War, hunger and the Russian Revolution

The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social change in Russia, when two revolutions and a civil war led to the abolition of the monarchy and adoption of a socialist government. The lessons answer how war, hunger, and the Tsar's loss of power shaped this upheaval, helping readers understand the pressures behind revolutionary change.

3 articles, 1 book · about 1 hr 8 min of reading and viewing

The reading path

1. Read
   

   the history of the russian revolution · Wikipedia · 59 min read

   Russia had lost between 1,600,000 and 1,800,000 soldiers by the end of October 1916, with an additional 2,000,000 prisoners of war and 1,000,000 missing, all making up a total of nearly 5,000,000 men. These staggering losses played a definite role in the mutinies and revolts that began to occur. The government printed millions of roubles to finance the war, and by 1917 inflation had made prices rise up to four times their 1914 level. This was an indirect reason for food scarcity, and the cities were constantly short of food.

2. Read
   

   The February Revolution: Why Didn't They Shoot? - JSTOR Daily · JSTOR Daily · 2 min read

   During the February Revolution of 1917, the Volinsky Life-Guards Regiment refused to suppress the demonstrations, and a mutiny spread through the Army. Without the military, the Tsar, still in his Eastern Front command post, was powerless in the face of grievances against his corrupt and incompetent rule.

3. Read
   

   Russian Revolution: Causes, Timeline & Bolsheviks | HISTORY · HISTORY · 7 min read

   Russia entered World War I in August 1914, and the costly war effort brought immense casualties, an estimated 9 million civilians and military personnel, food and fuel shortages, and a hopelessly disrupted economy.

4. Book
   

   Doctor Zhivago · Bookshop.org

   Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak describes the effects of the Russian Revolution and its aftermath on a bourgeois family, including how the Bolsheviks' brutality and harshness affect an artistic person.

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