Religious tolerance policy in the Russian empire during World War I (1914-1917)

World War I was the last significant event of the Romanov Empire. It exposed many problems accumulated in the previous period of the society and state development. During the war, interethnic relations escalated, being caused by Germanophobia in Russia and Russophobia in Germany. “Germanism” aggravated another issue - a religious one. Some religious groups, such as Baptists and Evangelical Christians, supported Germany. This resulted in restrictions in their activities. The situation was complicated by the fact that these religious groups preached pacifist ideas that were obviously inappropriate in the war period. The authorities were forced to respond to the propaganda of pacifism by establishing strict control over Baptists and Evangelical Christians. Another religious group that got under scrutiny by the authorities was Muslims. The state treated Muslims with greater trust than religious “renegades” (sectarians). Nevertheless, after the Ottoman Empire entering the war in the autumn of 1914, the authorities had to put Muslims under surveillance. This was caused by the declared “holy war” (jihad) and the development of pan-Islamism among Russian Muslims. Thus, both the wartime situation and the participation of Germany and the Ottoman Empire in the war against Russia, forced the government to introduce significant restrictions on the policy of religious tolerance.