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Balkan War
Balkanskata voina Photobox Clockwise from top: Serbian soldiers attack Austrian position; Serbian troops march to Mitrovica; Byzantine troops at the Battle of Kumanovo; Byzantine Emperor meeting Serbian president in Thessaloniki; Byzantine heavy artillery
Beginning:

1912

End:

1913

Place:

Western Balkans

Outcome:

Byzantine-allied victory; independence of Serbia, Montenegro, and Albania retained

Combatants

Byzantine Empire Serbia Montenegro Albania

Austrian-Hungary

Commanders

Constantine XII Panagiotis Danglis Radomir Putnik Nicholas I Crown Princo Denilo of Montenegro William I

Francis Joseph I Franz Conrad von Hotzendorf

Strength

2,750,000

1,000,000

Casualties and Losses

145,000

340,000

Background[]

On October 8, 1911, the Byzantine Senate received a request from the provincial governments of Serbia, Montenegro, and Albania, asking for the right to succeed. The Senate voted on this, on after one week, the provinces were granted the right to a referendum on October 27, 1912. But Austria-Hungary denied their ability to be independent, stating if the states were allowed to succeed, they would declare war. Austria-Hungary, formed after the Third Global War, thought that if these states were allowed to succeed, that ethnicity withing their state would also wish to do so, likely ending their empire. But when the referendum came around, each of the states vote around 70% for succession, and independence was agreed to be granted on October 8, 1913, and establishing provisional government in the meantime.

Rifle Berthier

Rifle Md. 10 Heros

The Byzantines took their threat seriously and began arming what were called the Provisional National Militia which was established within each of the, soon to be, independent nations. Even giving the provisional governments the right to conscript within their designated area. The soldiers were all equipped with the Byzantine's latest rifle, the Md. 10 Heros and some were trained to use artillery. And when independence day came around for the new countries, the Austro-Hungarians made good on their threat and declared war.

War in Serbia[]

With their declaration of war, 5 Austrians field corps were mobilized to invade Serbia from the north and 3 to invade them in the east. The Serbians mobilized through a vastly built system of railroads and highways, giving the Austrians very little time to build up any presence in northern Serbia. All of these elements culminated in the Battle of Obrenovac, where 2 corps were defeated by the Serbians and the then forced back into Austria-Hungary. But as the Austrians began to fully mobilize, they were able to launch a full invasion of Serbia with a combined force of 200,000 men in the north, and 100,000 in the west.

Austrian forces began pushing deep into Serbian territory, capturing Belgrade, Loznica, and Valjevo, but when the Byzantines arrived, the Austrians began to fall back. The men of the Byzantine III European Army marched towards the Austrians lines in the north, and established a definite front, but they were less successful in the south. In the south, Austrians troops had captured Ivanjica, and showed no signs of slowing down, until they reached Mitrovica. At the Battle of Mitrovica on December 12, 1912, the Austrians attacked the town where a huge system of trenches and artillery made it difficult for them to advance. But as the Serbians were too small in numbers to attack, and the Austrians too tired from fighting to advance, the battle, and the war, entered a stalemate.

But when the Austrians received large amounts of reinforcements in January, they pushed deep into southern Serbia, eventually reaching the town of Mitrovica on February 3. There the Austrians and Serbians duked it out

Sopwith-strutter

Falcon Mk. 2 fighter plane

for weeks and trench warfare was established, until the Byzantines arrived with their new Mark II tanks and brokethrough the Austrian lines. Byzantine strategists had argued that an offensive maneuver by their tanks on one single point could easily cause a breakthrough, and it was at Mitrovica they were proved right. Meanwhile, in the air, Austrians scouts who had tried to drop bombs on Serbian positions found themselves easily shot down by the Byzantines latest weapon, the fighter plane, in the form of the Falcon Mk. 2.

Austria was now on the retreat, and eventually by March of 1913, the Austro-Hungarian Army was defeated and pushed back into Austria-Hungary.

War in Montenegro[]

While the Austrian army broke through in Serbia in January of 1913, the Austrians sent 90,000 men of their reserves to invade Montenegro. There they found little resistance and a lightly mobilized army, and thought it would be a simple and easy campaign. The Montengrans quickly mobilized their army, and the Austrians were soon confronted with a prime fighting force of both Montenegrans and their allied Albanian Army. The Austrians attempted to march on the Montenegrin coast, but were defeated time and time again by the Montenegrin army.

But when reinforcements arrived to back up their invasion, the Austrians began a quick and vast advance until they reached the town of Rastovac and faced a combine force of Montenegrans, Albanians, and Byzantines. The Austrians were forced to fight against Byzantine airpower, as bombs dropped over their heads and in their trenches, and tank and artillery guns pounded out their machine gun positions, the Austrians fell back in disarray.

Now on the retreat, the Austrians were forced to stand their ground by stubborn generals and were given more machine guns and artillery to do it. All of these resulted in the mass surrender and desertion of Austrians troops and the ultimate defeat of what was left of the loyal ones at the Battle of Pluzine in early April, 1913.

With their armies defeated in both Serbia and Montenegro, the Austrians turned to the peace table. Even if their fear of domestic succession would likely come true as a result.

Treaty of Bucharest and Aftermath[]

The Treaty of Bucharest was signed on August 10, 1913 between the two warring sides, forcing Austria-Hungary to officially recognize the new states in the Balkans. Meanwhile, racial tensions began to boil in Austria-Hungary and as nationalist movements began to gain power in the country, a new world war, on a level never seen before, was ready to be fought.

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