Russian Troops in France and the February Revolution: Transformation of the System of Relations and Revolutionization of the Ranks of the Russian Expeditionary Corps in the Spring of 1917

The article examines the peculiarities of the perception of the February Revolution of 1917 by soldiers and officers of the Russian Expeditionary Corps in France. Based on documents from domestic and foreign archives, the author reconstructs the events of the spring of 1917, analyzes the relationship between the French authorities and the Russian contingent, examines in detail the basics of the formation of soldiers' committees at various levels, as well as army, regimental and disciplinary courts. In addition, the process of demoralization of Russian troops in France is considered and its causes are highlighted. The conclusions are presented that the revolutionary changes led to the complete loss by officers of the levers of control of the soldiers' masses, which was the cause of decomposition and loss of discipline. Russian troops were also decayed by the unsuccessful spring offensive, which led to the biggest losses in the history of the Russian Expeditionary Corps. The personal attitude of the commanders of special brigades to the revolution is also important. In many ways, this attitude influenced the order and discipline in the units.