Austria-Hungary's Role In The Balkan Wars: Complex And Complicated

The Balkan Wars were a series of two conflicts that took place in 1912 and 1913. Austria-Hungary was not involved as a combatant in either of the wars, but its annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1908 had damaged its relations with Serbia and Montenegro, and its occupation of the Sanjak of Novi Pazar had prevented the union of Serbia and Montenegro. The Balkan Wars were a significant precursor to World War I, and Austria-Hungary's non-involvement in the wars left it relatively weaker as Serbia pushed for the union of South Slavic peoples.

Austria-Hungary's annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina

The annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina by Austria-Hungary was a significant event in the lead-up to World War I. The annexation was the culmination of a series of political manoeuvres and agreements between the great powers of Europe, all of whom had interests in the region.

In the mid-1870s, a series of rebellions against Ottoman rule in the Balkans were met with violent and repressive responses from the Turks. The Russian Tsar, Alexander II, wanted to intervene and obtained an agreement with Austria-Hungary. In the Budapest Conventions of 1877, Russia and Austria-Hungary agreed that Russia would annex Bessarabia, and Austria-Hungary would remain neutral in the pending war with the Turks. As compensation, Russia agreed to Austria-Hungary's control of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Treaty of San Stefano, imposed by the Russians on the Ottomans after their victory, declared that Bosnia and Herzegovina would be jointly occupied by Russian and Austrian troops. However, this was overturned by the 1878 Treaty of Berlin, which gave Austria-Hungary special rights in these provinces. Despite this, the provinces officially remained Ottoman possessions, and Austria-Hungary's administration of them was only meant to be temporary.

In 1907, the Austro-Hungarian Foreign Minister, Alois Aehrenthal, began formulating a plan to solidify Austria-Hungary's position towards Serbia through the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. His opportunity came in the form of a letter from the Russian Foreign Minister, Alexander Izvolsky, proposing a discussion of reciprocal changes to the Treaty of Berlin, including Austro-Hungarian interests in the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. A series of meetings and negotiations took place, and on 16 September 1908, Izvolsky agreed that Russia would not object to the annexation in exchange for Austria's pledge not to object to opening the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits to Russian warships.

On 5 or 6 October 1908, the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary announced its annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, enraging Serbia and pan-Slavic nationalists throughout Europe. The annexation upset the fragile balance of power in the Balkans, as both provinces had a largely Slavic population with nationalist ambitions, and their fellow Slavs in nearby Serbia yearned to annex them. The annexation permanently damaged relations between Austria-Hungary and its neighbours, especially Serbia, Italy, and Russia, and in the long term, helped lay the groundwork for World War I.

The Balkan League

The Balkans had been in turmoil since the early 1900s, with years of guerrilla warfare in Macedonia, the Young Turk Revolution, the Bosnian Crisis, and several Albanian uprisings. The Italo-Turkish War in 1911 further weakened the Ottomans and emboldened the Balkan states. Serbia and Bulgaria, under pressure from Russia, settled their differences and signed an alliance, which was initially directed against Austria-Hungary. However, a secret chapter was added to the treaty, redirecting the alliance against the Ottoman Empire. Serbia then formed an alliance with Montenegro, and Bulgaria did the same with Greece.

The First Balkan War was instigated by Russia to expel the Turks from the Balkans and limit increasing Austrian power in the region. The Balkan allies were able to field a combined force of 750,000 men and achieved a series of victories against the Ottoman Empire. The war concluded with an armistice in December 1912, followed by a peace treaty signed in London in May 1913, which resulted in the loss of almost all European territory for the Ottoman Empire, including Macedonia and Albania.

The Second Balkan War began due to quarrels between the former allies over the division of their conquests in Macedonia. Serbia and Greece formed an alliance against Bulgaria, and Romania also joined this alliance. The Bulgarian offensive initially achieved success, but the Serbian and Greek defenders repulsed the attack and counterattacked. The Romanian army marched on Sofia, and the Turks reoccupied Thrace. With enemy forces converging, Bulgaria was forced to conclude an armistice, and a peace treaty was signed in August 1913. As a result, Greece and Serbia divided most of Macedonia, while Bulgaria was left with only a small part of the region.

The Russo-Turkish War

The Russian-led coalition emerged victorious, pushing the Ottomans back to the gates of Constantinople. This led to the intervention of Western European powers, resulting in Russia claiming provinces in the Caucasus and annexing the Budjak region. Romania, Serbia, and Montenegro formally proclaimed their independence from the Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria emerged as an autonomous state with Russian support.

The war had significant consequences for Austria-Hungary's foreign policy. In the aftermath, Russia offered to join forces with Austria-Hungary in partitioning the Balkans. Count Gyula Andrássy, the Hungarian statesman and diplomat, initially resisted this offer as he believed that Austria-Hungary was already a "saturated state". However, he was aware that Russia's expansionist ambitions could not be entirely curbed. This led to the Reichstadt Agreement of July 1876 and the Budapest Agreement of January 1877, where Russia settled for the territory of Bessarabia and agreed to Austria-Hungary's acquisition of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Bosnian Crisis

Background

The mid-1870s witnessed a series of violent rebellions against Ottoman rule in the Balkans, and equally violent and repressive responses from the Turks. The Russian Tsar, Alexander II, wanting to intervene against the Ottomans, obtained an agreement with Austria-Hungary. In the Budapest Conventions of 1877, the two powers agreed that Russia would annex Bessarabia, and Austria-Hungary would observe a benevolent neutrality toward Russia in the pending war with the Turks. As compensation, Russia agreed to Austria-Hungary's control of Bosnia-Herzegovina.

The Treaty of San Stefano, imposed by the Russians on the Ottomans, reneged on pledges made in the Budapest Convention and declared that Bosnia-Herzegovina would be jointly occupied by Russian and Austrian troops. However, the Treaty of San Stefano was overturned by the 1878 Treaty of Berlin, which gave Austria-Hungary special rights in the Ottoman Empire's provinces of Bosnia-Herzegovina and the Sanjak of Novi Pazar.

Annexation

In 1907, the Austro-Hungarian Foreign Minister, Alois Aehrenthal, began formulating a plan to solidify Austria-Hungary's position towards Serbia through the annexation of Bosnia-Herzegovina. His opportunity came in the form of a letter from the Russian Foreign Minister, Alexander Izvolsky – proposing Austrian annexation of the provinces as part of a deal to secure better access to the Turkish Straits for Russian naval vessels – and a subsequent meeting at Buchlau Castle in Moravia.

On 16 September 1908, Aehrenthal and Izvolsky met and agreed that Russia would not object to the annexation, and in return, Austria would not object to opening the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits to Russian warships.

On 7 October 1908, Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina. This unilateral action sparked protestations from all the Great Powers and Austria-Hungary's Balkan neighbours, Serbia and Montenegro. Serbia, which was closely related to Bosnia and Herzegovina geographically and ethnically, was outraged by the annexation. It demanded that Austria cede a portion of Bosnia and Herzegovina to Serbia, and Izvolsky, pressed by anti-Austrian opinion in Russia, was forced to support the Serbian claims. Austria, firmly supported by its ally Germany, threatened to invade Serbia if it persisted in its demands.

Outcome

In March 1909, Izvolsky notified Germany that Russia accepted Austria's annexation, bringing the crisis to a close. Although the crisis ended with what appeared to be a total Austro-Hungarian diplomatic victory, it permanently damaged relations between Austria-Hungary and its neighbours, especially Serbia. Austro-Serbian relations – harmed by the annexation's inflaming of Serbian nationalists – continued to be strained to the point of declaring war on each other in 1914. The resulting embittered relations between Serbia and Austria-Hungary, and Russia’s resentment at having been deceived and humiliated, contributed to the outbreak of World War I.

The First Balkan War

• The Ottoman Empire was unable to reform itself, govern satisfactorily, or deal with the rising ethnic nationalism of its diverse peoples.
• The loss of Libya to Italy in 1911 and the revolts in the Albanian Provinces showed that the Empire was deeply "wounded" and unable to strike back against another war.
• The Great Powers quarrelled among themselves and failed to ensure that the Ottomans would carry out the needed reforms, leading the Balkan states to impose their own solution.
• The Christian populations of the European part of the Ottoman Empire were oppressed by the Ottoman Reign, forcing the Christian Balkan states to take action.
• The formation of the Balkan League, whose members were confident that an organised and simultaneous declaration of war on the Ottoman Empire was the only way to protect their compatriots and expand their territories in the Balkan Peninsula.

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