The Balkan Wars 1912-1913: Prelude to the First World War

The Balkan Wars of 1912 - 1913 opened an era of conflict in Europe at the beginning of the 20th century, which lasted until 1918, and which established a basis for problems which tormented Europe until the end of the century.In The Balkan Wars 1912-1913, Richard Hall examines the origins, the enactment and the resolution of the Balkan Wars, during which the Ottoman Empire fought a Balkan coalition of Bulgaria, Greece, Montenegro and Serbia. In 1913 the Balkan coalition collapsed as Bulgaria confronted its erstwhile allies Greece, Montenegro and Serbia and also came under attack by the Ottoman Empire and Romania. The resolution of these wars in the Treaty of Bucharest proved ephemeral. The embers remaining from these conflagrations soon ignited again to engulf Europe in the First World War.Based on archival as well as published diplomatic and military sources, this book provides the first comprehensive perspective on the diplomatic and military aspects of the Balkan Wars. It demonstrates that, because of the diplomatic problems raised and the military strategies and tactics pursued to resolve those problems, the Balkan Wars of 1912-1913 were the first phase of the greater and wider conflict of the First World War.