Battle of Doiran (1918)
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The Third Battle of Doiran was fought from 18–19 September 1918, with the
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
and the
Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...
assaulting the positions of the
Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
n First Army near
Dojran Lake Doiran Lake (, ''Dojransko Ezero''; , ''Límni Dhoïráni''), also spelled Dojran Lake is a lake with an area of shared between North Macedonia () and Greece (). To the west is the city of Nov Dojran (Нов Дојран), to the east the vill ...
. The battle was part of
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and took place in the Balkan Theatre. The battle ended with the Bulgarians repulsing all attacks.


Prelude

The British and the Greeks set off from their base at
Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...
at the same time as the French and the
Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...
. The British and the Greeks, under the command of
George Milne Field Marshal George Francis Milne, 1st Baron Milne, (5 November 1866 – 23 March 1948) was a senior British Army officer who served as Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS) from 1926 to 1933. He served in the Second Boer War and during ...
set off the attack on the Bulgarian positions at Dojran while the French and the Serbs under the command of
Franchet d'Esperey Franchet is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Adrien René Franchet (1834–1900), French botanist * Louis Franchet d'Espèrey Louis Félix Marie François Franchet d'Espèrey (25 May 1856 – 8 July 1942) was a French ...
went to penetrate the Bulgarian defences in the
Vardar The Vardar (; mk, , , ) or Axios () is the longest river in North Macedonia and the second longest river in Greece, in which it reaches the Aegean Sea at Thessaloniki. It is long, out of which are in Greece, and drains an area of around . Th ...
Valley. The British and the Greeks were aiming to capture the Bulgarian positions in the hills above
Dojran Lake Doiran Lake (, ''Dojransko Ezero''; , ''Límni Dhoïráni''), also spelled Dojran Lake is a lake with an area of shared between North Macedonia () and Greece (). To the west is the city of Nov Dojran (Нов Дојран), to the east the vill ...
. This was not the first time the Allies had attacked Dojran - in 1916, an Anglo-French attempt was repulsed by the Second Thracian Infantry Division; the British had twice failed to capture it in 1917. The
fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
s were well built (by Bulgarian engineers), the Bulgarians having spent the first months of 1916 and early 1917 strengthening the positions. The terrain around the area was rough, the fortifications being surrounded with three miles of scrub and rocks. Part of the defences were the dangerous Pip Ridge and the Grand Couronné.


Battle

On the left flank, the British XII Corps with the 22nd and 26th divisions, reinforced by the Greek
Serres Division The Serres Division ( el, Μεραρχία Σερρῶν, Merarchia Serrōn) was an infantry division of Hellenic Army in World War I and the annexation of Western Thrace. Establishment The division began being raised in September 1916 by the Pro ...
was to attack the difficult Pip Ridge.Wakefield and Moody, ''Under the Devil's Eye; Britain's Forgotten Army in Salonika, 1915–1918'', 199 The British concentrated 231 pieces of artillery, including heavy 8-inch howitzers. The bombardment took place over two days, included gas shells and concluded with a rolling barrage, behind which the infantry was to advance. The British spent the time before the battle practising for the assault. Facing them was the Bulgarian 9th Pleven Division with 122 guns, in very well prepared defences, commanded by General
Vladimir Vazov Vladimir Minchev Vazov ( bg, Владимир Минчев Вазов) (14 May 1868 – 20 May 1945) was a Bulgarian officer. He led the Bulgarian forces during the successful defensive operation at Dojran during the First World War. Biography V ...
. On September 18, the British XII Corps attacked with the 66th and 67th Brigades of the 22nd Division and the Greek Serres Division. The Bulgarian first line of trenches was overrun and the Serres Division penetrated to the second line. The Bulgarians responded with heavy artillery fire and counter-attacks that recaptured the ground lost. Meanwhile, the British 66th Brigade's 7th Battalion,
South Wales Borderers The South Wales Borderers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for 280 years. It came into existence in England in 1689, as Sir Edward Dering's Regiment of Foot, and afterwards had a variety of names and headquarters. I ...
lost heavily and failed in its attacks. Attacks by the 11th Welsh Regiment and 9th Border Regiment did not go well either. The British 66th Brigade's 12th Cheshire Regiment followed by the 9th South Lancashire Regiment and 8th Kings Shropshire Light Infantry (KSLI) advanced into Bulgarian artillery and machine-gun fire. The 66th Brigade lost 65% of its soldiers.Wakefield and Moody, ''Under the Devil's Eye; Britain's Forgotten Army in Salonika, 1915-1918'', 206 At the end of the day the XII Corps was back at its starting point. On September 19, the XII Corps attacked again but because the XVI Corps attacks north of the lake had failed, the XII Corps would attack alone. The Greek Serres Division repeated the previous day's performance, taking some Bulgarian trenches, before being thrown back by heavy artillery, machine-gun fire and counter-attacks. The British attacked with the 77th Brigade, the weakened 65th Brigade, and later the French 2/2nd
Zouaves The Zouaves were a class of light infantry regiments of the French Army serving between 1830 and 1962 and linked to French North Africa; as well as some units of other countries modelled upon them. The zouaves were among the most decorated unit ...
regiment. The 66th Brigades and 67th Brigades were fit only for defensive duties and did not participate. The 77th Brigade took some Bulgarian trenches but it was in an exposed position, being bombarded by artillery and eventually retreated before the Bulgarians counter-attacked. The brigade suffered about 50% casualties.Wakefield and Moody, ''Under the Devil's Eye; Britain's Forgotten Army in Salonika, 1915-1918'', 214 The 65th Brigade's attack failed also, as did the French Zouaves.Wakefield and Moody, ''Under the Devil's Eye; Britain's Forgotten Army in Salonika, 1915-1918'', 216 Meanwhile, also on September 18, the British XVI Corps attacked with the Greek Cretan Division and the British 84th Brigade in support. They faced the Bulgarian 1st Macedonian Brigade with 24 guns and 64 machine-guns.Wakefield and Moody, ''Under the Devil's Eye; Britain's Forgotten Army in Salonika, 1915-1918'', 201 The Greek division attacked with two of its regiments up front and a third in reserve, supported on its flank by the 84th. Firing in support were six batteries of British artillery. The British 85th Brigade in reserve. At 05:00 the Greeks attacked, clearing out the Bulgarian outpost line. They then had to move across a long plain to attack the Bulgarian positions on a series of hills that overlooked the plain. The Greeks recklessly attacked across the plain, and penetrated the Bulgarian lines but were thrown back with heavy artillery, rifle, and machine-gun fire.Wakefield and Moody, ''Under the Devil's Eye; Britain's Forgotten Army in Salonika, 1915-1918'', 210 The British artillery deployed behind them to provide fire support. The Greeks rallied and made several more attacks on the Bulgarian lines with the same result as the first time. By the evening the Greeks withdrew, followed a few hours later by the British artillery. The XVI Corps did not attack on 19 September due to casualties. The attack failed due to the lack of artillery support, problems with inter-unit communication and the reckless first attack by the Greeks.Wakefield and Moody, ''Under the Devil's Eye; Britain's Forgotten Army in Salonika, 1915–1918'', 211


Casualties

The Allies' losses totalled between 6,559 and 7,819 British and Greek soldiers, against 2,726 for the Bulgarians. Most of the British and Greek losses were to the XII Corps and Serres Division, with less than 1,000 coming from the XVI Corps and Cretan Division.


Retreat

Several days after the battle, the British realized the Bulgarian fortifications were quiet. The British and Greek forces advanced only to find the Bulgarian positions abandoned. The French, Serbs and Greek forces had defeated part of the Bulgarian army during the
Battle of Dobro Pole The Battle of Dobro Pole ( sr, Битка код Доброг Поља, Bitka kod Dobrog Polja; gr, Μάχη του Ντόμπρο Πόλε, Máchi tou Dóbro Póle), also known as the Breakthrough at Dobro Pole ( bg, Пробив при До ...
in the
Vardar The Vardar (; mk, , , ) or Axios () is the longest river in North Macedonia and the second longest river in Greece, in which it reaches the Aegean Sea at Thessaloniki. It is long, out of which are in Greece, and drains an area of around . Th ...
valley and were advancing towards Doiran. This prompted the command of
Army Group Scholtz The Army Group Mackensen (German: ''Heeresgruppe Mackensen'') which operated in Serbia between 18 September 1915 and 11 October 1916 during World War I under the command of field marshal Mackensen, was an Army Group of the German Army. It was re ...
to order the
Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
n First Army to retreat so that it would not be cut off from the rear. The British were weary and pursued slowly, and Bulgarian rear guards fought well enough to allow the rest of their troops to get away. The British Royal Air Force did attack the retreating Bulgarian columns, inflicting some casualties.Wakefield and Moody, ''Under the Devil's Eye; Britain's Forgotten Army in Salonika, 1915–1918'', 221


Aftermath

The Allies continued to advance into Bulgarian-held territory and some said the Bulgarian army had mutinied and were threatening
Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...
. On September 30, the Bulgarians surrendered to the allies in
Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...
in order to avoid occupation. The British paid great honour to General
Vladimir Vazov Vladimir Minchev Vazov ( bg, Владимир Минчев Вазов) (14 May 1868 – 20 May 1945) was a Bulgarian officer. He led the Bulgarian forces during the successful defensive operation at Dojran during the First World War. Biography V ...
when in 1936 he arrived in Victoria Station in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, by lowering the flags of all their regiments who participated in the battle. The chairman of the British legion Major Goldy said in his speech: "He is one of the few foreign officers whose name features in our history".


Notes


See also

*
Macedonian front (World War I) The Macedonian front, also known as the Salonica front (after Thessaloniki), was a military theatre of World War I formed as a result of an attempt by the Allied Powers to aid Serbia, in the autumn of 1915, against the combined attack of German ...


Footnotes


References

* AJP Taylor. History of World War I. * * * Атанас Пейчев, 1300 години на стража, Военно издателство София 1981 * * * Пейковска, П., Печатът за участието на 34-и Пехотен Троянски полк в боевете при Дойран he Press on the Participation of 34th Troyan Infantry Regiment in the Battle of Doiran - В: Културно-историческо наследство на Троянския край. Vol. 7, Троян, 1994, pp. 119–129. http://ivanpeykovski.blogspot.com/2013/01/34.html


External links


Μάχη της Δοϊράνης (5/18-6/19 Σεπτεμβρίου 1918) [''Battle of Doiran (5/18-6/19 September 1918)''
/nowiki> ], Hellenic Army, First World War 100th Anniversary portal
World War I history




{{DEFAULTSORT:Doiran Battles of the Balkans Theatre (World War I) Doiran Doiran 1918 Battles of World War I involving the United Kingdom Military history of North Macedonia 1918 in Bulgaria Vardar Macedonia (1912–1918) Macedonian front September 1918 events Doiran