WW31+Russia

=Impacts of the entry of the USA and of the Russian withdrawal=

=Impact of the Russian withdrawal=

Russia officially withdrew from the war with the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, 3 March 1918.

 * Focus questions**
 * What impact did World War One have on the Tsarist regime and the Provisional Government in Russia?
 * Why did Lenin accept such harsh conditions in the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk?
 * How did Germany respond to the withdrawal of Russia from the war?
 * What effect did Russia’s withdrawal have on the morale of the western Allies?


 * [[image:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/0c/Brest-litovsk_treaty.jpg width="400" height="274" align="right" caption="Signing the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk: 1. Count Ottokar Czernin, 2. Richard von Kühlmann, and 3. Vasil Radoslavov"]]Why did Russia withdraw from the war?**
 * The unpopularity of Tsar Nicholas II had been exacerbated by the disastrous impact of World War One on Russia
 * The Tsar was overthrown in March 1917 and replaced by a Provisional Government under Alexander Kerensky. Kerensky was determined to maintain the war effort.
 * By promising ‘peace, bread and land’, Vladimir Lenin’s Bolshevik party was able to seize power in a second revolution in November 1917.
 * Lenin immediately instructed Leon Trotsky to begin peace negotiations with Germany, hoping that they could achieve a lenient settlement.
 * 3 March 1918 – Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Russia was officially out of the war, defeated by the Germans.
 * The treaty imposed very harsh conditions on Russia. Lenin believed that as communist revolution would soon spread throughout Europe the treaty would be only a temporary settlement.


 * What was the impact of Russia’s withdrawal from the war?**
 * Germany was now no longer fighting a war on two fronts. Troops and resources could be concentrated on the Western Front.
 * Ludendorff decided to launch a massive offensive in the west in order to defeat Britain and France before the Americans were fully mobilised and could turn the war against them.
 * The Russian withdrawal did not have a large negative effect on the morale of Britain and France. It had long been expected. Also, America’s entry had already bolstered the Allies and, by the time of Russia’s withdrawal, had strengthened British control of the seas and their naval blockade of Germany.
 * The harshness of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was used for propaganda purposes by the Allies to maintain public support for the war.