Battle of Dobro Pole

The Battle of Dobro Pole (Serbian: Битка код Доброг Поља, romanized: Bitka kod Dobrog Polja; Greek: Μάχη του Ντόμπρο Πόλε, romanized: Máchi tou Dóbro Póle), also known as the Breakthrough at Dobro Pole (Bulgarian: Пробив при Добро Поле, romanized: Probiv pri Dobro Pole), was a World War I battle fought between 15 and 18 September 1918. The battle was fought in the initial stage of the Vardar offensive, in the Balkan Front. On 15 September, a combined force of Serbian, French and Greek troops attacked the Bulgarian-held trenches in Dobro Pole ("Good Field"), at the time part of the Bulgarian-occupied Kingdom of Serbia and the Kingdom of Greece (present-day North Macedonia and Greece). The offensive and the preceding artillery preparation had devastating effects on Bulgarian morale, eventually leading to mass desertions.

Despite being outnumbered and poorly equipped, certain Bulgarian units offered fierce resistance, delaying the Entente advance in Zborsko. However, the collapse of the front line enabled the Allies to assault Bulgarian positions from multiple directions and eventually quell the last pockets of resistance. The Central Powers' defeat at the Dobro Pole played a role in the Bulgarian withdrawal from the war and opened the way for the subsequent capture of Vardar Macedonia.

Prelude

The 28 June 1914, assassination of Austro-Hungarian heir presumptive Archduke Franz Ferdinand precipitated Austria-Hungary's declaration of war against Serbia. The conflict quickly attracted the involvement of all major European countries, pitting the Central Powers against the Entente coalition, and starting World War I.

Serbia was ultimately defeated during the autumn 1915 phase of the Serbian campaign, prompting France and Britain to transfer troops from the Gallipoli campaign to Greek Macedonia. The Macedonian front was thus established to support the remnants of the Serbian army in their effort to conquer Vardar Macedonia.