World War I and the Russian Revolution: Causes and Consequences

Posted on Dec 8, 2024 in History

World War I: Causes and Consequences

1.3 The Total War

The war of trenches and the use of new weapons had excessive mortality of soldiers. This led to the appearance of peace movements and the rise of new technologies. Abandonments got more expensive, and weapons became more destructive. Total war united all human resources of all countries to stop the enemy, using any means.

1.4 The End of the War and its Consequences

The union of the United States with the Allies and the fear of the German command led to an agreement signed in 1918, ending the war. The victors imposed conditions in the Treaty of Versailles:

  • France retaliated against Germany.
  • Germany lost its empire to France and Britain and had to pay reparations to the victors. This led to the deindustrialization of Germany and an economic crisis.
  • New borders were established in Europe.
  • The League of Nations was established.

The war had major consequences: many people died, it helped with the triumph of the communist revolution in Russia, the United States established itself as a great world power, and it encouraged nationalists who disagreed with the Treaty of Versailles.

2. The Russian Revolution

2.1 Status of Russia Before 1917

The Russian Empire was very backward in all aspects:

  • Political issues: Russia was a multinational empire that did not respect individual freedoms. National sovereignty did not exist, nor did the separation of powers.
  • Social: Russia had a peasant population that was poor and illiterate. In the towns, the bourgeoisie was weak and had little political and economic power.
  • Economic aspects: The economy was based on agriculture, unable to meet the demand for food, while industry depended on foreign countries and the state, dedicating itself to railway lines.

2.2 The Soviet Revolution

Russia’s entry into World War I led to the loss of many soldiers, ill-equipped and prepared, demonstrating their technological backwardness. The war favored the disappearance of the old regime and the extension of a revolutionary movement committed to ending a government unable to address poverty and hunger.

  • February 1917: A strike by factory workers created the Soviets, which were assemblies of peasants, workers, and soldiers demanding an end to the war, the division of land, and worker control of factories. Tsar Nicolas II resigned, and a provisional government was idealized, developing a bourgeois liberal system in Russia.
  • October 1917: The Bolshevik Party, led by Lenin, demanded all power to the Soviets, who controlled Russia. The proletariat seized power and developed a Marxist program.

2.3 Formation of the Soviet Union

The Soviet government signed a peace treaty with Germany, although they lost territory. Russia developed electoral papers whose results did not convince the Bolsheviks. They canceled them, and a civil war began, in which the Red Army fought a coalition of counterrevolutionaries encouraged by foreign troops. In 1922, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was created, which had the following characteristics:

  • The right of peoples to self-determination.
  • The dictatorship of the proletariat with the voting rights of workers.
  • The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) was called the vanguard of the proletariat in the struggle against capitalism and was the only party permitted.
  • The socialization of the means of production.
  • The organization of the earth.

The USSR was formed as a point of reference and a model for the world proletariat. The Third International was created to coordinate revolutionary efforts. After Lenin’s death, his successor, Iosif Stalin, introduced a personal dictatorship. Stalin wiped out his rivals and developed five-year plans to industrialize the USSR and convert it into a world power.

7. Overcoming the Block System

7.1 The Crisis in the Soviet System

The model of communist society rested on two characteristic elements:

  • Total control of every nation by the ruling Communist Party.
  • The subordination of its foreign policy to the design by the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

These elements explain that in any country of the communist bloc, disagreements with decisions made by the party were not allowed. The party directed and planned without any legal rejection. The first major riots began in East Berlin in 1953. These were repeated later in Poland, Hungary, and finally, Czechoslovakia. The system was broken and caused growing discontent for the following reasons:

  • Economic: There was very weak economic growth with few assets and food for consumption.
  • Political: The ruling Communist parties failed and stagnated in undertaking the necessary reforms demanded by the population.

The advent of Mikhail Gorbachev to the Soviet Union became the end of the communist bloc in Eastern Europe. Perestroika reform successes had promptly let the United States reduce nuclear arsenals and grant greater autonomy to the Communist Parties in their national policies. This resulted in the demolition of the Berlin Wall and German reunification. Thus, it was the end of the Cold War.

7.2 The New International Order

The other component, capitalism, expanded its domain and extended its political and economic influence around the globe. This is called the “new international order,” and its features are:

  • The U.S. hegemony worldwide.
  • The globalization of the economy.
  • A confrontation between the North and South, rich countries and underdeveloped countries.
  • The organization of economic power centers in Japan and the European Union.
  • The generation of Western culture in Europe and the United States.

World War I

1.1 The Armed Peace

The international political deal rested on the alliance system and balance between the great powers of Otto von Bismarck, with the idea of isolating France and putting Germany in a position of superiority in Europe. However, competition and nationalism facilitated the creation of two major international alliances:

  • The Triple Alliance, bringing together the Central Powers: Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary.
  • The Triple Entente, bringing together the common interests of France, the United Kingdom, and the Russian Empire.

1.2 Causes of the First World War

Local problems in the Balkans and Morocco tested international alliances, announcing a major confrontation.

Root Causes of the War: The attack in Sarajevo was not the most visible cause. The origins are located at:

  • Economic causes: Germany threatened the economic interests of France and the United Kingdom. Strong rivalry for the search for new markets and raw materials created tension and confrontations over the German desire to increase its colonial empire.
  • Political causes: Nationalist sentiment overrode the arguments of workers from two perspectives: land claims by the French and Italian nationalism posed by these nations as an indispensable part of the region. In the Balkan region, they wanted the right to form their own state, which conflicted with the interests of the Austro-Hungarian and Turkish empires.