Second Battle of Cobadin

Second Battle of Cobadin
Part of the Dobruja Campaign of the Romanian Campaign of World War I

Stefan Toshev and Mustafa Hilmi Pasha observing the fighting around Medgidia
Date19–25 October 1916
Location
Rasova, Cobadin, Cernavodă; Romania
Result Central Powers victory
Belligerents
 Bulgaria
 German Empire
 Ottoman Empire		  Romania
 Russian Empire
Commanders and leaders
German Empire August von Mackensen
Bulgaria Stefan Toshev
Bulgaria Todor Kantardzhiev
Bulgaria Ivan Kolev
Bulgaria Panteley Kiselov
Bulgaria Ianko Draganov [bg]
Bulgaria Stefan Popov [bg]
Ottoman Empire Mustafa Hilmi Pasha		 Kingdom of Romania Alexandru Averescu
Kingdom of Romania Alexandru Socec [ro]
Kingdom of Romania Alexandru Hartel [ro]
Kingdom of Romania Constantin Scărișoreanu [ro]
Kingdom of Romania Traian Găiseanu [ro]
Kingdom of Romania Eremia Grigorescu
Russian Empire Andrei Zayonchkovski
Strength
Tsardom of Bulgaria (1908–1946) 65 battalions and 28 squadrons; 60,207 riflemen
Ottoman Empire 18 battalions; 11,374 riflemen
German Empire 13 battalions
Total: 96 battalions and 28 squadrons; 71,581+ riflemen [1]		 Kingdom of Romania 71 battalions and 8 squadrons
Russian Empire 45 battalions and 32 squadrons
Total: 116 battalions and 40 squadrons[1]
Casualties and losses

Tsardom of Bulgaria (1908–1946) 11,575+[2]
Ottoman Empire 5,432 [2]
German Empire Unknown

Total: 17,007+ [2]		 Heavy
including 6,700 captured (from 19 to 21 October alone)[3]

The Second Battle of Cobadin took place from 19 to 25 October 1916 between the Central Powers, chiefly the Bulgarian Third Army, and the Entente, represented by the Russo–Romanian Dobruja Army. The battle ended in a decisive victory for the Central Powers; it resulted in the occupation of the strategic port of Constanța and the capture of the railway between that city and Cernavodă.

The battle

The Romanian Second Army, led by major general Alexandru Averescu, fielded the following units:

The Russian Dobruja Army, led by general Andrei Zayonchkovski, comprised the 47th Army Corps. Its main components were:

The Bulgarian Third Army, led by lieutenant general Stefan Toshev, comprised the following units:

Aftermath

Battle of the Danube Delta

Despite the loss of most of Dobruja to the Central Powers, the Romanian defensive victory at Tulcea in January 1917, combined with the actions of the Romanian cruiser Elisabeta at the mouths of the Danube, ensured Romanian control over the entire Danube Delta throughout the rest of the War.[5]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Тошев (2007), page 184
  2. ^ a b c Министерство на войната (1943), page 870-873
  3. ^ Марков, Георги. Голямата война и българската стража между Средна Европа и Ориента 1916-1919 г. Академично издателство „Проф. Марин Дринов”. София 2006. ISBN 954-322-072-7, стр. 44
  4. ^ "Inventar. General Socec Alexandru. 1877–1951" (PDF). arhivelenationale.ro. National Archives of Romania. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  5. ^ Mihai Giurescu, Warship International, Volume 21 , p. 166

Sources

  • Министерство на войната, Щаб на войската (1943). Българската армия в Световната война 1915–1918, Vol. IX. Държавна печатница, София.
  • Kirițescu, Constantin (1922). Istoria războiului pentru întregirea României: 1916–1919. București: România Nouă. OCLC 935411585.
  • Тошев, Стефан (2007). Действията на III армия в Добруджа през 1916 год. Захарий Стоянов. ISBN 978-954-739-976-1.
  • Pollard, A.F. (2006). A Short History of the Great War. BiblioBazaar. ISBN 978-1-4264-2180-8.