The draft military reform of Peter 1. The military reform of Peter I
The enormous dimensions of peasant unrest in the 18th century. required a significant military force to suppress them. The active foreign policy of the Russian tsars made it necessary to strengthen the armed forces of the state. For these purposes, reforms of the military structure were carried out. The main feature of the military reform carried out by Peter the Great was the creation of a regular army. Permanent troops existed, of course, even before Peter, but in the form of archery regiments and mercenaries. These troops were far from perfect. Streltsy thought more about their shops, and mercenaries - about salaries.
Peter I for the first time introduced a new principle for the formation of troops - recruitment, recruitment. In 1699, a recruiting system for recruiting into the army was formed (every 20 peasant or petty-bourgeois households in the provinces had to put one recruit into the army at a certain time). The recruit service lasted 25 years, the officers served for life. Since 1723, after the census, a per capita distribution of recruits was introduced. This made it possible to create a strong army. The soldiers completely broke away from peaceful life and devoted themselves entirely to military service.
From 1699 to 1725, 53 recruiting sets were made, of which 21 were the main set and 32 were supplementary. About 285 thousand people were taken into the army. The main military unit was a regiment (1200 men), two or three regiments made up a brigade. Three brigades made up a division. In total, by 1721, Peter's field army consisted of 73 regiments (about 130 thousand people).
In the same period, a system of military garrisons was created, which consisted of 55 regiments with a total number of 74 thousand people with 10 thousand guns. In total, the ground armed forces were armed with up to 1,5 thousand artillery pieces.
By the end of the Northern War, Russia had 29 battleships, 6 frigates, 208 galleys and other ships. At the same time, the Caspian flotilla was built, numbering about 300 ships.
Special schools were created for the training of officers (scorer school, Naval Academy, artillery, engineering schools), but the elite guards regiments: Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky served as the main military-practical school for training officers.
By the end of the reign of Peter I, two management structures emerged in the country: civil and military. The Guard became the elite of military power and controlled the civil apparatus. The management of the armed forces was entrusted to the Military and Admiralty Boards.
In 1716, the Military Charter was introduced, which regulated the composition and organization of the army, the relationship of commanders and subordinates, and the duties of army officials. In 1720, the Naval Charter was adopted.
In October 1721, in connection with the victory in the Great Northern War, the Senate and the Holy Synod proclaimed Peter the Great Emperor of All Russia, great and Father of the Fatherland. Russia has become an empire. The emperor, according to the provisions contained in the military articles, the Naval Charter and the Spiritual Regulations, had broader powers than the king in the 17th century. The emperor was the supreme commander in chief and was at the head of the order and award systems of the empire. He was also in charge of the formation of regiments, the appointment of officers, and established the plan and procedure for conducting military operations.
Peter the Great is an ambiguous person in world history. Evaluating the reforms of Peter I briefly, some historians consider him the Great Reformer, who managed to turn the development of Russia in a different direction. Others - almost the Antichrist, who went back against the old order and church foundations, destroying the usual way of life of the Russian people.
Rise to power and background
Pyotr Alekseevich Romanov (1672-1725) was the son of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich from his second marriage. He was proclaimed king together with his half-brother Ivan in 1682. Due to the small age of both, their older sister Sophia actually ruled the country.
In 1689, Sophia was removed from the throne. Power completely passed into the hands of Peter. Although formally Ivan continued to be considered a co-ruler, he was too weak and sick to participate in the affairs of the state.
The state was in a difficult position: the Moscow kingdom was in a state of another war with the Ottoman Empire. In search of allies, Peter 1 went on a trip to Europe in order to conclude political alliances. Getting acquainted with the culture and structure of European countries, he saw with his own eyes how far behind Russia was in development from the Western powers. Peter 1 realized that it was time for change. Returning to his homeland, he resolutely began to "cut a window to Europe".
The reforms of Peter the Great are shown in the table.
Foreign policy and military reform of Peter I
The young tsar planned to pursue a rather aggressive foreign policy. Peter intended to strengthen Russia's influence in the international arena, expand its borders and gain access to the non-freezing seas - the Azov, Black and Caspian. To achieve such ambitious goals, it was necessary to build a combat-ready army.
Peter has been interested in military affairs since childhood. For the young prince, amusing (Peter's) regiments were created - special military formations for studying combat tactics and weapon handling techniques. It was then that Peter developed views on how the Russian army should look like in the future. After coming to power, these views formed the basis of the military reform of Peter 1.
Military reform had five main directions:
Thanks to these changes, the Russian army was able to become one of the strongest at that time. This was especially evident during the Northern War, where the troops of Peter 1 defeated the exemplary Swedish army.
Administrative-territorial changes
The internal policy of Peter 1 was aimed at creating an absolute monarchy by strengthening the vertical of power based on local self-government, as well as strengthening police supervision to prevent and quickly suppress rebellions.
Administrative reforms can be divided into 2 categories:
- central control;
- local government.
The reason for the transformation of the central government was the desire of Peter to replace the old bureaucratic machine and build a new model of power.
The result of the reform was the creation of:
- Councils of Ministers (Senate)- authority to govern the state during the absence of the king. Senators were appointed personally by Peter 1;
- Synod- was created instead of the abolished post of patriarch to manage church affairs. The church passed into submission to the state;
- Colleges- government bodies, which were clearly divided into departments and replaced the outdated system of orders;
- Secret Office- an organization whose activity was to persecute opponents of the king's policy.
The prerequisite for the reform of local government was the war with Sweden and the need for a more efficient state apparatus.
According to the provincial (regional) reform, the country was divided into provinces, districts and provinces. This structure made it possible to more efficiently collect taxes from taxable estates in each area. A separate military unit was attached to the province, which the inhabitants of the province had to support, provide with food and housing. In case of war, recruits from local residents joined the same military unit and could be instantly transferred to the places of hostilities. The governors were appointed personally by Peter.
The urban reform was rather unsystematic and took place in several stages. The main goal was to collect as many taxes from the population as possible.
In 1699, the Chamber of Burmese was created, which was popularly called the Town Hall. The main functions of the City Hall were the collection of taxes and the maintenance of the army. It was an elected body, holding elections was possible with the payment of double taxes by the city. Naturally, most of the cities did not appreciate the reform.
After the end of the Northern War, the second stage of urban reform began. Cities were divided into categories (depending on the number of households), and the townspeople - into categories (taxable and non-taxable).
During the administrative reforms, Peter also undertook a judicial reform. The purpose of the reform was to separate the branches of government, to create courts independent of the city or provincial administration. Peter himself became the supreme judge. He conducted the proceedings of the most important state affairs. Hearings on political cases were handled by the Secret Office. The Senate and the Boards also had judicial functions (with the exception of the Board of Foreign Affairs). Courts and lower courts were created in the provinces.
Economic transformation
The socio-economic situation in Russia was unenviable. In the context of an aggressive foreign policy, constant warfare, the country needed a lot of resources and money. The reformist mind of Peter was persistently looking for ways to extract new financial sources.
The tax reform was carried out. Its main feature was the introduction of a poll tax - funds were collected from each person, while earlier the tax was levied from the yard. This made it possible to fill the budget, but increased social tension, and the number of peasant uprisings and riots increased.
For the development of backward Russian industry, Peter 1 actively used the help of foreign specialists, invited the best European engineers to the court. But workers were sorely lacking. Therefore, with the growth of production and the opening of new factories, instead of paying a poll, the serf could be assigned to the factory and undertake to work there for a certain amount of time.
Peter encouraged the construction of factories, endowed merchants with a wide range of benefits. And also enterprises were built for public money, and later transferred to private hands. If the chosen owner of the factory could not cope with production and was at a loss, Peter took the enterprise back into state ownership, and the negligent industrialist could be executed.
But clumsy Russian products could not adequately compete with advanced European ones. To support domestic production, Peter began to use a policy of protectionism - high duties were introduced on the import of foreign goods.
Peter actively promoted trade. He understood that for this it was necessary to develop a convenient transport system. New water channels were laid (Ivanovsky, Staroladozhsky, Tveretsky), overland communication routes were built.
Under the reign of Peter 1, a monetary reform was also carried out. The ruble began to equal 100 kopecks, or 200 money. Lighter silver coins were minted. For trade needs, copper round coins were introduced into use. For the needs of the state, 5 mints were established.
Innovations in the field of culture
Peter the Great sought to introduce Russia to European cultural traditions. He perceived the norms of appearance and behavior that were established in the era of the 18th century in Russian society extremely negatively, considered barbaric and outdated.
The tsar began his reforming activity with the creation of the Cathedral - a depraved entertainment event. The council ridiculed the rituals performed in the Catholic and Orthodox churches, parodied them, accompanying this with slander and drinking alcohol. It was created in order to reduce the importance of the church and the influence of the clergy on the common people.
While traveling in Europe, Peter became addicted to such a bad habit as smoking. In Russia, according to the decree of 1634, the use of tobacco and its sale were banned. Smokers, according to this decree, had to cut off the nose. Naturally, the tsar became more loyal in this matter, canceled the previous ban, and as a result, soon their own tobacco plantations began to be created on the territory of Russia.
Under Peter 1, the state began to live according to the new, Julian, calendar. Previously, the countdown was from the day of the creation of the world, and the New Year began on September 1. The decree was issued in December, so since then January has become the beginning not only for the new chronology, but also for the year.
Affected by the reforms of Peter and the appearance of subjects. From his youth, he ridiculed baggy, long and uncomfortable court clothes. Therefore, by a new decree for the class nobles, he ordered to wear clothes according to the European type - German or French clothes were cited as an example. People who did not follow the new fashion could simply be grabbed in the middle of the street and "cut off the excess" - reshape their clothes in a new way.
Peter's beards were also in disfavor. He himself did not wear a beard, and did not perceive all the talk that this is a symbol of the honor and dignity of a Russian person. All boyars, merchants and military men were ordered by law to cut their beards. Some disobedient Peter cut them personally. The clergy and residents of the villages were allowed to keep their beards, but at the entrance to the city the bearded men had to pay a tax for it.
A public theater was created to ridicule Russian traditions and customs, and to promote Western culture. The entrance was free, but the theater did not win success with the public and did not last long. Therefore, Peter issued a new decree on entertainment for the nobility - the Assemblies. Thus, the king wanted to introduce his subjects to the life of an average European.
Not only the nobles, but also their wives had to go to the Assembly. Unbridled fun was supposed - conversations, dances, playing cards and chess. Smoking and drinking alcohol was encouraged. Among the nobility, the Assemblies caused a negative reaction and were considered indecent - because of the participation of women in them, and it was not pleasant to have fun under duress.
For all connoisseurs of Russian history, the name of Peter 1 will forever remain associated with the period of reform in almost all spheres of life in Russian society. And one of the most important in this series was the military reform.
Throughout his reign, Peter the Great fought. All his military campaigns were directed against serious opponents - Sweden and Turkey. And in order to wage endless exhausting, and besides, offensive wars, a well-equipped, combat-ready army is needed. Actually, the need to create such an army was the main reason for the military reforms of Peter the Great. The process of transformation was not instantaneous, each stage took place at its own time and was caused by certain events in the course of hostilities.
It cannot be said that the tsar began reforming the army from scratch. Rather, he continued and expanded the military innovations conceived by his father Alexei Mikhailovich.
So, let's look at the military reforms of Peter 1 briefly point by point:
Reformation of the archery troops
In 1697, the archery regiments, which were the basis of the army, were disbanded, and subsequently completely abolished. They were simply not ready for constant hostilities. In addition, the streltsy riots undermined the tsar's confidence in them. Instead of archers in 1699, three new regiments were formed, which were also staffed by disbanded foreign regiments and recruits.
The introduction of recruitment
In 1699, a new system for recruiting the army was introduced in the country - recruitment. Initially, recruiting was carried out only as needed and regulated by special decrees, which stipulated the number of recruits needed at the moment. Their service was for life. The basis of recruitment sets were the taxable estates of peasants and townspeople. The new system made it possible to create a large standing army in the country, which had a significant advantage over European mercenary troops.
Changing the system of military training
Since 1699, the training of soldiers and officers began to be carried out according to a single combat charter. The emphasis was on continuous military training. In 1700, the first military school for officers was opened, and in 1715, the Naval Academy in St. Petersburg.
Changes in the organizational structure of the army
The army was officially divided into three types of troops: infantry, artillery and cavalry. The entire structure of the new army and navy was reduced to uniformity: brigades, regiments, divisions. The management of the affairs of the army was transferred to the jurisdiction of four orders. Since 1718, the Military Collegium has become the highest military body.
In 1722, the Table of Ranks was created, which clearly structured the system of military ranks.
Rearmament of the army
Peter I began to arm the infantry with flintlock guns with a bayonet of the same caliber and swords. Under him, new models of artillery pieces and ammunition were developed. The newest types of ships were created.
As a result of the military reforms of Peter the Great, rapid economic growth began in Russia. Indeed, in order to provide such an army colossus, new steel and weapons factories, factories for the production of ammunition were needed. As a result, by 1707 the dependence of the state on the import of weapons from Europe was completely eliminated.
The main results of the reform were the creation of a large and well-trained army, which allowed Russia to start an active military rivalry with Europe and emerge victorious from it.
military reform.
In the state transformations of the era of Peter I, a special place is occupied by military reform, because, as noted by V.O. Klyuchevsky, “the war was the main driving force of transformations, and the military reform was its initial moment. The war indicated the order of the reform, told it the pace and the very methods". So the military reform was the primary transformation of Peter, the longest and most difficult both for himself and for the people. It had a very important significance in our history, having a profound effect on the structure of society and the further course of events.
In modern educational literature, both for secondary schools and for higher educational institutions, the essence of the military transformations of Peter I boils down to the fact that it was through his efforts that the regular army, one of the strongest in the world, and the navy were created in Russia. the army and navy were the main concern of the emperor, no one doubts. But in order to determine what Peter did directly for them I , it is necessary to deal with what he inherited.
According to the definition of the "Great Soviet Encyclopedia": - Regular troops, troops of the permanent (cadre) army, having a full-time organization, uniforms, the procedure for recruiting, serving and training established by law and charters.
The first step towards the creation of a regular army in Russia was the formation of archery regiments in 1550. Streltsy (especially "elected" or "Moscow") were in permanent service, had a fairly clear military organization in peacetime and wartime, received monetary and bread salaries from the state, and even underwent some military training - already under Ivan the Terrible, the archers were "taught military deed and squeaky shooting." The archers were equipped with a "device" of volunteers - free townsmen and rural people. Over time, the archery service became hereditary. At the same time, the state did not yet have either the means or, most importantly, the desire to fully take over the archery army. In their free time from service, the archers were engaged in their own household, from which they received mainly their livelihood. The state gave them weapons, cloth for caftans, and a small salary. In addition, they were provided with land plots and tax incentives for trade and crafts. Streltsy were reduced to orders of about 500 - 1000 people. Orders were divided into hundreds, and hundreds into fifties and tens. They were headed by tenants, Pentecostals, centurions and heads of archers. For the first time in the world, a uniform was introduced for archers. Each regiment had its own color of caftans. There were no systematic military exercises with archers. In peacetime, their service was limited to guarding and performing police functions. It was this, as well as benefits in trade and craft, the opportunity to work on one's own land, that were a "time bomb". This "bomb" exploded in the second half of the 17th century - and the archery regiments lose their former mobility and combat effectiveness. Streltsy are getting closer and closer to the townspeople, "overgrown" with property, crafts, and trade. And the Moscow archers also turn into an instrument of palace intrigues and coups. Which, however, is not surprising - all the capital's guard units paid tribute to this fascinating occupation until the beginning of the 19th century. The initially small streltsy army gradually increased and by the first half of the 17th century reached 20,000 people, and by the last quarter of the 17th century - 40,000 people, more than half of them were Moscow archers.
In addition to the archers, back in the 30s of the 17th century, “regiments of the new system” appeared, that is, soldier, reiter and dragoon regiments formed according to the Western European model. By the end of the 17th century, we already had 48 soldier and 26 spear and reiter regiments. These were peculiar territorial units; scattered throughout the villages, they received a small salary and lived in somewhat worse conditions than the local militia; in autumn, for 1 month of the year, they gathered for training. The regiments were divided into companies; according to the Western model. To supervise these regiments, the work of regimental commanders, permanent commanders with appropriate knowledge and experience in managing such regiments were also required.
In 1670, the system of military ranks of foreign regiments was supplemented by two general ranks - major general and lieutenant general.
The ranks of parts of the foreign system since 1670:
1Private Soldiers (reiter, dragoons)
2 Officers of the lower rankCorporal
3Medium-rank officersWarrant officer
5Captain (captain)
6 Officers of high rankMajor
7 Lieutenant Colonel (half colonel)
8 Colonel
9 GeneralsMajor General
lieutenant general
Russian artillery developed rapidly in its own, original way, and soon it became the most advanced and most powerful. In the wars waged by Ivan III with the Livonian knights and with the Polish invader pans for the unification of the national Russian state, artillery contributed to the victories of the Russian troops. Her successful actions in the battle on the Vedrosha River on July 14, 1500 are especially known. The rapid development and improvement of artillery in the Russian state led to the fact that in Rus', earlier than in any other country, artillery became an independent branch of the army: in 1547, gunners were separated from the archers and a special Pushkar order was created. All this was done at a time when in Western Europe artillery was not yet a separate branch of the armed forces, artillerymen were not considered soldiers, but masters of a special workshop and guns were serviced even in battle by civilian craftsmen, who were hired only for the duration of the war. Only half a century later, events similar to those that had already been held in Rus' began to be held in Western Europe. Already under Ivan the Terrible, Russian artillery became the most numerous in the world: it included more than 2,000 guns, including many heavy ones. Ivan the Terrible introduced regimental artillery to the archery regiments. In the 17th century, the Russian state had to wage many wars. And in these wars, Russian artillery showed its high fighting qualities. In 1605, for the first time in military history, the outcome of the battle near Drbrynich with the interventionists - the Polish gentry - was decided in favor of the Russians exclusively by the fire of Russian artillery from cannons and the fire of archers from self-propelled guns, without the usual hand-to-hand combat in those days. It was artillery that saved the Russian troops from complete defeat and ensured the retreat in order during the defeat near Konotop in 1659.
Military service was carried out in accordance with the "Charter of the military, cannon and other matters relating to military science" of 1621. In addition to it, the book “The Teaching and Cunning of the Military Structure of Infantry Men” of 1647 was translated from German.
The main striking force of the Russian troops of that time continued to be the local noble cavalry. However, in 1659, when pursuing the enemy retreating from Konotop and due to the illiterate command and control of the troops by the voivode, appointed “locally” (that is, due to his noble origin, and not the experience of leading the troops), “the color of the Moscow cavalry, who made happy campaigns in 51 and 55 fold in one day ... Never after that the Tsar of Moscow was already able to bring such a strong militia into the field.
Russian - Polish wars of the seventeenth century revealed the need for a radical restructuring of the armed forces. In 1681, a special meeting of service people was convened, the task of which was set as follows: “in the past military battles, being in battles with the sovereign’s military people, his sovereign enemies showed new inventions in military affairs - for those new-minded enemy tricks, commit them in the sovereign’s armies consideration and a better disposition, so that in wartime you have decent caution and protection against enemies, and so that the former military disposition, which seemed unprofitable in battles, is changed for the better. "The meeting put forward the need to destroy localism and spread European ranks to all types of Russian armed forces .Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich issues a Decree on the unification of military ranks. According to this decree, the military personnel of the archery regiments and regiments of the foreign system received the same rank names and were equated to each other.
1. Soldiers (reiter, dragoons) Sagittarius
2. Officers of the lower rankCorporalForeman
3. Ensign.
4. Officers of middle rankEnsign.
5. Lieutenant Pentecostal
6. Captain (captain) Centurion
7. Officers of high rankMajor.
8. Lieutenant colonel (half-colonel) Half-head
9.ColonelColonel (head)
10. GeneralsMajor General.
lieutenant general
At the same time, the reduction of archers and local troops began in favor of the troops of the foreign system. In 1681, the Russian army had 58 regiments of the "new system", including 33 infantry and 25 Reiters and Dragoons, numbering 90,000 people, and the next year they accounted for more than half of the ground forces. As a result, the basis of the armed forces of the Muscovite kingdom before Peter came to power was the regiments of the "foreign system" - soldiers and Reiters. As a result, the basis of the armed forces of the Muscovite kingdom before Peter came to power was the regiments of the “foreign system” - soldiers and reiters. The soldier (infantry) regiments of the “new system” were recruited mainly from peasants; Reitarsky (equestrian) - from small landed nobles and children of boyars who did not have the means to serve in the local army. The regiments had their own uniform uniform and banners. Peter's personal guards were also regiments of the regular army, formed in 1691 from amusing detachments - Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky. The significance of these regiments for the future Peter's army is enormous: it is through these regiments that almost all future senior officers and dignitaries will pass. These regiments will become a real forge for the officer cadres of the Russian army. Additionally, 2 more elective Moscow regiments were created - Butyrsky (commander - Gordon) and Lefortovsky (commander - Lefort).
The remaining archery regiments and the local cavalry were reorganized and re-equipped according to the "foreign" model. Training was also carried out according to the Western model and by foreign instructors. “The noble militia was fully armed with carbines and other firearms, sabers and broadswords, saddle pistols, all had shells and helmets. Such a noble militia kept little in itself from the medieval estate system. Rather, it is a noble cavalry army of the new time, not much different from the Swedish or French.
The army was fully provided with weapons by Russian industry. If earlier there were only state-owned Cannon Yard, Grenade Yard, Armory and gunpowder factories, then by the end of the 17th century a whole system of private factories was already operating in Tula, Kashira and other places. At least the following fact speaks of the scale of production at private arms factories: in 1646-1648, Tula factories sold abroad more than 800 cannon barrels of various calibers. And the pace of production is constantly increasing.
From the material presented, we can conclude that the regular army already existed, there were officer cadres and experience of military operations, Peter I himself wrote about this: use. And such an army was established in such good order that things were shown in Poland. And almost the entire Polish kingdom was conquered. In the same way, war was waged with Sweden ... and the Military Charter was issued.
However, Peter I still had to create an army.
The command staff of the army inherited by Peter was formed and gained combat experience under Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich and the ruler Sofya Alekseevna, under the command of V.V. Golitsyn. Peter's personal negative attitude towards these people also determined the fate of the highest echelon of the first Russian officers: in 1689-1694 they were all sent into exile on their estates without the right to serve. The army was beheaded. The first result was unsuccessful campaigns against Azov in 1695-1696. The capture of Azov in 1696 by a 70,000-strong land army with the support of the fleet can only be considered a victory with a big stretch - the Cossacks took it earlier with significantly (ten times) smaller forces. The Streltsy uprising of 1698 caused the hasty liquidation of the Streltsy units. But the beginning war with Sweden made its own adjustments, and their disbandment was suspended. Separate streltsy units participated in the capture of Narva in 1704 and the Battle of Poltava in 1709. The regiments of the Moscow archers ceased to exist only in 1713, while the city patrol units existed until 1740. Nevertheless, the deed was done, and the army lost some of its personnel, which needed to be urgently restored. ANDin 1699 the first recruitment was made. The basis of the recruiting system was based on the estate-serf principle. Recruitment kits were extended to the population that paid taxes and carried state duties. With such recruitment, the regiments of recruits hastily drawn up, hastily trained by the Germans, in the words of the secretary of the Austrian embassy Korb in Moscow in 1698-1699, were "a rabble of the most crappy soldiers recruited from the poorest mob." The cadre army, diluted with such replenishment, finally lost its combat effectiveness. (Many years later, in June 1941, the Russian army would again, though for different reasons, find itself in a similar position, when an increase in quantity would lead to a loss in quality). In such a situation and in the absence of a sane command, a clash with any well-prepared army was initially doomed to defeat. About the beginning of the Northern War, the historian Klyuchevsky writes the following: “A rare war took even Russia so unawares and was so poorly thought out and prepared.” The enemy was not just good - the Swedish army was at that time one of the best in Europe and had vast combat experience.
Against 15,000 Swedes, Peter concentrated 60,000 of his soldiers in the Baltic. At the beginning of the campaign, voivode Sheremetev, who commanded a detachment of noble local cavalry, defeated an 8,000-strong detachment of Swedes. That is, the old Moscow governor, with the help of the old Moscow cavalry, defeated a detachment of the regular Swedish army of the same size. And then disaster followed.
On October 3, 1700, the advance detachment of the Russian army, led by Peter, arrived in Narva. By October 29, the Russians completed the concentration of troops and the preparatory siege work and began shelling the fortress. It was not possible to take the city. According to various sources, near Narva, Peter I had from 29 to 37 thousand people (of which 6500 were local noble cavalry) and up to 284 artillery pieces. The garrison of the fortress under the command of Colonel Gorn consisted of 1,300 foot and 200 mounted soldiers. Having received news of the landing of the troops of Charles XII in Pärnu, Peter on November 29 departed from the camp of Russian troops, leaving command to Field Marshal de Croix. It is believed that Peter intended to speed up the approach of the troops stretched out along the way. On November 30, 1700, Charles XII immediately threw his troops into the attack. Due to heavy snowfall (visibility no more than 20 steps), the Swedes managed to approach the Russian positions unnoticed and take the fortifications along with artillery. Panic broke out in the Russian camp. Field Marshal de Croix, in the midst of the battle, surrendered to the Swedes along with the rest of the foreign "specialists" who commanded Peter's troops. Left without command, the infantry units began a panicked retreat. At the same time, the Preobrazhensky, Semyonovsky and Lefortovsky regiments, the divisions of A.I. Golovin, A.A. Veide and I. Yu. Trubetskoy skillfully defended themselves. The fight ended with the onset of darkness. In the morning, a group of Russian generals offered Karl the terms of surrender: the Swedes release Russian troops on the other side of the Narova River with weapons and banners, but without artillery. Karl agreed, but after the transfer of the guards regiments and Golovin's division, he violated the terms of surrender and captured the remaining troops. The Swedes captured 79 generals and officers. The Russian army suffered a heavy defeat: most of the artillery was lost, heavy casualties were suffered. In Europe, the Russian army was no longer perceived as a serious force for several years, and Charles XII received the glory of a great commander. Again, the actions of the local cavalry saved the Russian army from complete disgrace - in the summer of 1702, Sheremetev again defeated a six thousandth detachment of Swedes. Due to the peculiarities of manning, the local cavalry did not receive recruit replenishment and retained its former combat effectiveness. At the same time, due to their small numbers, these units lost their former importance and, by the end of the Northern War, gave way to regular cavalry. The regular army, from which only guards regiments actually remained, had to be created anew.
Since 1705, recruitment sets have been legalized by the relevant decree and have become annual. From 20 yards they took one person, a single person aged 15 to 20 years (however, during the Northern War, these terms were constantly changing due to a shortage of soldiers and sailors). The Russian village suffered most of all from recruiting sets. The service life of a recruit was practically unlimited. The army was formed on the basis of the charter of 1621 and fought virtually the entire Northern War with it. The new “Military Charter” was developed only by 1716. The most noticeable, but absolutely not affecting the combat effectiveness, innovation was the adoption of a European-style uniform for the entire army. But the introduction of a bayonet - baguette in 1708 really changed the structure of infantry units, making unnecessary units of spearmen. Other weapons have not changed. The infantry was armed with smoothbore guns with bayonets, swords, cleavers, and grenades. Dragoons - carbines, pistols and broadswords. The officers of the Russian army were replenished at the expense of the nobles who studied in the guards noble regiments or in specially organized schools (Pushkar, artillery, navigation, fortification, Naval Academy, etc.). The "table of ranks" was of great importance for the organization of the army. This legislative act determined the order of service, both military and civilian officials. The report card was announced on January 24, 1722. The decree on the report card did not allow any violations in the order of service. The report card provided for a gradual promotion up the career ladder, which was important for staffing the officer corps, since there were not enough appropriate educational institutions.
The centralization of military power is gradually being completed. If at the beginning XVIII century, the management of the army continued to carry out several orders, thenafter the creation of the Senate, part of the military administration passed to him, part - to the Military Chancellery, created from the merged military orders. The centralization of military administration ended with the creation of the Military Collegium in 1719. Despite this, the quality of the armed formations left much to be desired, but the number increased from year to year. With a numerical superiority, this army was already able to cope with the extremely exhausted on campaigns and operating in isolation from their bases, the Swedish troops, as in the battle of Poltava in 1709. However, faced with superior enemy forces, as in the Prut campaign of 1711, she suffered defeat. By the end of Peter's reign, all regular troops, infantry and cavalry, were already up to 212 thousand, and 110 thousand Cossacks. It was this huge army that made it possible, in the end, to end the exhausting Northern War, which stretched out for almost a quarter of a century.
This huge military-administrative mechanism is controlled by the general staff headed by the generals, collegiums of the Military, Admiralty, Artillery chancellery headed by the general-feldzeugmeister at the head, with the Provisional office under the command of the general-proviantmeister, with the main commissariat under the control of the general krieg commissar to receive recruits and their placement on the shelves, for distributing salaries to the army and supplying it with weapons, uniforms and horses, required 2/3 of the entire budget of that time for its maintenance. And taking into account the fact that in places of permanent deployment the army did not have barracks to accommodate troops (they century) and the personnel were staying with the local population, we can say that the army ceases to serve the state, and the state begins to serve the army. And the fleet.
Peter I paid great attention to the fleet, but only to the fleet, which was created with his personal participation. The boat, repaired with the personal participation of Peter, was declared the "grandfather of the Russian fleet." Built on the instructions of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich by Russian and foreign craftsmen on the model of the pinnaces of the East India Company and launched on May 19, 1668, the 22-gun warship Orel was not considered at all as any kind of "relative". But it was on it that the Russian tricolor was first raised.
In addition to this ship, in the 16th-17th centuries, Muscovy had a very good fishing and merchant fleet, which arose completely independently of the fleets of other European powers and was based in Arkhangelsk and Kholmogory on the White Sea. According to the classification developed in London by Lloyd's Insurance Agency, the Pomeranian koch is a "northern karakka", no worse than other European varieties. That is, an ocean-going vessel - with a keel, deck, bulwark and two masts with a sail system. Long before the 20th century, these ships were regularly navigating the Northern Sea Route in the conditions of heavy ice conditions, disastrous for other European ships. The Pomors were the first Europeans to discover Svalbard (Russian sailors called it Grumant) and Novaya Zemlya, but the exact time of the discovery of these archipelagos is unknown, although there was information about the polar islands in Rus' as early as the 13th century. An important role in the history of the development of Russian navigation in the North and the development of the north of Siberia at the end of the 16th - beginning of the 17th century was played by the Mangazeya sea route, which united two disconnected sections of the Northeast Passage - the path through the southeastern part of the Barents Sea and through the Kara Sea to the Gulf of Ob .
The size of the kochi was not inferior to the same pinas. Sometimes kochi were used as warships, for which guns were installed on the deck. The largest ship in the Russian north was a sea boat, which had three masts and a carrying capacity of 200 tons.
In the first half of the 18th century, by decree of Peter I, all old Russian ships were destroyed. However, despite Peter’s strictest ban on building “old-fashioned” ships, the kochi existed for almost five hundred years from the 16th to the 20th centuries and helped Russian explorers-industrialists and Cossacks discover and study the entire polar coast of Eurasia, reach the Bering Strait and Anadyr. About the scope of shipbuilding in the North, M. I. Belov wrote the following: , 7 soims, 22 shnyaks, 11 kayuks, 1 yacht and 1 kochmar ... In 1790, 97 koches, 124 boats, 75 spring karbas, 15 shnyaks came to Arkhangelsk ... "
The navy was also periodically created in Russia to solve specific operational and tactical tasks. In 1570, a privateer flotilla, created by order of Ivan the Terrible to support the ground forces in the Livonian War, operated in the Baltic. Armed ships were built in Russia and special ship crews of archers were formed to protect merchant shipping on the Caspian Sea and on the Volga. Since 1624, there was a state business yard in Astrakhan, where trade and military ships were built. In 1658, during the war with Sweden, a river military flotilla was created on the Western Dvina. Created in 1696 by Peter I The Azov military flotilla was also intended primarily to solve a specific operational task - blocking the Azov fortress from the sea and assisting ground units in the assault.
With the beginning of the northern war, the Azov squadron was abandoned, and the Sea of \u200b\u200bAzov itself was lost in a flash. Therefore, all the efforts of Peter turned to the creation of the Baltic fleet. In 1713 the main part of the fleet was ready. The galley (skerry) fleet, consisting of more than 200 ships, entered the Finnish skerries, the Arussian ship fleet, consisting of 18 ships, under the personal command of the king, concentrated in Revel in 1714.
As in the land army, in the navy quantity prevailed over quality. By the end of the reign, the Baltic fleet consisted of 48 battleships and up to 800 galleys and other small ships with 28,000 crew. All the ships built by Peter were knocked together in a shock short time from raw wood and with absolute disregard for the technologies existing at that time. And if earlier the state generously paid for the construction of ships, making no difference between foreign specialists and its own craftsmen, then in the time of Peter the Great, shipbuilding turned into hard labor for the Russians. The result was the same. The ships were very similar to the real ones, but their quality was not good. In addition, recruitment kits could not provide qualified crews for the ship's fleet. As a result, the largest victories of the Russian fleet in the Northern War at Gangut and Grengam, the result is not the actions of battleships and frigates in squadron combat, but desperate attacks of galleys going to board under hurricane artillery fire. Their number decided the outcome of the battle. In general, Peter nevertheless built the fleet. Only now the service life of the ships of this fleet was no more than five years, then the ships rotted in a vulgar way. In 1731, out of 48 large ships, only 8 ships could sail in the ocean and 13 in the Baltic, near the coast. In 1741, the fleet simply could not leave the harbor to meet the Swedish fleet.
But not everything was so bad. The positive effect of this whole enterprise was that the state was accustomed to having a regular navy. Shipyards were built, which still exist, in 1720 the “Charter of the Marine” was adopted. About everything that concerns good governance, when the fleet was at sea”, in 1722 the “Regulations on the management of the Admiralties and Shipyards and on the positions of the Board of the Admiralty and other ranks acquired at the Admiralty” was issued - a set of maritime administrative laws, traditions were laid down.
Under Peter, the general trend in the development of the Russian armed forces, determined by his predecessors, was preserved, but the pace and, most importantly, the methods were such that the result of Peter's military reforms was the ruin of his own state, forced to maintain an exorbitantly huge army and fleet of mediocre quality. And the orientation of the economy, first of all, for the needs of the army became decisive for the entire subsequent history of the Russian state.
The military reform, carried out under the personal leadership of Peter I, was one of the most profound in the history of Russia in terms of its consequences.
Peter I Alekseevich Romanov (1672-1725) - Russian tsar since 1689, the first Russian emperor since 1721, son of Alexei Mikhailovich. Outstanding statesman and military figure, commander and diplomat.
The reform was carried out from 1698 to 1721 and was caused by the following reasons:
Carrying out major political and economic reforms,
Russia's backwardness in economic and military terms;
Lack of a regular army and navy.
The purpose of the Peter's reform is to strengthen the military power of Russia and increase the country's role in the international arena.
1) The creation of a Russian regular army and navy, completed on the basis of a recruiting set. Since 1699, recruitment duty was introduced, legalized by the decree of Peter I in 1705. The state forcibly recruited a certain number of recruits into the army and navy every year. Until 1724, recruits were taken at the rate of one person from 20 households, later 5-7 people from 1000 male souls. The draft age of recruits was 20-30 years, and the term of service in the army was for life.
2) Formation of a national officer corps. It was recruited mainly from the nobility. Military service began at the age of 15. Before receiving the officer's rank, the young man was obliged to serve for 10 years as a private in the guards or army regiments. The nobleman-guardsman lived as a soldier, in the regimental barracks, received a soldier's ration and acted as a private.
Under Peter I, for the first time, educational institutions were created in Russia for the training of naval, artillery, engineering and other specialist officers. Peter I forbade the promotion of officers to persons who had not received appropriate training in a military school.
A unified system of military ranks and solid foundations for the passage of service are introduced, enshrined in the Table of Ranks of 1722. The service ladder included 14 classes from field marshal and general admiral to ensign. The basis of service and chinoproizvodstvo was not social origin, but personal abilities, education, experience, literacy, courage of an officer
3) The military reform established a new organizational structure of the troops and unified states. The armed forces consisted of field armies, garrison troops and irregular units. Three types of troops were distinguished in the structure of the armed forces: infantry, cavalry and artillery. In 1708, special grenadier units were formed. These were a kind of assault military units. The main tactical unit in the infantry and cavalry was the regiment. It consisted of 2 battalions of 4 companies each, cavalry - of 5 squadrons. The number of the regiment - up to 1500 people. There were about 40 officers in the regiment, the rest were privates.
4) The army and navy began to be maintained at the expense of the state, and were national in composition.
5) Creation of a regular navy. In 1722, the fleet in the Baltic consisted of 130 (32 of them linear) sailing and up to 200 rowing ships. The Admiralty shipyard in St. Petersburg became the center of shipbuilding, and Kronstadt became the main base of the fleet. In the construction of the fleet and the creation of the Russian military school, great merit belonged to Peter I, F. M. Apraksin, N. A. Senyavin, F. A. Golovin. As a result of the reform, Russia in the 18th century became one of the largest maritime powers.
6) Creation of unified military command and control bodies of the armed forces: instead of the Orders, Peter I established a military collegium (1718).
7) Creation of a unified system of training and education, which was distinguished by simplicity and practicality, military regulations were developed and implemented (military regulations - 1716, naval regulations - 1720, military articles, institutions for battle, rules for field battles).
8) As part of the reform, the army was rearmed. It was completed by 1709. The infantry received the same type of firearms - smooth-bore guns with a shock-cream lock and a trihedral bayonet. In addition, swords, cleavers, grenades.
Peter I established the first Russian order - the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called, which was awarded for "extraordinary" services to the Fatherland. The first cavalier of this order was Peter's associate, the future Field Marshal of Russia F. A. Golovin. The founder of the order himself is the sixth in the list of St. Andrew's Knights.
During the implementation of the reform, problems and difficulties arose, which was facilitated by the economic backwardness of Russia and the confrontation of part of the nobility. But, despite this, powerful armed forces were created in Russia, the core of which was the "amusing regiments" created on the initiative of the young Tsar Peter I, from which the first regular regiments, Semenovsky and Preobrazhensky, were formed in 1691.
The influence of Peter's military reforms was so great in its effectiveness that subsequently the armed forces developed and improved under the powerful influence of these transformations, up to the reforms of the 60s. XIX.
At the beginning of the XIX century. quite large military transformations were developed and partially implemented in Russia. They were due to a number of factors. At the end of the XVII century. - early 19th century in Russia there was a process of decomposition of feudalism. Under these conditions, it was necessary to maintain the political dominance of the nobility, to prevent the possibility of revolutionary upheavals in the countries of Western Europe. In addition, during these years, Russia waged long wars, which showed that the opponents, in particular bourgeois France, had a more progressive military organization. Another factor that determined the need for reform was that the Prussian military system imposed by Paul I was outdated and required radical changes.
Having ascended the throne in 1801, Alexander I openly proclaimed a course towards reforming all aspects of life, including in the military field:
First, in 1802, the central military administration was reorganized. Instead of the Military Collegium and the Admiralty Collegium created by Peter I, the Military and Naval Ministries are being created, and the former collegiums are being transformed into an advisory body under the ministries.
Secondly, transformations have been carried out in the organization of troops. In the infantry and cavalry, a division became a permanent military unit, which consisted of 2-3 brigades of two regiments and an artillery brigade. Divisions were reduced to corps - higher formations, both in infantry and in cavalry. The corps had, as a rule, two divisions and two artillery brigades. Corps united in the army. So, at the beginning of 1812, the troops were brought together in 8 infantry, 4 cavalry corps and two Cossack detachments and were distributed between the 1st and 2nd Western, 3rd Reserve and Danube armies. The number of jaeger regiments capable of fighting in loose formation has increased.
Thirdly, the Russian army of 1809 received a more advanced 7-line flintlock gun, which made it possible to introduce aimed shooting training for troops. With the active participation of General P.I. Bagration and the Minister of War. M. B. Barclay de Tolly developed and introduced new statutes and instructions.
Fourthly, the officer training system received some improvement. The complication of military affairs required an increase in the level of special training for officers and an expansion of the network of military educational institutions.
All these and some other transformations were a significant departure from the Prussian system of Paul I, the revival of the national traditions of the Russian army, the traditions of Peter I, P. A. Rumyantsev, A. V. Suvorov. They had a positive effect on the Russian army, which during the Patriotic War of 1812 under the command of M.I. Kutuzova defeated Napoleon's strongest army at that time.
In the autumn of 1861 General D. A. Milyutin (1816-1912), an energetic supporter of reforms in the army, was approved for the post of Minister of War. In January 1862, he presented to the tsar a draft military reform, which approved it. Russia entered a period of military reforms that lasted 12 years (1862-1874).
The purpose of these reforms was to create a mass army, to eliminate the military backwardness of Russia, revealed in the Crimean War of 1853-1856.
The main directions of the military reform and its results were as follows:
Replacing the recruiting system of manning troops with all-class military service. According to the adopted Charter on military service (1874), all men who had reached the age of 20 were involved in the service. The term of active service in the ground forces was determined at 6 years and then 9 years in the reserve, in the navy - 7 years and 3 years in the reserve.
The charter provided for the release from military service of a significant number of persons: ministers of religious worship, doctors, teachers, the peoples of Central Asia and Kazakhstan, the Far North and the Far East, the Caucasus. They were exempted from being drafted into the army due to marital status (the only son, if he was the breadwinner of the family). In the country as a whole, the number of those annually drafted into the army did not exceed 30% of those of military age. Great benefits were provided to people who had an education: for those who graduated from higher educational institutions, the term of active service was reduced to 6 months, for gymnasiums - up to one and a half years.
The transition of military service allowed the state to reduce the size of the army in peacetime and significantly increase the contingent of the military-trained reserve. Its number at the end of the century was about 3 million people;
A reform of military education, training and retraining of officer cadres was carried out. A significant place among military reforms was occupied by the problem of officer training. In the 60s of the XIX century, a reform of military educational institutions was carried out. Its goal was to prepare a cadre of officers devoted to the Fatherland, well educated and trained in military affairs.
The system of higher military education has not undergone a major reorganization, and the reforms in this area have affected only certain aspects of the organization of military academies, as well as changes in curricula in the direction of making military training more practical. Two new academies were opened; Military-legal and Naval. At the end of the century in Russia there were 6 military academies (of the General Staff, Medical and Surgical, Artillery, Engineering, Legal and Naval). But the number of listeners in them was insignificant. So, in the Artillery Academy, the number of students did not exceed 60 people.
The secondary military school underwent a serious reorganization. Instead of the old cadet corps, military gymnasiums were created, which provided a general secondary education and prepared young men for entering military schools, and pro-gymnasiums with a 4-year term of study to prepare for entering cadet schools. In these gymnasiums, students wore military uniforms, the way of life had a semi-military character.
In the early 1960s, military and cadet schools were organized. In military schools, the period of study was 3 years; young men who graduated from military gymnasiums were accepted there. Military schools immediately acquired a purely military organization, and the internal routine in them was based on the implementation of the strictest military discipline, those who did not comply with it were subject to liability under the disciplinary regulations. “... in our school,” says one of the former cadets, Krivenko, in his memoirs, “the junkers were looked at not as they used to be at the cadets of special classes, but as persons who really were in the military service, and therefore strict discipline was carried out systematically , with a strong hand."
Junker schools were intended for the training of officers from persons who did not have a general secondary education, as well as from the lower ranks of the army, who came from noble and chief officer families. The volume of military knowledge given to the junkers was much less than in military schools.
For the training of technical and other specialists, weapons, technical, pyrotechnic, topographic, medical assistant and other schools were created. In order to improve military knowledge and retrain officers, one-year schools were established.
As a result of the reform of the military school, the training of command and engineering personnel has noticeably improved, and their number has increased. By the end of the XIX century. the average annual release of officers reached 2 thousand people, which made it possible to provide up to 80% of vacancies in the army and navy.
In 1882 the military gymnasiums were liquidated. At the same time, the government restored the cadet corps as closed noble educational institutions.
As a result of the reform of the military school, the training of command and engineering personnel has noticeably improved, and their number has increased.
By the end of the XIX century. trained annually:
There are about 12 thousand people in the cadet corps,
There are 5.5 thousand people in military schools,
In the Junker 2.8 thousand people,
There are 850 people in the academies.
Major changes were made in the field of military command and organization of troops. The central administration was still carried out by the Ministry of War, which consisted of: 1) the Military Council; 2) Offices; 3) the General Staff; 4) Main departments. The rights of the ministry were expanded: if earlier most of the troops (guards, active army, etc.) were not subordinate to it, now the entire army has become under its jurisdiction.
A major event was the creation of a military district system. The country was divided into 15 military regions. Each district was headed by a commander who was subordinate to the tsar, but performed his functions under the leadership of the minister of war.
Supreme command over all armed forces belonged to the emperor. His closest aide was the Minister of War.
The most important component of military reforms is the rearmament of the army and navy. The Russian infantry began to receive rifled small arms - the Berdan system rifle, and then the Mosin three-line rifle (1891).
Berdanka is a single-shot rifle of 4.2 line caliber (10.67 mm) chambered for a metal cartridge. Charged from the treasury. Developed by Russian engineers sent to the USA by Colonel A.P. Gorlov and captain K.I. Guiius with the assistance of American Colonel X. Berdan. Berdan rifles No. 1 (1868), No. 2 (1870) were adopted for service. There were 3 types No. 2 - infantry, dragoon and Cossack rifles.
Mosin Sergey Ivanovich (1849-1902) - Russian designer of small arms, major general since 1900. In 1890 he created a "three-line" rifle - a caliber of 7.62 mm, a five-shot magazine. The rifle was modernized in 1910, 1930 and 1933. Its combat rate of fire is 10-12 rounds per minute, the aiming range is up to 2 thousand meters, the weight with a bayonet is 4.5 kg, without a bayonet - 4 kg.
Artillery was rearmed with steel rifled guns. In the second half of the XIX century. there was a transition from a sailing to a steam armored fleet. By the end of the century, Russia ranked third in Europe in terms of the number of warships: England had 355 ships, France - 204, Russia - 107.
One of the directions of military reforms was an attempt to improve the financial situation of the officer corps, to increase the prestige of military service. In 1859 officers were given higher salaries. In 1886, salaries for line officers were increased by 10-40%. As a result, the annual salary was: 10,950 rubles for corps commanders, 5,256 rubles for division chiefs, 3,711 rubles for regiment commanders, 1,380 rubles for battalion commanders, and 1,032 rubles for company commanders. Noticeable disproportionate pay. But even after these measures, the officer's salary was slightly different from the earnings of skilled workers in St. Petersburg. So, in the 90s. the lieutenant received 40 rubles. per month, and the St. Petersburg artisan 22 and above. For comparison: the corresponding categories of officers in France received 2 times in Germany - 3 times more.
Thus, the military reforms of the second half of the XIX century. were progressive. They increased the combat effectiveness of the Russian army and navy, which was demonstrated by the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878. At the same time, they met with serious resistance from conservative forces, both in the army and in the country as a whole.
The historical conditions that prevailed in the world at the beginning of the 20th century, including in Russia, revealed new trends in the development of military affairs. First of all, they include:
Qualitative changes in the material sphere;
The rate of fire and range of artillery systems and small arms have sharply increased;
The army began to receive armored vehicles, tanks, airplanes;
Active introduction of new means of communication - telegraph, telephone, radio;
Mass armies of many millions are being created;
Wars began to be protracted;
The relationship between the army and the people, the front and the rear has changed;
The role of the rear increased sharply, the supply of the army could be provided by the forces of the entire national economy, and not by the military industry alone;
The need for military reforms was shown by the wars of the new era, especially the Russo-Japanese war of 1904-1905, the defeat in which forced the Russian government to start reforming its armed forces (1905-1912).
For the reorganization of the Russian army, a special commission was formed under the Council of State Defense (SGO), created in June 1905. In the military field, the following transformations were carried out:
1. The reorganization of the Central Military Directorate was carried out: Since 1905, the General Staff has become an independent body independent of the Military Ministry. He was given all the questions of preparing the country for war. The Naval General Staff is being created.
2. In 1912, a new law on military service was introduced, which reduced benefits for marital status and increased benefits for education.
3. The terms of active service were reduced: in the infantry and artillery from 5 to 3 years, in other branches of the military - from 5 to 4, in the navy - from 7 to 5 years. The reserve was divided into two categories according to age. Persons of a young age were determined to replenish the field troops, the older - to the rear.
4. Weak in terms of combat reserve and fortress troops (15% of the number of the Russian army) were abolished.
5. Corps and field heavy artillery have been created, engineer troops and signal troops have been strengthened, and corps squadrons have been formed.
6. Increased the number of troops in the Central districts.
7. New artillery systems are being adopted: 122-mm, 152-mm howitzers, 107-mm guns; machine-gun teams are created in the regiments (8 machine guns);
8. Measures are being taken to improve the training of officer cadres, and their financial situation is improving. By 1914, there were 28 cadet corps, 19 military schools, 4 naval schools, 7 academies, 3 naval higher schools, etc. in Russia. Measures were taken to rejuvenate the officer corps. About 7,000 officers and generals were dismissed from the army due to age or inadequacy to their assignment. In 1912, among the officers there were: noblemen - about 70%. honorary citizens - up to 11%, clergy - more than 3%, merchants - 2.2%, taxable class (peasants and philistines) about 4%. Among the generals, hereditary nobles accounted for 87% and staff officers (lieutenant colonel-colonel) about 71.5%, among other officers - more than half.
9. New charters were adopted (including a charter on officer pensions) and instructions that made it possible to improve combat training, taking into account the experience of the war.
10. Since 1906, the restoration of the Russian navy began. On the basis of the Russo-Japanese War, Russia's progressive naval leaders on the whole correctly outlined the main trends in the development of fleets and correctly assessed the role of new combat forces and assets in a future war. The Navy was replenished with new ships of all classes. According to the projects of outstanding shipbuilders A.N. Krylov and I.G. Bubnov, battleships of the Sevastopol type were built, which in technical terms were the best ships of this type for that time. Novik-class destroyers and Bars-class submarines were created, which were considered the best in the world. The fleet received good torpedo and mine weapons. In 1914, Russia had 9 battleships, 15 cruisers, 99 destroyers, 23 submarines and a large number of auxiliary vessels.
Military reforms 1905-1912 raised the combat capability of the Russian army and navy. In terms of their combat training, they were not inferior to the armed forces of Western European countries. The Russian soldier was brave, steadfast, hardy, capable of conducting intense combat operations. The non-commissioned officers and officers of the lower and middle levels were well prepared for the war.
In 1914 Russia had the largest army in the world - over 1.4 million people (in August 1914, after mobilization - 5,338,000). It was armed with 7088 guns, of which 240 were heavy, 4157 machine guns of the Maxim system, 263 aircraft, 4000 vehicles.
But the reforms of 1905-1912. were carried out without taking into account financial possibilities, and as a result were carried out partially. The technical backwardness of the country did not allow to completely re-equip the army. Insufficient training of senior command staff hampered the implementation of the reform.
Thus, the military transformations and reforms of the pre-October period were caused by a number of objective prerequisites:
Carrying out a number of important events in society in terms of political and economic reforms;
Changes in the international situation and the interests of the economy;
The results of the ended wars.
The main goals of military reforms and transformations:
Strengthening the centralized state,
Strengthening the military power of Russia,
Elimination of the military backwardness of the country,
Improving the combat capability of the army and navy.
Military reforms and transformations in the Soviet period
The Red Army, the creation of which began as early as January 1918, was fundamentally different from the old army in terms of its goals and tasks. In addition, in the 1920s were the period of the beginning of a new round in the qualitative development of military equipment and weapons.
The need for reform was due to the difficult economic situation of the country, the impossibility of maintaining a large army; unsatisfactory leadership of the Armed Forces; low level of combat training; inconsistency of the organizational structure with the economic opportunities of the country.
All this led to the fact that by the mid-1920s. there is an urgent need for military reform of the Red Army and the RKKF. At the same time, both the experience of the First World War and the Civil War, as well as the needs of peacetime, were taken into account. The reform was carried out by a commission headed by M.V. Frunze.
The purpose of the event was to strengthen the armed forces, reduce their numbers in accordance with peacetime conditions and the economic capabilities of the country.
There were two stages in the reform: the first - 1921-1923; second-1924-1925 (a number of historians define the scope of the military reform of 1924-1928).
At the first stage, a radical reduction of the armed forces was carried out. By the end of the Civil War, citizens of seventeen military ages (born 1885-1901) served in the ranks of the Red Army, and its number was 5.3 million people.
By the summer of 1923, the regular army was brought to 562 thousand people (reduced by almost 10 times).
At the second stage:
The introduction of the territorial-militia system of building the army in combination with personnel. This made it possible to have at minimal cost a small core of the army capable of ensuring the inviolability of state borders, and in the event of war, quickly mobilize large military forces. The transition to a mixed recruitment system was due to purely economic factors, because the Soviet state was not able to maintain a cadre army of more than 1 million people,
Change in the organizational structure. Numerous headquarters were liquidated. From October 1923 to October 1924, the central apparatus was reduced by 22.7%, the apparatuses of military districts - by an average of 33.5%, and the apparatuses of supply agencies by 40%. Paper reporting has decreased by three-quarters;
Transition to a solid recruiting system (autumn annual call);
Qualitative renewal of the command staff, restructuring of the military personnel training system - transition from the system of short-term courses to military schools with a three-four-year training period, creation of 6 academies; improving the financial situation of military personnel. In 1924, the material content of the command staff increased by 30-40%, and the Red Army soldier - from 35 kopecks to 1 ruble. 20 kopecks;
The introduction of unity of command;
Reorganization of the military leadership;
Creation of national formations. By the spring of 1925, they accounted for 10% of its total number.
The results achieved in the course of the military reform were that the armed forces were brought into line with the new conditions for the development of the state, the possibilities of its economy and the level of development of military science and technology.
During the implementation of military reforms, many problems and difficulties arose:
The inability to ensure high combat training during short-term training camps;
The impossibility of deploying formations in accordance with the operational plans for the deployment of the army in case of war;
The overload of the army with the performance of numerous tasks in the internal service (the fight against banditry, the protection of objects of the national economy, various kinds of chores).
As a result of the reform of 1924-1925 (1928). the armed forces of the country were brought into line with the new conditions for the development of the state, the possibilities of its economy and the level of development of military science and technology. The organizational strengthening of the army provided an increase in the country's defense capability.
The subsequent experience of military construction indicates that military reforms were no longer carried out, but radical transformations of the armed forces were carried out.
Their main content was the partial solution of quite important military, mobilization and some other tasks. Despite the rather voluminous nature of these transformations, they took place in the framework of the implementation of specific government decisions. What was common with the military reform was that many of the measures taken stemmed from the fundamental changes that had taken place in the international situation, as well as in the economic, political and spiritual spheres of society.
Perestroika in the USSR in 1935-1939 bore some features of the military reform. It was this term - "perestroika" - that was put forward by the February-March (1937) plenum of the Central Committee of the VKB (b).
The transformations in the Red Army during the 1930s are characterized by the following features:
Dramatically, the circle of participants in the development of the main directions of transformations was reduced. The Central Committee of the VKB (b), having studied the proposals received from the troops, recommended that the Council of Labor and Defense (STO) and the Revolutionary Military Council of the USSR develop an action plan for the further organizational strengthening of the Red Army within a month. In April 1935 such a plan was presented and approved by the Politburo in May. By the resolution of the STO of June 16, 1938, it was proposed to gradually increase the number of divisions in the Red Army to 106 by January 1, 1938, while increasing the number of personnel divisions to 71. By the beginning of 1939, all divisions of the Red Army became personnel, the strength of the armed forces from 1936 to 1939 almost doubled - from 1.1 to 2 million people.
It should be noted that in the course of the reform, an uncritical, laudatory approach to assessing the current situation in the armed forces was observed. It was especially manifested in the speech of the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR K.E. Voroshilov at the XVIII Congress of the VKB (b) in March 1939, which in fact was a clear deception of the people (with the support of I.V. Stalin and other members of the top leadership). This led to the fact that by September 1939, the territorial divisions in the Red Army were practically liquidated, and personnel divisions did not exist in the full sense due to the lack of appropriate support and material and technical supply. An analysis of the state of the reorganization divisions testified to their extremely low combat effectiveness, low income and lack of training. In addition, the period of reorganization coincided with massive repressions among the military personnel, which had an enormous scale.
Under these conditions, of course, the expected strengthening of the armed forces from the ongoing reforms did not actually happen.
The next period of transformation in military construction was associated with the end of the Second World War. The government already had experience in reorganizing the Armed Forces during the transition from war to peace in the 1920s. It would seem that all issues related to this should have been thought out and resolved at the scientific level, taking into account the peculiarities. Unfortunately, it did not happen.
During the Great Patriotic War, a centralized principle was firmly formed in solving all problems, the command-administrative system was strengthened, which at that time was justified to a certain extent. Questions related to the future of the Armed Forces have become the prerogative of the highest echelons of party power. Neither party congresses nor Plenums of the Party Central Committee were convened to resolve these issues.
The solution of all questions on the reorganization of the Armed Forces became the function of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Party and the Council of People's Commissars. So, in February 1946, in accordance with the decision of the Politburo, the decision of the Council of People's Commissars reorganized the people's commissariats of defense and the Navy. By a decree of the Council of People's Commissars of February 25, 1946, all leadership of the army and navy was concentrated in the People's Commissariat of the Armed Forces, which was soon renamed the Ministry of the Armed Forces. The transfer of the army and navy to a peaceful position began with a reduction in their numerical strength. According to the law adopted by the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on June 23, 1945, by the beginning of 1948, about 8.5 million people were demobilized from the armed forces. By this time, our armed forces numbered 2.874 million people.
For the period of the late 40's - early 50's. characteristic is the absence of clear forecasts in military construction, at least for a short time. This can be confirmed by the reorganization of the highest bodies of military command and control. In February 1950, the Ministry of the Armed Forces was divided into two ministries - the Military Ministry and the Naval Ministry of the USSR. The Supreme Military Council, established in March 1950 under the Council of Ministers of the USSR, became the supreme state body for the leadership of all the armed forces. Then, in March 1953, both ministries were reunited into the USSR Ministry of Defense. Under him, the Main Military Council was created. All this suggests that previous decisions were made without sufficient elaboration.
Reorganization of the armed forces in the 50s. was caused by the military-technical revolution. Its essence consisted in a sharp, spasmodic transition to nuclear missiles and, accordingly, the emergence of new methods for achieving the strategic goals of war.
The peculiarity of these transformations was that an attempt was made to revive the tradition of considering military issues at the Plenums of the Central Committee of the CPSU and party congresses. At the same time, the negative trend of the late 1930s also persisted, when military issues were not considered in depth, and the matter was limited to laudatory assessments, ill-conceived and hasty decisions. In society, the point of view was increasingly firmly established, according to which the initiative for transformations should come from the first leader of the party and the country. So, in the late 50s, N.S. Khrushchev, in a conversation with the editor of the foreign department of The Times newspaper, declared: "We are in favor of, in the final analysis, liquidating the armies, switching to a militia system ...".
In a concentrated form, this course was presented in a report at the IV session of the Supreme Council. In particular, it was noted: “The government and the Central Committee of our party are now considering and studying the question of subsequently switching to the territorial system in the development of the Armed Forces ... We think that the territorial system will be able to provide the necessary personnel and contingents of the population trained in military affairs and mastery of modern weapons.
Such strange and unexpected statements were hardly the result of research, testing, scientific development.
Of interest is the reduction of the Armed Forces in the mid-1950s and early 1960s. Practice shows that many of the decisions made were of a voluntaristic nature.
For 1955-1956 the number of the Armed Forces decreased by 1840 thousand people. The implementation of such large-scale measures did not have a scientific basis, the consequences of the reduction for the combat readiness of the armed forces were not studied in depth, and the social protection of dismissed officers and conscripts was not provided.
This period is also characterized by an orgy with the appointment of defense ministers (1953-1955 - Bulganin, 1955-1957 - Zhukov, 1957-1967 - Malinovsky).
Transformations in the Armed Forces of the USSR in the 60-70s. occurred in the period immediately preceding today's perestroika. The determining criterion for the development of the Armed Forces at that time was the analysis of the international situation. The economic possibilities of the state were considered as a secondary factor. In 1961, US President D. Kennedy recognized the military forces of the USSR and the United States as equal, and two years later he spoke publicly for the first time in favor of revising some Cold War dogmas. This was an exceptionally favorable moment for reviewing the prospects for Soviet military construction. However, the underestimation of political means in building confidence between the opposing blocs led to the fact that the country was "drawn" into a long period of an arms race. This policy led to the fact that in some years we spent a quarter of our budget on military spending. Naturally, this required a large army, the number of which increased sharply after the adoption in 1967. Law of the USSR "On universal military duty".
After the April (1985) Plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU, perestroika began in the country. It affected all spheres of life in Soviet society, including the Armed Forces. However, the planned reforms in the military field remained unfulfilled due to the collapse of the USSR and the Soviet Armed Forces.
Thus, military reforms and transformations during the period of Soviet construction indicate that they were different in content, but at the same time they had much in common. Both positive and negative results of the military reforms of these years can and should be taken into account today when reforming the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.
