The Russian Empire

Россійская Имперія - Rossiyskaya Imperiya

The Russian Empire had been formed in 1721, following the defeat of the Swedish Empire at the end of the Great Northern War. The manner of this foundation, with a Russian led coalition uniting in victory to form an empire, would mirror that of its future rival Germany almost two centuries later. Under Tsar Peter I (Peter the Great) the Empire flourished, modernizing as it adopted various Western influences, and after the fall of Napoleon it began to foster a relationship with neighboring Prussia as a fellow conservative Christian monarchy.

The Crimean War of the mid 1850s saw Russia defeated by a coalition of Western powers along with the Ottoman Empire, but its alliance with Prussia remained intact as the German Empire was founded, as German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck worked hard to maintain a balanced European order. This was not to last, however, as the ascension of Kaiser Wilhelm II in 1888 marked the beginning of a more aggressive Germany that pushed Russia into the arms of the French. A humiliating defeat by the Japanese in 1905 further damaged the international prestige of the Tsar’s empire, and at home a revolution brought about a shift from the autocratic monarchy to a parliamentary system.

By 1914 the Russian Empire was the fourth largest economy in the world, but internal problems continued. The Duma (the parliament organized after the 1905 revolution) was effectively powerless, as the Tsar firmly maintained his autocratic power over the country despite the unrest. With the situation in Europe deteriorating, Russia found itself looking to demonstrate that it remained a great power, and as a crisis developed in the Balkans after the assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand Russia moved quickly to back their fellow Slavs in Serbia. Attempts by both the Tsar and the Kaiser to prevent the war would come to nothing as neither man would allow himself to be seen as the first to back down, leading to an inevitable clash along their shared border.

Tsar Nicholas II - Царь Никола́й II

Tsar Nicholas II had ruled the Russian Empire since 1894, when he succeeded his father Tsar Alexander III. The new Emperor was not overly enthusiastic for his new role, but was a firm believer in the concept of divine right, essentially meaning that he felt obligated to rule as an autocrat regardless of whether he actually had any desire to wear the crown.

Despite his misgivings, the Tsar maintained an iron fisted grip on his country, with the Okhrana secret police brutally cracking down on anyone advocating for a more parliamentary system. After the 1905 Revolution he was forced to enact some liberalizing reforms, but he worked to undermine these new institutions at every turn, viewing them as an affront to his role as a divinely appointed ruler.

Nicholas had worked to maintain and strengthen the alliance with France against Germany, and had taken a hard line against Japanese expansion in east Asia, the latter culminating in the Russo-Japanese War of 1905, which greatly damaged his prestige at home and abroad. Public distrust of many of the figures the Tsar surrounded himself with, such as the mystic Grigori Rasputin, served only to further erode his public support.

When Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914 the resulting crisis almost immediately pulled in the Tsar. Feeling an obligation to defend the Slavic and Orthodox Serbs against the Austrians, the Tsar prepared to move against the Austrians, all while attempting to avert a general war with his his cousin, German Kaiser Wilhelm II. This would yield no result, and Nicholas II ordered his armies to alert on 25 July, prompting a German response. With diplomacy failing, war began on 1 August, 1914.

General of Cavalry Yakov Zhilinsky - Яков Жилинский - Commander, Northwestern Front

The commander of the Imperial Russian Army’s Northwest Front (in the Russian Army a front is equivalent to a Western army group) was a career cavalry officer with decades of experience as a staff officer. Yakov Zhilinsky had made a name for himself for his service as Chief of Staff in Manchuria during the Russo-Japanese War of 1905, and by 1911 he was Chief of Staff for the Imperial Army. During his tenure he fostered close relationships with his French allies, and worked well with the War Ministry in St. Petersburg.

In March of 1914 Zhilinsky had been reassigned to take command of the Warsaw Military District following the death of the incumbent, a move intended to place a trusted officer into this volatile region rather than to demote the Chief of Staff. The commander of the Warsaw Military District also held command over the Northwestern Front, which was to be the main body of Russian attack into Germany in the event of war. Zhilnsky was considered a good administrator as well as a competent soldier, although this would be his first real test as commander of a large formation in combat.

General of Cavalry Paul von Rennenkampf - Па́вел Ренненка́мпф - Commander, Russian 1st Army

A Russian Baltic German, Paul von Rennenkampf had been placed in command of the Russian 1st Army when the Vilna Military District was mobilized. An experienced cavalry officer, he was a veteran of both the Boxer Rebellion as well as the Russo-Japanese War, and in his capacity in Vilna had attended many diplomatic functions across the border, developing a relationship with some of his German counterparts.

Rennenkampf had a reputation for steady nerves, but not for tactical brilliance. He was a favorite at the Imperial Court, with strong social connections that helped to ensure his rise through the Army ranks, although he did have enough wartime experience to be reasonably expected to conduct his duties with the 1st Army.

General of Cavalry Alexander Samsonov - Алекса́ндр Самсо́нов - Commander, Russian 2nd Army

Alexander Samsonov was yet another cavalryman, and had commanded a cavalry division during the Russo-Japanese War, and had been commanding the Turkestan Military District until reassigned to the 2nd Army when mobilization was ordered in July of 1914. Despite this distance, he was familiar with the area, having served as the Warsaw District’s Chief of Staff in the period immediately after the war with Japan, and was even considered for the district command posting that was eventually given to Zhilinsky.

With a reputation for calmness forged in the revolutionary turmoil in 1905, he was respected by the Germans as well as his own superiors as a competent commander. A legend persists that Samsonov and Rennenkampf detested each other to the point of having engaged in a fistfight on a railroad platform during the war with Japan, although this appears to be little more than an urban myth. Despite some difficulties arising from the various factions within the Imperial Russian Officer Corps, the two men were ready to do their duty.

Imperial Russian Army - Northwestern Front

Despite questions over the extent of the threat posed by a Germany seeming to be intent on attack in the west, the Northwestern Front remained a powerful force arrayed against the German 8th Army. Mustering two field armies, the 1st and the 2nd, the Northwestern Front counted some 500,000 men in 35 divisions, supported by over 1,000 guns. This force outnumbered the German defenders by a margin of almost two to one.

The basic plan for the invasion was to be a thrust from the east into East Prussia, aiming to engage the 8th Army and destroy them while isolating the strong fortress of Konigsberg. The 1st Army was to push directly westward and enage the Germans, while the 2nd Army was to build in Poland before advancing northward into East Prussia to flank the already embattled Germans. If all goes to plan the Russians hope to achieve a decisive victory against the Germans, leaving the door open to the German interior and forcing the Germans to either pull back their forces in France or to face complete destruction.