From this brief outline one can readily see what great and numerous
objects Russia accomplished in the World War, and how important was
her role in that final collapse of the Central Powers at which the
Allies had been aiming in the four-year long struggle. In full accord
with these efforts are the extraordinary sacrifices brought by Russia,
sacrifices in men, sacrifices in material resources and money, and
finally, that great upheaval through which the Russian people are now
passing, as a result of their over-exertion in the years of the World
War.
Among these sacrifices, Russia's losses in men run into such great
numbers that the immense, extraordinary part played by Russia becomes
at once obvious to anyone.
Of the many different figures quoted by various investigators the most
reliable are undoubtedly those furnished by the official statistics of
the Russian Army Staff.
Among these figures made public in the press the most important are
those given by the Staff of the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army,
pertaining to the year 1916, concerning the total number of mobilized
soldiers and the number of those still in the service. According to
this information, the Russian War Ministry called to the colors from
the outbreak of the War up to the winter of 1916 more than 14 million
men; but the commissary department of the Army had towards the close of
1916 less than 10 million on its rolls. The difference of 4½ million
between these two figures constituted the absolute losses of the Army
during 3 campaigns (1914, 15, 16). This gave the Staff the basis for
calculating the yearly average total losses at 1½ million men. Adding,
accordingly, 1½ million losses for 1917, we obtain 6 million total
losses during the whole War.
But these are only the men who were a total loss to the Army, i. e.,
the losses in killed and prisoners, without the wounded, except a
moderate number of crippled who were no longer fit for service at the
front nor for service out of the ranks, and who therefore had to be
discharged from the Army entirely.
The total number of Russian war-prisoners towards the end of the
War, according to figures compiled by the Russian Commission on War
Prisoners, amounted to about 2½ million. Deducting this number from
6 million, we obtain 3½ million in killed and the small number of
crippled who were discharged entirely.
This number, 3½ million, obtained from official statistics, is the
basis of our calculations. The percentage of disabled was comparatively
small. German statistics during the War figured it to be 10 per cent.
Hence the figure of 3½ million must comprize only a little less than 3
million in killed alone. The number of wounded is usually approximately
2½ times the number of killed.[5] Multiplying the number of wounded not
by 2½, but only by 2, we obtain about 6 million wounded. Thus we have
a total of 6 million killed and prisoners, and 6 million wounded, or a
grand total of not less than 12 million losses for Russia, in killed,
wounded and prisoners.
These figures are rather minimized, for we have above underestimated
the number of wounded. These figures, based upon official statistics,
agree with those arrived at by the "Copenhagen Society for Studying
the Consequences of the War." This society estimates the losses at 9½
million, exclusive of prisoners. As we have shown above, there were 2½
million prisoners.
Thus there can be no doubt but that the number of Russian casualties
was _not less than 12,000,000_, of which there were _3,000,000 in
killed_.