Sex on the front: prostitution and venereal disease in Russia’s First World War

Prostitution flourished during Russia’s First World War. Mass mobilisation and the displacement of millions of the empire’s population challenged the tsarist state’s ability to control both the movement and bodies of those buying and selling sex. In light of this, military and medical authorities sh...

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Main Author: Hearne, Siobhan
Format: Article
Published: Taylor & Francis 2017
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/42414/
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author Hearne, Siobhan
author_facet Hearne, Siobhan
author_sort Hearne, Siobhan
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description Prostitution flourished during Russia’s First World War. Mass mobilisation and the displacement of millions of the empire’s population challenged the tsarist state’s ability to control both the movement and bodies of those buying and selling sex. In light of this, military and medical authorities shifted their attention more directly onto regulating men's bodies. Wartime social turmoil also increased the visibility of prostitution, which saw many enlisted men lament the apparent ‘moral decline’ that they witnessed on the front. This article examines how the tsarist authorities grappled to control the bodies of its populace on Russia's western front, and how the conflict had an impact upon ideas of morality and sexuality.
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spelling nottingham-424142020-05-04T18:44:38Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/42414/ Sex on the front: prostitution and venereal disease in Russia’s First World War Hearne, Siobhan Prostitution flourished during Russia’s First World War. Mass mobilisation and the displacement of millions of the empire’s population challenged the tsarist state’s ability to control both the movement and bodies of those buying and selling sex. In light of this, military and medical authorities shifted their attention more directly onto regulating men's bodies. Wartime social turmoil also increased the visibility of prostitution, which saw many enlisted men lament the apparent ‘moral decline’ that they witnessed on the front. This article examines how the tsarist authorities grappled to control the bodies of its populace on Russia's western front, and how the conflict had an impact upon ideas of morality and sexuality. Taylor & Francis 2017-05-03 Article PeerReviewed Hearne, Siobhan (2017) Sex on the front: prostitution and venereal disease in Russia’s First World War. Revolutionary Russia . ISSN 1743-7873 http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09546545.2017.1317093 doi:10.1080/09546545.2017.1317093 doi:10.1080/09546545.2017.1317093
spellingShingle Hearne, Siobhan
Sex on the front: prostitution and venereal disease in Russia’s First World War
title Sex on the front: prostitution and venereal disease in Russia’s First World War
title_full Sex on the front: prostitution and venereal disease in Russia’s First World War
title_fullStr Sex on the front: prostitution and venereal disease in Russia’s First World War
title_full_unstemmed Sex on the front: prostitution and venereal disease in Russia’s First World War
title_short Sex on the front: prostitution and venereal disease in Russia’s First World War
title_sort sex on the front: prostitution and venereal disease in russia’s first world war
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/42414/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/42414/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/42414/