Macedonian front - Tcherna river retreat (positions in Krklina/Krklino, Bukri/Boukri and Mariovo region

[Doggybit]

The topic is about less known positions of the Bulgarian and German armies in the above mentioned areas where already are found some structures and remains.

 

Anyone that have any kind of marked map or document or a picture please share with some info.

[Gardenerbill]

Hi Doggybit, welcome to the forum.

Unfortunately the GWF members are mostly interested in the British Army and this is the case in the Balkan campaign. 
The British Salonika Army operated predominantly east of the river Vardar so that tends to be the area the members know most about. 
I am giving your post a nudge in the hope that someone may be able to help. 

[KGB]

I have some info on Irish regiments in Salonika, nothing on the Bulgars. Alas. 

[MaureenE]

Perhaps there is something in the German or Austrian Official histories, linked from the FIBIS Fibiwiki page Salonica and the Balkans (First World War)

https://wiki.fibis.org/w/Salonica_and_the_Balkans_(First_World_War)#Official_histories,_despatches,_background_etc

Maureen

[AFO191519]

Hi,
You mention the "Tcherna river retreat". Are you referring to the successive positions occupied by the German-Bulgarians during the autumn 1916 campaign? Or their defence lines in 1918, on the eve of the final offensive?

[Doggybit]

Guys,

 

Firstly, I would like to tank you for replying to the post.

 

Then, I would like to give an insight to the motive of the topic: We are a newly registered Military History Museum based in Bitola, Macedonia and we cover the war periods of the two Balkan Wars and the two World Wars.

Our current research is focused on the First World War (The Great War), since the breakthrough on Doiran and Dobro pole happened here in Macedonia, as well as the Macedonian front. We have a lot of Galleries and bunkers and trenches and militaria left in the country, especially in the Bitola-Mariovo region and along the line of the Macedonian front and our current goal is to identify and preserve them - for educational, scientific and tourism purpose.

 

As part of the museum we have a library, an archive and a warehouse for storing and preserving all the materials from the abovementioned periods as well as digitalizing them so that they'll be available for any interested party.

We are looking for more info on the German-Bulgar armies positions or French because we have a front line that we are working on, close to Bitola/Krklino reaching Tcherna river around Kote 1050, where the French and Bulgar armies were from 160-300m apart fighting from 1916 onwards and we have identified 9 concrete bunkers and galleries (supposedly Bulgar) and two French bunkers with Hospital and storage on the other side.

 

Regards. 

On 06/09/2024 at 16:59, AFO191519 said:

Hi,
You mention the "Tcherna river retreat". Are you referring to the successive positions occupied by the German-Bulgarians during the autumn 1916 campaign? Or their defence lines in 1918, on the eve of the final offensive?

Positions from 1916 onwards, mainly. But any info on any positions of the Bulgars or French would be of help.

 

Regards.

[keithmroberts]

This looks interesting, and maybe in the future we in the Salonika Campaign Society may be able to work with you. Our resources are sadly quite limited, but.....................

 

 

Keith

[AFO191519]

You will find a large number of maps of the Macedonian front in the eighth volume of the official French history of the war, available at the following adress.

Most of these maps are not at the right scale to show the detail of the lines occupied by the two sides, but there are several that you might find useful. One series in particular is devoted to the offensives undertaken in the spring of 1917. It details the trench lines held by the Allies and the German-Bulgarians:

The front of the 156th French Division north-west of Bitola in March 1917

The front of the 11th and 57th French Divisions north-east of Bitola in March 1917

The front of the 11th French Colonial Division north-east of Bitola in May 1917

The front line of French, Italian and Russian forces in the Cerna Bend in May 1917 and here

The war diaries of almost all the French units that took part in the Balkan campaign have been digitised, and contain countless maps and sketches of the front. For example, the diary of the 156th French Division shows the positions occupied respectively by the French and the Bulgarians in May 1917 to the north-west of Bitola. Here is the front of the 76th French Division to the north-east of Bitola in the autumn of 1917. But finding all these maps involves navigating through hundreds of diaries...

Hill 1,050 was conquered by the Serbs and the French at the end of 1916, but was then occupied almost continuously by the Italian 35th Division. There are very precise maps of this sector in the official Italian history.