Russia in War and Revolution

Fyodor Sergeyevich Olferieff (1885–1971) led a remarkable life in the shadows of history. This book presents his memoirs for the first time, translated and annotated by his granddaughter Tanya A. Cameron. Born into a noble family, Olferieff was a Russian career military officer who observed firsthand key events of the early twentieth century, including the 1905–7 revolution, the Great War, the collapse of the imperial state, and the civil wars in Ukraine and Crimea. Olferieff wrestles with moral and political questions, wondering whether his own advantages could be justified—and whether, if born a peasant, he might have thrown himself into the revolution. As Gary Hamburg writes in an illuminating companion essay, Olferieff wrote "to understand himself and to record his broken life for posterity" as a privileged observer of a bloody, historically pivotal era.

Russia in War and Revolution: Russia 1900-24 is part of the series Longman 20th Century History for 14-16 year olds. This series of short books on key areas of twentieth-century world history can be used in a variety of ways: As a complete course, providing an alternative to the conventional textbook. As a supplement to the textbook, providing an in-depth treatment of a particular topic. As backup material for textbooks where a different approach is required.