Entry of America and the exit of Russia in WWI

What led to Russia's withdrawal from the war?

The 1917, for the Russian history, is a crucial year because of different events that happened in this period of time.
As amatter of fact, Russia withdrew from the conflict by signing the Armistice of Brest-Litovsk (which will last five years) with Germany.
This peace entailed considerable territorial losses for Russia that were incorporated into Germany: Poland, Lithuania, Estonia and Livania. Russia also had to paid a heavy compensation.

Russia had to withdraw from the conflict due to the Russian revolution followed by a civil war that was waged by Lenin, from the Marxist party, who wanted to create a communist society and get rid of the zar.

Lenin's communist ideology

Lenin was an ideologist of Communism. His ideology was based on the fact that part of the struggle of the proletarians was the capitalist society without classes, where everyone could have been equal and goods could belong to everyone.

This ideology did not expect the use of arms. Lenin spoke of the revolution to the proletarians through demonstrations and promises about workers' rights. He was a supporter of the ideology that capitalism was a historical phenomenon and the end of capitalism should take place physiologically.

Lenin has the intention of making Russia a communist society but does not want to wait the physiological end of capitalism because he wanted to anticipate the end of forming a communist society by using the force with civil war.
Lenin believed that it was the time for Russia to unleash a civil war and as a result he forced to make the government withdraw troops from the World War I.

US entry into the war

The 1917 also enshrines the entry in war of the United States of America. And it is thanks to their intervention that the tide of the war changed.
The causes that led the president Thomas Wilston to declare war on Germany in April 1917 were different.

The motivating factor was the fact that a German submarine attacked and sank indifferently merchant ships of all countries even those not at war. And then, since different merchant ships were sunk with some American passengers, then America had to act against Germany.

Another reason was linked to the friendly relationship between Great Britain and the USA (business relations).

Moreover, the Americans knew by the secret agencies that Germany had signed a secret agreement with the Mexican government for conflict together against the US.

A further reason, probably the most important, were the economic interests in the middle east, especially in the Mediterranean. In fact if the war had been won by the Austro-German coalition, commercial traffic would be challenged with an economic loss to the US.

Another reason was the fact that the states of the Entente, England, France and Russia had their debts to US banks that did credit to support the conflict. Aid and loans were also accumulated with armed wagon and aircraft from all the American continent. So a possible defeat of the Triple Entente would not have allowed to the USA to be paid then the return of the money was put in doubt.

Italy's challenges and changes

Meanwhile, before the fate of the conflict had changed, there were huge losses in Italy as the tragic defeat that undergoes at Caporetto, in Udine, where many Italians died because of the attack of the contemporary Austro-German troops flocked en masse after the withdrawal of Russia from conflict.

Germany then send some other armies in France and in Italy, but that meant that Italy had to face two armies. The defeat was also determined by the difference between the outdated Italian army against those the modern ones in Germany. The defeat was also due to mistakes of a military nature committed by Luigi Cadorna who was not a great expert of war strategy.

It should be also add that the mood of the Italian soldiers in the field was low, in fact they thought that the war was very close to be finished, knowing what had happened in Russia. On the contrary, Italy had to suffer heavy defeats and more and more uncertainties.
As a matter of fact, the rulers escaped Italy for cover and in the meantime the commander Cadorna was replaced by Armando Diaz, who, to make up the morale of the soldiers who were peasants workers, uses the strategy that was also used by Garibaldi. It consisted in a kind of brainwash because he had to convince them that if they had resisted, once defeated the enemy forces, the Italian Government would have done so many donations such territories, work etc .. then the victory had to be a duty.

Italy's victory and unification

In November 1918, it was fought the battle of Vittorio Veneto, in which Italy won and the Austrians lost, so that Italy could annex the Trentino and the Veneto regions.

The belligerent situation become advantageous for Italy and for all forces Entente, thanks to the entry of US soldiers well armed and fresh into war. This led to the end of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the creation of two distinct nations, Austria and Hungary.

Germany was defeated in France thanks to the military superiority of the Entente and this brought the end of the war and the fall of the Germany. On November 3, 1918 Italy signed an armistice with Austria with what they completed the unification of Italy with the regions in the hand of the Empire.