To what extent were the actions of Tsar Nicholas II during the First World War responsible for his own downfall in February 1917?

The first 200 words of this essay...

To what extent were the actions of Tsar Nicholas II during the First World War responsible for his own downfall in February 1917?

In this essay I will discuss the impact of Nicholas' actions on his fate and assess their importance in relation to other factors which led to the fall of the Romanov dynasty. I will argue that whilst the actions of Nicholas himself indeed played a part in his downfall, the major reason for his downfall the was WWI and its effects on the Russian people.

The actions of Nicholas were important in causing his downfall. His major mistake was the decision to leave Petrograd in August 1915 and go to the front at Mogilev in order to become Commander-in-chief of the Imperial army. This was a mistake as the Tsar was now personally blamed for the defeats the army suffered instead of his ministers, such as the failure of the Brusilov Offensive, which resulted in one million Russian soldiers being killed. This mistake was compounded by the fact that he left the Tsarina Alexandra in charge of the government. She was unpopular because of her German nationality and was influenced by Rasputin,