Russian Imperial Army-- Reforms of 1870s aim to imporve Mobilizatoin and Infantry Tactics.

NOTE: These were 2 answers to SHORT-ESSAY Questions, confined to 500 words.

Question:

(Summarized) During the Reforms of the Imperial Army (RUSSIAN) in 1870s, the Russian Military Generals feverishly worked to imporve both their mobilization readiness (Question 4) and their Infantry Tactics (Question 5). Comment.

Answer 4:

In order to avoid another long answer (IE Question 3--see note at bottom of this submitted essay), simply stated, the vital aspect of the Russian military system was the perfection of the Mobilization process. As early as the 1860s the Russians anticipated war with the Triple Alliance, and through the entire heightened awareness they were more than aware of the near two week advantage they forfeited to their enemy in regards to fully mobilization of their armies. The focal point of the MOB process was that any conflict would occur to Russia's west, and although the majority of their regular army forces were positioned there, almost all their reserve forces were strewn throughout the interior of the vast country--and the railroad system in place was in no way prepared to absorb the brunt of mobilizing the necessary forces quickly enough to prevent a deep penetration of enemy forces before the Offensive could begin.

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Pre-mobilization Training Assistance Element

Not to undercut the entire scheme of MOB-Readiness to the mere existence of a vast railroad network, the majority of Russia's lack of mobilization skills stemmed from the lack of a usable railroad system. Therefore, the Offensive War Planning resulted from the reality that Germany could successfully mobilize and transport their entire force to the inside frontier of Germany before Russian could fully mobilize itself. Naturally, the other aspects held their own in regards to importance, but Russia had previously overcome higher-echelon command problems (thus negating Officer Corps answer), and had overcome the technological problems (as seen against the Turks,