Capitalism, as a total political-economic system, does not correspond to the character and mentality of the Russian people, whose civilization was formed on other political, economic and cultural foundations. Any attempt to reproduce a Western-style capitalist system in Russia is doomed to failure. In case of its “success”, i.e. forced capitalization of Russia, the result will be either the colonization of the country by the Western world, or simply the destruction of the Russian people as a representative of a unique civilization.
Among sincere supporters of the capitalist path in Russia, there was a belief that in the period from 1861 to 1917. Tsarist Russia developed rapidly on a capitalist basis, thereby, as it were, demonstrating the possibility of becoming a “normal” capitalist country. And if, they say, it were not for the Bolsheviks with their October Revolution, then Russia could have joined the ranks of “civilized” states and formed part of the current “golden billion”.
The current ideological subtext of supporters of such reasoning boils down to the fact that there is no need to look for some special, say, “third way” for Russia, but we must continue to search for the optimal option, at a minimum, to keep the country on capitalist rails, and, at a maximum, to deepen capitalism, since until October 1917 we were supposedly going well along this path.
In answer to the simple question: why, despite this, the capitalist path of development led to the socialist revolution, they answer differently. Some say that the Bolsheviks were “helped” by the First World War, others say that the revolution actually happened by accident (according to A.N. Yakovlev, it “happened” illegally), and others don’t answer at all.
In any case, domestic political literature devoted to this period describes smart capitalists and political figures of Tsarist Russia (Putilov, Purishkevich, Witte, Stolypin, Miliukov, Kerensky, Guchkov, etc.) caring for the good of the people and the fatherland. Well, an aura of a saint was generally created around Tsar Nicholas II, the reburial of whose remains was turned almost into a world-historical event.
From all this literature, it is still not clear why, despite such a crowd of smart people in the ruling circle of tsarist Russia, three revolutions took place. If because of the wars, why didn’t similar revolutions happen in England, France, Germany (in the latter, however, there was a small revolutionary outbreak in 1918, but this was already a reaction to the Russian revolution of 1917). Why didn't such an accident happen in other capitalist countries? Why did we lose the war with Japan, and why did we get involved in the First World War?
The answers to these questions can be found in the official party historical literature of the Soviet period. However, due to the very great dislike for the entire Soviet period, our liberal democrats will immediately point out that all this literature is falsified. But if this is so, then it is “rigged” in favor of the current guardians of capitalism. The fact is that Soviet literature describes in detail precisely the rapid development of capitalism in Russia, especially in the period between 1880 - 1914. This was necessary in order to prove the naturalness of the socialist revolution. Party scientists had to show that capitalism gave birth to the proletariat, which, in accordance with Marxist views, buried its “parent”. In fact, in my opinion, capitalism in Russia destroyed not the proletariat, but capitalism itself in the process of destroying Russia as a sovereign state. In other words: the development of capitalism in Russia leads to the destruction of the Russian people and the collapse of the state. The proletariat, or rather, the forces that carried out the revolution in October 1917, destroying capitalism, contrary to their expectations, saved Russia.
But we will strictly adhere to the numbers, whatever they may be.
For 1880-1916. At least 158 million children died, of which 96.8 million died under the last tsar. If we add to them the adult population who did not live up to the average statistical level, the total figure will rise to 176 million people.
During the years of revolutions and riots, 3 million people were killed, during the Russo-Japanese War - 1 million, including those who died from wounds and died in captivity. In the First World War, 2.5 million were killed, and another 6.5 million people died from wounds, hunger and cold.
According to official statistics of those years, 3-4 million people died annually from industrial injuries, poisonings and suicides; as a result, in the 36 years before the revolution this amounted to 108-144 million people.
In general, in 1880-1916. Russia lost about 308 million people from hunger, disease, murder, war, and work-related injuries.
Prosperous Russia before the "Bolsheviks"
To begin with, as an example, we can cite the hymn to the development of Russia before the “Bolsheviks”, glorified on the pages of the thick monograph by Heller and Nekrich. With reference to the French economist Edmond Théry, they say: for the five-year period 1908-1912. Coal production increased by 79.3% compared to the previous five years, iron - by 24.8%, steel and metal production - by 45.9%. From 1900 to 1913 Heavy industry output increased by 74.1% even when taking inflation into account. The railway network increased from 24 thousand km in 1890 to 61 thousand km in 1915 (r. 15). “Industrial progress helped reduce Russia’s dependence on foreign capital” (p. 15), the authors could not resist noting. And not by chance, since this is a very sore subject. The fact is that the degree of dependence on foreign capital determined the behavior of tsarism within the country and in the international arena. Therefore, democrats and pro-capitalists are trying to prove that although foreign dependence existed, it was not so significant as to have a great influence on the behavior of the ruling camp.
In this regard, Heller and Nekrich “catch” Soviet authors in contradictions. Thus, they write that the textbook “History of the USSR. The Age of Socialism” (M., 1975, p. 16) speaks of the “specific weight” of foreign capital, which by 1914 reached 47% of the Russian economy, and in another source - L.M. Spirin. “Classes and Parties in the Civil War in Russia” (M., 1968, p. 36), foreign investments accounted for about “one third of all investments” (p. 15-16). To deepen the thesis of little dependence, the authors, citing the English writer Norman Stone ("Eastern Front. 1914-1917". London, 1975, p. 18) write that before the First World War, foreign investment fell from 50% in the period 1904-1917. 1905 to 12.5% in 1913 (p. 16).
But an experienced reader will immediately detect falsification in terms: dependence on foreign capital is not equal to dependence on foreign investment. In the first case, capital can extend, including to the banking sector; in the second case, only investments in industry are meant. But since there is no difference for the ordinary reader, which is what the authors were counting on (and perhaps they really did not distinguish between these terms themselves), then the job is done.
The authors attach great importance to the fact of grain export as evidence of the prosperity of Tsarist Russia. Figures: from 1908 to 1912 the wheat harvest increased by 37.5% compared to the previous five-year period, rye - by 2.4%, barley - by 62.2%, oats - by 20.9%, corn - by 44.8% (p. 16). In good harvest years - 1909 and 1910 - wheat exports reached 40% of world wheat exports. Even in bad years - 1908 and 1912 - it reached 11.5% (p. 16).
Indicate success in education. In 1908, a law on compulsory primary education was adopted. Government spending on education increased between 1902 and 1912 by 216.2%. In 1915, 51% of all children aged 8 to 11 attended school, and 68% of recruits could read and write (ibid.).
Then the authors, with reference to Soviet authors, write that when the war began (which for some reason was unexpected for everyone), the defeat of the Russian army was due to poor generals, government, weapons, etc., nevertheless, industry continued to develop (1913 = 100%, 1914 - 101.2, 1915 - 113.7, 1916 - 121.5%) (p. 21).
Despite all these dynamics, the revolution occurred: due to the bad tsarist government, opposition parties, then the indecision of the Provisional Government, and, of course, because of the Bolsheviks. In other words, the economy of capitalism was developing well, but the war began, and the government was unable to cope with either the war or the revolutions. This version of descriptions of events is one of the most common both in the West and in the national-bourgeois literature of modern Russia. Moreover, it naturally does not analyze the socio-political situation of either workers or peasants. Savoring the personal life of the king and his family seems more interesting for such analysts.
In fact, all the figures given can only make any sense when compared with other major countries that have played key roles in world politics. We are talking about the five states of Europe (Great Britain, Germany, France, Austria-Hungary and Italy) and the United States, which determined the structure and dynamics of international relations at the beginning of the 20th century. My task is precisely to find out how we “looked” against the background of the named states, i.e. To begin with, determine the place and then the role of Russia in world politics, which at that time was actually concentrated on Europe.
So, there is no arguing with the numbers. And they argue that after 1861 (the liberation of the peasants), Russia really began to emerge from feudal stagnation, and from the beginning of the 80s of the last century to rapidly enter capitalism. Dynamics were demonstrated by all sectors of industry, foreign trade, and even, to some extent, our constant pain - agriculture. In this regard, a lot of impressive figures are cited. It makes sense to remind them.
Industry
First of all, Russia, even in terms of industrial production, lagged behind the USA, England, Germany and France. Its share in the total industrial production of the five powers listed above was only 4.2%. In global production in 1913, the share of Russia was 1.72%, the share of the USA - 20, England - 18, Germany - 9, France - 7.2% (these are all countries with a population 2-3 times less than Russia ). And this despite the fact that in Russia in 1913 there was a record (80 million tons) grain harvest. In terms of gross national product per capita, Russia was inferior to the United States - 9.5 times, England - 4.5, Canada - 4, Germany - 3.5, France, Belgium, Holland, Australia, New Zealand, Spain - 3 times, Austria-Hungary - 2 times.
Russia not only “rushed”, but continued to lag behind - in 1913 its GNP correlated with Germany’s GNP as 3.3 to 10, while in 1850 the ratio was 4 to 10.
Volumes of industrial production in 1913:
General, billion rubles per capita, rub.
USA 38.13 397.19
UK 15.5 336.96
Germany 12.4 182.35
France 10.54 263.5
Russia 7.75 44.29
At 24,472 factories there were only 24,140 electric, steam, and diesel engines (with an average power of 60 hp). That is, not every plant had at least one engine. So much for “advanced technology”. In terms of power and mechanical equipment, Russia was 10 times behind the United States, 5 times behind England, and 4 times behind Germany, Belgium, and New Zealand. Let's add here another interesting fact: in 1913, there were 3.035 million telephone network subscribers in the USA, 797 thousand in Germany, 536.5 thousand in England, 185 thousand in France, 110 thousand in Austria-Hungary ., in Sweden - 102 thousand, in Denmark - 98 thousand, but in Russia - 97 thousand subscribers. And this is at Russian distances...
In 1913, Russia imported more than 1 million tons of steel and 8.7 million tons of coal from other countries.
Let's give a few more numbers. In 1913, the USA produced 25 million tons of steel, Russia - 4.2 million tons, over 5 years in the USA, steel production increased by 5 million tons, in Russia by 1.7 million tons (in on average by 1 million, and 0.34 million tons per year). 1% increase in steel production in the USA was equivalent to 200 thousand tons, in Russia it was only 25 thousand tons - 8 times less.
The level of labor productivity in industry in Russia was less than: in the USA - 9 times; in England - 5 times; in Germany - 4 times.
In 1909-1914. The British riveted 64 large surface ships, the Germans - 47, the French - 24, the Italians - 16, Russia, with efforts, completed and again created 10 surface ships of the battleship-cruiser class. And this despite the fact that in Russia military spending in 1908-1913. accounted for 32 - 33% of the total state budget.
Economic efficiency
Let's now take the state budget. How many curses were brought down on the heads of the Bolsheviks and the CPSU for “drunk” budgets, starting from the mid-70s. But what did we see in Tsarist Russia? Here are the "Statistical Yearbooks of Russia" (edited by the director of the Central Statistical Committee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs N.N. Belyavsky) for 1908-1913, the yearbooks of world statistics by S. Zap "Socio-political tables of all countries of the world" of the publishing house "Cooperation" Moscow.
So, 1908-1913. the total amount of income received by the budget amounted to: 14987 million rubles, including income from the vodka monopoly: 3993 million rubles. (26.64%), direct taxes: 1115 million rubles. (7.44%), indirect taxes: 3111 million rubles. (20.76%), duties: 943 million rubles. (6, 29%)
The West had nothing to fear from Russia, which “rushed” forward. The more efficiently the Russian economy worked, the more income the banks of Western countries received. In 1887-1913. The West invested 1,783 million gold rubles in Russia. During the same period, net income was exported from Russia - 2326 million gold rubles (the excess of income over investments over 26 years was 513 million gold rubles). Annually, up to 500 million gold rubles were transferred abroad in interest payments and loan repayments (in modern prices this is 15 billion dollars).
Life in Russia was also not cheap. So a worker’s family of 4 people in St. Petersburg spent about 750 rubles. in year. At the same time, food costs amounted to up to 100% of the wages of the head of a family of 4 people, and, as a rule, everyone worked, including children. Of the remaining amount, up to 45% went to pay for housing, and up to 25% to clothes and shoes.
For comparison: for a German worker, paying for food for a family took 20-25% of the salary (for one adult), for an English worker - 40%.
Summing up the industrial development of Russia in 1908-1914, we must also point out the following fact: in 1893-1900. the average annual increase in industrial production was 9%, and in 1908-1913. - 8.8%.
In parallel with the growth of industrial production, there was a process of rising prices. In 1908-1913. prices for consumer goods increased by 24%, while wages in Russia increased by an average of 34 rubles. (by 14.52%), thus we see that the real incomes of workers did not increase, but fell. Prices (wholesale) for wheat in 1901-1912. increased by 44%; for rye - by 63.63%; for pork - by 55.86%. Naturally, no less than wholesale prices have increased for bakery products and for meat in retail trade. As a result, in 1913 the real incomes of workers in Russia were 90% of the level in 1900.
People's health
Not all was well in the areas of education and healthcare.
According to statistics, in 1913 in Russia more than 12 million people (7.26% of the population) were affected by epidemics of cholera, diphtheria, anthrax, and scabies. Another 9 million people suffered from malaria, trachoma, whooping cough, etc. In total, 21,877,869 people (13.2% of the country's population) were chronically ill with infectious diseases.
Per 10,000 people in Russia there were 1.6 doctors, 1.7 paramedics, 1.7 obstetricians and midwives. In rural areas there was 1 doctor per 26 thousand people.
In the USA there were 4 times more doctors per 10,000 people, in Germany - 2.7, in England - 3.5, in Denmark, Sweden, Belgium, Holland - 3.2 times more.
Out of every 1000 newborns under the age of 1 year in Russia, 263 children died. For comparison: in Sweden, 70 children under 1 year of age died for every 1000 births, in England - 108, in the USA and France - 112-115. in Italy - 138, in Germany - 151. I.e. Russia exceeded the countries of Europe and the USA in infant mortality by 1.74 - 3.76 times.
In Russia in 1913, the number of students in all types of educational institutions (including religious and military) was 9.7 million people (60.6 people per 1000 inhabitants). 70% of children and adolescents were deprived of the opportunity to study. In Russia, according to the Statistical Yearbook of Russia, among the population over 9 years of age (the age of entry to study), 27% were literate (excluding Transcaucasia and Central Asia). For comparison: in the USA, even among the black population, literacy reached 56%. In the United States in 1913 there were 18.3 million students (190.6 students per 1000 inhabitants).
For comparison with Russia, which had 227-228 literate people per 1000 population (excluding preschool children), Belgium had 998 literate people per 1000 population, Germany - 980, England - 816, France - 930, Australia - 816, Austria - 644, Hungary - 524, Argentina - 495, Italy - 440, Portugal - 214 people.
Even within Russia there was inequality: in Finland there were 988 literate people per 1000 people (excluding preschool children), in Poland - 305, in the Caucasus - 124, in Central Asia - 53 people. Great Russia, Little Russia, Belarus, Siberia - 268 people.
In 1913, 127,423 people studied in Russian universities, 258,000 in the USA (twice as many as in Russia). In the USA there were several dozen university-level universities, in England - 18 universities, in Germany - 22, in France - 14, in Russia - 8 universities. There were about 20 million inhabitants per university in Russia, 2.5 million in England, 2.8 million in France, and 3 million inhabitants in Germany. In Russia there were 1.7 teachers per 1000 people, in the USA there were 5.45 teachers - more than 3 times more. Thanks to the well-known circular of the Minister of Education Delyanov (during the reign of Alexander III) “0 cook’s children,” access to education was blocked for persons from the peasant and bourgeois classes. And although in 1911-1914, the circular was not actually in effect, nevertheless, out of 119,000 people studying in gymnasiums, people from peasant families accounted for 18,000 people (15.12%). In all educational institutions of the Ministry of Education (including professional, commercial, etc.), peasants made up about 15% of students (and this in a country where 80% of the population was peasant!!!). People from peasant families were not allowed into cadet corps or military schools at all.
Agriculture
Now let's look at what many apologists of Tsarist Russia are proud of - agriculture. “Russia was well-fed and abundant!” they proclaim. Unfortunately, I have to admit that this is not so. In the 19th century. Russia has experienced 40 hunger strikes. In the 20th century were hungry in 1901/02, 1905; 1906; 1907; 1908; 1911/12 In 1901-1902, 49 provinces went hungry, in 1905; 1906; 1907;1908 From 19 to 29 provinces were starving in 1911-1912. In 2 years, famine affected 60 provinces. 30 million people were on the verge of death. According to various estimates, in 1901-1912. About 8 million people died from the famine and its consequences. The tsarist government was most concerned with how to hide the scale of the hunger strikes. In the press, censorship prohibited the use of the word hunger, replacing it with the word “famine.”
If under Alexander II, during the major famine of 1871, zemstvos, the Red Cross and other organizations were actively involved in helping the starving, then Nicholas II sharply curtailed the rights of zemstvos to combat hunger, and in 1911 and 1912 completely banned the participation of zemstvos, Red Cross and charities in providing famine relief.
Obtaining famine relief (“famine loans”) was also fraught with difficulties. The “hunger loan” amounted to 1 pood of flour per month per adult and 1/2 pood of flour per child. At the same time, adults aged 18 to 55 years were not entitled to receive a “hunger loan” (they say, there is no point in feeding parasites, they will get out on their own). Ownerless peasants were excluded from the recipients of the “hunger loan” (and there were 3.5 million such families in Russia , these were usually farm laborers)) widows and orphans, whom rural society had to feed “from surplus aid.” What! The most defenseless sections of society were doomed to starvation. Where does a starving village get its “surplus”?
Moreover, the received “hunger loan” subsequently had to be repaid. In 1911, over 20 million rubles were collected from the starving Samara province. arrears for the “famine loans” of previous years. How many people in 1911-1912? killed the "famine loans" received in 1901-1902. 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908....
And, despite the famine, grain flowed from Russia to Europe. The slogan of the Tsarist Minister of Finance Vyshnegorodsky - “we ourselves are undernourished, but we will take it out” - was put into practice.
Russia was not a leader in world agricultural production either. The vast expanses of Russia allowed it to produce large quantities of grain, but the level of agriculture, yields and productivity were low. In 1913, having received a record grain harvest - 80 million tons - Russia had about 471 kg of grain per capita. England, France, Germany had about 430-440 kg, the USA - over 1000 kg, Canada - about 800 kg, Argentina 1200 kg. Where do the claims come from that Russia produced more grain than other countries combined? After all, the USA produced 96 million tons of grain - more than Russia. If we take the total production of agricultural products, it had the following form (in rubles).
agricultural production, billion rubles per capita, rub.
US 15, 162 157, 83
Germany 7,727 113, 63
UK 4,262 92.22
France 7,727 193.18
Russia 10 57, 06
If in total production volumes Russia was in 2nd place after the United States, then per capita production put it in 5th place. If we take other European countries, Australia, Canada, then Russia is dropped into the second ten and even lower. It is necessary to pay attention to the figures characterizing grain production per capita. England, France, Germany, producing grain less than 500 kg per capita, were its importers. The USA, Canada, Argentina, producing 800-1200 kg of grain per capita, exported it. And only Russia, producing less than 500 kg (the norm for self-sufficiency in industrial grain) of grain per capita, exported it. Those. exports came at the expense of dooming part of the population to malnutrition and hunger. Even tsarist officers and generals testified that 40% of conscripts at the beginning of the twentieth century. For the first time in my life I ate meat in the army.
The level of technical equipment in agriculture was low. More than 52% of peasant farms did not have plows, cultivating the land with plows and roe deer. In 1913, there were only 152 tractors in Russia (in the USA, Germany, France, Belgium, Holland, and Denmark there were thousands and tens of thousands of tractors). 80% of agricultural work was carried out manually (although in 1908-1913 the fleet of agricultural machines increased significantly).
Due to chronic landlessness, every year up to 2 million peasants from the central non-black soil provinces were forced to go to work in the southern provinces in the summer months, hiring themselves out as farm laborers to kulaks and landowners.
The chronic crisis in livestock farming continued in Russia. Thus, the number of working horses in agriculture per 100 rural population fell from 38 in 1870 to 30 in 1911. Per 100 population, the number of livestock (cattle and pigs) decreased from 67 heads in 1896-1898. up to 65 goals in 1899-1901. and up to 55 goals in 1911-1913.
In 1914, in Russia there were 293 heads of cattle per 1000 inhabitants, in the USA - 622, in Denmark - 888 heads.
The productivity of a dairy cow in 1913 was: in Russia - 28 rubles, in the USA - 94, (1: 3.36), in Switzerland 150 rubles. (1:5,36). Russia was also inferior in the productivity of grain production per hectare (tithe).
So the yield in 1913 per tithe was,
poods: wheat rye
Russia 55 56
Austria 89 92
Germany 157 127
Belgium 168 147
Science and Engineering
And again I will return to industry. Remember which planes Utochkin and Nesterov shone on? Nieuport, Farman, Bristol Bulldog, Sopwith, Fokker. England, France, Belgium..., but not Russia. For 1914-1917 Only 94 “Ilya Muromets” were assembled, and the engines and instruments were imported.
What about cars? "Ford", "Mercedes-Benz", "Fiat", "Renault", "Peugeot". And where are the Russian companies that produce cars completely (from raw materials to the finished product) - they are not there.
Russian destroyers, cruisers and battleships had German and Swedish turbines, English gyrocompasses and rangefinders.
I analyze Russia’s lags in such detail not with the aim of savoring them. No. I am no less proud of D.I. Mendeleev, K.E. Tsiolkovsky, and many other talented scientists and engineers. I remember that the first diesel engines and motor ships were created in Kolomna, I remember that Novik-class destroyers and Russian steam locomotives were considered standard, I remember that Russia is the birthplace of radio, but, unfortunately, these were only rays of light in an overall bleak picture.
Let us remember that Mendeleev and Sechenov (the pride of Russia!!!) were voted out of the Academy of Sciences (if only they were Germans...), the inventor of radio communications, Popov, remained a modest teacher at a naval school.
All this is analyzed in order to prevent the creation of a new mythology, because any myth ultimately turns against itself, as we saw in the example of the CPSU, when Gorbachev, Yakovlev, etc. and so on. They lied first in one direction and then in the other.
Moral
After all, Russia was by no means a quiet and God-fearing country of high Christian morality and legality (immediately after the February Revolution in 1917, when the Provisional Government abolished compulsory attendance at prayer services, in the Russian army, which consisted mainly of peasants, 70% of the soldiers stopped attending church) .
In St. Petersburg in 1913, the number of higher educational institutions was equal to the number of officially registered brothels.
Let us remember Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich, who stole funds allocated for the construction of battleships of the Borodino type, as a result of which Russia by 1904, instead of 10 battleships of this type in service, had only 5. And even then only on stocks.
If we want to get a more complete impression of the life of Russia in those times, then, really, it is worth turning to the works of such writers as L. Tolstoy, A. Chekhov, I. Shmelev, V. Zasodimsky, I. Zlatovratsky, G. Uspensky, D. .Mamin-Sibiryak, F.Reshetnikov, M.Gorky, I.Bunin.
And finally, I will offer a statement by the Prime Minister of the Tsarist Government Kokovtsev for the deputies of the 4th State Duma: “Talk about Russia catching up with countries with advanced culture in 15-20 years is, gentlemen, a demand that is not serious.” And Kokovtsev knew what he was saying...
As sad as this sounds for those who try to imagine Russia as a country where patriarchal silence and universal brotherhood between rich and poor reigned, it should be noted that there was a stubborn struggle in the country, the mention of which is so unfashionable now, and which is called the class struggle.
According to the 4th State Duma, from 1901 to 1914. Tsarist troops opened fire more than 6,000 times, including artillery, on rallies and demonstrations of workers, as well as on gatherings and processions of peasants. And this is only for peaceful rallies, processions, and gatherings. The number of victims ranged from 9 to a thousand people. In total, the number of victims of this kind of “shooting” exceeded 180 thousand. In 1907-1910. Over 40 thousand people died in convict centers.
Everything written in this material should give us a clear picture of why events inevitably moved towards 1917 and who took advantage of it, why military assistance from England, France, the USA, Japan, provided to Kolchak, Denikin, Yudenich, Miller, direct foreign military intervention could not break the Bolsheviks. This material provides an answer to why the white movement, having controlled up to 4/5 of the territory of Russia in the summer of 1918, was ultimately defeated.
On January 1, 1913, there were 76 villages and villages on the territory of the Ussuri Cossack Army. All the villages and villages were located along the border, and only in the north, thanks to the “Dukhovsky withdrawal”, in 1894 the Cossack lands went into the taiga of the Sikhote-Alin ridge, where they came into contact with territories inhabited by Golds, Gilyaks, and Orochons. The area of the district was 72,482 square miles.
In 1913, from the age of 17, persons with higher and secondary education were voluntarily recruited to serve as volunteers. Service life - 2 years. Those who passed the exam for the rank of reserve officer served for 1.5 years. Volunteers in the navy - only with higher education - service life is 2 years. Persons without education could voluntarily enter the service without drawing lots, like hunters, and serve on a general basis.
Officers could receive a basic or enhanced salary. Increased salaries were assigned in remote districts, in academies, officer schools, and in the aeronautical troops. Now I’ll write what this salary was: just a number - basic, in brackets - enhanced. Full general - 2291 (3207), lieutenant general - 1964 (2697), major general - 1637 (2187), colonel - 1309 (1676), lieutenant colonel, military foreman - 1178 (1465), captain, captain, captain - 982 (1178), staff captain. staff captain, captain - 851 (1034), lieutenant, centurion - 786 (956), second lieutenant, cornet, cornet - 720 (877). In the Guard, captains, staff captains, and lieutenants received a salary one step higher. Officers were issued upon transfer to a new duty station and on business trips the so-called. passing money for hiring horses. When on various types of business trips outside the unit, daily allowance and ration money were issued. They were given out money for apartments, money for the maintenance of stables, as well as money for heating and lighting apartments, depending on the location of the military unit.
Table money was assigned to officers not by rank, but depending on their position: corps commanders - 5,700 rubles, chiefs of infantry and cavalry divisions - 4,200, chiefs of individual brigades - 3,300, commanders of non-individual brigades and regiments - 2,700, commanders of individual battalions and artillery divisions - 1056, commanders of field gendarme squadrons - 1020, battery commanders - 900, commanders of non-individual battalions, heads of economic units in the troops, assistants of cavalry regiments - 660, junior staff officers of the artillery brigade management, company commanders of fortress and siege artillery - 600, commanders of individual sappers company and commanders of individual hundreds - 480, company, squadron and hundred commanders, heads of training teams - 360, senior officers (one at a time) in batteries - 300, machine gun teams - 180, official officers in the troops - 96 rubles.
To understand whether this is a lot or a little, here is an example of prices in Moscow. One pound (0.40951 kg) of wheat bread cost 4-7 kopecks in Moscow in 1913, rye bread - 2.5-3.5 kopecks, beef - 6-35 kopecks, veal - 10-60 kopecks, pork - 11-28 kopecks, sturgeon - 27 kopecks - 1 rub., sugar - 14-15 kopecks. Well, it is a well-known figure that a live cow then cost 5 rubles, but I don’t think they bought live cows for food.
In December 1913, Prince Peter Alexandrovich of Oldenburg was returning on a courier train from the Caucasus. At night, on the stretch between the Saguny and Liski stations, a train traveling at a speed of about 50 km/h collided with a steam locomotive standing on the way. Despite the darkness, the train driver noticed the locomotive and applied the emergency brake, but it was too late and a collision could not be avoided. Many passengers were hit and bruised by the impact. The prince remained unharmed and, in gratitude for the vigilance shown by the driver, which allowed him to avoid a terrible disaster, he presented him with his gold cigarette case. There was no end to the gratitude from the passengers, who escaped with only fear.
On December 9, 1913, an explosion occurred in the Russian imperial train stationed at the main station of the German city of Rostock. Empress Marie Feodorovna, returning from Copenhagen, was supposed to take this train to Russia. The explosion occurred during the day in the last carriage, where the train's electrical equipment was located: a kerosene engine, a dynamo and a battery. At about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, 10 people from the train crew were sitting on a bench, under which there were boxes with batteries, and smoking. As it turned out later, the batteries were overdosed with sulfuric acid, which led to increased release of gases. One of those sitting, according to experts, threw a lit match, and the gas exploded. The force of the explosion was so great that the walls of nearby railway workshops shook. A few minutes later, workers discovered one of the train crew workers, lying with a broken arm, who had been thrown out of the car by the blast wave. The remaining nine train crew members were found lying in different positions on the floor inside the carriage with broken legs and burns. Three of them were seriously injured. Although the preliminary investigation established that the cause of the explosion was a purely technical defect, it was decided to continue the investigation.
In Soviet times, they liked to compare economic development indicators with 1913. This was justified, since it was the last year of peace before the First World War. In our time, a persistent historical myth has developed that the revolution cut off Russia at its economic and social takeoff. A wonderful display of statistical data from the Russian Empire at the beginning of the 20th century. It is especially useful to get acquainted with it for those who are inclined to idealize our pre-revolutionary past. For ease of reading and assimilation, I took the liberty of breaking up the post of the respected felix_edmund in "Breakthrough" 1913, Russia which we lost into several parts
Here the other day, in the TV show “Time will tell”, from the heated anti-Soviet and anti-Leninist Petya Tolstoy, the “enlightened” liberal public told us, once again, their rosy myth about Russia in 1913, which we lost. A. Brusilov’s material came in very handy, in specific numbers and point by point, describing that “incredible breakthrough” of 1913 in industry and in the social sphere:
Tsarist Russia in numbers
I have been interested in history for a long time. Therefore, I am forced to criticize some authors who spoke about a prosperous and abundant Russia before 1917. Alas, the facts say the opposite.
Industry
First of all, Russia, even in terms of industrial production, lagged behind the USA, England, Germany and France. Its share in the total industrial production of the five powers listed above was only 4.2%. In global production in 1913, the share of Russia was 1.72%, the share of the USA - 20, England - 18, Germany - 9, France - 7.2% (these are all countries with a population 2-3 times less than Russia ). And this despite the fact that in Russia in 1913 there was a record (80 million tons) grain harvest. In terms of gross national product per capita, Russia was inferior to the United States - 9.5 times, England - 4.5, Canada - 4, Germany - 3.5, France, Belgium, Holland, Australia, New Zealand, Spain - 3 times, Austria-Hungary - 2 times.
Russia not only “rushed”, but continued to lag behind - in 1913 its GNP correlated with Germany’s GNP as 3.3 to 10, while in 1850 the ratio was 4 to 10.
Volumes of industrial production in 1913:
General, billion rubles Per capita, rub.
USA 38.13 397.19
UK 15.5 336.96
Germany 12.4 182.35
France 10.54 263.5
Russia 7.75 44.29
At 24,472 factories there were only 24,140 electric, steam, and diesel engines (with an average power of 60 hp). That is, not every plant had at least one engine. So much for “advanced technology”. In terms of power and mechanical equipment, Russia was 10 times behind the United States, 5 times behind England, and 4 times behind Germany, Belgium, and New Zealand. Let's add here another interesting fact: in 1913, there were 3.035 million telephone network subscribers in the USA, 797 thousand in Germany, 536.5 thousand in England, 185 thousand in France, 110 thousand in Austria-Hungary ., in Sweden - 102 thousand, in Denmark - 98 thousand, but in Russia - 97 thousand subscribers. And this is at Russian distances...
In 1913, Russia imported more than 1 million tons of steel and 8.7 million tons of coal from other countries.
Let's give a few more numbers. In 1913, the USA produced 25 million tons of steel, Russia - 4.2 million tons, over 5 years in the USA, steel production increased by 5 million tons, in Russia by 1.7 million tons (in on average by 1 million, and 0.34 million tons per year). 1% increase in steel production in the USA was equivalent to 200 thousand tons, in Russia it was only 25 thousand tons - 8 times less.
The level of labor productivity in industry in Russia was less than: in the USA - 9 times; in England - 5 times; in Germany - 4 times.
In 1909-1914. The British riveted 64 large surface ships, the Germans - 47, the French - 24, the Italians - 16, Russia, with efforts, completed and again created 10 surface ships of the battleship-cruiser class. And this despite the fact that in Russia military spending in 1908-1913. accounted for 32 - 33% of the total state budget.
Economic efficiency
Let's now take the state budget. How many curses were brought down on the heads of the Bolsheviks and the CPSU for “drunk” budgets, starting from the mid-70s. But what did we see in Tsarist Russia? Here are the "Statistical Yearbooks of Russia" (edited by the director of the Central Statistical Committee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs N.N. Belyavsky) for 1908-1913, the yearbooks of world statistics by S. Zap "Socio-political tables of all countries of the world" of the publishing house "Cooperation" Moscow.
So, 1908-1913. the total amount of income received by the budget amounted to: 14987 million rubles, including income from the vodka monopoly: 3993 million rubles. (26.64%), direct taxes: 1115 million rubles. (7.44%), indirect taxes: 3111 million rubles. (20.76%), duties: 943 million rubles. (6, 29%)
The West had nothing to fear from Russia, which “rushed” forward. The more efficiently the Russian economy worked, the more income the banks of Western countries received. In 1887-1913. The West invested 1,783 million gold rubles in Russia. During the same period, net income was exported from Russia - 2326 million gold rubles (the excess of income over investments over 26 years was 513 million gold rubles). Annually, up to 500 million gold rubles were transferred abroad in interest payments and loan repayments (in modern prices this is 15 billion dollars).
Life in Russia was also not cheap. So a worker’s family of 4 people in St. Petersburg spent about 750 rubles. in year. At the same time, food costs amounted to up to 100% of the wages of the head of a family of 4 people, and, as a rule, everyone worked, including children. Of the remaining amount, up to 45% went to pay for housing, and up to 25% to clothes and shoes.
For comparison: for a German worker, paying for food for a family took 20-25% of the salary (for one adult), for an English worker - 40%.
Summing up the industrial development of Russia in 1908-1914, we must also point out the following fact: in 1893-1900. the average annual increase in industrial production was 9%, and in 1908-1913. - 8.8%.
In parallel with the growth of industrial production, there was a process of rising prices. In 1908-1913. prices for consumer goods increased by 24%, while wages in Russia increased by an average of 34 rubles. (by 14.52%), thus we see that the real incomes of workers did not increase, but fell. Prices (wholesale) for wheat in 1901-1912. increased by 44%; for rye - by 63.63%; for pork - by 55.86%. Naturally, no less than wholesale prices have increased for bakery products and for meat in retail trade. As a result, in 1913 the real incomes of workers in Russia were 90% of the level in 1900.
Science and Engineering
And again I will return to industry. Remember which planes Utochkin and Nesterov shone on? Nieuport, Farman, Bristol Bulldog, Sopwith, Fokker. England, France, Belgium..., but not Russia. For 1914-1917 Only 94 “Ilya Muromets” were assembled, and the engines and instruments were imported.
What about cars? "Ford", "Mercedes-Benz", "Fiat", "Renault", "Peugeot". And where are the Russian companies that produce cars completely (from raw materials to the finished product) - they are not there.
Russian destroyers, cruisers and battleships had German and Swedish turbines, English gyrocompasses and rangefinders.
I analyze Russia’s lags in such detail not with the aim of savoring them. No. I am no less proud of D.I. Mendeleev, K.E. Tsiolkovsky, and many other talented scientists and engineers. I remember that the first diesel engines and motor ships were created in Kolomna, I remember that Novik-class destroyers and Russian steam locomotives were considered standard, I remember that Russia is the birthplace of radio, but, unfortunately, these were only rays of light in an overall bleak picture.
Let us remember that Mendeleev and Sechenov (the pride of Russia!!!) were voted out of the Academy of Sciences (if only they were Germans...), the inventor of radio communications, Popov, remained a modest teacher at a naval school.
All this is analyzed in order to prevent the creation of a new mythology, because any myth ultimately turns against itself, as we saw in the example of the CPSU, when Suslov, Yakovlev, etc. and so on. They lied first in one direction and then in the other.
E.V.: A barrel of ice water on the heads of those who tell fairy tales about Russia in 1913, which they say we lost... Supertext...
Here the other day, in the TV show “Time will tell”, from the heated anti-Soviet and anti-Leninist Petya Tolstoy, the “enlightened” liberal public told us, once again, their rosy myth about Russia in 1913, which we lost. A. Brusilov’s material came in very handy, in specific numbers and point by point, describing that “incredible breakthrough” of 1913 in industry and in the social sphere:
Tsarist Russia in numbers
I have been interested in history for a long time. Therefore, I am forced to criticize some authors who spoke about a prosperous and abundant Russia before 1917. Alas, the facts say the opposite.
Industry
First of all, Russia, even in terms of industrial production, lagged behind the USA, England, Germany and France. Its share in the total industrial production of the five powers listed above was only 4.2%. In global production in 1913, the share of Russia was 1.72%, the share of the USA - 20, England - 18, Germany - 9, France - 7.2% (these are all countries with a population 2-3 times less than Russia ). And this despite the fact that in Russia in 1913 there was a record (80 million tons) grain harvest. In terms of gross national product per capita, Russia was inferior to the United States - 9.5 times, England - 4.5, Canada - 4, Germany - 3.5, France, Belgium, Holland, Australia, New Zealand, Spain - 3 times, Austria-Hungary - 2 times.
Russia not only “rushed”, but continued to lag behind - in 1913 its GNP correlated with Germany’s GNP as 3.3 to 10, while in 1850 the ratio was 4 to 10.
Volumes of industrial production in 1913:
Total, billion rubles Per capita, rub.
USA 38.13 397.19
UK 15.5 336.96
Germany 12.4 182.35
France 10.54 263.5
Russia 7.75 44.29
At 24,472 factories there were only 24,140 electric, steam, and diesel engines (with an average power of 60 hp). That is, not every plant had at least one engine. So much for “advanced technology”. In terms of power and mechanical equipment, Russia was 10 times behind the United States, 5 times behind England, and 4 times behind Germany, Belgium, and New Zealand. Let's add here another interesting fact: in 1913, there were 3.035 million telephone network subscribers in the USA, 797 thousand in Germany, 536.5 thousand in England, 185 thousand in France, 110 thousand in Austria-Hungary ., in Sweden - 102 thousand, in Denmark - 98 thousand, but in Russia - 97 thousand subscribers. And this is at Russian distances...
In 1913, Russia imported more than 1 million from other countries. tons of steel and 8.7 million tons of coal.
Let's give a few more numbers. In 1913, the USA produced 25 million tons of steel, Russia - 4.2 million tons, over 5 years in the USA, steel production increased by 5 million tons, in Russia by 1.7 million tons (in on average by 1 million, and 0.34 million tons per year). 1% increase in steel production in the USA was equivalent to 200 thousand tons, in Russia it was only 25 thousand tons - 8 times less.
The level of labor productivity in industry in Russia was less than: in the USA - 9 times; in England - 5 times; in Germany - 4 times.
In 1909-1914. The British riveted 64 large surface ships, the Germans - 47, the French - 24, the Italians - 16, Russia, with efforts, completed and again created 10 surface ships of the battleship-cruiser class. And this despite the fact that in Russia military spending in 1908-1913. accounted for 32 - 33% of the total state budget.
Economic efficiency
Let's now take the state budget. How many curses were brought down on the heads of the Bolsheviks and the CPSU for “drunk” budgets, starting from the mid-70s. But what did we see in Tsarist Russia? Here are the "Statistical Yearbooks of Russia" (edited by the director of the Central Statistical Committee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs N.N. Belyavsky) for 1908-1913, the yearbooks of world statistics by S. Zap "Socio-political tables of all countries of the world" of the publishing house "Cooperation" Moscow.
So, 1908-1913. the total amount of income received by the budget amounted to: 14987 million rubles, including income from the vodka monopoly: 3993 million rubles. (26.64%), direct taxes: 1115 million rubles. (7.44%), indirect taxes: 3111 million rubles. (20.76%), duties: 943 million rubles. (6, 29%)
The West had nothing to fear from Russia, which “rushed” forward. The more efficiently the Russian economy worked, the more income the banks of Western countries received. In 1887-1913. The West invested 1,783 million gold rubles in Russia. During the same period, net income was exported from Russia - 2326 million gold rubles (the excess of income over investments over 26 years was 513 million gold rubles). Annually, up to 500 million gold rubles were transferred abroad in interest payments and loan repayments (in modern prices this is 15 billion dollars).
Life in Russia was also not cheap. So a worker’s family of 4 people in St. Petersburg spent about 750 rubles. in year. At the same time, food costs amounted to up to 100% of the wages of the head of a family of 4 people, and, as a rule, everyone worked, including children. Of the remaining amount, up to 45% went to pay for housing, and up to 25% to clothes and shoes.
For comparison: for a German worker, paying for food for a family took 20-25% of the salary (for one adult), for an English worker - 40%.
Summing up the industrial development of Russia in 1908-1914, we must also point out the following fact: in 1893-1900. the average annual increase in industrial production was 9%, and in 1908-1913. - 8.8%.
In parallel with the growth of industrial production, there was a process of rising prices. In 1908-1913. prices for consumer goods increased by 24%, while wages in Russia increased by an average of 34 rubles. (by 14.52%), thus we see that the real incomes of workers did not increase, but fell. Prices (wholesale) for wheat in 1901-1912. increased by 44%; for rye - by 63.63%; for pork - by 55.86%. Naturally, no less than wholesale prices have increased for bakery products and for meat in retail trade. As a result, in 1913 the real incomes of workers in Russia were 90% of the level in 1900.
People's health
Not all was well in the areas of education and healthcare.
According to statistics, in 1913 in Russia more than 12 million people (7.26% of the population) were affected by epidemics of cholera, diphtheria, anthrax, and scabies. Another 9 million people suffered from malaria, trachoma, whooping cough, etc. In total, 21,877,869 people (13.2% of the country's population) were chronically ill with infectious diseases.
Per 10,000 people in Russia there were 1.6 doctors, 1.7 paramedics, 1.7 obstetricians and midwives. In rural areas there was 1 doctor per 26 thousand people.
In the USA there were 4 times more doctors per 10,000 people, in Germany - 2.7, in England - 3.5, in Denmark, Sweden, Belgium, Holland - 3.2 times more.
Out of every 1000 newborns under the age of 1 year in Russia, 263 children died. For comparison: in Sweden, 70 children under 1 year of age died for every 1000 births, in England - 108, in the USA and France - 112-115. in Italy - 138, in Germany - 151. I.e. Russia exceeded the countries of Europe and the USA in infant mortality by 1.74 - 3.76 times.
In Russia in 1913, the number of students in all types of educational institutions (including religious and military) was 9.7 million people (60.6 people per 1000 inhabitants). 70% of children and adolescents were deprived of the opportunity to study. In Russia, according to the Statistical Yearbook of Russia, among the population over 9 years of age (the age of entry to study), 27% were literate (excluding Transcaucasia and Central Asia). For comparison: in the USA, even among the black population, literacy reached 56%. In the United States in 1913 there were 18.3 million students (190.6 students per 1000 inhabitants).
For comparison with Russia, which had 227-228 literate people per 1000 population (excluding preschool children), Belgium had 998 literate people per 1000 population, Germany - 980, England - 816, France - 930, Australia - 816, Austria - 644, Hungary - 524, Argentina - 495, Italy - 440, Portugal - 214 people.
Even within Russia there was inequality: in Finland there were 988 literate people per 1000 people (excluding preschool children), in Poland - 305, in the Caucasus - 124, in Central Asia - 53 people. Great Russia, Little Russia, Belarus, Siberia - 268 people.
In 1913, 127,423 people studied in Russian universities, 258,000 in the USA (twice as many as in Russia). In the USA there were several dozen university-level universities, in England - 18 universities, in Germany - 22, in France - 14, in Russia - 8 universities. There were about 20 million inhabitants per university in Russia, 2.5 million in England, 2.8 million in France, and 3 million inhabitants in Germany. In Russia there were 1.7 teachers per 1000 people, in the USA there were 5.45 teachers - more than 3 times more. Thanks to the well-known circular of the Minister of Education Delyanov (during the reign of Alexander III) “0 cook’s children,” access to education was blocked for persons from the peasant and bourgeois classes. And although in 1911-1914, the circular was not actually in effect, nevertheless, out of 119,000 people studying in gymnasiums, people from peasant families accounted for 18,000 people (15.12%). In all educational institutions of the Ministry of Education (including professional, commercial, etc.), peasants made up about 15% of students (and this in a country where 80% of the population was peasant!!!). People from peasant families were not allowed into cadet corps or military schools at all.
Agriculture
Now let's look at what many apologists of Tsarist Russia are proud of - agriculture. “Russia was well-fed and abundant!” they proclaim. Unfortunately, I have to admit that this is not so. In the 19th century. Russia has experienced 40 hunger strikes. In the 20th century were hungry in 1901/02, 1905; 1906; 1907; 1908; 1911/12 In 1901-1902, 49 provinces went hungry, in 1905; 1906; 1907;1908 From 19 to 29 provinces were starving in 1911-1912. In 2 years, famine affected 60 provinces. 30 million people were on the verge of death. According to various estimates, in 1901-1912. About 8 million people died from the famine and its consequences. The tsarist government was most concerned with how to hide the scale of the hunger strikes. In the press, censorship prohibited the use of the word hunger, replacing it with the word “famine.”
If under Alexander II, during the major famine of 1871, zemstvos, the Red Cross and other organizations were actively involved in helping the starving, then Nicholas II sharply curtailed the rights of zemstvos to combat hunger, and in 1911 and 1912 completely banned the participation of zemstvos, Red Cross and charities in providing famine relief.
Obtaining famine relief (“famine loans”) was also fraught with difficulties. The “hunger loan” amounted to 1 pood of flour per month per adult and 1/2 pood of flour per child. At the same time, adults aged 18 to 55 years were not entitled to receive a “hunger loan” (they say, there is no point in feeding parasites, they will get out on their own). Ownerless peasants were excluded from the recipients of the “hunger loan” (and there were 3.5 million such families in Russia , these were usually farm laborers)) widows and orphans, whom rural society had to feed “from surplus aid.” What! The most defenseless sections of society were doomed to starvation. Where does a starving village get its “surplus”?
Moreover, the received “hunger loan” subsequently had to be repaid. In 1911, over 20 million rubles were collected from the starving Samara province. arrears for the “famine loans” of previous years. How many people in 1911-1912? killed the "famine loans" received in 1901-1902. 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908....
And, despite the famine, grain flowed from Russia to Europe. The slogan of the Tsarist Minister of Finance Vyshnegorodsky - “we ourselves are undernourished, but we will take it out” - was put into practice.
Russia was not a leader in world agricultural production either. The vast expanses of Russia allowed it to produce large quantities of grain, but the level of agriculture, yields and productivity were low. In 1913, having received a record grain harvest - 80 million tons - Russia had about 471 kg of grain per capita. England, France, Germany had about 430-440 kg, the USA - over 1000 kg, Canada - about 800 kg, Argentina 1200 kg. Where do the claims come from that Russia produced more grain than other countries combined? After all, the USA produced 96 million tons of grain - more than Russia. If we take the total production of agricultural products, it had the following form (in rubles).
agricultural production, billion rubles per capita, rub.
US 15, 162 157, 83
Germany 7,727 113, 63
UK 4,262 92.22
France 7,727 193.18
Russia 10 57, 06
If in total production volumes Russia was in 2nd place after the United States, then per capita production put it in 5th place. If we take other European countries, Australia, Canada, then Russia is dropped into the second ten and even lower. It is necessary to pay attention to the figures characterizing grain production per capita. England, France, Germany, producing grain less than 500 kg per capita, were its importers. The USA, Canada, Argentina, producing 800-1200 kg of grain per capita, exported it. And only Russia, producing less than 500 kg (the norm for self-sufficiency in industrial grain) of grain per capita, exported it. Those. exports came at the expense of dooming part of the population to malnutrition and hunger. Even tsarist officers and generals testified that 40% of conscripts at the beginning of the twentieth century. For the first time in my life I ate meat in the army.
The level of technical equipment in agriculture was low. More than 52% of peasant farms did not have plows, cultivating the land with plows and roe deer. In 1913, there were only 152 tractors in Russia (in the USA, Germany, France, Belgium, Holland, and Denmark there were thousands and tens of thousands of tractors). 80% of agricultural work was carried out manually (although in 1908-1913 the fleet of agricultural machines increased significantly).
Due to chronic landlessness, every year up to 2 million peasants from the central non-black soil provinces were forced to go to work in the southern provinces in the summer months, hiring themselves out as farm laborers to kulaks and landowners.
The chronic crisis in livestock farming continued in Russia. Thus, the number of working horses in agriculture per 100 rural population fell from 38 in 1870 to 30 in 1911. Per 100 population, the number of livestock (cattle and pigs) decreased from 67 heads in 1896-1898. up to 65 goals in 1899-1901. and up to 55 goals in 1911-1913.
In 1914, in Russia there were 293 heads of cattle per 1000 inhabitants, in the USA - 622, in Denmark - 888 heads.
The productivity of a dairy cow in 1913 was: in Russia - 28 rubles, in the USA - 94, (1: 3.36), in Switzerland 150 rubles. (1:5,36). Russia was also inferior in the productivity of grain production per hectare (tithe).
So the yield in 1913 per tithe was,
poods: wheat rye
Russia 55 56
Austria 89 92
Germany 157 127
Belgium 168 147
Science and Engineering
And again I will return to industry. Remember which planes Utochkin and Nesterov shone on? Nieuport, Farman, Bristol Bulldog, Sopwith, Fokker. England, France, Belgium..., but not Russia. For 1914-1917 Only 94 “Ilya Muromets” were assembled, and the engines and instruments were imported.
What about cars? "Ford", "Mercedes-Benz", "Fiat", "Renault", "Peugeot". And where are the Russian companies that produce cars completely (from raw materials to the finished product) - they are not there.
Russian destroyers, cruisers and battleships had German and Swedish turbines, English gyrocompasses and rangefinders.
I analyze Russia’s lags in such detail not with the aim of savoring them. No. I am no less proud of D.I. Mendeleev, K.E. Tsiolkovsky, and many other talented scientists and engineers. I remember that the first diesel engines and motor ships were created in Kolomna, I remember that Novik-class destroyers and Russian steam locomotives were considered standard, I remember that Russia is the birthplace of radio, but, unfortunately, these were only rays of light in an overall bleak picture.
Let us remember that Mendeleev and Sechenov (the pride of Russia!!!) were voted out of the Academy of Sciences (if only they were Germans...), the inventor of radio communications, Popov, remained a modest teacher at a naval school.
All this is analyzed in order to prevent the creation of a new mythology, because any myth ultimately turns against itself, as we saw in the example of the CPSU, when Suslov, Yakovlev, etc. and so on. They lied first in one direction and then in the other.
Moral
After all, Russia was by no means a quiet and God-fearing country of high Christian morality and legality (immediately after the February Revolution in 1917, when the Provisional Government abolished compulsory attendance at prayer services, in the Russian army, which consisted mainly of peasants, 70% of the soldiers stopped attending church) .
In St. Petersburg in 1913, the number of higher educational institutions was equal to the number of officially registered brothels.
Let us remember Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich, who stole funds allocated for the construction of battleships of the Borodino type, as a result of which Russia by 1904, instead of 10 battleships of this type in service, had only 5. And even then only on stocks.
If we want to get a more complete impression of the life of Russia in those times, then, really, it is worth turning to the works of such writers as L. Tolstoy, A. Chekhov, I. Shmelev, V. Zasodimsky, I. Zlatovratsky, G. Uspensky, D. .Mamin-Sibiryak, F.Reshetnikov, M.Gorky, I.Bunin.
Vladimir Nikolaevich Kokovtsev
And finally, I will offer a statement by the Prime Minister of the Tsarist Government Kokovtsev for the deputies of the 4th State Duma:
“Talk about Russia catching up with countries with advanced culture in 15-20 years is, gentlemen, a demand that is not serious.” And Kokovtsev knew what he was saying...
As sad as this sounds for those who try to imagine Russia as a country where patriarchal silence and universal brotherhood between rich and poor reigned, it should be noted that there was a stubborn struggle in the country, the mention of which is so unfashionable now, and which is called the class struggle.
According to the 4th State Duma, from 1901 to 1914. Tsarist troops opened fire more than 6,000 times, including artillery, on rallies and demonstrations of workers, as well as on gatherings and processions of peasants. And this is only for PEACEFUL rallies, processions, and gatherings. The number of victims ranged from 9 to a thousand people. In total, the number of victims of this kind of “shooting” exceeded 180 thousand. In 1907-1910. Over 40 thousand people died in convict centers.
Everything written in this material should give us a clear picture of why events inevitably moved towards 1917, why military assistance from England, France, the USA, Japan, provided to Kolchak, Denikin, Yudenich, Miller, and direct foreign military intervention could not break the Bolsheviks. This material provides an answer to why the white movement, having controlled up to 4/5 of the territory of Russia in the summer of 1918, was ultimately defeated.
The terror of the Cheka was not the reason for this. Peasant Russia entered into an unspoken agreement with the Bolsheviks - it agreed to tolerate surplus appropriation, the Cheka, ChON, committees of poor people, etc. etc., but on the condition that the Bolsheviks GUARANTEE THE NON-RETURN OF THE OLD ORDERS. And this turn of the peasantry towards the Bolsheviks in 1918 ensured the collapse of the white movement. The peasant, seeing Kolchak and Denikin, the White Czechs and Krasnov, realized what awaited him and made his choice. And the result of this choice was the Victory Parade, there was Gagarin’s flight, there was one of TWO superpowers - the USSR.
You cannot mythologize the past. Otherwise, the truth about him turns into an all-destroying battering ram.
