Central Powers
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European military alliances in 1915. The Central Powers are depicted in puce, the Entente Powers in grey and neutral countries in yellow. |
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Map of the World with the Participants in World War I. The Allies and their colonies are depicted in green, the Central Powers and their colonies in yellow, and neutral countries in gray. |
The
Central Powers were the nations of
Germany,
Austria-Hungary, the
Ottoman Empire, and
Bulgaria, which fought against the
Allies during
World War I. They are called this because they all were located between
Russia in the east and
France and the
United Kingdom in the west.
Germany and Austria-Hungary became allies on
7 October 1879, being joined subsequently (
20 May 1882) (see
Triple Alliance) by
Italy, which obtained to limit the alliance to defensive purposes. At the beginning of the war, the German and Austro-Hungarian request of Italian intervent, was rejected by the Italian Government based on the fact that Austria and not Serbia declared war, so it was not a defensive war. Italy entered World War I on
May 23,
1915, on the Allies' side
Following the outbreak of
European war in August 1914, the
Ottoman Empire intervened at the end of October against Russia, provoking declarations of war by the
Triple Entente powers--Russia, France and Britain.
Bulgaria, still resentful after its
defeat in July 1913 at the hands of
Serbia,
Greece,
Romania and the
Ottoman Empire, was the last nation to enter the war against the Entente, invading Serbia in conjunction with German and Austro-Hungarian forces in October 1915.
Bulgaria signed an armistice with the Allies on
29 September 1918, following a successful Allied advance in
Macedonia. The
Ottoman Empire followed suit on
30 October in the face of British and Arab gains in
Palestine and
Syria.
Austria and
Hungary concluded ceasefires separately during the first week of November following the disintegration of the Habsburg Empire, and Germany signed the armistice ending the war on the morning of
11 November after a succession of advances by
Belgian, British, French and
US forces in north-eastern France and Belgium.
Central powers surrender by order of date:
*Bulgaria 29 September 1918
*Ottoman Empire 30 October 1918
*Austria-Hungary 4 November 1918
*Germany 11 November 1918
*
Triple Entente*
Axis Powers (allies of Germany in
WWII)
*
Allies
