Balkan Wars
Boundaries on the Balkans after the First and the Second Balkan War
Date October 8, 1912 - July 18, 1913 Location Balkan Peninsula Result Treaty of London, Treaty of Bucharest
Belligerents
Ottoman Empire	Balkan League: Bulgaria Greece Serbia Montenegro
Commanders
Ottoman Empire: Nizam Paşa, Zeki Paşa, Esat Paşa, Abdullah Paşa, Ali Rıza Paşa	Bulgaria: Vasil Kutinchev, Nikola Ivanov, Radko Dimitriev,Nikola Ivanov,Stilian Kovachev,Georgi Vazov,Stefan Toshev, Dimitar Geshov, Ivan Sarafov, Kliment Boyagiev , Pavel Hristov, Pravoslav Tenev , Georgi Todorov, Dimitar Kirkov, Radoi Sirakov, Stoy Bradistilov, Nikola Genev,Vasil Delov, Stefan Nikolov, Anton Pchelarov, Aleksandur Protogerov, Dyanko Karagov, Ivan Minkov, Dimitar Atanasov, Georgi Kanazirski, Radul Kaneli, Konstantin Manovski, Georgi Svetogorski, Stoyan Velichkov, Metody Boichev, Lalu Vutov, Mgerbov, Trifon Boiagiev, Todor Penev, Grigor Hristov, Nicola Parapanov Greece:Crown Prince Constantine, Panagiotis Danglis, Pavlos Kountouriotis Serbia:Radomir Putnik, Petar Bojović, Stepa Stepanović, Živojin Mišić Montenegro: King Nicholas I, Prince Danilo Petrović, Mitar Martinović, Janko Vukotić

The Balkan Wars were two wars in South-eastern Europe in 1912–1913 in the course of which the Balkan League (Bulgaria, Montenegro, Greece, and Serbia) first conquered Ottoman-held Macedonia, Albania and most of Thrace and then fell out over the division of the spoils. Events 314 - Roman Emperor Licinius is defeated by his colleague Constantine I at the Battle of Cibalae, and loses Year 1912 ( MCMXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting Events 390 BC - Roman - Gaulish Wars Battle of the Allia - a Roman army is defeated by raiding Gauls, Year 1913 ( MCMXIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The Treaty of London was signed on 30 May 1913, to deal with territorial adjustments arising out of the conclusion of the First Balkan War. The Treaty of Bucharest was concluded on August 10, 1913, by the delegates of Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Montenegro The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish The Balkan League was the alliance of Serbia, Montenegro, Greece and Bulgaria against the Ottoman Empire during the Balkan Wars The Kingdom of Bulgaria (Царство България was established on October 5, 1908 ( September 22 O The Kingdom of Greece ( Greek:, Vasíleion tīs Elládos) was a state established in 1832 in the Convention of London by the Great The Kingdom of Serbia ( Serbian Cyrillic: Краљевина Србија Serbian Latinica Kraljevina Srbija) was created when Prince Milan Obrenović ruler The Kingdom of Montenegro ( Serbian Cyrillic: Краљевина Црнa Горa or Kraljevina Crna Gora) was a kingdom in southeastern Europe Nazim Pasha was the Chief of Staff of the Army of the Ottoman Empire during the First Balkan War. Zekki Pasha was a World War I Field Marshal of the Ottoman forces in the Balkans. Ali Rizah Pasha was the commanding officer (probably with the rank of Mushir - Field marshal in the Army of the Ottoman Empire) of the Western Turkish Vasil Ivanov Kutinchev (born February 25 1868 in Ruse, died March 30, 1941) was a Bulgarian officer Radko Dimitriev (Радко Димитриев (born on 24 September 1859 in Gradets; died on 18 October 1918 near Pyatigorsk Stefan Toshev (Стефан Тошев (born on 18 December 1859 in Stara Zagora, died on 27 November 1924 in Plovdiv Todorov (Тодоров is the surname of Georgi Todorov (born 1960 Bulgarian athlete Georgi Todorov (born 1951 Bulgarian weightlifter Constantine I King of the Hellenes (Κωνσταντίνος A' Βασιλεύς των Ελλήνων - 11 January 1923 was King of Greece from 1913 to 1917 and from Panagiotis Danglis (Παναγιώτης Δαγκλής was a Greek general of the Hellenic Army and a politician Admiral Pavlos Kountouriotis (1855-1935 (Παύλος Κουντουριώτης was a Greek naval hero and twice President of Greece. Radomir Putnik, also known as Vojvoda Putnik, (Радомир Путник - Војвода Путник (born January 24 1847 in Kragujevac Petar Bojović ( Петар Бојовић) (born July 16 1858 in Miševići near Nova Varoš, died January 20 1945 Stepa Stepanović ( Serbian: Степа Степановић (born, died April 29, 1929) was a Field marshal ( Vojvoda) of the Živojin Mišić (Живојин Мишић ( 1855 - January 20 1921) was a Vojvoda ( Field Marshal) and the most successful Serbian Nikola I Mirkov Petrović-Njegoš ( Serbian Cyrillic: Краљ Никола I Мирков Петровић-Његош ( – March 1, 1921) was the Danilo Aleksandar Petrović-Njegoš (Anglicised Daniel Alexander Petrovich-Nyegosh) ( June 29, 1871 – September 24, 1939) was the The Balkan League was the alliance of Serbia, Montenegro, Greece and Bulgaria against the Ottoman Empire during the Balkan Wars The Kingdom of Bulgaria (Царство България was established on October 5, 1908 ( September 22 O The Kingdom of Montenegro ( Serbian Cyrillic: Краљевина Црнa Горa or Kraljevina Crna Gora) was a kingdom in southeastern Europe The Kingdom of Greece ( Greek:, Vasíleion tīs Elládos) was a state established in 1832 in the Convention of London by the Great The Kingdom of Serbia ( Serbian Cyrillic: Краљевина Србија Serbian Latinica Kraljevina Srbija) was created when Prince Milan Obrenović ruler The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish Macedonia is a Geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe whose area was re-defined in the early 20th century This article is about the country in southern Europe For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Albania topics. Thrace (Тракия Trakiya or "Trakija" or Trakia, Θράκη Thráki, Trakya is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe

Background

See also: Rise of nationalism under the Ottoman Empire

The background to the wars lies in the incomplete emergence of nation-states on the fringes of the Ottoman Empire during the 19th century. The rise of the Western notion of Nationalism under the Ottoman Empire eventually caused the break-down of the Ottoman millet Serbians had gained substantial territory during the Russo-Turkish War, 1877–1878, while Greece acquired Thessaly in 1881 (although it lost a small area to the Ottoman Empire in 1897) and Bulgaria (an autonomous principality since 1878) incorporated the formerly distinct province of Eastern Rumelia (1885). The Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 had its origins in a rise in nationalism in the Balkans as well as in the Russian goal of recovering territorial losses it had suffered Thessalia redirects here For the Butterfly Genus, see Thessalia (butterfly. A principality (or princedom) is a monarchical feudatory or Sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a monarch with the title of Prince Eastern Rumelia or Eastern Roumelia (Източна Румелия Iztochna Rumeliya; Ottoman Turkish: Rumeli-i Şarkî; Modern Turkish All three as well as Montenegro sought additional territories within the large Ottoman-ruled region known as Roumelia, comprising Eastern Roumelia, Albania, Macedonia, and Thrace (see map).

Policies of the Great Powers

Throughout the 19th Century, the Great Powers had different aims over the "Eastern Question", the integrity of the Ottoman Empire. A great power is a Nation or State that has the ability to exert its influence on a global scale Russia wished for access to the "warm waters" of the Mediterranean and followed a pan-Slavic foreign policy, supporting Bulgaria and Serbia. Pan-Slavism was a movement in the mid 19th century aimed at unity of all the Slavic peoples The main focus was in the Balkans where the South Slavs had been Britain wished to deny Russia access to the "warm waters" and supported the integrity of the Ottoman Empire, though it also supported a limited expansion of Greece as a backup plan in case integrity of the empire was no longer possible. France wished to strengthen her position in the region, especially in the Levant. See also Names of the Levant The Levant (lə'vænt is a geographical term that denotes a large area in Western Asia, roughly bounded on the north by the Austria-Hungary wished for a continuation of the existence of the Ottoman Empire, since both were multinational entities ruled by a small elite and thus the collapse of the one would affect the other as well. Also, in the eyes of the Habsburg (or Hapsburg) empire, with its large Serbian and Croatian populations, the strengthening of Serbia was highly undesirable. While it has been argued that Italy from that time already wished to recreate the Roman empire, her main aim at the time seems to have been primarily the denial of access to the Adriatic Sea of another major sea power. The Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial Germany in turn, under the "Drang nach Osten" policy, aspired to turn the empire into its own de-facto colony, and thus supported its integrity. "Drang nach Osten" is also a game in the " Europa " wargame series

The Balkan countries themselves (except Serbia) sent armed bands inside the Empire (in Macedonia and Thrace) in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, to protect their own nationals and terrorize those of other nationalities. Low intensity warfare had broken out inside Macedonia between Greek and Bulgarian bands and the Ottoman army after 1904, the so-called Macedonian Struggle. The Greek Struggle for Macedonia 1904-1908 (in Greek language: Μακεδονικός Ἀγῶν " Macedonian Struggle " is how the Greeks describe After the Young Turk revolution of July 1908, the situation changed somewhat drastically. The Young Turks ( Turkish: Jön Türkler (plural from French: Jeunes Turcs) were a coalition of various groups favoring reforming the

The Young Turk revolution

Main article: Young Turk Revolution

It is no surprise that the "Young Turk" revolution occurred in the troubled European provinces of the Empire. The Young Turk Revolution of 1908 reversed the suspension of the Ottoman parliament by Sultan Abdul Hamid II, marking the onset of the Second Constitutional A revolution (from the Latin revolutio, "a turnaround" is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively There the threat to its integrity was the most pronounced, and the need for reforms was most evident. When the revolt broke out, it was supported by intellectuals, the army, and almost all the ethnic minorities of the Empire, and forced Sultan Abdul Hamid II to re-adopt the long defunct Ottoman constitution of 1877, ushering the so-called Second Constitutional Era. Abdülhamid II His Imperial Majesty Sultan of the Ottoman Empire ( Ottoman Turkish: عبد الحميد ثانی `Abdü’l-Ḥamīd-i sânî, İkinci Abdülhamit The Second Constitutional Era (ايکنجى مشروطيت دورى İkinci Meşrûtiyyet Devri) of the Ottoman Empire began shortly after Sultan Abdülhamid Hopes were raised among the Balkan ethnicities of reforms and autonomy, and elections were held to form a representative, multi-ethnic, Ottoman parliament. However, following the Sultan's attempted countercoup, the liberal element of the Young Turks was sidelined and the nationalist element became dominant. The Countercoup of 1909 was an attempt to dismantle the Second Constitutional Era of the Ottoman Empire and replace it with a Monarchy under Sultan

At the same time, in October 1908, Austria-Hungary seized the opportunity of the Ottoman political upheaval to annex the de jure Ottoman province of Bosnia-Herzegovina, which it had occupied since 1878 (see Bosnian Crisis), and Bulgaria declared itself a fully independent kingdom. Bosnia and Herzegovina ( Latin script: Bosna i Hercegovina, Cyrillic script: Босна и Херцеговина is a country on the Balkan The Bosnian Crisis of 1908-1909 also known as the Annexation crisis, erupted into public view when on October 5, 1908, Bulgaria declared its independence The Greeks of the autonomous Cretan state proclaimed unification with Greece, though the opposition of the Great Powers prevented the latter action from taking practical effect. Crete ( Greek: Κρήτη transliteration: Krētē, modern transliteration Kriti) is the largest of the Greek islands and the

Reaction in the Balkan States

Distribution of ethnic groups in the Balkan Peninsula and Asia Minor in 1923, Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd, New York (The map does not reflect the results of the 1923 population transfer between Greece and Turkey)

Frustrated in the north by Austria-Hungary's incorporation of Bosnia with its 975,000 Orthodox Serbs (and many more Serbs and Serb-sympathizers of other faiths), and forced (March 1909) to accept the annexation and restrain anti-Habsburg agitation among Serbian nationalist groups, the Serbian government looked to formerly Serb territories in the south, notably "Old Serbia" (the Sanjak of Novi Pazar and the province of Kosovo). Serbs ( Serbian: Срби Srbi) are a South Slavic people living in the Balkans and Central Europe, mainly in Serbia, The Sanjak of Novi Pazar ( Serbian, Bosnian: Новопазарски санџак Novopazarski sandžak; Turkish: Yeni Pazar sancağı

On August 15, 1909, the Military League a group of Greek officers took action against the government to reform their country's national government and reorganize the army. Events 778 - The Battle of Roncevaux Pass, at which Roland is killed Year 1909 ( MCMIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting The league found itself unable to create a new political system, till the league summoned the Cretan politician Eleutherios Venizelos to Athens as its political adviser. Eleftherios Venizelos (full name Elefthérios Kyriákou Venizélos, Greek: Ελευθέριος Κυριάκου Βενιζέλος ( Mournies Venizelos persuaded the king to revise the constitution and asked the league to disband in favor of a National Assembly. In March 1910 the Military League dissolved itself. ^[1]

Bulgaria, which had secured Ottoman recognition of her independence in April 1909 and enjoyed the friendship of Russia,^[2] also looked to districts of Ottoman Thrace and Macedonia. Thrace (Тракия Trakiya or "Trakija" or Trakia, Θράκη Thráki, Trakya is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe In March 1910, an Albanian insurrection broke out in Kosovo which was covertly supported by the young Turks. In August 1910 Montenegro followed Bulgaria's precedent by becoming a kingdom.

The Balkan League

Bulgarian forces waiting to commence their assault on Adrianople

Following Italy's victory in the Italo-Turkish War of 1911-1912 the Young Turks fell from power after a coup. The Italo-Turkish or Turco-Italian War (also known in Italy as guerra di Libia, "the Libyan war" and in Turkey as Trablusgarp Savaşı) was fought The Balkan countries saw this as an opportunity to attack and fulfil their desires of expansion.

With the initial encouragement of Russian agents, a series of agreements was concluded between Serbia and Bulgaria in March 1912. Military victory against the Ottoman empire would not be possible while it could bring reinforcements from Asia. The condition of the Ottoman railways of the time was primitive, so most reinforcement would have to come by sea through the Aegean. Greece was the only Balkan country with a navy powerful enough to deny use of the Aegean to the Turks; thus a treaty was signed between Greece and Bulgaria in May 1912. Montenegro concluded agreements between Serbia and Bulgaria later that year. Serbia and Bulgaria signed treaties to divide between them the territory of northern Macedonia, but no such concrete agreement was signed by Greece. Macedonia is a Geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe whose area was re-defined in the early 20th century

The resulting alliance between Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Montenegro became known as the Balkan League; its existence was undesirable for all the Great Powers. The Balkan League was the alliance of Serbia, Montenegro, Greece and Bulgaria against the Ottoman Empire during the Balkan Wars The league was loose at best, though a secret liaison officer was exchanged between the Greek and the Serbian army after the war began. Greece delayed the start of the war several times in the summer of 1912, in order to better prepare her navy, but Montenegro declared war on October 8 (September 25 O.S.). Old Style (or OS) and New Style (or NS) are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year Following an ultimatum to the Ottomans, the remaining members of the alliance entered the conflict on October 17.

The First Balkan War

Main article: First Balkan War

Territorial changes as a result of the First Balkan war, as of April 1913

No formal plan existed between the Balkan allies on how to wage the war, except for some cooperation between Serbia and Montenegro over Novi Pazar. The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 pitted the Balkan League ( Serbia, Montenegro, Greece, and Bulgaria For the town in Bulgaria see Novi Pazar Bulgaria. Novi Pazar ( Serbian: Нови Пазар The war was practically four different wars fought against the same enemy, at the same time, and in the same region. The Ottoman plans called for the use of an army from Syria to be transferred in the Balkans as part of the defense. Due to Greek maritime operations this proved impossible. The Turks raised their normal forces and in order to make up for the shortfall they raised the Army of Axios, which proved to be of low quality.

Before the ultimatum Montenegro first declared war on October 5th. The main thrust was towards Shkodra, with secondary operations in the Novi Pazar area. Shkodër (Shkodër or Shkodra is a city located on Lake Shkodër in northwestern Albania in the District Bulgaria attacked towards Eastern Thrace, being stopped only at the outskirts of Constantinople in the Chataldja line. Constantinople (Κωνσταντινούπολις Konstantinoúpolis, or gr ἡ Πόλις hē Polis, Latin: la CONSTANTINOPOLIS Chataldja was a defensive position 30-40 km west of Istanbul. Serbia attacked south towards Skopje and Monastir. Skopje (Скопје; Shkup or Shkupi is the Capital and largest city in the Republic of Macedonia, with more than a quarter of the population Meeting the Greek army later, they turned west towards the Adriatic. Greece landed forces in the Halkidiki peninsula while the main force of the army attacked from Thessaly into Macedonian through the Sarantaporo straight. Chalkidiki, also Halkidiki or Chalcidice, less often Khalkidiki and rarely Chalkidice (Χαλκιδική xalkʲiðiˈkʲi is one of the Thessalia redirects here For the Butterfly Genus, see Thessalia (butterfly. For a village in the Karditsa prefecture, see Sarantaporo Karditsa, for a river in the Ioannina Prefecture, see Sarantaporos After the liberation of Thessaloniki (on 26 October 1912, O. Thessaloniki (Θεσσαλονίκη), Thessalonica, or Salonica is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of Macedonia S. ) the Greek army linked up with the Serb army north and they turned west. Another Greek army had attacked into Epirus, and forces were deployed to that front. ^[3] Meanwhile the Greek navy rapidly occupied the Aegean islands still under Ottoman rule. ^[4]

Following the declaration of war the Ottoman Navy did not dare exit the safety of the Dardanelles and spent most of its time in Nagaras. See also [[Hellespont]] The Dardanelles ( Turkish: Çanakkale Boğazı Greek: Δαρδανέλλια Dardanellia) formerly The Greek Navy was free to liberate the islands of the Aegean, starting with Lemnos which was used as a base to monitor the Dardanelles. The Hellenic Navy ( HN) ( Πολεμικό Ναυτικό, Polemikó Naftikó, abbreviated ΠΝ) is the naval force of Greece Following a ceasefire in December between the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria, Serbia and Montenegro, the Turkish fleet twice exited the Dardanelles but was twice defeated in the battles of Elli and Lemnos. The Battle of Elli (also known as the Naval Battle of the Dardanelles, Ναυμαχία της 'Ελλης) took place on the December 3, 1912 The Battle of Lemnos ( Ναυμαχία της Λήμνου) fought on January 5 1913, was a Naval battle during the First Balkan War, which In January after a coup, Turkey decided to continue the war. Bulgarian forces managed to conquer Adrianople while Greek forces liberated Ioannina. The Battle of Adrianople, Siege of Adrianople, Bulgarian Battle of Odrin ( Битка при Одрин) or Serbian Bitka za Jedrene ( Ioannina (Ιωάννινα, often el Γιάννενα or el Γιάννινα / is a city of Epirus, north-western Greece, with a metropolitan population of The war was ended with the Treaty of London on May 17, 1913. The Treaty of London was signed on 30 May 1913, to deal with territorial adjustments arising out of the conclusion of the First Balkan War.

Second Balkan War

Main article: Second Balkan War

Cholera was common among the soldiers

Though the Balkan allies had fought together against the common enemy, that was not enough to overcome their mutual rivalries. The Second Balkan War was fought in 1913 between Bulgaria on one side and its First Balkan War allies Serbia, Greece, and Montenegro The Second Balkan War began when Serbia, Greece, and Romania quarreled with Bulgaria over the division of their joint conquests in Macedonia. ^[3] When the Greek army entered Thessaloniki in the First Balkan War ahead of the Bulgarian 7th division by only a day away, they were asked to allow a Bulgarian battalion to enter the city. Thessaloniki (Θεσσαλονίκη), Thessalonica, or Salonica is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of Macedonia Greece accepted in exchange for allowing a Greek unit to enter the city of Serres. Sérres or Sérrhae ( Greek: Σέρρες older form Σέρραι is a city in Macedonia, Greece. The Bulgarian unit that entered Thessaloniki turned out to be a brigade instead of a battalion and caused concern among the Greeks, who viewed it as an attempt to establish a condominium over the city. In International law, a condominium (plural either condominia, as in Latin or condominiums is a political territory (state or border area in or over which two or It was removed (along with the Greek unit from Serres) by mutual treaty and was transported to Dedeağaç (modern Alexandroupolis), leaving only a small force behind. Alexandroupoli (Αλεξανδρούπολη Alexandroúpoli, ale̞ksanˈðɾupo̞li in polytonic Ἀλεξανδρούπολις Alexandroúpolis) is a city Greece had also allowed the Bulgarians to control the stretch of the Thessaloniki-Constantinople railroad that lay in Greek-occupied territory, since Bulgaria controlled the largest part of this railroad anyway. Bulgaria however was not satisfied with the territory it controlled in Macedonia and asked Greece to relinquish control of land west of Thessaloniki, in Pieria. Pieria (Syria was a province of Roman Syria Pieria (Πιερία is one of the Prefectures of Greece. At the time, Thessaloniki was a major and strategic port in the surrounding area. This Bulgarian request alarmed Greece, which decided to maintain a high level of alert on its army. Furthermore tension between Serbia and Bulgaria was rising.

Distribution of ethnic groups in the Balkan Peninsula and Asia Minor in 1922, Racial Map Of Europe by Hammond & Co.

After a series of negotiations Greece and Serbia signed a treaty of mutual defense against an attack on any part, not only Bulgarian but also Austro-Hungarian on May 19/June 1, 1913. With this treaty a mutual border was agreed between the two and an agreement for mutual diplomatic support. Both countries decided to remain on the defensive and not attack Bulgaria. Still the Serbians kept the entire Vardar Macedonia. Vardar Macedonia ( Macedonian and Serbian: Вардарска Македонија, Vardarska Makedonija Bulgarian: Вардарска The Serbians did not recognize the border treaty they signed. On June 16, 1913 tsar Ferdinand I of Bulgaria and general Savov, without consulting the Bulgarian government declared war on Greece and Serbia. Events 1487 - Battle of Stoke Field, the last dying breath of the Wars of the Roses. Year 1913 ( MCMXIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common ^[5] That day is to be called in Bulgarian history "the day of criminal madness". On June 17, 1913 they attacked the Serbian army in Gevgelija and then the Greek army in Nigrita. Gevgelija (Гевгелија) is a town with a population of 15685 located in the very southeast of the Republic of Macedonia along the banks of the Vardar River Nigrita (Greek Νιγρίτα is a town and a municipality situated between the Strymonian plain of the Strymon river and the Vertiskos mountains featuring

While the Serbian army faced superior Bulgarian forces and had problems, the Greek army was more successful. Retreating according to plan for two days while Thessaloniki was cleared of remaining Bulgarian detachments, the Greek army counterattacked and defeated the Bulgarians at Kilkis-Lahanas. Thessaloniki (Θεσσαλονίκη), Thessalonica, or Salonica is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of Macedonia The Battle of Kilkis-Lahanas took place during the Second Balkan War between Greece and Bulgaria for the town of Kilkis in Macedonia However, the Greek army did not enter the city of Serres in time to prevent it being razed by irregular Bulgarian units. Sérres or Sérrhae ( Greek: Σέρρες older form Σέρραι is a city in Macedonia, Greece. The Greek army then divided their forces and advanced in two directions. Part proceeded east and occupied all land west of the Mesta River. The Mesta (Места or Nestos (Νέστος is a river in Bulgaria and Greece. The rest of the Greek army advanced up the Struma River valley, defeating the Bulgarian army in the battles of Doiran and Mt. Strymon redirects here For the Strymon Gulf see Strymonian Gulf. The Battle of Doiran was fought from 18 September to 19 September, 1918, with the Greeks and the British assaulting Bulgarian Beles before themselves being defeated at the Kresna straits and facing total annihilation. The Battle of Kresna Gorge was fought between the Greeks and the Bulgarians during the Second Balkan War. The Greeks offered a ceasefire and the Bulgarians accepted due to the danger posed by the Romanian army in the north.

Seeing the military position of the Bulgarian army, Romania and the Ottoman Empire decided to intervene. Romania ( dated: Rumania, Roumania The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish Romania raised an army and declared war on Bulgaria on June 27. They encountered little resistance from the Bulgarians, and by the time of the ceasefire were only 30 kilometers from Sofia. Sofia (София ˈsɔfija is the Capital and largest city of the Republic of Bulgaria, with a population of 1395568 in the Capital Municipality

The Ottomans managed to retake Adrianople (Edirne) which had historic significance for the Turks, being a former Ottoman capital city (see Adrianople). The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish Edirne (anc Hadrianopolis; Greek Adrianople; Slavic/Bulgarian Одрин, see also its other names) is a city in Thrace, the westernmost Edirne (anc Hadrianopolis; Greek Adrianople; Slavic/Bulgarian Одрин, see also its other names) is a city in Thrace, the westernmost Edirne (anc Hadrianopolis; Greek Adrianople; Slavic/Bulgarian Одрин, see also its other names) is a city in Thrace, the westernmost The Ottomans also managed to recover eastern Thrace, which had largely been lost in the First Balkan War, and thus regained a land mass in Europe which was only slightly larger than the present-day European territory of the Republic of Turkey. Thrace (Тракия Trakiya or "Trakija" or Trakia, Θράκη Thráki, Trakya is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches

Aftermath

Ethnic exchanges & expulsions during

The wars were an important precursor to World War I, to the extent that Austria-Hungary took alarm at the great increase in Serbia's territory and regional status. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All This concern was shared by Germany, which saw Serbia as a satellite of Russia. The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification Satellite state is a political term that refers to a country which is formally independent but under heavy influence or control by another country The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya Serbia's rise in power thus contributed to the two Central Powers' willingness to risk war following the assassination in Sarajevo of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria in June 1914. The Central Powers ( German: "Mittelmächte" Hungarian: "Központi hatalmak" Turkish: "İttifak Franz Ferdinand ( December 18, 1863 &ndash June 28, 1914) was an Archduke of Austria-Este, Prince Imperial of

Urlanis estimated in Voini I Narodo-Nacelenie Europi (1960) that in the first and second Balkan wars there were 122,000 killed in action, 20,000 dead of wounds, and 82,000 dead of disease.

Notes

See also

Since the area has been referred to as the Balkans, notable conflicts have included:

• The Ottoman wars in Europe
• The Serbo-Bulgarian War (1885)
• The Balkan campaigns of World War I (1914–1918)
• The Balkan campaigns of World War II (1940–1945)
• The Yugoslav wars (1991–1999)

External links

• Project Gutenberg's The Balkan Wars: 1912-1913, by Jacob Gould Schurman
• US Library of Congress in the Balkan Wars
• The Balkan crises, 1903–1914
• Military uniforms and insignia of the Balkan Wars
• Balkan Wars: An Overview
• The New Student's Reference Work/The Balkans and the Peace of Europe