The crushing defeat of Turkey by the Balkan States during the winter of
1912-13 had been accomplished mainly by Bulgaria. The Bulgarians were
therefore eager to assert themselves as the chief Balkan State, the
Power which was to take the place of Turkey as ruler of the "Near
East." Naturally this roused the antagonism not only of Bulgaria's
recent allies, Greece and Servia, but also of the other neighboring
State, Roumania. Bulgaria hoped to meet and crush her two allies before
Roumania could join them. Thus she deliberately precipitated a war
which resulted in her utter defeat. From this contest Greece has
emerged as the chief State of the eastern Mediterranean, a growing
Power which at last bears some resemblance to the classic Greece of
ancient times.
To understand this war, it should be realized that the Bulgars are
really an Asiatic race, who broke into Europe as the Hungarians had
done before them, and as the Turks did afterward. Hence their kinship
with European races or manners is really slight, though they have
something of Slavic or Russian blood. The Servians are near akin to the
Russians. The Roumanians trace their ancestry proudly, if somewhat
dubiously, back to the old Roman colonists of the days of Rome's world
empire. The Greeks are really the most ancient dwellers in the region;
and to their pride of race was now added a furious eagerness to prove
their military power. This had been much scorned after their
ineffective war against Turkey in 1897, and they had found no
opportunity to give decisive proof of their strength during the war of
1912.
To Professor Duggan's account of the causes and results of the war,
which appeared originally in the _Political Science Quarterly_, we
append the picture of its most striking incidents by Captain Trapmann,
who was with the Greek army through its brief but brilliant campaign.