Central Powers victory (December 1917)
191-441: Allied victory (November 1918) [REDACTED] Romanian Front 1916: [REDACTED] 658,088 [REDACTED] 30,000 [REDACTED] 20,000 [REDACTED] 1,600 1917: [REDACTED] 400,000 [REDACTED] 1,000,000 [REDACTED] 535,700 335,706 dead 120,000 wounded 80,000 captured [REDACTED] 50,000 The Romanian Debacle 1917 Campaign Bessarabia Romania rejoins
382-764: A British Expeditionary Force of 100,000 men would be landed in France; in addition, the Royal Navy would be responsible for the North Sea , the Channel and protecting Northern France, with the French navy concentrated in the Mediterranean . Britain was committed to support France in a war against Germany but this was not widely understood outside government or the upper ranks of the military. As late as 1 August,
573-811: A defensive alliance with Germany in October 1879 and in May 1882. In October 1882 Italy joined this partnership in the Triple Alliance largely because of Italy's imperial rivalries with France. Tensions between Russia and Austria–Hungary remained high, so Bismarck replaced the League of the Three Emperors with the Reinsurance Treaty with Russia to keep the Habsburgs from recklessly starting
764-491: A military training mission , and Russia promised modern munitions. The Allies promised at least 200,000 soldiers to defend Romania against Bulgaria to the south, and help it invade Austria-Hungary. At the outbreak of hostilities, the Austro-Hungarian Empire invoked a casus foederis on Romania and Italy linked to the secret treaty of alliance since 1883. However, both Italy and Romania refused to honor
955-670: A German ultimatum demanded unimpeded progress through any part of Belgium, which was refused. Early on the morning of 4 August, the Germans invaded and the Belgian government called for British assistance under the 1839 Treaty; by the end of 1914, over 95% of the country was occupied but the Belgian Army held their lines on the Yser Front throughout the war. Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary , also referred to as
1146-488: A Romanian land. According to British military historian John Keegan , before Romania entered the war, the Allies had secretly agreed not to honour the territorial expansion of Romania when the war ended. In 1915, Lieutenant-Colonel Christopher Thomson , a fluent speaker of French, was sent to Bucharest as British military attaché on the initiative of Lord Kitchener to bring Romania into the war. Once there, he quickly formed
1337-551: A better understanding of the ethnic situation of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Particularly in the province of L'Aquila, where a strong earthquake destroyed the roads and civil structures on January 13, 1915, the need for manpower led to the establishment in Avezzano of a camp with 15,000 prisoners. Over time, the component represented by prisoners of Romanian origin has increased significantly, who have developed
1528-492: A clear majority of the Liberal government and its supporters wanted to stay out of the war. While Liberal leaders H. H. Asquith and Edward Grey considered Britain legally and morally committed to support France regardless, waiting until Germany triggered the 1839 Treaty provided the best chance of preserving Liberal party unity. The German high command was aware entering Belgium would lead to British intervention but decided
1719-528: A common holding of Cisleithania and Transleithania under the control of the Imperial & Royal finance ministry rather than attaching it to either territorial government. The annexation in 1908 led some in Vienna to contemplate combining Bosnia and Herzegovina with Croatia to form a third Slavic component of the monarchy. The deaths of Franz Joseph's brother, Maximilian (1867), and his only son, Rudolf , made
1910-582: A declaration of war prior to its attack of 31 August. Other sources place the declaration on 30 August or 1 September. The Ottoman declaration took place either on 29 August, 30 August or 1 September. Within two days of her own declaration, according to one source, Romania found herself at war with all the Central Powers. The Romanian Army was quite large, with over 650,000 men in 23 divisions, but it suffered from poor training and equipment, particularly when compared to its German counterparts. Meanwhile,
2101-628: A good reputation and a good image among the civilian Italian population. The ease with which Italian citizens were able to communicate with the Romanians in relation to Germans and Hungarians, as well as their spirit of sacrifice associated with the demonstration of being good workers, led to the respect of the Italian civilians towards Romanians. This went to the point where Italian civil solidarity and assistance committees were spontaneously created, reserved for Romanian citizens and their families left in
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#17327725520442292-587: A greater than expected loss of men in the invasion of Serbia. Furthermore, it became evident that the Austrian high command had had no plans for possible continental war and that the army and navy were also ill-equipped to handle such a conflict. In the last two years of the war the Austro-Hungarian armed forces lost all ability to act independently of Germany. As of 7 September 1916, the German emperor
2483-416: A high casualty rate, and by the army's composition of multiple ethnicities with different languages and customs. By 1918, the economic situation had deteriorated and governmental failure on the homefront ended popular support for the war. The Austro-Hungarian monarchy collapsed with dramatic speed in the autumn of 1918. Leftist and pacifist political movements organized strikes in factories, and uprisings in
2674-551: A large South Slav state in the 1917 Corfu Declaration signed by members of the Yugoslav Committee . The Croatians had begun disregarding orders from Budapest earlier in October. Lansing's response was, in effect, the death certificate of Austria–Hungary. During the Italian battles, the Czechoslovaks and Southern Slavs declared their independence. With defeat in the war imminent after the Italian offensive in
2865-675: A predominantly Muslim special militia known as the Schutzkorps was established and carried out the persecution of Serbs. Some members of the government, such as Minister of Foreign Affairs Count Leopold Berchtold and Army Commander Count Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf , had wanted to confront the resurgent Serbian nation for some years in a preventive war, but the Emperor and Hungarian prime minister István Tisza were opposed. The foreign ministry of Austro-Hungarian Empire sent ambassador László Szőgyény to Potsdam , where he inquired about
3056-548: A route into the crumbling Ottoman Empire, where Germany also had significant interests. Combined with the increase in Russian military strength, both Austria and Germany felt threatened by Serbian expansion; when Austria invaded Serbia on 28 July 1914, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Sazonov viewed it as an Austro-German conspiracy to end Russian influence in the Balkans. In addition to its own territory, Russia viewed itself as
3247-471: A share in the management of their own affairs by means of a local representative assembly. In performance of this promise a constitution was promulgated in 1910. The principal players in the Bosnian Crisis of 1908-09 were the foreign ministers of Austria and Russia, Alois Lexa von Aehrenthal and Alexander Izvolsky . Both were motivated by political ambition; the first would emerge successful, and
3438-481: A short time, the towns of Brașov , Făgăraș , and Miercurea Ciuc were captured, and the outskirts of Sibiu were reached. In areas populated with Romanians, the Romanian troops were warmly welcomed, and the locals provided them considerable assistance in terms of provisions, billeting and guiding. However, the rapid Romanian advance alarmed the Central Powers, and within weeks sizable reinforcements began arriving at
3629-688: A small north-western portion of the former kingdom's territory. Eventually, following the Treaty of Passarowitz in 1718, all former territories of the Hungarian kingdom were ceded from the Ottomans to the Habsburgs. In the revolutions of 1848 , the Kingdom of Hungary called for greater self-government and later even independence from the Austrian Empire . The ensuing Hungarian Revolution of 1848
3820-524: A total force of 450,000 men. However, in the autumn of 1915, the Serbian Army was defeated by the Central Powers, which led to the occupation of Serbia. Near the end of 1915, in a massive rescue operation involving more than 1,000 trips made by Italian, French and British steamers, 260,000 Serb surviving soldiers were transported to Brindisi and Corfu , where they waited for the chance of the victory of Allied Powers to reclaim their country. Corfu hosted
4011-509: A treaty with the Allies (France, Britain, Italy, and Russia) on 17 August 1916 that pledged to declare war on Austria-Hungary by 28 August. The Romanian ambassador in Vienna actually transmitted the declaration of war on 27 August. Germany, caught by surprise, responded with a declaration of war on Romania the next day (28 August). The dates of the Bulgarian and Ottoman declarations of war are disputed. Ian Beckett says that Bulgaria did not issue
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#17327725520444202-630: A war over Pan-Slavism. The Sandžak-Raška / Novibazar region was under Austro-Hungarian occupation between 1878 and 1909, when it was returned to the Ottoman Empire, before being ultimately divided between kingdoms of Montenegro and Serbia . On the heels of the Great Balkan Crisis, Austro-Hungarian forces occupied Bosnia and Herzegovina in August 1878 and the monarchy eventually annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina in October 1908 as
4393-867: The Admiralty that did the same for the Royal Navy . Theatre commanders like Douglas Haig on the Western Front or Edmund Allenby in Palestine then reported to the CIGS. After the Indian Army, the largest individual units were the Australian Corps and Canadian Corps in France, which by 1918 were commanded by their own generals, John Monash and Arthur Currie . Contingents from South Africa, New Zealand and Newfoundland served in theatres including France, Gallipoli , German East Africa and
4584-599: The Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy , was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consisted of two sovereign states with a single monarch who was titled both Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary . Austria-Hungary constituted the last phase in the constitutional evolution of
4775-701: The Austro-Prussian War of 1866 led to the dissolution of the German Confederation (of which the Habsburg emperor was the hereditary president) and the exclusion of Austria from German affairs. These twin defeats gave the Hungarians the opportunity to remove the shackles of absolutist rule. Realizing the need to compromise with Hungary in order to retain its great power status, the central government in Vienna began negotiations with
4966-610: The Balkan League to prevent further Austrian expansion. Austria viewed Serbia with hostility partly due to its links with Russia, whose claim to be the protector of South Slavs extended to those within the Austro-Hungarian Empire, such as the Czechs and Slovaks . Serbia also potentially gave Russia the ability to achieve their long-held objective of capturing Constantinople and the Dardanelles . Austria-Hungary supported
5157-690: The Battle of Transylvania through the Carpathians . On that same night, the torpedo boats NMS Rândunica , Bujorescu and Catinca attacked the Austro-Hungarian Danube Flotilla at the Bulgarian port of Ruse , sinking one barge loaded with fuel and damaging the port's quay. Initially, the only opposing force was the Austro-Hungarian First Army , which was steadily pushed back toward Hungary. In
5348-615: The Bolshevik Revolution and Russians ended their involvement in the war , Germans and Austrians were able to move on the Western and Southern fronts much manpower from the erstwhile Eastern fighting. On 24 October 1917, Austrians (now enjoying decisive German support) attacked at Caporetto using new infiltration tactics; although they advanced more than 100 km (62.14 mi) in the direction of Venice and gained considerable supplies, they were halted and could not cross
5539-713: The Bran - Câmpulung area, especially at Dragoslavele and Racoș . Particular heed was paid to the actions carried on for the defense of the Carpathians' alignment, the fights on the Jiu River . There, the Germans had massed large forces to beat their way south of the mountains. Faced with the enemy threat, the troops of the Romanian First Army, under command of General Ion Dragalina , offered strong resistance. The Romanian soldiers were supported everywhere by
5730-716: The British Empire , many of whom made significant contributions to the Allied war effort, both in the provision of troops and civilian labourers. It was split into Crown Colonies administered by the Colonial Office in London, such as Nigeria , and the self-governing Dominions of Canada , Newfoundland , New Zealand , Australia and South Africa . These controlled their own domestic policies and military expenditure but not foreign policy. In terms of population,
5921-991: The British Indian Army served in different theatres of the war, primarily France and the Middle East . From 1914 to 1916, overall Imperial diplomatic, political and military strategy was controlled by the British War Cabinet in London; in 1917 it was superseded by the Imperial War Cabinet , which included representatives from the Dominions. Under the War Cabinet were the Chief of the Imperial General Staff or CIGS , responsible for all Imperial ground forces, and
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6112-649: The Central Powers in World War I , which began with an Austro-Hungarian war declaration on the Kingdom of Serbia on 28 July 1914. It was already effectively dissolved by the time the military authorities signed the armistice of Villa Giusti on 3 November 1918. The Kingdom of Hungary and the First Austrian Republic were treated as its successors de jure , whereas the independence of
6303-749: The First Czechoslovak Republic , the Second Polish Republic , and the Kingdom of Yugoslavia , respectively, and most of the territorial demands of the Kingdom of Romania and the Kingdom of Italy were also recognized by the victorious powers in 1920. The realm's official name was in German : Österreichisch-Ungarische Monarchie and in Hungarian : Osztrák–Magyar Monarchia (English: Austro-Hungarian Monarchy ), though in international relations Austria–Hungary
6494-681: The Habsburg monarchy : it was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 in the aftermath of the Austro-Prussian War and was dissolved shortly after Hungary terminated the union with Austria on 31 October 1918. One of Europe's major powers at the time, Austria-Hungary was geographically the second-largest country in Europe and the third-most populous (after Russia and the German Empire ), while being among
6685-666: The Isonzo river, hoping to seize Ljubljana, and to eventually threaten Vienna. However, the Royal Italian Army were halted on the river, where four battles took place over five months (23 June – 2 December 1915). The fight was extremely bloody and exhausting for both the contenders. On 15 May 1916, the Austrian Chief of Staff Conrad von Hötzendorf launched the Strafexpedition (" punitive expedition "):
6876-449: The League of the Three Emperors , then with Germany in the 1887–1890 Reinsurance Treaty ; both collapsed due to the competing interests of Austria and Russia in the Balkans . While France took advantage of this to agree the 1894 Franco-Russian Alliance , Britain viewed Russia with deep suspicion; in 1800, over 3,000 kilometres separated the Russian Empire and British India, by 1902, it was 30 km in some areas. This threatened to bring
7067-421: The Macedonian front and advanced in Transylvania . The next day, the Treaty of Bucharest was nullified by the terms of the Armistice of Compiègne . The Kingdom of Romania was ruled by kings of the House of Hohenzollern from 1866. In 1883, the King of Romania , Carol I of Hohenzollern , signed a secret treaty with the Triple Alliance that stipulated Romania's obligation to go to war only if Austria-Hungary
7258-403: The Mariana , Caroline , and Marshall Islands , while in 1917, a Japanese naval squadron was sent to support the Allies in the Mediterranean Sea . Japan's primary interest was in China and in January 1915, the Chinese government was presented with a secret ultimatum of Twenty-One Demands , demanding extensive economic and political concessions. While these were eventually modified, the result
7449-399: The Ottoman Empire no later than August 1916, that Russia would send troops into Dobruja, and that the Romanian army would not be subordinated to Russian command. The Allies were to send 300 tons of provisions on a daily basis. According to the Romanian account, most of these clauses, with the exception of those imposed on Romania, failed to be respected. The Allies accepted the terms late in
7640-470: The Paris Peace Conference recognized the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Japan, and the United States as "the Principal Allied and Associated Powers". When the war began in 1914, the Central Powers were opposed by the Triple Entente , formed in 1907 when the agreement between the United Kingdom and Russia complemented existing agreements between the three powers. Fighting commenced when Austria invaded Serbia on 28 July 1914, purportedly in response to
7831-418: The Piave river. Italy, although suffering massive casualties, recovered from the blow, and a coalition government under Vittorio Emanuele Orlando was formed. Italy also enjoyed support by the Entente powers: by 1918, large amounts of war materials and a few auxiliary American, British, and French divisions arrived in the Italian battle zone. Cadorna was replaced by General Armando Diaz ; under his command,
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8022-773: The Quadruple Entente and, together with Japan, as the Quintuple Entente . The colonies administered by the countries that fought for the Allies were also part of the Entente powers such as American Philippines , Belgian Congo , British India , French Algeria , and Japanese Korea . The United States joined near the end of the war in 1917 (the same year in which Russia withdrew from the conflict) as an "associated power" rather than an official ally. Other "associated members" included Serbia , Belgium , Montenegro , Asir , Nejd and Hasa , Portugal , Romania , Hejaz , Panama , Cuba , Greece , China , Siam , Brazil , Armenia , Luxembourg , Guatemala , Nicaragua , Costa Rica , Haiti , Liberia , and Honduras . The treaties signed at
8213-423: The Russian Empire following the October Revolution and voted for union with Romania in April 1918. The parliament signed the treaty, but King Ferdinand refused to sign it, hoping for an Allied victory on the western front. In October 1918, Romania renounced the Treaty of Bucharest and on 10 November 1918, one day before the German armistice , Romania re-entered the war after the successful Allied advances on
8404-402: The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on 3 March 1918. Romania was forced to do the same in the May 1918 Treaty of Bucharest but on 10 November, it repudiated the Treaty and once more declared war on the Central Powers. These changes meant the Allies who negotiated the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 included the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Japan and the United States; Part One of the Treaty agreed to
8595-404: The Treaty of San Stefano tried to create a large pro-Russian Bulgaria. This treaty sparked an international uproar that almost resulted in a general European war. Austria–Hungary and Britain feared that a large Bulgaria would become a Russian satellite that would enable the tsar to dominate the Balkans. British prime minister Benjamin Disraeli moved warships into position against Russia to halt
8786-446: The United Kingdom , Russia , the United States , Italy , and Japan against the Central Powers of Germany , Austria-Hungary , the Ottoman Empire , and Bulgaria in World War I (1914–1918). By the end of the first decade of the 20th century, the major European powers were divided between the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance . The Triple Entente was made up of the United Kingdom, France, and Russia. The Triple Alliance
8977-459: The Yser Front throughout the war. This allowed Belgium to be treated as an Ally, in contrast to Luxembourg which retained control over domestic affairs but was occupied by the German military . In the East, between 7 and 9 August the Russians entered German East Prussia on 7 August, Austrian Eastern Galicia . Japan joined the Entente by declaring war on Germany on 23 August, then Austria on 25 August. On 2 September, Japanese forces surrounded
9168-402: The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand , heir to Emperor Franz Joseph I ; this brought Serbia's ally Montenegro into the war on 8 August and it attacked the Austrian naval base at Cattaro , modern Kotor. At the same time, German troops carried out the Schlieffen Plan , entering neutral Belgium and Luxembourg ; over 95% of Belgium was occupied but the Belgian Army held their lines on
9359-425: The war with Russia . Following the Armistice of 11 November 1918 ending the World War I, in spite of the previous initial total dependence of the kingdom on its sponsors, it ultimately served against their intentions as the cornerstone proto state of the nascent Second Polish Republic , the latter composed also of territories never intended by the Central Powers to be ceded to Poland. The Battle of Zborov (1917)
9550-455: The " German question " in favor of a Lesser German Solution . Count Friedrich Ferdinand von Beust , who was the foreign minister from 1866 to 1871, hated the Prussian chancellor, Otto von Bismarck , who had repeatedly outmaneuvered him. Beust looked to France for avenging Austria's defeat and attempted to negotiate with Emperor Napoleon III of France and Italy for an anti-Prussian alliance, but no terms could be reached. The decisive victory of
9741-401: The 19th century, Britain sought to maintain the European balance of power without formal alliances, a policy known as splendid isolation . This left it dangerously exposed as Europe divided into opposing power blocs and the 1895–1905 Conservative government negotiated first the 1902 Anglo-Japanese Alliance , then the 1904 Entente Cordiale with France. The first tangible result of this shift
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#17327725520449932-430: The 57 mm guns were converted into anti-aircraft guns using a carriage designed by the Romanian General Ștefan Burileanu . The Romanian army badly lacked arms and ammunitions during the war, due to the industrial underdevelopment of the country. The ethnic Romanians in Austria-Hungary entered the war from the very beginning, with hundreds of thousands of Transylvanian and Bukovinian Romanians being mobilized throughout
10123-460: The Allies and Germany . The Austro-Hungarian Empire conscripted 7.8 million soldiers during WWI. General von Hötzendorf was the Chief of the Austro-Hungarian General Staff. Franz Joseph I, who was much too old to command the army, appointed Archduke Friedrich von Österreich-Teschen as Supreme Army Commander (Armeeoberkommandant), but asked him to give Von Hötzendorf freedom to take any decisions. Von Hötzendorf remained in effective command of
10314-456: The Allies, but his initiatives were vetoed by Italy. The heavily rural Empire did have a small industrial base, but its major contribution was manpower and food. Nevertheless, Austria–Hungary was more urbanized (25%) than its actual opponents in the First World War, like the Russian Empire (13.4%), Serbia (13.2%) or Romania (18.8%). Furthermore, the Austro-Hungarian Empire had also more industrialized economy and higher GDP per capita than
10505-400: The Allies, whereby the entire war could be ended by compromise, or perhaps Austria would make a separate peace from Germany. The main effort was vetoed by Italy, which had been promised large slices of Austria for joining the Allies in 1915. Austria was only willing to turn over the Trentino region but nothing more. Karl was seen as a defeatist, which weakened his standing at home and with both
10696-402: The Austrians broke through the opposing front and occupied the Asiago plateau . The Italians managed to resist and in a counteroffensive seized Gorizia on 9 August. Nonetheless, they had to stop on the Carso , a few kilometres away from the border. At this point, several months of indecisive trench warfare ensued (analogous to the Western front ). As the Russian Empire collapsed as a result of
10887-430: The Austro-Hungarian Army included Oberleutnant ( Locotenent-Major ) and Imperial Adviser Constantin Isopescu-Grecul , as well as Octavian Codru Tăslăuanu , who also wrote valuable memoirs about his war experience. Samoilă Mârza , a private in the Austro-Hungarian Army, reached as far as Riga and became the first Romanian war photographer. In total, up to 150,000 Romanians were killed in action while fighting as part of
11078-425: The Austro-Hungarian Army, under a unified command with the Germans, participated in the successful Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive. From June 1916, the Russians focused their attacks on the Austro-Hungarian army in the Brusilov Offensive , recognizing the numerical inferiority of the Austro-Hungarian army. By the end of September 1916, Austria–Hungary mobilized and concentrated new divisions, and the successful Russian advance
11269-413: The Austro-Hungarian Army. Although the first Romanian Transylvanian prisoners in Italy were documented as early as June 1915, it was not until 1916 that the percentage of Romanian prisoners of war from Austro-Hungarian troops became significant, and they were mainly concentrated in northern Italy. Along with prisoners of other nationalities of Austria-Hungary, scattered throughout Italy, they contributed to
11460-401: The Austro-Hungarian Empire at the time, as well as in Southern Dobruja , which is currently part of Bulgaria . The Romanian campaign plan ( Hypothesis Z ) consisted in attacking Austria-Hungary in Transylvania, while defending Southern Dobruja and Giurgiu from Bulgaria in the south. Despite initial successes in Transylvania, after German divisions started aiding Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria,
11651-407: The Balkan rebels and so pressured the tsar's government to declare war on the Ottoman Empire in 1877 in the name of protecting Orthodox Christians. Unable to mediate between the Ottoman Empire and Russia over the control of Serbia, Austria–Hungary declared neutrality when the conflict between the two powers escalated into a war . With help from Romania and Greece, Russia defeated the Ottomans and with
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#173277255204411842-435: The Battle of Vittorio Veneto on 24 October, Czech politicians peacefully took over command in Prague on 28 October (later declared the birth of Czechoslovakia) and followed up in other major cities in the next few days. On 30 October, the Slovaks did the same. On 29 October, the Slavs in both portions of what remained of Austria–Hungary proclaimed the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs and declared that their ultimate intention
12033-427: The British army and Royal Navy were committed to support France in the event of war with Germany but even in the British government, very few were aware of the extent of these commitments. In response to Germany's declaration of war on Russia, France issued a general mobilisation in expectation of war on 2 August and on 3 August, Germany also declared war on France. Germany's ultimatum to Belgium brought Britain into
12224-516: The Bulgarians, who turned instead to Russia and Serbia. Although Austria had no intention to embark on additional expansion to the south, Aehrenthal encouraged speculation to that effect, expecting that it would paralyze the Balkan states. Instead, it incited them to feverish activity to create a defensive block to stop Austria. A series of grave miscalculations at the highest level thus significantly strengthened Austria's enemies. In 1914, Slavic militants in Bosnia rejected Austria's plan to fully absorb
12415-415: The Central Powers formed by the Austro-Hungarian, German, Bulgarian, and Ottoman armies, had defeated the Romanian and Russian armies of the Entente Powers, and occupied the southern part of Romania (including Oltenia , Muntenia and Dobruja ). Within three months of the war, the Central Powers came near Bucharest, the Romanian capital city. On 6 December, the Central Powers captured Bucharest , and part of
12606-447: The Central Powers, was also forced to drop out of the war. It signed the Treaty of Bucharest with the Central Powers in May 1918. Under the terms of the treaty, Romania would lose all of Dobruja to Bulgaria , all the Carpathian passes to Austria-Hungary and would lease all of its oil reserves to Germany for 99 years. However, the Central Powers recognized Romania's union with Bessarabia who had recently declared independence from
12797-402: The Congress of Berlin in 1878 Gyula Andrássy (Minister of Foreign Affairs) managed to force Russia to retreat from further demands in the Balkans. As a result, Greater Bulgaria was broken up and Serbian independence was guaranteed. In that year, with Britain's support, Austria–Hungary stationed troops in Bosnia to prevent the Russians from expanding into nearby Serbia. In another measure to keep
12988-523: The East. The growth of the Russian railway network and increase in speed of mobilisation made rapid victory over France even more important; to accommodate the additional 170,000 troops approved by the 1913 Army Bill, the 'incursion' now became a full-scale invasion. The Germans accepted the risk of British intervention; in common with most of Europe, they expected it to be a short war while their London Ambassador claimed civil war in Ireland would prevent Britain from assisting its Entente partners. On 3 August,
13179-409: The Emperor's formal coronation as King of Hungary on 8 June had to have taken place in order for the laws to be enacted within the lands of the Holy Crown of Hungary . On 28 July, Franz Joseph, in his new capacity as King of Hungary, approved and promulgated the new laws, which officially gave birth to the Dual Monarchy. The Austro-Prussian War was ended by the Peace of Prague (1866) which settled
13370-402: The Emperor's nephew, Franz Ferdinand , heir to the throne. The Archduke was rumoured to have been an advocate for this trialism as a means to limit the power of the Hungarian aristocracy. A proclamation issued on the occasion of its annexation to the Habsburg monarchy in October 1908 promised these lands constitutional institutions, which should secure to their inhabitants full civil rights and
13561-412: The Emperors Wilhelm II of Germany and Franz Joseph of Austria-Hungary. This act promised the creation of the Kingdom of Poland out of territory of Congress Poland , envisioned by its authors as a puppet state controlled by the Central Powers , with the nominal authority vested in the Regency Council . The origin of that document was the dire need to draft new recruits from German-occupied Poland for
13752-846: The Entente in return for German territories in the Pacific, greatly annoying the Australian government which also wanted them. On 7 August 1914, Britain officially asked for assistance in destroying German naval units in China and Japan formally declared war on Germany on 23 August 1914, followed by Austria-Hungary on 25 August 1914. On 2 September 1914, Japanese forces surrounded the German Treaty Port of Qingdao , then known as Tsingtao, which surrendered on 7 November. The Imperial Japanese Navy simultaneously occupied German colonies in
13943-600: The French and German militaries accepted Germany would almost certainly violate Belgian neutrality in the event of war, the extent of that was unclear. The original Schlieffen Plan only required a limited incursion into the Belgian Ardennes , rather than a full-scale invasion; in September 1911, the Belgian Foreign Minister told a British Embassy official they would not call for assistance if
14134-607: The French lost nearly 300,000 dead on the Western Front, more than Britain suffered in the whole of WWII and the gaps were partly filled by colonial troops, over 500,000 of whom served on the Western Front over the period 1914–1918. Colonial troops also fought at Gallipoli , occupied Togo and Kamerun in West Africa and had a minor role in the Middle East, where France was the traditional protector of Christians in
14325-458: The German Treaty Port of Tsingtao (now Qingdao) in China and occupied German colonies in the Pacific, including the Mariana , Caroline , and Marshall Islands . Despite its membership of the Triple Alliance , Italy remained neutral until 23 May 1915 when it joined the Entente, declaring war on Austria but not Germany. On 17 January 1916, Montenegro capitulated and left the Entente; this
14516-762: The German Chief of Staff, General Erich von Falkenhayn , had correctly reasoned that Romania would side with the Allies, and had made plans accordingly. Thanks to the earlier conquest of the Kingdom of Serbia and the ineffective Allied operations on the Greek border (the Salonica campaigns ), and having a territorial interest in Dobruja, the Bulgarian Army and the Ottoman Army were willing to help fight
14707-655: The German-Bulgarian Detachment) surrounded and stormed the fortress of Turtucaia . The Romanian garrison surrendered on 6 September at the conclusion of the Battle of Turtucaia . At the same time, the Bulgarian Third Army with the 75th Turkish regiment, arrived on the last day of the battle, defeated a Romanian-Russian force including the First Serbian Volunteer Division at the Battle of Bazargic , despite
14898-516: The Germans limited themselves to that. While neither Britain or France could allow Germany to occupy Belgium unopposed, a Belgian refusal to ask for help would complicate matters for the British Liberal government , which contained a significant isolationist element. However, the key German objective was to avoid war on two fronts; France had to be defeated before Russia could fully mobilise and give time for German forces to be transferred to
15089-594: The Great has slept for centuries. In our moral energy and our valour lie the means of giving him back his birthright of a great and free Rumania from the Tisza to the Black Sea, and to prosper in peace in accordance with our customs and our hopes and dreams. Romanians! Animated by the holy duty imposed upon us, and determined to bear manfully all the sacrifices inseparable from an arduous war, we will march into battle with
15280-554: The Hungarian political leaders, led by Ferenc Deák . The Hungarians maintained that the April Laws were still valid, but conceded that under the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713 , foreign affairs and defence were "common" to Austria and Hungary. On 20 March 1867, the newly re-established Hungarian parliament at Pest started to negotiate the new laws to be accepted on 30 March. However, Hungarian leaders received word that
15471-536: The Italian Army , died on 1 July 1914, taking many of the prospects for Italian support with him. The Italian Prime Minister Antonio Salandra argued that as the Alliance was defensive in nature, Austria's aggression against Serbia and Italy's exclusion from the decision-making process meant it was not obliged to join them. His caution was understandable because France and Britain either supplied or controlled
15662-601: The Italians retook the initiative and won the decisive Battle of the Piave river (15–23 June 1918), in which some 60,000 Austrian and 43,000 Italian soldiers were killed. The final battle at Vittorio Veneto was lost by 31 October 1918 and the armistice was signed at Villa Giusti on 3 November. On 27 August 1916, Romania declared war against Austria–Hungary. The Romanian Army crossed the borders of Eastern Hungary (Transylvania), and despite initial successes, by November 1916,
15853-500: The Kingdom of Hungary comprised only 42% of the population of Austria–Hungary, the thin majority – more than 3.8 million soldiers – of the Austro-Hungarian armed forces were conscripted from the Kingdom of Hungary during the First World War. Roughly 600,000 soldiers were killed in action, and 700,000 soldiers were wounded in the war. Austria–Hungary held on for years, as the Hungarian half provided sufficient supplies for
16044-510: The Kingdom of Italy, which was economically the far most developed actual opponent of the Empire. On the home front, food grew scarcer and scarcer, as did heating fuel. Hungary, with its heavy agricultural base, was somewhat better fed. The Army conquered productive agricultural areas in Romania and elsewhere, but refused to allow food shipments to civilians back home. Morale fell every year, and
16235-545: The Macedonian front and the conditions in which the Russians deployed insufficient troops on the battlefront in the south-east of Romania. These factors meant that the Romanian forces became too strained to put up effective resistance against the enemy advance. Romania had to fight on two 1,600 km-long battlefronts, the longest front in Europe, with a varied configuration and diverse geographical elements (by comparison,
16426-614: The Middle East. Australian troops separately occupied German New Guinea , with the South Africans doing the same in German South West Africa ; this resulted in the Maritz rebellion by former Boers, which was quickly suppressed. After the war, New Guinea and South-West Africa became Protectorates , held until 1975 and 1990 respectively. Between 1873 and 1887, Russia was allied with Germany and Austria-Hungary in
16617-423: The Ottoman Empire, the centrepiece being the planned Berlin–Baghdad railway , with Serbia the only section not controlled by a pro-German state. The exact role played by Serbian officials in the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand is still debated but despite complying with most of their demands, Austria-Hungary invaded on 28 July 1914. While Serbia successfully repulsed the Austro-Hungarian army in 1914, it
16808-691: The Ottoman provinces of Syria , Palestine and Lebanon . Prior to the Meiji Restoration in 1868, Japan was a semi-feudal, largely agrarian state with few natural resources and limited technology. By 1914, it had transformed itself into a modern industrial state, with a powerful military; by defeating China in the First Sino-Japanese War during 1894–1895, it established itself as the primary power in East Asia and colonised
16999-417: The Ottomans. The Congress of Berlin in 1878 let Austria occupy (but not annex) the province of Bosnia and Herzegovina, a predominantly Slavic area. Austria occupied Bosnia and Herzegovina as a way of gaining power in the Balkans. Serbia, Montenegro and Romania became fully independent. Nonetheless, the Balkans remained a site of political unrest with teeming ambition for independence and great power rivalries. At
17190-774: The Prusso-German armies in the Franco-Prussian war and the subsequent founding of the German Empire ended all hope of re-establishing Austrian influence in Germany, and Beust retired. After being forced out of Germany and Italy, the Dual Monarchy turned to the Balkans, which were in tumult as nationalistic movements were gaining strength and demanding independence. Both Russia and Austria–Hungary saw an opportunity to expand in this region. Russia took on
17381-591: The Romanian Legion in Italy ( Legione Romena d'Italia ). Of the officers, one was a colonel, 5 were majors, 32 captains, 97 lieutenants, 294 sublieutenants, and 96 applicants. Only the three companies formed prior to October 1918 actually fought on the Italian front until the armistice of November 3, 1918. Taking part in the battles of Vittorio Veneto , Montello, Sisemolet, Piave, Cimone and Monte Grappa. After
17572-544: The Romanian Second Army attacked the Austro-Hungarians at Brașov , but the attack was repulsed and the counterattack forced the Romanians to retreat from there also. The Romanian Fourth Army , in the north of the country, retreated without much pressure from the Austro-Hungarian troops, so that by 25 October the Romanian army was back to its initial positions. The Central Powers succeeded in taking
17763-563: The Romanian forces (aided by Russia) suffered massive setbacks, and by the end of 1916 out of the territory of the Romanian Old Kingdom only Western Moldavia remained under the control of the Romanian and Russian armies. After several defensive victories in 1917 at Mărăști , Mărășești , and Oituz , with Russia's withdrawal from the war following the October Revolution , Romania, almost completely surrounded by
17954-539: The Romanian volunteers were incorporated in July 1918 into the Italian Royal Army, to be enlisted in October of the same year in a large national unit. Between July and October 1918, three companies were formed, named "Horea", "Cloșca" and "Crișan". The education given to the volunteers enrolled in the new units, emphasized the development of the Romanian national consciousness and the love for their country, which
18145-417: The Romanians. The German high command was seriously worried about the prospect of Romania entering the war, Paul von Hindenburg writing: It is certain that so relatively small a state as Rumania had never before been given a role so important, and, indeed, so decisive for the history of the world at so favorable a moment. Never before had two great Powers like Germany and Austria found themselves so much at
18336-918: The Russian front, stretching from the Baltic Sea to Bukovina , was only 1,000 km long). On 15 September the Romanian War Council decided to suspend the Transylvania offensive and concentrate on the Mackensen army group instead. The plan (the so-called Flămânda Offensive ) was to attack the Central Powers forces from the rear by crossing the Danube at Flămânda , while the front-line Romanian and Russian forces were supposed to launch an offensive southwards towards Cobadin and Kurtbunar . Russian reinforcements under General Andrei Zaionchkovsky arrived to halt Mackensen's army before it cut
18527-686: The Russians out of the Balkans, Austria–Hungary formed an alliance, the Mediterranean Entente, with Britain and Italy in 1887 and concluded mutual defence pacts with Germany in 1879 and Romania in 1883 against a possible Russian attack. Following the Congress of Berlin the European powers attempted to guarantee stability through a complex series of alliances and treaties. Anxious about Balkan instability and Russian aggression, and to counter French interests in Europe, Austria–Hungary forged
18718-681: The Serbian government in exile after the collapse of Serbia and served as a supply base to the Greek front. In April 1916 a large number of Serbian troops were transported in British and French naval vessels from Corfu to mainland Greece. The contingent numbering over 120,000 relieved a much smaller army at the Macedonian front and fought alongside British and French troops. On the Eastern front ,
18909-464: The Triple Entente with France, which at this stage was largely informal. In 1908, Austria annexed the former Ottoman province of Bosnia and Herzegovina ; Russia responded by creating the Balkan League in order to prevent further Austrian expansion. In the 1912–1913 First Balkan War , Serbia , Bulgaria and Greece captured most of the remaining Ottoman possessions in Europe; disputes over
19100-759: The actual results of the 1919 Treaty of Versailles would be powerful factors in the rise of Benito Mussolini . In 1817, the Principality of Serbia became an autonomous province within the Ottoman Empire ; with Russian support, it gained full independence after the 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish War . Many Serbs viewed Russia as protector of the South Slavs in general but also specifically against Bulgaria, where Russian objectives increasingly collided with Bulgarian nationalism . When Austria annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1908, Russia responded by creating
19291-543: The advance of Russian influence in the eastern Mediterranean so close to Britain's route through the Suez Canal . The Treaty of San Stefano was seen in Austria as much too favourable for Russia and its Orthodox-Slavic goals. The Congress of Berlin rolled back the Russian victory by partitioning the large Bulgarian state that Russia had carved out of Ottoman territory and denying any part of Bulgaria full independence from
19482-429: The almost double superiority of the Entente. The Romanian Third Army made further attempts to withstand the enemy offensive at Silistra , Dobrich , Amzacea , and Topraisar , but had to withdraw under the pressure of the enemy forces. Mackensen's success was favoured by the failure of the Allies to fulfill the obligation they had assumed through the military convention, by virtue of which they had to mount an offensive on
19673-826: The area; they assassinated the Austrian heir and precipitated World War I. The 28 June 1914 assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo , excessively intensified the existing traditional religion-based ethnic hostilities in Bosnia. However, in Sarajevo itself, Austrian authorities encouraged violence against the Serb residents, which resulted in the Anti-Serb riots of Sarajevo , in which Catholic Croats and Bosnian Muslims killed two and damaged numerous Serb-owned buildings. Writer Ivo Andrić referred to
19864-405: The army had become commonplace. As the war went on, the ethnic unity declined; the Allies encouraged breakaway demands from minorities and the Empire faced disintegration. With apparent Allied victory approaching, nationalist movements seized ethnic resentment to erode social unity. The military breakdown of the Italian front marked the start of the rebellion for the numerous ethnicities who made up
20055-461: The battle fronts was not favorable. The Romanian campaign was part of the Eastern Front of World War I , with Romania and Russia allied with Britain and France against the Central Powers of Germany, Austria-Hungary , the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria. Fighting took place from August 1916 to December 1917 across most of present-day Romania, including Transylvania , which was part of
20246-528: The battles of Mărăști , Mărășești and Oituz , where with Russian support the Romanian army managed to defeat an offensive by the Central Powers and even take back some territory. Romanian ethnics serving in the Austro-Hungarian forces were informed by the Allied aviation by launching leaflets on their positions, on the creation and existence of the Romanian Volunteer Corps in Russia and on
20437-451: The civil population; during the Battle of Târgu Jiu , the town was defended by its inhabitants, men, women and children, young and old. There, a conspicuous figure was cut by Ecaterina Teodoroiu , who was to enter the consciousness of all Romanians as the "Heroine of the Jiu". The operation for the defense of the Carpathians holds a prominent place in Romanian military history not only because it
20628-601: The content of the Darnița Declaration. Many novels have been written on this subject, including Liviu Rebreanu 's Forest of the Hanged . Romanian troops fought on all European fronts of the Dual Monarchy, some of them being distinguished, such as Feldmarschall-leutnant ( Lieutenant field marshal ) Ioan Boeriu , Oberst ( Colonel ) Dănilă Papp , Hauptmann ( Căpitan ) Gheorghe Flondor and Leutnant ( Locotenent ) Emil Rebreanu . Other notable Romanians who fought in
20819-472: The defender of its fellow Slavs and on 30 July, mobilized in support of Serbia. In response, Germany declared war on Russia on 1 August, followed by Austria-Hungary on 6th; after Ottoman warships bombarded Odesa in late October, the Entente declared war on the Ottoman Empire in November 1914. French defeat in the 1870–1871 Franco-Prussian War led to the loss of the two provinces of Alsace-Lorraine and
21010-486: The diverse nationalities gave up on the Empire and looked for ways to establish their own nation states. Inflation soared, from an index of 129 in 1914 to 1589 in 1918, wiping out the cash savings of the middle-class. In terms of war damage to the economy, the war used up about 20 percent of the GDP. The dead soldiers amounted to about four percent of the 1914 labor force, and the wounded ones to another six percent. Compared all
21201-579: The division of these resulted in the Second Balkan War , in which Bulgaria was comprehensively defeated by its former allies. Russia's industrial base and railway network had significantly improved since 1905, although from a relatively low base; in 1913, Tsar Nicholas approved an increase in the Russian Army of over 500,000 men. Although there was no formal alliance between Russia and Serbia, their close bilateral links provided Russia with
21392-522: The empire into a federal union to give ethnic groups decentralization and representation. However, on 18 October, United States Secretary of State Robert Lansing replied that autonomy for the nationalities – the tenth of the Fourteen Points – was no longer enough. In fact, a Czechoslovak provisional government had joined the Allies on 14 October. The South Slavs in both halves of the monarchy had already declared in favor of uniting with Serbia in
21583-539: The end of the war, they participated in the Hungarian–Romanian War . Romanians! The war which for the last two years has been encircling our frontiers more and more closely has shaken the ancient foundations of Europe to their depths. It has brought the day which has been awaited for centuries by the national conscience, by the founders of the Romanian State, by those who united the principalities in
21774-517: The entire population. In 1830, the southern provinces of the Netherlands broke away to form the Kingdom of Belgium and their independence was confirmed by the 1839 Treaty of London . Article VII of the Treaty required Belgium to remain perpetually neutral and committed Austria, France, Germany and Russia to guarantee that against aggression by any other state, including the signatories. While
21965-654: The establishment of the League of Nations on 25 January 1919. This came into being on 16 January 1920 with Britain, France, Italy and Japan as permanent members of the Executive Council; the US Senate voted against ratification of the treaty on 19 March, thus preventing the United States from joining the League. For similar statistics of the Central Powers, see Central_Powers#Statistics . For much of
22156-409: The establishment of the Third Republic . The suppression of the Paris Commune by the new regime caused deep political divisions and led to a series of bitter political struggles, such as the Dreyfus affair . As a result, aggressive nationalism or Revanchism was one of the few areas to unite the French. The loss of Alsace-Lorraine deprived France of its natural defence line on the Rhine , while it
22347-403: The ever-stronger pressure of the German and Austro-Hungarian forces. Grim fights erupted in the Prahova Valley , where occupation of the locality of Predeal was one of the major aims pursued by the Central Powers. Given their dramatic character, the clashes for the Predeal town and railway station were frequently compared with the heaviest fights on the Western Front. Similar fights took place in
22538-530: The expansion of its railway network, particularly in border areas with Germany and Austria-Hungary. However, Russian defeat in the 1904–1905 Russo-Japanese War damaged its credibility, while Britain's isolation during the Second Boer War meant both countries sought additional allies. This resulted in the 1904 Entente Cordiale with Britain; like the 1907 Anglo-Russian Convention , for domestic British consumption it focused on settling colonial disputes but led to informal co-operation in other areas. By 1914, both
22729-466: The first counterattack came from Field Marshal August von Mackensen in command of a multi-national force composed of the Bulgarian Third Army , a German brigade and two divisions of the Ottoman VI Army Corps , whose units began arriving on the Dobrudja front after the initial battles. This army attacked north from Bulgaria, starting on 1 September. It stayed on the south side of the Danube river and headed towards Constanța . Bulgarian troops (aided by
22920-416: The former Austrian Empire , and Transleithania (Kingdom of Hungary) . Following the 1867 reforms, the Austrian and Hungarian states were co-equal in power. The two countries conducted unified diplomatic and defence policies. For these purposes, "common" ministries of foreign affairs and defence were maintained under the monarch's direct authority, as was a third finance ministry responsible only for financing
23111-435: The homeland. Diplomatic and political efforts to establish the Legion started in early July 1916. These efforts gained notable consistency in Italy after the "Congress of the Oppressed Nations in Austria-Hungary" was held in April 1918 in Rome, at a time when Italy became interested in further efforts to hasten the disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian state. Following requests for enlistment to fight against Austria-Hungary,
23302-422: The idea of an independent Albania , since this would prevent Serbian access to the Austrian-controlled Adriatic Sea . The success of the Albanian revolt in 1912 threatened Serbian ambitions for the incorporation of " Old Serbia " into its domain and exposed the weakness of the Ottoman Empire. This led to the outbreak of the First Balkan War , with Serbia , Montenegro , Bulgaria and Greece capturing most of
23493-446: The import of most of Italy's raw materials, including 90% of its coal. Salandra described the process of choosing a side as 'sacred egoism,' but as the war was expected to end before mid-1915 at the latest, making this decision became increasingly urgent. In line with Italy's obligations under the Triple Alliance, the bulk of the army was concentrated on Italy's border with France; in October, Pollio's replacement, General Luigi Cadorna ,
23684-432: The integrity of the monarchy because of Austro-Hungarian support for Germany. The setbacks that the Austrian army suffered in 1914 and 1915 can be attributed to a large extent by the incompetence of the Austrian high command. After attacking Serbia, its forces soon had to be withdrawn to protect its eastern frontier against Russia's invasion, while German units were engaged in fighting on the Western Front. This resulted in
23875-410: The irresistible élan of a people firmly confident in its destiny. The glorious fruits of victory shall be our reward. Forward, with the help of God! FERDINAND Proclamation by King Ferdinand, 28 August 1916 On the night of 27 August 1916, three Romanian armies ( First , Second and Northern Army [ ro ] ), deployed according to the Romanian campaign plan ( Hypothesis Z ), launched
24066-433: The largest component (after Britain herself) was the British Raj or British India, which included modern India , Pakistan , Myanmar and Bangladesh . Unlike other colonies which came under the Colonial Office , it was governed directly by the India Office or by princes loyal to the British; it also controlled British interests in the Persian Gulf , such as the Trucial States and Oman . Over one million soldiers of
24257-494: The latter would be broken by the crisis. Along the way, they would drag Europe to the brink of war in 1909. They would also divide Europe into the two armed camps that would go to war in July 1914. Aehrenthal had started with the assumption that the Slavic minorities could never come together, and the Balkan League would never cause any damage to Austria. He turned down an Ottoman proposal for an alliance that would include Austria, Turkey, and Romania. However, his policies alienated
24448-418: The major countries in the war, the death and casualty rate was toward the high-end regarding the present-day territory of Austria. By summer 1918, " Green Cadres " of army deserters formed armed bands in the hills of Croatia-Slavonia and civil authority disintegrated. By late October violence and massive looting erupted and there were efforts to form peasant republics. However, the Croatian political leadership
24639-842: The mercy of the military resources of a country which had scarcely one twentieth of the population of the two great states. Judging by the military situation, it was to be expected that Rumania had only to advance where she wished to decide the world war in favor of those Powers which had been hurling themselves at us in vain for years. Thus everything seemed to depend on whether Rumania was ready to make any sort of use of her momentary advantage. Between 1914 and 1916, 59 Romanian factories produced 400,000 artillery rounds, 70 million bullets, 1,500 caissons , and 332 gun carriages . Grenades were also manufactured, with three factories producing 1.5 tons of explosives daily. The 332 gun carriages were produced in order to convert Romania's 53 mm and 57 mm Fahrpanzer fortress guns into field artillery. Some of
24830-399: The middle of September, the Romanian offensive was halted. A separate Romanian offensive, carried out by the 1st Infantry Division, was much more limited in its aims and it succeeded: capturing the west bank of the Cerna River within the Banat region. The Romanian occupation of the area lasted for over two months, until mid-November. While the Romanian Army was advancing in Transylvania,
25021-450: The military forces until Emperor Karl I took the supreme command himself in late 1916 and dismissed Conrad von Hötzendorf in 1917. Meanwhile, economic conditions on the homefront deteriorated rapidly. The Empire depended on agriculture, and agriculture depended on the heavy labor of millions of men who were now in the Army. Food production fell, the transportation system became overcrowded, and industrial production could not successfully handle
25212-460: The military to continue to wage war. This was shown in a transition of power after which the Hungarian prime minister, Count István Tisza, and foreign minister, Count István Burián , had decisive influence over the internal and external affairs of the monarchy. By late 1916, food supply from Hungary became intermittent and the government sought an armistice with the Entente powers. However, this failed as Britain and France no longer had any regard for
25403-434: The multiethnic Empire, as they refused to keep on fighting for a cause that now appeared senseless. The Emperor had lost much of his power to rule, as his realm disintegrated. On 14 October 1918, Foreign Minister Baron István Burián von Rajecz asked for an armistice based on President Woodrow Wilson 's Fourteen Points and two days later Emperor Karl I issued a proclamation ("Imperial Manifesto of 16 October 1918") altering
25594-433: The overwhelming need for munitions. Germany provided a great deal of help, but it was not enough. Furthermore, the political instability of the multiple ethnic groups of Empire now ripped apart any hope for national consensus in support of the war. Increasingly there was a demand for breaking up the Empire and setting up autonomous national states based on historic language-based cultures. The new Emperor sought peace terms from
25785-421: The patrol boat Barsch and one coal barge were damaged by Romanian coastal batteries and one large barge loaded with explosives was sunk. Körös took 12 hits and was disabled for the rest of the Romanian Campaign. Overall command was now under Erich von Falkenhayn (recently replaced as German Chief of Staff), who started his own counterattack on 18 September. The first attack was on the Romanian First Army near
25976-445: The point of view of its belligerent status, Romania was a neutral country between 28 July 1914 and 27 August 1916, a belligerent country on the part of the Entente from 27 August 1916 to 9 December 1917, in a state of armistice with the Central Powers from 10 December 1917 to 7 May 1918, a non-combatant country between 7 May 1918 and 10 November 1918, and finally a belligerent country in the Entente between 10 and 11 November 1918. At
26167-402: The population moved to the unoccupied Romanian territory, in Moldavia , together with the Romanian government, royal court and public authorities, which relocated to Iași . In 1917, after several defensive victories (managing to stop the German-Austro-Hungarian advance), with Russia's withdrawal from the war following the October Revolution, Romania was forced to drop out of the war. Although
26358-486: The rail line that linked Constanța with Bucharest. Fighting was furious, with attacks and counterattacks until 23 September. The Central Powers suffered a tactical defeat in the First Battle of Cobadin on 19 September, forcing them to halt their advance until mid-October. On 30 September, near the Romanian port of Sulina , the German submarine UB-42 launched a torpedo at the Romanian torpedo boat NMS Smeul , but missed. The Romanian warship counterattacked, damaging
26549-406: The reassurance needed to take on Russia in the 1905 Russo-Japanese War ; victory established Japan in the Chinese province of Manchuria . With Japan as an ally in the Far East, John Fisher , First Sea Lord from 1904 to 1910, was able to refocus British naval resources in the North Sea to counter the threat from the Imperial German Navy . The Alliance was renewed in 1911; in 1914, Japan joined
26740-448: The remaining Ottoman possessions in Europe. Disputes over the division of these resulted in the Second Balkan War , in which Bulgaria was comprehensively defeated by its former allies. As a result of the 1913 Treaty of Bucharest , Serbia increased its territory by 100% and its population by 64%. However, it now faced a hostile Austria-Hungary, a resentful Bulgaria and resistance in its conquered territories . Germany too had ambitions in
26931-403: The risk was acceptable; they expected a short war while their ambassador in London claimed troubles in Ireland would prevent Britain from assisting France. On 3 August, Germany demanded unimpeded progress through any part of Belgium and when this was refused, invaded early on the morning of 4 August. This changed the situation; the invasion of Belgium consolidated political and public support for
27122-476: The role of protector of Slavs and Orthodox Christians. Austria envisioned a multi-ethnic, religiously diverse empire under Vienna's control. Count Gyula Andrássy, a Hungarian who was Foreign Minister (1871–1879), made the centerpiece of his policy one of opposition to Russian expansion in the Balkans and blocking Serbian ambitions to dominate a new South Slav federation. He wanted Germany to ally with Austria, not Russia. Russian Pan-Slavic organizations sent aid to
27313-425: The scene. The Entente incorrectly assumed that Germany would be unable to respond to the invasion, as the Battle of the Somme and the Brusilov Offensive were at their height around this time and tied down significant German forces. Nevertheless, eight divisions and an Alpine Corps were deployed under the command of Erich von Falkenhayn . The Austro-Hungarians also sent four divisions to reinforce their lines, and by
27504-446: The side of the Entente powers , hoping to gain territory from its former ally. The Austro-Hungarian Empire played a relatively passive diplomatic role in the war, as it was increasingly dominated and controlled by Germany. The only goal was to punish Serbia and try to stop the ethnic breakup of the Empire, and it completely failed. Starting in late 1916 the new Emperor Karl removed the pro-German officials and opened peace overtures to
27695-471: The standpoint of the German Emperor on 5 July and received a supportive response. His Majesty authorized me to report to [Franz Joseph] that in this case, too, we could count on Germany's full support. As mentioned, he first had to consult with the Chancellor, but he did not have the slightest doubt that Herr von Bethmann Hollweg would fully agree with him, particularly with regard to action on our part against Serbia. In his [Wilhelm's] opinion, though, there
27886-620: The start of World War I , King Carol I of Romania favored Germany, while the nation's political elite favored the Entente. As such, the crown council decided to remain neutral. But after King Carol's death in 1914, his successor King Ferdinand I favored the Entente. For Romania, the highest priority was taking Transylvania from Hungary , which had around 2.8 milion Romanians, among approximately 5 milion other people. The Allies wanted Romania to join their side in order to cut rail communications between Germany and Turkey , and to cut off Germany's oil supplies. Britain made loans, France sent
28077-411: The strategic initiative in Transylvania by concentrating significant military forces rapidly brought in from the other theatres of operations in Europe and exploiting a quick shift of Romanian units to the battlefront in Dobruja. In October 1916, the Romanian army mounted a wide-scale operation, the main target of which was the defense of the mountain passes in the Southern and Eastern Carpathians against
28268-502: The study of the Italian language. The equipment and endowment of the constituted units and subunits was made with Italian military equipment. The enlisted POWs received the corresponding rank in the Italian Royal Army. The sedentary part of the Romanian Legion, under the command of Colonel Camillo Ferraioli, was established at Albano Laziale , and the base camp in the Avezzano camp. Out of a total of 60,000 prisoners of war of Romanian origin, 36,712 soldiers and 525 officers requested to join
28459-492: The submarine's periscope and conning tower and forcing her to retreat. On 1 October, two Romanian divisions crossed the Danube at Flămânda and created a bridgehead 14 kilometer-wide and 4 kilometer-deep. On the next day, this area was expanded, with 8 Bulgarian settlements ending up in Romanian hands. However, due to the deteriorating situation in Transylvania, the offensive was cancelled on 3 October. The Austro-Hungarian river monitors Bodrog , Körös and Szamos , together with
28650-501: The summer of 1916 ( see Treaty of Bucharest, 1916 ); Cyril Falls attributes the late decision to Romania's historical hostility towards the Russian Empire and purports that an earlier entry into the war, perhaps before the Brusilov offensive the same year, would have provided better chance for victory. According to some American military historians, Russia delayed approval of Romanian demands out of worries about Romanian territorial designs on Bessarabia, claimed by nationalist circles as
28841-418: The ten most populous countries worldwide. The Empire built up the fourth-largest machine-building industry in the world. With the exception of the territory of the Bosnian Condominium , the Empire of Austria and the Kingdom of Hungary were separate sovereign countries in international law. At its core was the dual monarchy , which was a real union between Cisleithania , the northern and western parts of
29032-519: The then-unified Korea and Formosa, now modern Taiwan . Concerned by Russian expansion in Korea and Manchuria , Britain and Japan signed the Anglo-Japanese Alliance on 30 January 1902, agreeing if either were attacked by a third party, the other would remain neutral and if attacked by two or more opponents, the other would come to its aid. This meant Japan could rely on British support in a war with Russia, if either France or Germany, which also had interests in China, decided to join them. This gave Japan
29223-423: The town of Hațeg ; the attack halted the Romanian advance. Eight days later, German troops attacked Sibiu , and on 29 September, the outnumbered Romanians began retreating to the Vulcan and Turnu Roșu passes. The latter, however, had been occupied by Bavarian mountain troops in a flanking movement, and the Battle of Turnu Roșu Pass ended with the Romanians retaking the pass at a cost of 3,000 men. On 17 October
29414-414: The transition to the enemy increased significantly in frequency on the Western Front in the last 2 years of the war, significantly affecting Austro-Hungarian military units in their structure and firepower. This has sometimes resulted in failures of entire front sectors. Prisoners of war held by the Russian Empire formed the Romanian Volunteer Corps who were repatriated to Romania in 1917. Many fought in
29605-410: The treaty on the grounds that it was not a case of casus foederis because the attacks on Austria were not "unprovoked" , as stipulated in the treaty of alliance. In August 1916, Romania received an ultimatum to decide whether to join the Entente "now or never" . Under the pressure of the ultimatum, the Romanian government agreed to enter the war on the side of the Entente, although the situation on
29796-405: The two "common" portfolios. A third component of the union was the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia , an autonomous region under the Hungarian crown, which negotiated the Croatian–Hungarian Settlement in 1868. After 1878, Bosnia and Herzegovina came under Austro-Hungarian joint military and civilian rule until it was fully annexed in 1908, provoking the Bosnian crisis . Austria-Hungary was one of
29987-412: The two into direct conflict, as did the long-held Russian objective of gaining control of the Bosporus Straits and with it access to the British-dominated Mediterranean Sea . Defeat in the 1905 Russo-Japanese War and Britain's isolation during the 1899–1902 Second Boer War led both parties to seek allies. The Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907 settled disputes in Asia and allowed the establishment of
30178-441: The urgent counsel of his top advisers. Over the course of July and August 1914, these events caused the start of World War I, as Russia mobilized in support of Serbia, setting off a series of counter-mobilizations. In support of his German ally, on Thursday, 6 August 1914, Emperor Franz Joseph signed the declaration of war on Russia. Italy initially remained neutral, despite its alliance with Austria–Hungary. In 1915, it switched to
30369-438: The view that an unprepared and ill-armed Romania facing a war on two fronts would be a liability, not an asset, to the Allies. This view was brushed aside by Whitehall , and Thomson signed a Military Convention with Romania on 13 August 1916. Within a few months, he had to alleviate the consequences of Romania's setbacks and supervise the destruction of the Romanian oil wells to deny them to Germany. The Romanian government signed
30560-433: The violence as the "Sarajevo frenzy of hate." Violent actions against ethnic Serbs were organized not only in Sarajevo but also in many other larger Austro-Hungarian cities in modern-day Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Austro-Hungarian authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina imprisoned and extradited approximately 5,500 prominent Serbs, 700 to 2,200 of whom died in prison. Four hundred sixty Serbs were sentenced to death and
30751-419: The war see also The Kingdom of Romania was neutral for the first two years of World War I , entering on the side of the Allied powers from 27 August 1916 until Central Power occupation led to the Treaty of Bucharest in May 1918, before reentering the war on 10 November 1918. It had the most significant oil fields in Europe, and Germany eagerly bought its petroleum, as well as food exports. From
30942-556: The war by presenting what appeared to be a simple moral and strategic choice. The Belgians asked for assistance under the 1839 Treaty and in response, Britain declared war on Germany on 4 August 1914. Although Germany's violation of Belgium neutrality was not the only cause of British entry into the war, it was used extensively in government propaganda at home and abroad to make the case for British intervention. This confusion arguably persists today. The declaration of war automatically involved all dominions and colonies and protectorates of
31133-410: The war of independence, by those responsible for the national renaissance. It is the day of the union of all branches of our nation. Today we are able to complete the task of our forefathers and to establish forever that which Michael the Great was only able to establish for a moment, namely, a Romanian union on both slopes of the Carpathians. For us the mountains and plains of Bukowina, where Stephen
31324-432: The war on 4 August, although France did not declare war on Austria-Hungary until 12 August. As with Britain, France's colonies also became part of the war; pre-1914, French soldiers and politicians advocated using French African recruits to help compensate for France's demographic weakness. But it eventually proved useless, the soldiers from Metropolitan France still undertook all the tasks. From August to December 1914,
31515-416: The war on Allied side, Romania demanded support for its territorial claims to parts of Hungarian Transylvania, and especially those parts with a Romanian-speaking majority. The Romanians' greatest concerns in negotiations were the avoidance of a conflict that would have to be fought on two fronts (one in Dobruja with Bulgaria and one in Transylvania) and written guarantees of Romanian territorial gains after
31706-407: The war started out equally poorly. The government accepted the Polish proposal of establishing the Supreme National Committee as the Polish central authority within the Empire, responsible for the formation of the Polish Legions , an auxiliary military formation within the Austro-Hungarian army. The Austro-Hungarian Army was defeated at the Battle of Lemberg and the great fortress city of Przemyśl
31897-452: The war. According to studies made by the army of the Austro-Hungarian Empire , the dedication of the Romanian military to the interest of Austria-Hungary was reduced, only ethnic Italians of the same empire can compete with them for the last place in a ranking according to devotion to the state, per 100 soldiers. Also, in the first 3 years of fighting, out of about 300,000 Austro-Hungarian deserters, 150,000 were ethnic Romanians. Desertion and
32088-419: The war. They demanded an agreement not to make a separate peace with the Central Powers, equal status at the future peace conference, Russian military assistance against Bulgaria, an Allied offensive in the direction of Bulgaria, and the regular shipment of Allied war supplies. The military convention they signed with the Allies stipulated that France and Britain should start an offensive against Bulgaria and
32279-406: The war; between 1914 and 1918, an estimated 400,000 to 600,000 ethnic Romanians served with the Austro-Hungarian army, of whom up to 150,000 were killed in action. Approximately 16% of the pre-war Austro-Hungarian population consisted of ethnic Romanians. Although most Transylvanian Romanians were loyal to the Empire, over time, their loyalty faded as the war progressed, especially after Romania joined
32470-523: Was The Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of St. Stephen . From 1867 onwards, the abbreviations heading the names of official institutions in Austria–Hungary reflected their responsibility: Following a decision of Franz Joseph I in 1868, the realm bore the official name Austro-Hungarian Monarchy/Realm ( German : Österreichisch-Ungarische Monarchie/Reich ; Hungarian : Osztrák–Magyar Monarchia/Birodalom ) in its international relations. It
32661-518: Was British support for France against Germany in the 1905 Moroccan Crisis . The 1905–1915 Liberal government continued this re-alignment with the 1907 Anglo-Russian Convention . Like the Anglo-Japanese and Entente agreements, it focused on settling colonial disputes but by doing so paved the way for wider co-operation and allowed Britain to refocus resources in response to German naval expansion . Since control of Belgium allowed an opponent to threaten invasion or blockade British trade, preventing it
32852-577: Was a long-standing British strategic interest. Under Article VII of the 1839 Treaty of London , Britain guaranteed Belgian neutrality against aggression by any other state, by force if required. Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg later dismissed this as a 'scrap of paper,' but British law officers routinely confirmed it as a binding legal obligation and its importance was well understood by Germany. The 1911 Agadir Crisis led to secret discussions between France and Britain in case of war with Germany. These agreed that within two weeks of its outbreak,
33043-463: Was a surge of anti-Japanese nationalism in China and an economic boycott of Japanese goods. In addition, the other Allies now saw Japan as a threat, rather than a partner, lead to tensions first with Russia, then the US after it entered the war in April 1917. Despite protests from the other Allies, after the war Japan refused to return Qingdao and the province of Shandong to China. The 1882 Triple Alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy
33234-533: Was attacked. While Carol wanted to enter World War I as an ally of the Central Powers, the Romanian public and the political parties were in favor of joining the Triple Entente . Romania remained neutral when the war started, arguing that Austria-Hungary itself had started the war and, consequently, Romania was under no formal obligation to join it. At the same time, Germany started encouraging Austria-Hungary to make territorial concessions to Romania and Italy in order to keep both states neutral. In return for entering
33425-419: Was besieged and fell in March 1915. The Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive started as a minor German offensive to relieve the pressure of the Russian numerical superiority on the Austro-Hungarians, but the cooperation of the Central Powers resulted in huge Russian losses and the total collapse of the Russian lines and their 100 km (62 mi) long retreat into Russia. The Russian Third Army perished. In summer 1915,
33616-503: Was crushed by the Austrian military with Russian military assistance, and the level of autonomy that the Hungarian state had enjoyed was replaced with absolutist rule from Vienna. This further increased Hungarian resentment of the Habsburg dominion. In the 1860s, the Empire faced two severe defeats: its loss in the Second Italian War of Independence broke its dominion over a large part of Northern Italy ( Lombardy, Veneto , Modena, Reggio , Tuscany , Parma and Piacenza ) while defeat in
33807-462: Was exhausted by the two Balkan Wars and unable to replace its losses of men and equipment. In 1915, Bulgaria joined the Central Powers and by the end of the year, a combined Bulgar-Austrian-German army occupied most of Serbia. Between 1914 and 1918, Serbia suffered the greatest proportional losses of any combatant, with over 25% of all those mobilised becoming casualties; including civilians and deaths from disease, over 1.2 million died, nearly 30% of
33998-450: Was focused on creating a new state (Yugoslavia) and worked with the advancing Serbian army to impose control and end the uprisings. At the start of the war, the army was divided into two: the smaller part attacked Serbia while the larger part fought against the formidable Imperial Russian Army . The invasion of Serbia in 1914 was a disaster: by the end of the year, the Austro-Hungarian Army had taken no territory, but had lost 227,000 out of
34189-438: Was given full control of all the armed forces of the Central Powers and Austria-Hungary effectively became a satellite of Germany. The Austrians viewed the German army favorably; on the other hand, by 1916 the general belief in Germany was that Germany, in its alliance with Austria–Hungary, was "shackled to a corpse". The operational capability of the Austro-Hungarian army was seriously affected by supply shortages, low morale and
34380-400: Was halted and slowly repelled; but the Austrian armies took heavy losses (about 1 million men) and never recovered. Nevertheless, the huge losses in men and material inflicted on the Russians during the offensive contributed greatly to the revolutions of 1917 , and it caused an economic crash in the Russian Empire. The Act of 5 November 1916 was proclaimed then to the Poles jointly by
34571-463: Was no need to wait patiently before taking action... The leaders of Austria–Hungary therefore decided to confront Serbia militarily before it could incite a revolt; using the assassination as an excuse, they presented a list of ten demands called the July Ultimatum , expecting Serbia would never accept. When Serbia accepted nine of the ten demands but only partially accepted the remaining one, Austria–Hungary declared war. Franz Joseph I finally followed
34762-412: Was offset when Germany declared war on Portugal in March 1916, while Romania commenced hostilities against Austria on 27 August. On 6 April 1917, the United States entered the war as a co-belligerent, along with the associated allies of Liberia , Siam and Greece . After the 1917 October Revolution , Russia left the Entente and agreed to a separate peace with the Central Powers with the signing of
34953-401: Was often contracted to the "Dual Monarchy" in English or simply referred to as Austria . Timeline Following Hungary's defeat against the Ottoman Empire in the Battle of Mohács of 1526, the Habsburg Empire became more involved in the Kingdom of Hungary, and subsequently assumed the Hungarian throne. However, as the Ottomans expanded further into Hungary, the Habsburgs came to control only
35144-448: Was one of the most difficult operations waged by the Romanian army until then, but also because it was one of the most important as regards the complexity of the actions carried on and the highly valuable lessons derived from their evolution. Allies of World War I Associated allies and co-belligerents: The Allies , the Entente or the Triple Entente was an international military coalition of countries led by France ,
35335-420: Was ordered to begin moving these troops to the North-Eastern one with Austria. Under the April 1915 Treaty of London , Italy agreed to join the Entente in return for Italian-populated territories of Austria-Hungary and other concessions; in return, it declared war on Austria-Hungary in May 1915 as required, although not on Germany until 1916. Italian resentment at the difference between the promises of 1915 and
35526-436: Was originally composed of Germany, Austria–Hungary, and Italy, but Italy remained neutral in 1914. As the war progressed, each coalition added new members. Japan joined the Entente in 1914 and, despite proclaiming its neutrality at the beginning of the war, Italy also joined the Entente in 1915. The term "Allies" became more widely used than "Entente" , although the United Kingdom, France, Russia, and Italy were also referred to as
35717-426: Was renewed at regular intervals, but was compromised by conflicting objectives between Italy and Austria in the Adriatic and Aegean seas. Italian nationalists referred to Austrian-held Istria (including Trieste and Fiume ) and Trento as 'the lost territories' , making the Alliance so controversial that the terms were kept secret until it expired in 1915. Alberto Pollio , the pro-Austrian Chief of Staff of
35908-514: Was the first significant action of the Czechoslovak Legions , who fought for the independence of Czechoslovakia against the Austro-Hungarian army. In May 1915, Italy attacked Austria–Hungary. Italy was the only military opponent of Austria–Hungary which had a similar degree of industrialization and economic level; moreover, her army was numerous (≈1,000,000 men were immediately fielded), but suffered from poor leadership, training and organization. Chief of Staff Luigi Cadorna marched his army towards
36099-439: Was to be Romania, a country that many knew only through the hostile propaganda of Austria-Hungary. Also, this education aimed to eliminate the distrust in the new Italian ally, as well as the difficulties of communication with other soldiers from the other Romanian historical regions. The only language used in military service was Romanian. Officers of Romanian origin had a complex training program, which included, among other things,
36290-678: Was used (German: Österreich-Ungarn ; Hungarian: Ausztria-Magyarország ). The Austrians also used the names k. u. k. Monarchie (English: k. u. k. monarchy ) (in detail German: Kaiserliche und königliche Monarchie Österreich-Ungarn ; Hungarian: Császári és Királyi Osztrák–Magyar Monarchia ) and Danubian Monarchy (German: Donaumonarchie ; Hungarian: Dunai Monarchia ) or Dual Monarchy (German: Doppel-Monarchie ; Hungarian: Dual-Monarchia ) and The Double Eagle (German: Der Doppel-Adler ; Hungarian: Kétsas ), but none of these became widespread either in Hungary or elsewhere. The realm's full name used in internal administration
36481-424: Was weaker demographically than Germany, whose 1911 population was 64.9 million to 39.6 in France, which had the lowest birthrate in Europe. This meant that despite their very different political systems, when Germany allowed the Reinsurance Treaty to lapse, France seized the opportunity to agree the 1894 Franco-Russian Alliance . It also replaced Germany as the primary source of financing for Russian industry and
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