1918 surrender of Bulgaria to the Allies of World War I
The Armistice of Salonica (also known as the Armistice of Thessalonica) was the armistice signed at 10:50 p.m. on 29 September 1918 between Bulgaria and the Allied Powers at the General Headquarters of the Allied Army of the Orient in Thessaloniki. The armistice came into force at noon on 30 September 1918.[1] The armistice would remain in effect until the conclusion of the Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine, the final general peace treaty, in November 1919.
The Kingdom of Bulgaria entered World War I on the side of the Central Powers on 14 October 1915, invading and occupying parts of Serbia. However, Bulgarian forces would struggle against the Vardar offensive launched by the Allies in September 1918, causing part of the Bulgarian Army to collapse, and an open mutiny of rebellious troops who proclaimed a republic at Radomir.[2] The Bulgarian government then requested a ceasefire on 24 September. The terms included the withdrawal of Bulgarian forces in occupied areas and demobilization of most of Bulgaria's army.[1]
Surrender
The armistice effectively ended Bulgaria's participation in World War I on the side of the Central Powers and came into effect on the Bulgarian Front at noon on 30 September. The armistice regulated the demobilization and the disarmament of the Bulgarian armed forces.
Its importance was described by German Emperor Wilhelm II in his telegram to Bulgarian Tsar Ferdinand I: "Disgraceful! 62,000 Serbs decided the war!"[3][4]
The terms called for the immediate demobilization of all Bulgarian military activities. It ordered the evacuation of Bulgarian-occupied Greek and Serbian territories, placed limits and restrictions to the size of Bulgaria's military employment and required Bulgaria to return military equipment that had been taken from the Greek Fourth Army Corps during the Bulgarian occupation of Eastern Macedonia in 1916. German and Austrian-Hungarian troops were to leave Bulgaria within four weeks. Bulgaria and especially Sofia were not to be occupied, but the Allies had the right to occupy some strategic points temporarily and to transfer troops over Bulgarian territory.
According to Article 5, about 150,000 Bulgarian soldiers to the west of the Skopje meridian were to be delivered to the Entente as hostages.[6]
The French would send troops to Romania and the British and Greeks to European Turkey, which was still at war with the Allies.
The armistice would remain in effect until the conclusion of the Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine, the final general peace treaty, in November 1919.
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (September 2015)
(1919) "Bulgaria Armistice Convention, September 29th, 1918". The American Journal of International Law Vol. 13 No.4 Supplement: Official Documents, 402-404.
This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Armistice_of_Salonika, and is written by contributors.
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