Latest / The Romanov Dynasty: Rise, Power, and Bloody End — Fexingo History / The Romanovs and the Russo-Japanese War: A Tsar's Humiliation
Transcript
- Lucas: For anyone coming with us through these conversations about Eastern Europe, especially the Romanovs, we've talked about Peter the Great building a navy, Catherine expanding the empire, Alexander defeating Napoleon. But by the early twentieth century, the Romanov dynasty was facing a very different kind of challenge. And it started with a war that most Russians expected to win easily. Luna: The Russo-Japanese War, right? I know the basics, but it feels like a footnote compared to the world wars. Lucas: It's often overshadowed, but it was absolutely pivotal. In 1904, Tsar Nicholas II decided to challenge Japan for influence in Manchuria and Korea. The Russian government was convinced that Japan, a small Asian nation, would be no match for the might of the Russian Empire. They called the Japanese 'macacques' — a racial slur — and thought the war would be a quick, patriotic victory that would boost the tsar's popularity. Lucas: But from the very start, things went wrong. The war began with a surprise attack on the Russian Pacific Fleet at Port Arthur — a naval base in Manchuria that Russia had leased from China. It was February 8, 1904, and the Japanese admiral Togo Heihachiro launched a torpedo assault similar to what would later happen at Pearl Harbor. The Russian fleet was caught completely off guard. Luna: Wait — a sneak attack on a naval base? That sounds awfully familiar. Lucas: Exactly. The Japanese had studied the American Civil War and European naval tactics, but they also innovated. Admiral Togo's attack disabled two Russian battleships and a cruiser right at the start. The Russian viceroy in the region, Admiral Yevgeni Alekseyev, was completely unprepared. He had dismissed Japanese capabilities as a joke. Lucas: The siege of Port Arthur then dragged on for months. The Russian garrison, commanded by General Anatoly Stessel, put up a stubborn defense, but the Japanese gradually tightened the noose. There's a terrible story from the siege: the Russian soldiers were so short on food and medical supplies that they resorted to eating horses and even rats. Meanwhile, Stessel spent his time writing optimistic reports to St. Petersburg that bore no relation to reality. Luna: So the command structure was completely broken from the top down. Lucas: Absolutely. And the tsar was receiving these sanitized reports. He had appointed his uncle, Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich, as head of the navy — a man more interested in his art collection than in naval strategy. The entire system was riddled with patronage and incompetence. Meanwhile, the Japanese had a unified command, modern equipment, and excellent logistics. Lucas: If today was actually useful to you, the way these stay ad-free is listener support — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's what keeps episodes like this coming. Luna: Yeah, it really helps us keep digging into these stories without any ads. Lucas: So back to the war. By the time Port Arthur fell in January 1905, the Russian public was already growing restless. But the worst humiliation was yet to come. In May 1905, the Russian Baltic Fleet — which had sailed all the way from Europe around Africa and Asia — finally reached the Tsushima Strait between Japan and Korea. Luna: The Battle of Tsushima. I've heard that was a complete disaster. Lucas: It was an absolute catastrophe. The Russian fleet was commanded by Admiral Zinovy Rozhestvensky, a brave but rigid officer. His ships were old, poorly maintained, and the crews were exhausted after a seven-month voyage. The Japanese fleet, under Admiral Togo, was waiting for them, fresh and well-trained. In the battle, Japan sank or captured virtually the entire Russian fleet. Out of 38 Russian ships, only three escaped. Over 5,000 Russian sailors were killed, while Japanese losses were minimal. Lucas: The Battle of Tsushima shocked the world. It was the first time an Asian power had decisively defeated a European great power in a modern naval battle. And for Russia, it was a humiliation that shattered the myth of the tsar's invincibility. Luna: How did the Russian public react when they heard the news? Lucas: They were horrified. Patriotic fervor quickly turned to anger. There were strikes and protests across the country. The war had cost Russia over 100,000 casualties, vast sums of money, and enormous prestige. By September 1905, Nicholas II was forced to accept a peace brokered by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt — the Treaty of Portsmouth. Russia surrendered its lease on Port Arthur, recognized Japanese dominance in Korea, and gave up half of Sakhalin Island. Lucas: But the real damage was internal. The war triggered the Revolution of 1905 — that's when Bloody Sunday happened, when workers marched to the Winter Palace and were shot down. The tsar was forced to issue the October Manifesto, creating a parliament, the Duma. He survived, but the monarchy had shown its weakness. Luna: So the Russo-Japanese War basically lit the fuse for the 1905 Revolution and then, eventually, 1917. Lucas: Exactly. It exposed the rot in the imperial system — incompetent leadership, corrupt officials, a military that was all show and no substance. And it gave the Russian people a glimpse of what the tsar's regime really was. The war didn't just lose territory; it lost the Romanovs their legitimacy. Luna: It's almost like the dynasty's last chance to reform was squandered in a war they never should have fought. Lucas: That's a great way to put it. Nicholas II had the opportunity after 1905 to enact real reforms, to share power with the Duma, to address land hunger and workers' rights. But he and his advisors saw the October Manifesto as a temporary concession, not a permanent change. By 1907, he had already begun to roll back the reforms. The war with Japan was a warning, but the Romanovs didn't heed it.