector of the Slavs and Pan?Slavism
o Czar Nicholas II's aim to divert people's attention from the country's internal problems

(b) How the Russo-Japanese War (1904-05) affected Russia
o Heavy casualties
o Exposed the corrupt nature of the Czarist government
o The attack of the government officials by the revolutionaries (e.g. assassinations of important officials and Czar's brother)
o The strikes among workers and the attack of landlords by the peasants
o The Bloody Sunday Incident

How the First World War (1914-18) affected Russia
o The Shortage of food and the occurrence of famine
o Defeats directly damaged the soldiers' morale
o The mutiny in the army
o The February Revolution (1917) brought about the downfall of the Czar

Answer:
(a) I select the Russo-Japanese War (1904-05) and the First World War (1914-19).

Russo-Japanese War:
The Russian interest in Korea and Manchuria was the main source of the hostility. Russia's defeat in the Crimean War (1854-56) by Britain and France prevented her from expanding in Europe. Therefore, she pushed her frontiers eastwards after 1856, at the expense of China. In 1858, Russia gained the Heilongjiang River frontier; and in 1860, the Maritime Province where she established her naval base of Vladivostok in 1872. In 1891, she started building the Trans?Siberian Railway. All these made Japan suspicious of her territorial ambitions in Korea and Manchuria.

To Russia, the search of a warm-water port had been an urgent need since 1870s. As Vladivostok was ice-bound in winter, she laid her ambitions towards the ice-free ports of Lushun and Dalian in China. Besides, when Russia gained control of the Liaodong Peninsula in 1895 after the Triple Intervention, she also wished to extend her influence in Korea, a direct southward expansion of Russia which might dominate Manchuria and Korea in the form of railways.

Therefore, Russia's control of Korea and Manchuria was essential for her successful expansion in Asia. In 1898, in response to the German lease of Jiaozhou Bay, Russia forced China to grant her a 25?year lease of the Liaodong Peninsula, including the ice?free port of Lushun and Dalian as well as the right to build the South Manchurian Railway to link up the Chinese Eastern Railway. 1n 1900, taking advantage of the Boxer Uprising, Russia occupied Manchuria. From here, she was able to gain timber cutting and mining concessions along the Yulu River. She also helped Korea in any reforms.

To conclude, these actions aimed to make Manchuria the Russian sphere of influence.

Russia's expansion on Manchuria and Korea faced a lot of tension under Japan, which also considered both of the areas vital to her economy and security. Besides, up to 1890s, the growth of Japanese militarism since the Meiji Restoration of 1868 was followed by a strong desire for imperial expansion. Because of their nearness to Japan, Korea and Manchuria were considered to be the two most logical and practical targets for Japan.

To Russia, she understood war was the only method to put an end to their struggle. After the Boxer Uprising (1901), Japan proposed the division of Korea into Japanese and Russian sphere of influence, with the 38th parallel as the dividing line, but Russia rejected the proposal. To Manchuria, both of them failed to make compromise in the negotiations in 1900 and 1901. Afterwards, further encouraged by the Anglo?Japanese Alliance (1902) and the fanatic appeal of war in Japan made under ultra?nationalist groups, Russia prepared for war, and Czar Nicholas II's direct response of Admiral Togo's attack on Lushun on 8/2/1904 was the attack against Japan.

First World War:
Russia joined the First World War as a member of the Triple Entente (1907) with Britain and France against Germany. Besides, as a protector of the Slavs and Pan-Slavism, she supported Serbia in the crisis after the Assassination at Sarajevo and went to war against the Central Powers. She mobilized her forces on 30/7/1914. When Germany, Austria's ally, demanded that Russia should demobilize, Russia rejected the demand. Thus, Russia was forced to be dragged into the war on 1/8/1914 when Germany declared war on her.

Besides, Czar Nicholas II welcomed the war to divert people's attention from the country's internal problems. Though the 1905 Russian Revolution was suppressed, the Czarist government had exposed its weaknesses and lost its prestige. Nicholas II was forced to issue the October Manifesto to pacify discontents. Despite the practice of the Duma, the Czar was unwilling to give up his autocratic power. He dissolved the First and the Second Duma in 1906 and 1907 respectively. The Third Duma ran its full course between 1907 and 1912 as it consisted of a conservative majority of landowners and industrialists. He also understood his throne was in danger under the constant inspiration of different political parties such as the Constitutional Democrats (Cadets), Octobrists, the Social Revolutionary Party and the Social Democratic Labour Party, especially the Social Democrats who were the most active group struggling for the proletarian revolution.
Thus, up to 8/1914, both for pacifying the internal discontent and fulfilling her responsibility as a member of Triple Entente and the champion of Slavism, Czar Nicholas II did not object leading Russia to the First World War.
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(b) The defeat of the Russo-Japanese War brought disastrous effects on Russia. Heavy casualties among the Russian soldiers reflected bad leadership, inefficiency and lack of preparation of the war. More seriously, it exposed the corrupt nature of the czarist government. An immediate effect was the attack of the officials by the revolutionaries, resulting in the assassinations of Plehve (Member of the Interior) and Grand Duke Sergius (Czar's brother).

Reports of military defeats abroad led to disorder and revolution at home. The workers went on strikes while the peasants attacked landlords and government officials. The event reached its zenith in the Bloody Sunday Incident which sparked off a general revolution. On 22/1/1905, Father Gapon led the factory workers of St. Petersburg (then capital of Russia) marched to the Czar's Winter Palace. They asked for the eight?hour working day, better wages and representative government. However, the soldiers fired upon the demonstrators, resulted in the death and wounded of about 4,000. After this "Bloody Sunday", all sorts of strikes, assassinations and disturbances followed.

Furthermore, the hundreds of thousands of disillusioned Russian soldiers returning from the war with Japan were in very low spirits. Mutinies also broke out in the Russian army. Within a few months, the revolutionary tide swept though Russia. The workers went on strikes and soviets (workers' councils) were widely set up in the factories. In 10/1905, the St. Petersburg Soviet of Workers' Delegates was founded with Trotsky as the Chairman. In the countryside, the peasants refused to pay taxes and seized lands from the landowners. In 5/1905, an "All Russian Peasant Union" was set up under the Social Revolutionary Party. There were also disorder and unrest in the non?Russian provinces.

Under such condition, Czar Nicholas II adopted Count Sergei Witte (Prime Minister of Russia, 1905?06)'s advice of issuing the October Manifesto (30/10/1905). This promised to guarantee individual rights (e.g. freedom of speech and assembly) and more important, promised the election of the Duma (= the national parliament) by granting it rights to make laws for the country. It also gave the vote to the middle class workers.

To conclude, the defeat of Russia in the Russo?Japanese War brought tremendous significance towards Russia within a year. It directly produced the outbreak of the 1905 Revolution and the threat of the Czar's downfall.

The First World War of 1914?18 led to the complete collapse of the Czarist system in Russia. The government was both corrupt and inefficient. The weakness of the soldiers was chiefly responsible for the decisive Russian defeats at the battles of Tannenburg (8/1914) and the Masurian Lakes (2/ 1915) by the Germans in East Prussia. The total casualties in these 2 battles amounted to 500,000 .

Not only were the Russian industries were seriously affected, agriculture was also affected by the shortage of labour, the huge demand of war supplies and foodstuff. Besides, there were not enough arms and ammunition for the soldiers. The result was the shortage of food, and famine even occurred in most parts of Russia. Army morale broke down, and mutiny in the army broke out.

In 8/1915, Czar Nicholas II decided to lead the army by making himself to be Commander in Chief. Due to his absence from the capital Petrograd (formerly St. Petersburg), both the Czarina and the monk Rasputin interfered in government matters. They disregarded the advice of the leaders of the Duma and the Zemstovs (district councils). This ended in the murder of Rasputin in 12/1916. To Nicholas 11, his decision to fight in the battlefield made himsielf responsible for the further military defeats.

All of the above incidents' resulted in the outbreak of February Revolution. On March 8 1917 (February according to the Russian calendar), a combination of the three factors -- shortage of food, celebration of
Women's Day and a labour' dispute, caused bread riots and strikes to appear at Petrograd. The Cossack's Army was even unwilling to disperse the demonstrators, who amounted to around 200,000. On 12/3/1917, the Duma formed a Provisional Government which was led by Prince Lvov and Alexander Kerensky. On the same day, the Petrograd Soviet of Workers and Soldiers' Deputies was set up. This directly resulted in the abdication of Czar Nicholas II on 15/3/1917. This prepared for the success of the October Revolution in Russia, where the Bolshevik leader Lenin became the head of the new government after the Provisional Government was overthrown.

In this way, the First World War set a prelude or even the stepping stone of the modern Russian history.