When Romania Was Staggered

After remaining neutral for two years, Romania—miscalculating the apparent success of Russia's Brusilov Offensive—chose to enter the war on the side of the Entente on 27 August 1916. The government's prime motive, like Italy's in 1915, was to obtain more territory. King Ferdinand and Premier Ion Bratianu, however, had grossly overestimated the fighting power of their army and the weakness of the Central Powers.

Romanian Infantry Form a Skirmish Line

Following an initial advance across the Transylvanian Alps into Hungary, Romania was invaded from two directions. From Bulgaria in the south, a combined force of Germans, Turks, and Bulgarians under the command of Field Marshal August von Mackensen attacked between the Danube and the Black Sea. Romania moved troops from the advancing forces in Transylvania to oppose the counter-invasion which threatened all of their Black Sea ports as well as Bucharest, the capital. Then in late September, General Falkenhayn, recently demoted as chief of staff, arrived to take command of the German Ninth Army in Transylvania to the north. He quickly attacked, capturing Hermanstadt and driving two Romanian divisions back into the mountains.

In quick order the two German commanders and a third Austro-Hungarian force relentlessly crushed the Romanian opposition. By 5 December Bucharest had fallen, Romania's oil fields had been set ablaze, and three-fourths of Romania was occupied. The arrival of Russian forces staved off total disaster. A defensible line was formed on the Sereth River in the northeast, allowing Romania to retain a major portion of Moldavia.

Germany Cavalry Pursuing Romanian Troops

There was little action in the next year, but in December 1917, the exhausted Romanian government had to ask the Central Powers for terms. They had lost a war and suffered over 400,000 casualties for their territorial ambitions. Things would change dramatically for Romania at the Paris Peace Conference, where their delegation cleverly negotiated an outcome that saw them gain significant additional territory, as well as shipments of arms and military support. They not only recovered territory that was lost to Bulgaria but they also gained additional territory by acquiring Transylvania.