by Rudy Scott Nelson
Several firefights between Bulgarian and Greek outposts in Macedonia occurred prior to the outbreak of war. April 21 1913. Skirmish at Palaiochori. Bulgarian (~500) vs Greek garrison (company + 50 locals + two companies of reinforcements). April 25 1913. Skirmish at Eleutherae. Bulgarian and Greek outposts exchange fire. Both sides reinforce their positions and a larger battle erupts. Each side averaged 500 to 700 men. May 4-10 1913. Bulgarian troops in Angista (5 Inf Bns + 2 Cav Com + 3 Arty Btys) vs Greek 19th Rgt ( 3 Bns) which was later reinforced by the 21st Rgt (2 Bns). A series of skirmishes along the Angites River. The Bulgarians pushed the Greeks out of the area. June 15 1913. Pangaeum Mountain Sector. Bulgarian 2nd Army vs Greeks. June 16 1913. The Second Balkan War begins officially with the Bulgarians launching several coordinated assaults to overwelm small local garrisions. June 16 1913. Battle of Peukodasos. Bulgarian advances overwelms the Greek company garrisoning Kastro. The Greek X Division holds the Bulgarians at Peukodasos. June 17 1913. Heights of Nea Kerdylia. Greeks (5 Bns = Evones and 20th Rgt) defend vs Bulgarians (2 Divs). The Greeks withdraw after repelling several attacks. June 17 1913. Bulgarian troops capture the Axios bridge at Gevgelije from the Serbs. June 18 1913. Battle of Thessalonica. Greeks (II Div + 200 Cretan Gendarmes) besiege and after a hard fight capture the local Bulgarian garrison (1200 men + 100 Komitadjis) June 19-21 1913. Key Battle of Kilkis-Lachanas. The Greek counterattack is focused on Kilkis located north of Thessalonica. Bulgarians : 3rd Div (-1st Bde) + 1st Bde/10th Div + two Ind Bdes + 10th Cavalry Rgt. Greeks : 1st Div + 6th Div + 2nd Div + 7th Div + 5th Div + 3rd Div + 10th Div + Cavalry Bde. The Greeks suffered 8,300 casualties while the Bulgarians lost over 10,000 men (estimate) including 2,500 captured. June 22-23 1913. Battle of Dojran. Greek 3rd and 10th Divisions continue to press the disorganized Bulgarian forces. June 25-26. Elements of the Greek 10th Division secure the Kerkine mountain range. June 30- July 5 1913? Battle of Skolpje. The site where the initial Bulgarian attack (4th and 3rd Armies) was halted by the Serbian 3rd Army and the Serbian 1st Army counterattacked and defeated the Bulgarian forces. June 30-July 5 1913. Battle of Nis. The Serbian 2nd Army halts the initial advance of the Bulgarian 1st Army. July 1 1913 Battle of Drama. Greek 7th division (21st Rgt) drives out the Bulgarian garrison. July 5 1913? Battle of Zajecar. The main area of action for the north flank of the Serbian (2nd Army) and Bulgaian (1st Army) attacks. July 15 1913. Roumanian troops attack weak Bulgarian garrisons in order to capture the area around the Silistria fort. Bulgarian troops are overwelmed. July 15 1913? Ottoman forces launch an assault on the Bulgarian garrisons near Chatalja. Bulgarian troops fail to hold the defensive positions and retreat past Adrianople. Major Battles of the Balkan Wars
The Greek Front The Serbian and Montenegrin Fronts The Bulgarian Front The Second Balkan War: Bulgaria vs The Christian League Back to Time Portal Passages Winter 2002 Table of Contents Back to Time Portal Passages List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 2002 by Rudy Scott Nelson This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com |