History of the Russian Army

The first mentions in the history of the creation of military organizations in Russia date back to the sixth century. The history of the Russian army began with the fact that tribal alliances of the Slavs began to create armed militias for protection from enemies. In the militia were almost all adult men. By the end of the VIII century the prince's squads had replaced the militia. These squads were already formed entirely from professional, trained soldiers. At that time, the basis of the troops of the Slavs were the formations, consisting of foot soldiers. The cavalry was assigned the role of guard and reconnaissance service.

The armament of the Russian soldiers of that time was the simplest: double-edged swords, spears, bows, battle axes, as well as rattles, knives and clubs. To protect the soldiers used helmets, chain mail and shields. Already at the end of the 10th century, the battles fought by the Russian army showed that the importance of cavalry began to grow in them. Therefore, the history of the Russian army during the following centuries is closely connected with the development of the cavalry, which in the Russian principalities was the main armed force. At the end of the fourteenth century Rus from the principalities became a single state and from this moment the history of the creation of the armed forces of Russia is taking its toll.

At the same time, firearms appeared, which helped create an even more efficient army. The main force of the Russian army was a noblemen's militia, consisting mainly of mounted soldiers. Ivan the Terrible created in the middle of the XVI century the Archer army. This was the result of his military reform. Streltsy carried military service not only in wartime, but also in peace. All the troops of the Strelets had the same weapons and uniform military uniform. The total strength of this army in peacetime was about 20 thousand people. In wartime, the army was replenished with the help of militias (about 90 thousand people), as well as cavalry from the nobility (about 100 thousand people).

The further history of the Russian army is already associated with the name of the young Tsar Peter I, who conducted new military reforms in the 18th century. These reforms became extremely important for the country and their result was the creation of a regular army, which in number was already more than 200 thousand people. In addition to the already familiar ground forces , a powerful naval fleet was created. The military fleet at that time already included more than 800 sailing and rowing vessels. The main armament of the army was a smooth-bore rifle with a bayonet for infantry, and lightened rifles, pistols and swords for cavalry. During the reign of Peter I, the history of the Russian border troops gained further development.

Created by Peter the Great, the powerful Russian army was able to win many convincing victories for the glory of Russia. However, the further history of the Russian army consists not only of victories, but also of crushing defeats. A vivid example in this was the Russian-Japanese war that took place in 1904-1905. Despite the heroism of the Russian soldiers, the war for Russia ended tragically, and the tsarist government had no choice but to capitulate on the most humiliating conditions. Then there were successes and defeats of the Russian army in the First World War.

The further history of the Russian army continued in the years of Soviet power, when the Red Army was created. By 1918, its membership already included more than 450 thousand people. Its combat readiness was tested during the Civil War, in the military conflicts of 1936-1940 in Spain, Japan and Finland. The severest and most tragic events of the Great Patriotic War from 1941 to 1945 were the most severe tests not only for the Russian army, but for the whole country. In this war, despite all the difficulties and hardships, the Soviet soldiers were able to demonstrate to the whole world vivid examples of courage and heroism, having won a cruel and strong opponent. The newest stage of the development of the Russian army began after the collapse of the Soviet Union.