raharris1973
Well-known member
A few different proposed what-ifs for Tsarist Russia for the WWI and pre-war period:
What if from 1909-1914, the Tsarist government redirected half of the funds it spent on naval reconstruction/construction on weapons, tranining, infrastructure for the Army instead, in any many seen to be most useful?
What if Russia didn't ban alcohol sales at the beginning of the Great War, and continued to collect alcohol sales taxes?
What if after the defeats and great retreat of 1915, the Tsar did not take titular command and move to the front, appointed a different replacement (maybe Grand Duke Michael or a non-royal officer) and remained in the capital the rest of the war?
How many additional weeks or months of life do altered developments from those PoDs grant the Tsarist regime before it meets its end to something like the February Revolution?
From at & after the February Revolution:
What if, sensing military indiscipline, the Germans (and Austrians if possible) gathered reserves to aggressively attack the Russians as much as possible in late winter, spring 1917? Possibly trying to do the capture of Riga 6 months early? Could they do it? Or would they be unable to gather reserves or make the headway like they were able to months later in OTL for reasons? Would attempts to immediately smother Russians at the front accelerate their disciplinary decline or revive their unit cohesion for survival reasons?
AHC: Save some level of military discipline/order in the Russian Army despite the Februaury revolution. Perhaps retaining the death penalty for desertion in the field, or the death penalty with due process, but actually implemented or enforced by Soldiers Soviets for some reason. I'm imagining Russian soldiers willing to do 'work stoppages' and disobey incompetent leadership or ridiculous orders like in the case of the French spring mutinies, but not losing control and not deciding they don't care about desertion and shirking.
What if from 1909-1914, the Tsarist government redirected half of the funds it spent on naval reconstruction/construction on weapons, tranining, infrastructure for the Army instead, in any many seen to be most useful?
What if Russia didn't ban alcohol sales at the beginning of the Great War, and continued to collect alcohol sales taxes?
What if after the defeats and great retreat of 1915, the Tsar did not take titular command and move to the front, appointed a different replacement (maybe Grand Duke Michael or a non-royal officer) and remained in the capital the rest of the war?
How many additional weeks or months of life do altered developments from those PoDs grant the Tsarist regime before it meets its end to something like the February Revolution?
From at & after the February Revolution:
What if, sensing military indiscipline, the Germans (and Austrians if possible) gathered reserves to aggressively attack the Russians as much as possible in late winter, spring 1917? Possibly trying to do the capture of Riga 6 months early? Could they do it? Or would they be unable to gather reserves or make the headway like they were able to months later in OTL for reasons? Would attempts to immediately smother Russians at the front accelerate their disciplinary decline or revive their unit cohesion for survival reasons?
AHC: Save some level of military discipline/order in the Russian Army despite the Februaury revolution. Perhaps retaining the death penalty for desertion in the field, or the death penalty with due process, but actually implemented or enforced by Soldiers Soviets for some reason. I'm imagining Russian soldiers willing to do 'work stoppages' and disobey incompetent leadership or ridiculous orders like in the case of the French spring mutinies, but not losing control and not deciding they don't care about desertion and shirking.