The End of the Russian Imperial Army: The Old Army and the Soldiers' Revolt

The End of the Russian Imperial Army #1

by Allan K. Wildman

Allan Wildman presents the first detailed study of the Army's collapse under the strains of war and of the front soldiers' efforts to participate in the Revolution.

Originally published in 1980.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Genres: Russia, History

434 pages, Hardcover

First published April 21, 1980

About the author

Allan Kenyon Wildman was professor of history at The Ohio State University. Wildman earned a B.A. in 1950 from the University of Michigan, and a B.D. in 1953 and a Ph.D. in 1962 from the University of Chicago. Before taking his post at OSU, he taught at the State University of New York at Stony Brook from 1961 until 1978.

Reviews

[Barry Smirnoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful book which has once again become available from Princeton Legacy Library. Dr Wildman was my PhD advisor many years ago at Stony Brook. He was unable to get University support for himself and his students so he left for Ohio State. There he wrote this study of the Russian Army during the first months of the Russian Revolution. He is a historian that understands that he is writing a story about the past and that it is important to make sense of the evidence. He is concerned with the workers, soldiers, and peasants who wrote the story of 1917. This is a very readable investigation that uses archival sources, memoirs, and many other sources that add to the readability of the text. He shows that the soldiers came from a variety of backgrounds and political beliefs. The formation of soldier committees was a response to the overthrow of the old regime. The removal of officers was less disruptive at the front than in the Capital. There were some cases of soldiers refusing orders and desertion was much less of a problem for the frontline soldiers. I can not recommend this book more strongly. I look forward to reading Volume Two, The Road to Soviet Power and Peace.

[Liam Ostermann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have only read parts of this marvellous and fascinating book. If you are interested in the Russian Revolution you need to have at least looked at this book. The Russian was at the heart of the revolution just as it was at the heart of the Tsarist state. It was a much more complex and varied institution then most people imagine.

Although I did not read it all that has nothing to do with any failure on this books part. That it is still the best book on this subject tells you everything you need to know about it's quality.