The Great War was framed in the West as a fight for the future of democracy, but in this episode we ponder how the demands of war are weakening democracy at home.

We look at economic and social changes in America brought on by the war, including the Espionage Act and new restrictions on freedom of expression.

Early 1918 saw both Germany and Russia each eager to make peace for their own reasons, but the power of the German military forced the Bolshevik government in Russia to accept the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.

The October Revolution was seen at the time as merely replacing one temporary arrangement with another. But the Bolsheviks had other ideas.