Neutral Romania, personified as a woman in national dress, raises the Romanian flag before her wealth of wheat, baskets of bread, and barrels of food and oil, barring the path of a train from which a Turkish fez peeps. The illustration is not geographically accurate, as Romania did not share a border with Turkey, but did (and does) with Bulgaria, her southern neighbor, who peers over a hill to the right. Over Romania's right shoulder, the spiked helmet of Germany and shako of Austria-Hungary rise above the horizon. By Em. DuPuis, 1916. Romania formally set aside the prudence referred to in the caption on August 27, 1916 when she declared war on Austria-Hungary; she was soon at war with Germany, Bulgaria, and Turkey as well.
Signed Em. DuPuis, 1916.Prudence est mère de Sécurité . . . RoumaniePrudence is the mother of SecurityReverse:Visé Paris No. 116.Logo: Paris Color 152 Quai de JemmapesCarte Postale
August 27 through December 31, 1916
Romanian Front
The Kingdom of Romania shared no border with the Ottoman Empire and played no part in the First Balkan War that Greece, Serbia and Bulgaria waged against the Turks. Dissatisfied with its spoils from that war, Bulgaria turned on Greece and Serbia in the Second Balkan War. At SOME CRITICAL POINT, Romania joined the alliance against Bulgaria, attacking it across their lengthy shared border, and seizing some territory from Bulgaria in southern Dobruja.
Despite this background, Romania’s greatest nationalist ambition were to incorporate two neighboring and largely Romanian populations, one in Bessarabia in Russia, the other in Transylvania in Austria-Hungary. Transylvania was separated from Romania on the south by the Transylvanian Alps end on the east by the southern Carpathians.
Both the Central Powers and the Entente Allies made promises to entice Romania into the war. The Allies wanted Romanian support against Bulgaria, and promised to attack Bulgaria from Salonica, to attack Austria-Hungary in the Bukovina, and to send three Russian divisions to Dobruja for support. In their bargaining, Great Britain and French were generally willing to offer anything, but Russia, because of Romania's designs on Bessarabia, was more sceptical. GERMANY OFFERED ???? Bessarabia presumably???.
The Allied defeats of 1915 - of the Russians in the Battle of Gorlice-Tarnow, of France and Britain at Gallipoli, and of its neighbor Serbia - convinced Romania to stay on the sidelines. But the allies were more successful in 1916, holding firm at Verdun and advancing on the Somme. When Russia staggered Austria-Hungary with the Brusilov’s Offensive, Romania decided the time was right to join the Entente Allies.
The success of the Brusilov Offensive was one of the deciding factors for Romannia, but by the time they declared war Austria-Hungary on August 27, 1916, German reinforcements had stiffened Austrian resistance, the Russian offensive had come to a halt, and Romania, which might earlier have provided valuable reserves, could no longer help.
Romania's deployment of its four armies depended on which of its two war plans it executed. The first plan, advocated by the Allies, required defending against Austria-Hungary behind the natural barriers of the Transylvanian Alps and the southern Carpathians while launching a joint offensive against Bulgaria to link up with Allied forces driving north from Salonica. The second called for defending against Bulgaria behind the natural barrier of the Danube River while driving into Transylvania with three armies. In hopes of satisfying its expansionist dreams, Romania chose its second plan.
The Romanian First, Second, and Fourth Armies crossed the mountains into the salient of Austro-Hungarian Transylvania the night of August 27, 1916, and quickly seized the city of Kronstadt [Herwig, 218]. For two weeks they advanced slowly against the Austro-Hungarian First Army which strengthened as the Romanian advance shortened its line. With help from units of a newly forming German Ninth Army, the Austro-Hungarians halted the Romanian advance on September 18.
German commander Erich von Falkenhayn had been aware of Romania's negotiations with the Entente, and had prepared, building the Ninth Army on the right wing of the Austro-Hungarian First Army on Romania's western border. Falkenhayn had also formed a Bulgarian???? Danube Army under German General August von Mackensen on the Romanian southeastern border at Dobruja between the Danube and the Black Sea. Here, where the Danube, which flowed east between Romania and Bulgaria, turned north before reaching the Black Sea, Romania was vulnerable.
On August 28, Germany declared war on Romania. On September 1 ??? September 5???, Mackensen and his army crossed the border into Dobruja. The Romanian fortified cities on the Danube surrendered, Turtukai on September 6, and Silistria on September 9. By mid-September Mackensen was approaching the sole Dobruja rail line that bifurcated the region, that was Romania's primary Danube crossing point, and that connected the Black Sea port of Constanza to Bucharest.
But Russia had made good on its promise of three divisions. Under General Zaionchovsky, they had arrived on September 1, when Mackensen began his invasion, and were in position north of the rail line on September 16. Units of the Romanian Third Army which had been positioned west of Dobruja had moved east against Mackensen. The Romanians had also transferred three divisions from the Transylvania offensive, weakening it. The Romanian and Russian forces stopped Mackensen's advance on September 20, and pushed it back 10 miles in four days of bitter fighting.
After Kaiser Wilhelm replaced Falkenhayn with Generals Paul von Hindenburg and Erich Ludendorff after the failure of Verdun, the new commanders appointed Falkenhayn to command his new Ninth Army in the campaign against Romania on September 6.
Across the border from Romania's northwest, Falkenhayn arrived to take command of the Ninth Army on September 18, and immediately launched a counter-offensive. He first concentrated on the Romanian First Army on the Romanian left wing, and, in attacks beginning September 18, began to force the Army out of Austria-Hungary. From September 26 to 29 Falkenhayn and von Straussenburg defeated the Romanians at Hermannstadt. Falkenhayn then moved to the Romanian center, and, in attacks beginning on October 4, forced the Romanian Second Army back into Romania. From October 7 to 9, Falkenhayn and von Straussenburg again defeated the Romanians, this time at Kronstadt. To the north, the Fourth Army on the Romanian right wing, was in danger of being isolated and retreated to the mountains and Romania.
In the southeast at the beginning of October, the Romanian Third Army failed in an attempt to cross the Danube into Dobruja and strike Mackensen from behind. Having reinforced his Army with two Turkish divisions, Mackensen resumed his attack on October 20, and took Constanta and the railroad that crossed Dobruja by October 25.
November 11, 1916
In the next weeks, through the end of November, and with most of Dobruja under his control, Mackensen moved some of his forces to the west for an assault on the capital of Bucharest, crossing the Danube southwest of the city. To the west, on November 23, Falkenhayn launched a counter-offensive in Transylvania. The German Ninth Army which had been reinforced with four divisions from the Western Front, continued to push the Romanian First Army back towards Bucharest.
November 23, 26, 25, 30
Their situation desperate, the Romanians sought to take advantage of a gap between von Mackensen's forces west of Bucharest, and Falkanhayn's right wing. The attack failed, and the Romanians fell back, abandoned Bucharest, and continued retreating. On December 6, the German's / Falkenhayn / Mackensen took Bucharest.
The Romanian / What was left of the Romanian Nth Army retreat to the northeast To the north, in Moldavia, Russian forces had aided Romania, redeploying from the Bukovina to the right wing of the Romanian Fourth Army. The Central Powers forces continued advancing until January 7, 1917, sometimes battling primarily Russian units, fighting to protect Russia. In northern Dubroja, only the Danube separated Russia and occupied Romania. Romania held only Moldavia. What remained of its army was reinforced ??? by Russian units to hold the front.
“In 25 days of combat, Romania had lost 17,000 men killed, 56,000 wounded, 147,000 taken prisoner, and 90,000 missing,” Herwig, p. 222 = 310,000.
Map 40: 300,000 to 400,000 Romanian casualties. Germany: 60,000 casualties.
WHEN???? Sarrail’s French/Anglo/Serbian attack from Salonika (w/ some Greeks) fails entirely (Herwig, p. 218).
Romania’s entry into the war cost Russia SOMETHING food? Oil? Coming from the neutral country. Actually it would have been anything from the Central Powers, no? It’s defeat cost them all that and lengthened their front against the CP by ????? miles.
By early 1917, Central Power forces had confined the Romanian Army to Moldavia, Romania's northeast. Two??? Romanian and three??? Russian armies faced . . . . The Russian Revolution . . .
Kerensky in as Minister of war. July 1 The Kerensky Offensive . . .
The Battle of Mărăşti, July 24, Allied offensive. Romanian Second Army, + . . . Group + Russian, against German Ninth Army. Romanians capture Mărăşti. Kerensky Offensive failing and Russians being driven back, Romanians suspend operations on August 1.
The Battle of Mărăşeşti, Central Power offensive. German Ninth Army. The Russians retreat to the north. Romanian First Army to fill the line. On the Sereth River. August 8 German attack; August 10, Romanian and Russian counterattack. August 19, Germans attack again, and Romanians counterattack. Germans retreat in disorder. Greatest Romanian battle and victory. Romanians casualties: 27,410; dead: 5,125; wounded: 12,467; missing: 9,818. Central Power casualties: 65,000.
The Battle of Oituz, August 8, General Gerock Group - German and Austro-Hungarian divisions. Units of the Romanian Second Army; Russians. Central Power offensive to take heights along rivers. Romanians hold. August 19, Austro-Hungarians resume attack.
The Bolshevik Revolution . . .
Herwig: p. 335: December 9, 1917, suspend operations to begin negotiations.
Germany and Austria-Hungary were disappointed in the benefit the conquest of Romania brought. British agents destroyed most of the oil wells [Taylor, p. 153], and little oil that made its way to Germany. The conquest of Romania brought Germany and OR WAS THOUGHT IT WOULD BRING Food and oil.
[But Alexandrescu: Central Powers, primarily Germany and Austria-Hungary, seized 1,140,000 tons of oil, petroleum and oil products, over 2,161,000 tons of food and fodder, 12,000 tons or railway rolling stock, and 125,000 tons of building material.
In the wake of the Bolshevik Revolution, revolutionaries and nationalists began reconfiguring Europe. In autumn 1917, the Autonomous Moldavian Republic of Bessarabia, revolutionary Soldiers Assemblies were formed, and a Country Assembly was formed.
Negotiations between Romania and the Central Powers had begun after the suspension of operations on December 9, 1917, were drawn out. On February 8, 1918, Prime Minister Brătianu and his cabinet resigned. General Alexandru Averescu formed new government. General Mackensen participated in the opening of the final negotiations on March 6. The German and Austro-Hungarian Ministers for Foreign Affairs managed the negotiations. Czernin threatened King Ferdinand with renewed hostilities. On May 7, 1918, Romania signed the Treaty of Bucharest. Parliament refused to pass it, and was dissolved. King Ferdinand of Romania would not ratify it.
On April 9, 1918, the Country Assembly of the Autonomous Moldavian Republic of Bessarabia decided in favor of Bessarabia's union with Romania.
On September 28, 1918, the Executive Committee of the National Romanian Party in Transylvania, decided to RESUME military activity????. A party meeting on October 12, declared the right of self-determination for the Romanian Nation in Hungary and Transylvania. The declaration of the right of self-determination was submitted to the Hungarian Parliament on October 18, 1918. On October 30 and 31, the Romanian National Party and the Socio-Democratic Party established a Romanian National Council to govern Transylvania prior to union with Romania. On December 1, the Great National Assembly voted the union of Transylvania and Romania, passing as well provisions for universal male and female suffrage over age 21, freedom of the press, and equal rights for all citizens.
Romanian political leaders met on October 27, 1918 in Chernowitz, Bukovina, proclaiming themselves a Constituent Assembly. The voted for the union of Bukovina to the mother country, and elected a national council. On November 28, the General Congress of Bukovina, representing various ethnic groups voted in for the re-union of Bukovina and Romania.
On the Salonika front/In Greece, Franchet-d’Esperey found the breakthrough force he was looking in the Serbian Army.
The Romanians re-entered the war on November 10, 1918 when King Ferdinand mobilized the army.
Romania mobilized 1, 249,601 men for the war, and suffered 510,000 casualties killed, wounded, and missing. ??? INTERESTING POINT TO VERIFY: Of the Entente Allies, only Russia, France, Great Britain, and Italy put more men into the field.
Start Date: 1916-08-27
End Date: 1916-12-31
