March 1913–A Time of Foreboding in the Balkans

Serbian poster, depicting King Alexander I
beating the losing Bulgarian ruler, Tsar Ferdinand I

March 1913 saw the end of fighting in the First Balkan War. But this did not lead immediately to peace and stability in the region. It required pressure from the Great Powers towards Greece and Serbia, who had postponed signing in order to fortify their defensive positions, the signing of the Treaty of London took place on 30 May 1913. With this treaty, the war between the Balkan Allies and the Ottoman Empire came to an end.  One of the victors—Bulgaria—would be unhappy with its share of the spoils and would soon precipitate a second regional war. As one astute war correspondent (the name Leon Trotsky should ring a bell) observed, "The Balkan war has not only destroyed the old frontiers in the Balkans, it has also lastingly disturbed the equilibrium between the capitalist states of Europe." The soon-to-be successful revolutionary was spot on. 

The successes and subsequent expressions of independence by the victorious Balkan states should have alarmed their sponsors, who had taken for granted that they were positioned to manipulate events in the region to their own advantage. As further events would show, their ability to control their proxies in the Balkans had declined much more than they realized.

George I of Greece

The ominous assassination of much-admired King George I of Greece on 18 March at the hand of a derelict socialist during a visit to recently liberated Salonika was an alarm bell in the night, as well. It would prove detrimental to Greek politics, and it certainly reminded would-be regicides of the vulnerability of royals and heads of governments while traveling. Mr. Princip and his Black Hand sponsors were surely watching.