This is a new feature for Roads to the Great War. Each Friday, I'm going to select one of the lesser-known aspects of the war and share some of the material we found and published on over the years. Please let me know what you think in the comments below. Today, we look at the experience of Romania at War. MH
Overview
The Kingdom of Romania was neutral for the first two years of World War I, entering on the side of the Allied powers after the apparent success of the Brusilov Offensive in the summer of 1916. Hostilities that commenced on 27 August 1916 ensued until Russian support was lost when the Reds left the war under the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Central Power occupation led to the Treaty of Bucharest in May 1918. With the Treaty of Bucharest, the Central Powers had taken Romanian territory including land along its coastline and around the mouth of the Danube River.
However, opportunistically, Romania reentered the war on 10 November 1918 on the side of the Allies. The Treaty of Versailles in 1919 not only reversed Romania's territorial losses, it also gave Romania control of the long-desired province of Transylvania. Romania succeeded in using the situation and its consequences to create a nation state of more than twice its original size. The human cost of its war effort, however, was enormous. 71% of the three-quarter million men mobilized were killed, wounded or missing in the war. An estimated 430,000 of its civilians also died from war-related causes.
Articles
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| Romanian Forces Abandon Bucharest |
Book Reviews
The Romanian Battlefront in World War I by Glenn E. Torrey
Bugs and Bullets: The True Story of an American Doctor on the Eastern Front during World War I by Joseph Breckinridge-Bayne and Ernest Latham
A Russian Nurse in War and Revolution: Memoirs 1912–1922 by Tatiana Varnek
Interesting article. I like the concept of focusing on some of the lesser-known aspects of WW I.
ReplyDeleteI like this format!!! Wonderful article.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mike. Excellent idea!
ReplyDeleteA solid post in a terrific theme.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget Mackensen had some successes in Romania.
An interesting presentation of a little known subject. Very enjoyable. Probably save it to reread it.
ReplyDeleteAgree with all the positive comments above!
ReplyDelete