First Balkan War - Reactions Among The Great Powers

Reactions Among The Great Powers

The developments that led to the war did not go unnoticed by the Great Powers, but although there was an official consensus between the European Powers over the territorial integrity of the Ottoman Empire, which led to a stern warning to the Balkan states, unofficially each of them took a different diplomatic approach due to their conflicting interests in the area. As a result, any possible preventative effect of the common official warning was cancelled by the mixed unofficial signals, and failed to prevent or to stop the war:

  • Russia was a prime mover in the establishment of the Balkan League and saw it as an essential tool in case of a future war against its rival, the Austro-Hungarian Empire. But it was unaware of the Bulgarian plans for Thrace and Constantinople, territories on which Russia itself had long-held ambitions.
  • France, not feeling ready for a war against Germany in 1912, took a totally negative position against the war, firmly informing its ally Russia that it would not take part in a potential conflict between Russia and Austro-Hungary if it resulted from the actions of the Balkan League. The French however failed to achieve British participation in a common intervention to stop the Balkan conflict.
  • The British Empire, although officially a staunch supporter of the Ottoman Empire's integrity, took secret diplomatic steps encouraging the Greek entry into the League in order to counteract Russian influence. At the same time it encouraged the Bulgarian aspirations over Thrace, preferring a Bulgarian Thrace to a Russian one, despite the assurances it had given to the Russians in regard of their expansion there.
  • Austria-Hungary, struggling for an exit from the Adriatic and seeking ways for expansion in the south at the expense of the Ottoman Empire, was totally opposed to any other nation's expansion in the area. At the same time, the Habsburg empire had its own internal problems with the significant Slav populations that campaigned against the German-Hungarian control of the multinational state. Serbia, whose aspirations in the direction of the Austrian-held Bosnia were no secret, was considered an enemy and the main tool of Russian machinations that were behind the agitation of Austria's Slav subjects. But the Habsburgs failed to achieve German backup for a firm reaction. Initially, Emperor Wilhelm II told the Archduke Franz Ferdinand that Germany was ready to support Austria in all circumstances – even at the risk of a world war, but Austro-Hungarians hesitated. Finally, in the German Imperial War Council of 8 December 1912 the consensus was that Germany would not be ready for war until at least mid-1914 and notes about that passed to the Habsburgs. Consequently no actions could be taken when the Serbs acceded to the Austria ultimatum of 18 October and withdrew from Albania.
  • Germany, already heavily involved in the internal Ottoman politics, officially opposed a war against the Empire. But in its effort to win Bulgaria for the Central Powers, and seeing the inevitability of Ottoman disintegration, was playing with the idea to replace the Balkan positions of the Ottomans with a friendly Greater Bulgaria in its San Stefano borders—an idea that was based on the German origin of the Bulgarian King and his anti-Russian sentiments.

Finally, when Serb-Austrian tensions again grew hot in July 1914 when a Serbian backed organization assassinated the heir of the Austro-Hungarian throne, no one had strong reservations about the possible conflict and the First World War broke out.

Battles of the First Balkan War
Name Attacking Commander Defending Commander Date Winner
Battle of Kardzhali Bulgarians Col. Vasil Delov Ottomans Mehmed Yaver Pasha 21 Oct 1912 Bulgarians
Battle of Sarantaporo Greeks Crown Prince Constantine Ottomans Lt. Gen. Hasan Tahsin Pasha 22 Oct 1912 Greeks
Battle of Yenidje Greeks Crown Prince Constantine Ottomans Lt. Gen. Hasan Tahsin Pasha 1 Nov 1912 Greeks
Battle of Kumanovo Serbs Gen. Radomir Putnik Ottomans Gen. Zeki Pasha 23 Oct 1912 Serbs
Battle of Kirk Kilisse Bulgarians Lt. Gen. Radko Dimitriev, Maj. Gen. Ivan Fichev Ottomans Mahmut Muhtar Pasha 24 Oct 1912 Bulgarians
Battle of Pente Pigadia Ottomans Maj. Gen. Esat Pasha Greeks Lt. Gen. Konstantinos Sapountzakis 6–12 Nov 1912 Greeks
Battle of Prilep Serbs Ottomans 3 Nov 1912 Serbs
Battle of Lule Burgas Bulgarians Lt. Gen. Radko Dimitriev, Maj. Gen. Ivan Fichev Ottomans Abdullah Pasha 28–31 Oct 1912 Bulgarians
Battle of Merhamli Bulgarians Gen. Nikola Genev, Col. Aleksandar Tanev Ottomans Mehmed Yaver Pasha 26 Nov 1912 Bulgarians
Battle of Sorovich Greeks Col. Dimitrios Matthaiopoulos Ottomans 15 Nov 1912 Ottomans
Battle of Bitola Serbs Gen. Petar Bojović Ottomans Gen. Zeki Pasha 16–19 Nov 1912 Serbs
First Battle of Çatalca Bulgarians Lt. Gen. Radko Dimitriev Ottomans Nazim Pasha 17–18 Nov 1912 Ottomans
Naval Battle of Kaliakra Bulgarians Cpt. Dimitar Dobrev Ottomans Cpt. Hüseyin Rauf Bey 21 Nov 1912 Bulgarians
Battle of Elli Ottomans Adm. Remzi Bey Greeks Rear Adm. Pavlos Kountouriotis 16 Dec 1912 Greeks
Battle of Bulair Ottomans Fethi Bey Bulgarians Gen. Georgi Todorov 26 Jan 1913 Bulgarians
Battle of Şarköy Ottomans Enver Bey Bulgarians Gen. Stiliyan Kovachev 26–28 Jan 1913 Bulgarians
Battle of Lemnos Ottomans Greeks Rear Adm. Pavlos Kountouriotis 18 Jan 1913 Greeks
Battle of Bizani Greeks Crown Prince Constantine Ottomans Maj. Gen. Esat Pasha 5–6 Mar 1913 Greeks
Siege of Adrianople Bulgarians & Serbs Gen. Georgi Vazov, Gen. Stepa Stepanovic Ottomans Gen. Gazi Ṣükrü Pasha 11–13 Mar 1913 Bulgarians & Serbs
Second Battle of Çatalca Bulgarians Gen.Vasil Kutinchev Ottomans Gen.Ahmet İzzet Pasha 3 Feb – 30 May 1913 Ottomans (but strategically Bulgarians)

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