Causes of First Balkan War

• Following the Bosnian Crisis there was a breeding of nationalism and militarism

  ▪ It was the Balkan States who wanted to support those ethnic minorities they believed to be living under Turkish oppression
• The annexation of Bosnia meant that Serbia was denied the chance of an Adriatic port by the Austrian expansion into 375 miles of predominantly Slavic territory
• This Austrian expansion also gave Austria a base she could use for any military ventures against Serbia
• The fact that yet more Slavs were under foreign rule only did more to fuel the ideal of pan-Slavism
• Italy had been disappointed by their colonial gains at Berlin in 1878
• In 1911, taking advantage of the instability in Constantinople following the Revolution, the Italians attacked and occupied the Ottoman province of Tripoli (modern-day Libya)
• On 29th September 1911, Turkey declared war on Italy, meaning many of the Ottoman forces were diverted to North Africa, leaving the Balkan States relatively unprotected
• By May 1912 the Italo-Turkish war was at a stalemate

  ▪ War with Italy had revealed the poor state of the Ottoman military
• Along with the fact that the military was in a poor state and the Ottoman’s resources were focused elsewhere the Balkan States advanced their position
• Nicholas Hartwig, the Russian Ambassador to Serbia, was instrumental in forming the Balkan League
• By fostering good relations between Serbia and Bulgaria, Hartwig hoped to deter Austro-Hungarian ambitions in the region
• Hartwig acted of his own back rather than following orders from St Petersburg
• The Greek Prime Minister hoped to make Greece’s neighbours into firm allies
• Bulgaria and Serbia joined together with an agreement in Spring 1912

  ▪ In May 1912 Greece and Montenegro joined to form the Balkan League
• The Balkan League was committed to driving the Ottoman Empire out of the Balkans for good

  ▪ However, this was the only agreement, as each country wanted different things for the Balkans
• Bulgaria wanted an independent Macedonia that would turn to Bulgaria for protection
• Serbia favoured dividing Macedonia up and was mainly interested in gaining Albania