Vardar offensive

Vardar offensive
Part of the Macedonian front and Balkans Theatre of World War I
A Bulgarian telephone station at Lake Doiran, March 1917
Date 15–29 September 1918 Location Vardar Macedonia (present day North Macedonia) Result Decisive Entente victory Armistice of Salonica
Belligerents
Bulgaria  Germany	Serbia  France  United Kingdom  Greece  Italy
Commanders and leaders
Friedrich von Scholtz Kuno von Steuben Georgi Todorov Hristo Burmov Stefan Nerezov Vladimir Vazov	Louis F. d'Esperey Paul Prosper Henrys Živojin Mišić Petar Bojović Stepa Stepanović George Milne Henry Wilson Panagiotis Danglis Panagiotis Gargalidis Ernesto Mombelli
Units involved
Army Group Scholtz 11th Army[Note 1] 1st Army	Allied Army of the Orient Armée d'Orient 1st Army[Note 2] 2nd Army Salonika Army Serres Division Cretan Division 35th Division
Strength
2 armies 500 artillery pieces	3 divisions 822 artillery pieces 2 corps 6 divisions 4 divisions 1 division
Casualties and losses
unknown dead and wounded 77,000 captured 500 artillery pieces lost	3,449 3,215 4,589 5,295 747 Total: 17,295 casualties[3]

The Vardar offensive (Bulgarian: Офанзива при Вардар) was a World War I military operation, fought between 15 and 29 September 1918. The operation took place during the final stage of the Balkans Campaign. On September 15, a combined force of Serbian, French and Greek troops attacked the Bulgarian-held trenches in Dobro Pole ("Good Field"), at the time part of Serbia (present-day North Macedonia). The assault and the preceding artillery preparation had devastating effects on Bulgarian morale, eventually leading to mass desertions.

On September 18, a second Entente formation assaulted the Bulgarian positions in the vicinity of Lake Doiran. Effectively employing machine gun and artillery fire the Bulgarians managed to stall the Allied advance on the Doiran sector. However the collapse of the front at Dobro Pole forced the Bulgarians to withdraw from Doiran. The Allies pursued the German 11th Army and the Bulgarian 1st Army, while pushing deeper into Vardar Macedonia. By 29 September, the Allies had captured the former HQ of Skopje, thus endangering the remnants of the 11th Army.

The parallel development of the anti-monarchist Radomir Rebellion forced Bulgaria to sign the Armistice of Salonica and withdraw from the war. The treaty included the full capitulation of the 11th Army, bringing the final tally of Bulgarian and German prisoners to 77,000 and granting the Allies 500 artillery pieces. The Bulgarian downfall turned the strategic and operational balance of the war against the Central Powers. The Macedonian Front was brought to an end at noon on 30 September, when the ceasefire came into effect.

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