#sarrail

Adolphe Guillaumat, Sarrail’s replacement, pictured after the war.

December 10 1917, Paris--By the end of 1917, Sarrail had accumulated some powerful enemies.  The Italians and Serbs thought he overstepped his bounds in Albania; the Greeks felt his heavy-handed treatment had suppressed recruitment efforts for the Greek army; and the British were annoyed that he had refused to relieve or reinforce the British sectors of the front after the British diverted troops away for the campaign in Palestine.  Furthermore, Clemenceau, the new French PM, was already at odds with the Socialists, and removing the socialist Sarrail would do little to further diminish his favorability with them.  Nevertheless, he tried to distance himself from Sarrail’s removal, ordering Pétain to do recall him to France.  Pétain, however, did not want to take the blame either, and correctly pointed out that his own remit stopped at the Adriatic.  As a result, Clemenceau had to issue the order himself.  On December 10, he sent a telegram to Sarrail, telling him: “I have the honor to inform you that, acting in the general interest, the Government has decided to order your return to France.”

The sacking was announced the next day in the French press, but Clemenceau made sure it was overshadowed by more stunning news, accusing former PM Caillaux (Madame Caillaux’s husband), a noted advocate of a separate peace with Germany, of treasonous activities and demanding a revocation of his parliamentary immunity.  The resulting scandal rocked the country for months and most soon forgot about Sarrail, except via his connection to Caillaux.  Several weeks later, a memorandum by Caillaux came to light in which he proposed that he and Sarrail would seize power, with Sarrail playing the role of Bonaparte after his return from Egypt.  While it seems unlikely that Sarrail had any knowledge of what Caillaux had in mind for him, Sarrail wisely decided to stay out of public view.

Clemenceau wanted to replace Sarrail with Franchet d’Espérey.  Although tempted, Franchet d’Espérey eventually declined, seeing the move as something of a demotion from commanding an Army Group in France.  Chosen instead was Adolphe Guillaumat, who was commanding the 2nd Army around Verdun.  An apolitical and generally respected general, his selection caused little uproar.

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October 20 1917, Pogradec--The Allied forces around Salonika were weaker than they had been at this point last year, with the British having withdrawn many of their troops for use in their upcoming offensive in Palestine.  The French, however, had had some success in Albania in September around Pogradec, and Sarrail was hopeful that a renewed push in that area, relatively weakly defended by the Central Powers, could make a difference.  He planned to push up the western shore of Lake Ohrid, then turn east in an attempt to outflank the Bulgarians north of Monastir.  Delayed by misty conditions, the French moved out in force from Pogradec on October 20, and advanced a few miles in the first day.  They were to be assisted on their flanks by Essad Pasha’s Albanian irregulars.

Despite its initial success, the offensive was halted within 36 hours by orders from Paris.  The Italians (as well as the Greeks and Serbians) were not pleased at the French conducting operations in Albania, especially not when doing so seemed to prop up Essad Pasha’s claims to being the legitimate Albanian government.  Italy thought Albania was their sphere of influence, and Italian political concerns trumped the prospect of military gains on the ground in a sector that few politicians cared about.  The French dug in five miles north of Pogradec, and would remain there for the next 11 months.

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A poster advertising the 27th Division’s horse show.

July 23 1917, Salonika--The Allied troops around Salonika, far from home, suffering from malaria, and with little action on the front since May, faced a growing morale problem.  This was especially true for the French.  Strict censorship had prevented news of the mutinies from reaching Greece (beyond possible word of mouth), the soldiers did learn of their effects--most notably, a new, more generous leave policy.  This was obviously difficult to extend to the Army of the Orient, which caused discontent and even a brief mutiny on July 16.  Although it was soon broken up and around ninety mutineers arrested, Sarrail recognized that morale was a growing problem.

Leave was difficult to grant because it took so long to get back to France by sea, and doing so meant traveling through U-boat hunting grounds in the Aegean.  However, with King Constantine’s abdication and Greece’s subsequent entry into the war, her railroads and ports were now fully available.  On July 23, Allied transports began using the port of Itea, in the Gulf of Corinth.  A much shorter sea voyage, to Taranto and the Italian railroad network, was now available, making the granting of leave (and the movement of troops in general) much more feasible.

The British attempted to keep their morale up in the meantime through a variety of diversions.  The 28th Division kept a pack of beagles, which had the run of the front, often crossing over into the Bulgarian lines.  The Bulgarians always graciously returned the beagles to the British without incident.  The 27th Division held an impressive horse show lasting from July 23rd to the 25th, under the protection of Allied air cover.  Sarrail himself even attended the final day of the festivities.

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British troops in the trenches near Lake Doiran in May 1917.

May 9 1917, Orle--The British had attacked the Bulgarian lines around Lake Doiran unsuccessfully in late April, in support of a French offensive which was to have begun two days later.  However, bad weather and logistical failures meant Sarrail’s attack was put off until May 9.  The British again attacked in support the previous night, but just as in late April failed to take any ground; silhouetted by Bulgarian searchlights, the attacking troops were quickly mowed down by Bulgarian machine guns.  The few gains that were made were untenable given Bulgarian command of the heights of the Petit Couronné, and were surrendered the next day.

The next morning, the main offensive began north of Monastir.  This was a very multinational effort, with French, Russian, Italian, and Serbian troops all taking part, in addition to Britain’s attack the previous night.  The Russians had the most success, breaking through the Bulgarian front line and in one case advancing a mile beyond.  However, they were not supported on their flanks, and found themselves quickly cut off and fired on by machine guns from both sides; most were killed or captured.  The French, Italians, and Serbs also made small gains, but many of them were tactically untenable, and by noon Allied momentum had run out.  German reserves shored up the Bulgarian positions, and further attacks over the next few days were even less successful.

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Putnik, in ill-health, being carried down the gangway of a ship, presumably in Corfu in 1916.

May 17 1917, Nice--Marshal Radomir Putnik had led Serbian forces until the end of 1915, holding off Austria for well over a year despite their isolated position, until Bulgaria’s entry and a large German commitment caused their final collapse.  Putnik had been personally caught off guard by the start of the war, having been in Budapest seeking treatment for his emphysema.  The Austrians graciously allowed him to return to Serbia, a move which they regretted later.

In December 1915, Putnik was dismissed, either due to his ill-health or the loss of Serbia.  While his army left from Corfu for Salonika, then the front lines in Macedonia, Putnik retired to Nice, hoping the Mediterranean air would help his emphysema.  Putnik died in exile on May 17, 1917, at the age of 70, with Serbia only in control of a small corner of their homeland.

Meanwhile, in Macedonia, the Allied offensive had ground to a halt.  The only success of any note was in the Struma Valley, far from Sarrail’s main push, where the 10th Irish Division unexpectedly pushed forward over three-and-a-half miles to little resistance on the 15th and 16th.  Further progress, however, would require pushing into the mountains or a breakthrough elsewhere, which was not forthcoming.  Sarrail still hoped to use the Serbian First Army, which had yet to participate in the offensive, and urged an attack as strongly as he could as the commander of a multinational force: “It is absolutely necessary that the Serbs press forward.”  However, the Serbian commander, seeing the failure of the other armies (including one of his compatriots’) on his flanks, refused, knowing he would not be able to take the mountains in front of him with the forces he had available.

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A 1917 watercolor by Thomas Dugdale of the foothills of Grand Couronné under British bombardment; Lake Doiran is in the foreground.

April 24 1917, Doiran--The Allies at Salonika had been planning an offensive against the Bulgarians in the mountains of southern Serbia for several months.  They had made good progress last year, taking Monastir, but the winter had prevented further progress, and had let the Bulgarians and their allies prepare their defenses.  The most imposing was on Grand Couronné (named by the French for a similarly impregnable height in Lorraine).  While much smaller than other mountains in the range (like Kajmackalan), it dominated the British lines and would have to be taken for further progress in the area.  In the summit of Grand Couronné was an observation post, sunk into the mountain and protected by twelve feet of concrete.  This post, nicknamed “The Devil’s Eye,” gave the Bulgarians an excellent view of all of the British preparations in the area.

On April 24, the British attacked the foothills of Grand Couronné.  The British had been generally unenthusiastic about the campaign in Salonika so far, and this was their first major offensive effort.  In an attempt to maintain some surprise and cover from the Devil’s Eye, they planned to attack after dusk.  It appears that Bulgarian intelligence had figured this out, however, and they were well-prepared.  When the infantry attacked at 9:45 PM, they were lit up by German searchlights, silhouetting them and making them easy targets for Bulgarian machine gunners.  Only in one sector, where the British had ample natural cover, did the British gain any ground.  The attack was called off in the morning, with the British having suffered over 3000 casualties, nearly four times as many as the Bulgarian and German defenders.

The British attack had been meant as a prelude to a larger French offensive to begin on April 26th.  However, Sarrail postponed this due to continued snow in the mountains.  Lloyd George, once a champion of the Salonika theater, had grown tired of it even before Doiran, and informed the French that he would be moving troops from Salonika to Palestine.

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February 21 1917, Paris--In late 1916, the Allied armies around Salonika had finally gone on the offensive, liberating Monastir in southern Serbia from Bulgarian occupation in late November.  Sarrail now planned an offensive for the spring of 1917, hoping to break through the Bulgarian lines, push on to their capital of Sofia, and hopefully knock them out of the war.  The prospects for such an offensive were daunting; Sarrail still did not have the troops or guns he wanted, and the mountainous terrain would be a challenge.  However, he hoped that he could turn the latter to his advantage; after an initial breakthrough, it would be very difficult for the Central Powers to move reserves to stop them from exploiting it.  Also, unlike last year, he had the full cooperation of the British.  Sarrail had impressed Lloyd George in January, and he authorized British participation in any offensive.  The British in Salonika were also eager; any change from sitting in the malaria-infested swamps along the Struma would be welcome.  On February 21, French War Minister Lyautey (Sarrail’s superior since the fall of Joffre) gave his approval to Sarrail’s plan.

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Lloyd George (center) in Rome on January 6.

January 6 1917, Rome--The conferences at Paris and Chantilly in November had resolved on a strategy that was essentially a repeat of 1916′s: another large attack on the Somme along with simultaneous offensives elsewhere.  Within a month, however, many of the major Allied war leaders were out of office, leaving this strategy quickly out-of-date.  New British PM Lloyd George, in particular, was desperate for some options that were not just further attacks on the Western Front, and organized a conference in Rome for January 5-7, allowing for greater participation of the Italians and the commanders at Salonika.

On January 6, Lloyd George proposed that the Allies should give major assistance, up to 400 heavy guns, for another Italian offensive from the Isonzo.  With such masses of artillery, the Italians would surely break through the Austrian lines, push on to Trieste and Ljubljana, and perhaps force beleaguered and divided Austria out of the war.  The capturing of Austrian ports would also end much of the German U-boat threat in the Mediterranean.  The French, who had not been consulted and who had staked everything on Nivelle’s upcoming offensive, were not keen on the idea.  They agreed in principle, but would only lend the guns until May.

Cadorna was eager to have help from the Allies, but did not think Lloyd George’s offer would be enough.  He wanted at least 8 divisions to assist in the attack, and rejected the offer of guns that would only have to be returned too soon.  Lloyd George offered British guns on a longer basis, but Cadorna refused this as well.  This infuriated Lloyd George, who would later write that Cadorna threw away “the most promising chance afforded to him to win a great triumph for his country.”  British generals, however, were pleased; Chief of the Imperial General Staff Robertson had been busily working the other Allies behind the scenes to prevent Lloyd George’s scheme from gaining acceptance.

The second major topic was the Salonika front.  The Italians, fearing a resurgent Serbia, were opposed to any major offensive here, and even proposed an evacuation of Monastir, their one gain there.  The French government wanted Italian and British reinforcements to be sent, which their militaries were not keen to part with.  Sarrail had a more drastic proposal, asking only “for the British and French Governments to shut their eyes or turn their heads for a fortnight” while he moved against the Greek armies loyal to King Constantine.  Lloyd George, fearing the reaction of other neutrals to what would be a sudden attack on a neutral country, convinced Sarrail to back down.  The Greeks would be convinced by diplomatic means to withdraw their forces south of Athens (far away from the Allied lines north of Salonika) and Sarrail would have a major advocate in the West in Lloyd George.  Sarrail himself was promoted to “Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Army of the Orient,” giving him command over all Allied forces in the area.

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