| Imperial Russian Forces Императорские Pоссийские Bойска Imperatorskiye Rossiyskiye Voyska | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1721 |
| Country |  Russia
|
| Allegiance |  Romanovs
|
| Branch |  Ground Forces Aerial Forces Navy Rocket Forces Internal Troops
|
| Size | 3,100,000 (active) 2,500,300 (reserve) |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander |
Maria I |
| Notable commanders |
Peter the Great Boris Sheremetev Alexander Menshikov Pyotr Rumyantsev
|
The Imperial Russian Forces (Russian: Императорские Pоссийские Bойска. Imperatorskiye Rossiyskiye Voyska) or the Russian Armed Forces is the current armed wing of the Imperial Russian government. it is divided into the Imperial Ground Forces, Imperial Aerial Forces, Imperial Navy, Imperial Rocket Forces and the Imperial Internal Troops.
The commander-in-chief of the Imperial Russian forces is the Autocrat of all Russia, in this case, Empress Maria I of Russia. However, much of the actual civil powers have been vested in the Procurator-General of the Russian Empire.
The Russian military is currently the world's military superpower, with the highest defense-spending, at ₽595.3 billion ($595.3 billion OTL). The Russian military currently has the world's 2nd-largest ground forces, and the world's largest aerial and rocket forces.
History
Post-Russian Civil War
After the Russian Civil War, the former Imperial military shortly became the White Russian Forces, under the leadership of Baron Pyotr Wrangel and Grand Duke Cyril I Vladimirovich.
Interwar Period
For a very short time, the former Imperial Russian military became the United Russian National Forces, or the White Russian Forces. The White Russian State existed for a year, before late 1921, when Cyril the Reformer was crowned the Tsar.
During the Interwar Period, although Cyril the Reformer, as well as the Autocrat of all Russia was still ranked as the Commander-in-Chief, but the Tsar began the democratization process of vesting authoritative powers in elected positions.
Baron Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel, became the Procurator-General under Cyril the Reformer. It became re-labeled as the Royal Russian Armed Forces.
Baron Wrangel had a very stressful and head-wrenching position, as he had wanted Russia to help fight anti-communists in the Eastern World, however, the majority of the Russian military was ultra-exhausted and depleted from World War I and the Civil War.
In addition, the Russian military was too busy fighting Bolshevik remnants and remaining strongholds across Russia, but at the same time, this also brought more national motivation to get involved. The Russian military emerged victorious over Soviet remnants in Central Asia and the Baltics. The two final overseas military operations for the Russian military was China and Finland, with the former helping the Kuomintang expel the communists, and with the latter helping install a monarchy.
After the Finnish operation, Baron Wrangel finally ordered that no more overseas military operations would take place, bringing one of the biggest episodes of relief within the Russian military and population.
The next main focus was modernizing the Russian military and putting it on-par with the other militaries of the world. The war against the German Empire set the seeds for this focus.
In 1922, the United States and British Empire began exporting tanks to the Royal Russian Forces, in which it utilized Mark V, and the Royal Russian Forces had began utilizing armored trains, and establishing the earliest armored divisions using technology from the Nizhny Novgorod Machine Factory. In 1928, the Russians finally began domestically producing thanks, also thanks to secretive cooperation with the Germans, whom Cyril the Reformer had high respects for.
1930s - Golden Age of Modernization
General Boris Pavlovich Rezhukin had become the Procurator-General. However, under the guidance of Cyril the Reformer, General Rezhukin was advised to allow his inferiors to dictate military decisions, given that General Rezhukin did not have miltiary technological background, and led a cavalry division.
The leadership of Prime Minister Pyotr Struve, who led an aggressive modernization and industrialization campaign similar to Stalin's 5-Year Plans (without communism), effected the Imperial Russian forces directly.
Under the leadership of General Yakov Alksnis, the Royal Russian Forces began not only mass-producing tanks, but finally tested out its successful military aircraft, most notably the Polikarpov I-15 and I-16 fighters, and the Tupolev bombers - which soon became extremely envied for by the other European powers.
Battle of Khalkin Gol
Battle of Nanjing
In 1937, the Royal Russian Army again performed their overseas military operation against Japanese forces in Nanjing, when the city was under attack by Imperial Japan.
Great Plagues of the 1930s
Although there is no Red Terror, the Royal Russian Forces suffered severely by the Great Plagues of the 1930s, which caused a death rate among its able officers reminiscent to the Red Terror and Great Purges.
World War II
The Eastern Axis regarded the Great Plagues as the perfect opportunity to attack Russia. The effects of the Great Plagues disabled Russia from being able to send aid towards the Balkans and China.
The Mongolians and Turks both attacked Russia at the same time, while Japan was drawn into it via their alliance with the Eastern Axis, opening a three-front battle for Russia.