ABSTRACT
In 1914 the war broke out, quite unexpectedly for Russia; yet public opinion by no means considered that we were not ready to take up Germany's challenge. The phases of the war have differed vastly for the Russian Army; but down to the very day of the Revolution, down to the day when, in the author's opinion, the Russian Army ceased to exist, the Russian soldier, properly led, always proved to be a superb fighting-man, no matter what the circumstances. It seems extraordinary that a country which had such a comprehensive military system as Russia should have proved to be so unprepared in comparison with Germany. Knowing the habits of the Russian population, one can say for certain that had not the sale of vodka been prohibited, the mobilization could never have been successfully effected. Russia's great handicap was the comparatively poor technical equipment of the Armies.
