33 – Battle for Bulgaria (2)
Sofia, Capital of the Kingdom of Bulgaria
Bulgaria’s participation in the Axis Pact meant the revival of the Via Militaris, the ancient Roman military highway that crossed the Balkan Peninsula from central Europe, effectively cutting through the allied forces.
As Bulgaria’s participation in the Axis Pact began to unfold, the allied forces raced against time to prevent Bulgaria’s declaration of war against Serbia.
“Ambassador, try your best to reflect Bulgaria’s intentions in the territorial issue and convince your home country.”
Russia and France tried to persuade Bulgaria by offering to support border adjustments, putting pressure on Serbia. Of course, separate compensation was prepared to appease the Balkan countries. The reason Russia and France tried so hard to persuade Bulgaria, even at the cost of some bleeding, was because Bulgaria’s alignment with the Axis would immediately disrupt the balance of power.
If Serbia were to collapse, a large number of Austrian forces would be able to move westward or eastward, which would be the worst military disaster that the allied forces could face.
“What a ridiculous thing to say. Now you come here and try to force such insincere words on me?”
Bulgaria showed no lukewarm response to the compensation promised by the negotiating countries. Germany promised more territory, economic and military support, and guaranteed a dominant position on the Balkan Peninsula. Compared to the carrots offered by Germany and Austria, the concessions offered by the negotiating countries were not very appealing to Bulgaria.
The behavior of the negotiating countries before the war, which included supporting Bulgarian ministers and providing large loans to their hostile countries such as Greece, Serbia, and Romania, also lacked credibility.
“Tell us what you want. If it is something our country can accept, we will try to accommodate your conditions as much as possible.”
When Russia realized that Bulgaria was not interested in their proposals, they presented new conditions through the Bulgarian ambassador in Petrograd and their ambassador in Sofia. They even sent a proposal to France, pressuring them to offer a larger concession of ministers.
But it was all in vain.
To throw a bait that could turn Bulgaria’s heart around, they had to convince all the countries in the Balkans. Realistically, that was an impossible task. Even Serbia, despite facing a crisis, refused to transfer parts of the Macedonian territory that Bulgaria was in conflict with.
Even if they matched the conditions offered by Germany, it was still not enough to entice Bulgaria. Strategically, Germany and Austria were already enjoying overwhelming superiority in Bulgaria’s vicinity, having achieved victory in Poland and suppressing Serbia.
By siding with them, Bulgaria could easily crush its past competitors. There was no need to let go of the perfect opportunity by maintaining neutrality. That was Bulgaria’s thinking.
When the diplomatic efforts of France and Russia seemed to fail, Britain stepped in to provide support on the sidelines. Although formally maintaining neutrality, Britain did not want the negotiating countries to be at a disadvantage.
British Prime Minister Asquith sent Noel Buxton and Charles Buxton, members of the Liberal Party, as special envoys to persuade Bulgarian Prime Minister Vasil Radoslavov and other national leaders of the importance of Bulgarian neutrality.
They also offered the carrot that they could hand over the Ottoman Empire’s Thracian region, which Bulgaria desired. This was a feasible proposal because Britain saw the Ottoman Empire as a potential enemy in the issue of German battleships parking.
The Bulgarian government showed a skeptical response to this proposal.
Although the Thracian region was an enticing story, they had already entered into a secret military alliance with the Ottoman Empire. Moreover, Germany stood behind the Ottoman Empire. Bulgaria was not so out of touch with reality as to provoke Germany by coveting Ottoman territory.
When the Bulgarian government showed little interest in Britain’s proposal, the envoys met with influential opposition figures such as Aleksandar Stamboliski, who stood on the opposite side of Radoslavov, and convinced them of the necessity of neutrality.
“Radoslavov’s thinking is delusional. It was just last year that the country was on the brink of collapse due to the war. And now another war? Absolutely not. Even investors won’t understand.”
“You’re not wrong.”
People like Aleksandar Stamboliski, who were thinking about reconciliation and solidarity among Balkan countries, responded positively to Britain’s proposal. They preferred to see the Ottoman Empire, with its different religion and culture, as an enemy rather than their neighboring Balkan countries.
“The opposition can be reasoned with, but Radoslavov doesn’t open his ears to any thoughts.”
Before returning home, the British envoys reported to London that without a change in the Bulgarian government, they could not expect Bulgarian neutrality or a friendly alliance with the negotiating countries.
The negotiating countries urgently discussed this issue.
After several urgent messages were exchanged across the continent, Russia, France, and Britain embarked on a conspiracy to overthrow the Bulgarian government. Directly attempting a military coup was out of the question, as Bulgaria lacked the necessary influence and the risks were too high. They decided to bring down the regime through indirect means.
In mid-September, just as the Bulgarian authorities were stepping up their preparations for the war effort, the negotiators from the allied countries took action. They bought up the market’s grain at exorbitant prices while cutting off the export of grain from Greece, Romania, and Russia to Bulgaria.
“What? They’re cutting off grain exports? What kind of nonsense is this?”
As a result, grain prices skyrocketed abnormally, shaking the Bulgarian public sentiment.
“Look at this. As soon as we touch the nerves of the negotiators, retaliation comes right back at us. What kind of war is this in such an economic state?”
In addition, they provided massive funds to opposition parties and newspapers with opposition tendencies, stirring up strong anti-government sentiment.
The Bulgarian authorities immediately began investigating the issue and soon discovered the reason.
“The negotiators deliberately triggered an artificial food crisis.”
The motive was obvious.
After making the public sentiment grim, the opposition aimed to tear the government apart and bring about a change in cabinet. Although Bulgaria was a sovereign state, it still had to consider the feelings of its people. Having suffered a blow to its leadership due to the defeat in the Second Balkan War, exploiting public sentiment was highly effective.
Char, in order to prevent Bulgaria’s participation in the war, did not hide his anger toward the negotiators’ covert actions. This was blatant interference in internal affairs and economic aggression.
Ferdinand issued arrest warrants for those involved. Hoarded grain warehouses were all seized, and the export of grain was immediately halted. Bulgaria’s firm stance only provoked the negotiators further.
“These Bulgarians have no intention of considering our feelings. Well then, we have no choice but to bring out stronger options.”
“We will suspend the appointments of Bulgarian officials.”
The banks of the negotiators suspended their lending operations to Bulgaria.
In most of the Black Sea and Eastern Mediterranean ports where the negotiators had influence, restrictions were imposed on the entry of Bulgarian ships. The reason for the trade restrictions was the need to monitor the supply of war materials in a situation where Bulgaria was threatening the “Balkan peace.”
The powerful economic sanctions from the negotiators were enough to shock the Bulgarian government.
Politicians opposed to participating in the war argued that they could gain territorial concessions without shedding blood, questioning the need to confront the negotiations.
However, Char and the military could not yield, as they aimed to recover their lost honor and prestige from the Second Balkan War.
During a meeting with the German ambassador, Gustav Mikheles, Char explained the economic crisis facing Bulgaria and appealed for support.
“Dialogue. If we are allies, please help us.”
“Do not worry. The Kaiser has given orders.”
Germany promised full support for this issue.
They pledged to provide assistance in terms of food and exports, and even promised to provide additional officials.
With Germany’s letter of promise in hand, Ferdinand went to the cabinet and made the following declaration:
“All worries have been resolved. Now, let us move forward towards what we should have rightfully claimed.”
Those who hesitated to participate in the war in the cabinet were speechless after reading the document brought by Char.
On the sunny day of October 1st, Bulgaria declared war on Serbia and launched an attack.
*
October 3, 1914, Imperial capital Berlin, Germany.
With Bulgaria’s participation, the fate of Serbia was practically sealed. As the Bulgarian army advanced from the eastern border of Serbia, the Serbian army gave up its orderly retreat and began to flee southward in chaos.
The persistent resistance seen until yesterday was practically over. Just by observing the changing positions of our forces every few hours, one could imagine the shock Serbia had received.
It was not an exaggeration to say that the Balkan Front had entered the stage of consolidation.
“If we can consolidate Serbia, we can lead other fronts more stably.”
I put the situation map aside and stood up from my seat.
In the afternoon, Falkenhayn’s report came to my desk. The army divisions that would be newly mobilized in October were units that had been discussed and created under the ‘new organization’.
While the conventional divisions placed four infantry regiments under two infantry divisions to manage the infantry forces, the new organization divisions directly controlled three regiments. In response to the decrease in infantry numbers, the number of machine guns and mortars was increased to strengthen firepower.
The artillery and cavalry still had one regiment each, but one cavalry battalion was experimentally armed with bicycles. There were no major changes to the divisional units, but the equipment and personnel of the communication and engineering units were increased.
Overall, the division’s strength was slightly reduced, but its combat power was almost equal to that of the previous divisions. It was expected that the decision-making cycle would be shortened, resulting in higher efficiency.
A total of twelve divisions were planned to be mobilized under the triangular organization, and they were intended to replace the divisions that had been deployed since the beginning of the war. Even the divisions that would retreat to the rear were to be reorganized according to the new organization, and by the end of October, more than 15% of the entire army was expected to be converted to the new organization divisions.
“And the reserves. They seem to be well-prepared as well.”
Unlike the Nazi Third Reich, which entered the World War impulsively, the Kaiser’s Empire had thorough war preparations. The Empire had a large reserve force to replenish the depleted divisions in the war, allowing them to quickly assemble a capable force with only a brief mobilization and training.
Even now, the reserve divisions stationed in West Prussia, East Prussia, Silesia, and the Ruhr were swiftly organizing the reservists assigned to them.
“What pleases me the most is the expansion of the recruitment targets.”
To secure more military resources, the war effort actively carried out recruitment campaigns targeting Germans residing all over the world. Advertisements requesting enlistment were even directed at Germans in countries such as Romania, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and the Baltic region, as well as Germans in the United States and the United Kingdom across the sea.
It didn’t matter if they were not of German nationality.
In fact, there were even plans for the formation of units for pro-German Boers, resources from countries like the Netherlands and Sweden, and former prisoners of war who had switched sides.
The war effort had an ambitious goal of securing over a million troops from these non-German nationals.
Even the Nazis, who had nothing to offer except outdated racial ideology, managed to gather over a million foreign soldiers willing to shed blood for their cause. So, it wasn’t an entirely baseless claim.
Falkenhain’s report reflected a somewhat optimistic outlook, but it instilled confidence that we would have more relaxed military resources compared to the previous chapter, allowing us to carry out the war.
I pondered if there was anything missing in Falkenhain’s report.
Fortunately, the brains behind the war effort had put their heads together and produced a report that had no issues for me to point out.
“Just follow this as it is.”
From Noble mtl dot com
As I pushed the report aside and tried to make an appointment with the US ambassador, the secretary came in and placed a just-received telegram on the desk. She was about to leave, but I raised my hand to stop her. It seemed like a situation where I needed to send another telegram.
“What’s happening in Italy?”
Despite being a member of the Triple Alliance, Italy was not participating in the war and was causing dissatisfaction among Germany and Austria. In fact, Italy had made alliances with France and the United Kingdom, so such indecisive behavior was not entirely surprising. They were considering siding with whichever camp seemed advantageous to them.
I had an inkling of Rome’s calculations, but they seemed to be more inclined towards negotiation rather than siding with us. The reason was legitimacy.
On the pretext that Italy was a defensive ally of the Triple Alliance, they refused to join the war, so they had no justification to side with us in this war.
On the other hand, even without the Anglo-French alliance, there was a possibility of wielding the sword by presenting the nationalistic demand for the recovery of long-sought-after unredeemed territories against Austria.
Taking these factors into consideration, I instructed Lüntschütz to take actions that would make it difficult for Italy to easily join the war. It was unavoidable to not see Italy as a potential enemy.
That’s why I didn’t expect or hope for anything more than maintaining the status quo in diplomacy with Rome.
It was a letter sent by the Italian Admiral to the Ambassador’s side.
I quickly skimmed through the letter. The letter from the Italian Admiral Antonio Sarrandria contained a kind of congratulatory message mixed with flattery, celebrating the victory achieved by the alliance this time.
It seemed like a letter without much substance, but it was difficult to take it at face value. The Italian Admiral wasn’t someone with nothing to do, so why would he write a letter to the head of a foreign country with empty words?
This was nothing more than a “foundation.”
The intention to narrow the gap between the allies, which I had been wishing for, was clearly apparent. Did he feel a sense of crisis?
Come to think of it, that could be possible.
If our Germany and Austria were to win this war, there would be no bright future for Italy, who had betrayed the alliance. Starting from Austria, which had taken Veneto-Lombardy, they wouldn’t just let Italy be.
“It seems even arrogant Italy is scared now that they have suffered defeats on the Eastern Front and in the Balkans without Britain’s participation.”
Of course, it would be difficult to let our guard down just because Italy was starting to show a humble attitude in the current situation.
“A formal response would be appropriate.”
Because of the letter from the Italian Admiral, I skipped the snack I was going to eat instead of lunch.
Perhaps because I had been sitting too often these days, my waist had become quite thick. The problem was that I didn’t have time to exercise.
“I’m just relieving stress in the taste of Greeks watching their backs in Italy.”
The troublesome Serbia was also finished.
I raised my glass to the first enemy I saw on the verge of destruction.