This map is part of a series of 20 animated maps showing the history of The first World War, 1914-1918.
Along the southern front in the Balkans, the French, Serbian, British and Italian troops in the heterogeneous Army of the Orient had received Greek reinforcements once Athens decided to enter the war the preceding year.
General Franchet d’Esperey, who had commanded this group since June 1918, launched an offensive on 15 September. The Bulgarian‑German front was quickly crushed and, in a few days, the Allies reached Skopje.
Bulgaria then asked for an armistice which, for the Central Powers, threatened to bring Romania back into the war.
During October, the Allied troops continued their advance through Albania and towards the Danube. They reached the Austrian‑Hungarian border just as Austria‑Hungary signed the armistice on 3 November.
