The Balkan Powder Keg

The first war of Balkan took place in the states related to Balkan, which were Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Montenegro. All these states declared war on the Ottoman empire and successfully defeated it. Balkan Wars can be considered as the mark of ethnic cleansing with all forms of parties that were responsible for the atrocities that were against civilians.

Results of The First Balkan Wars

The war was a complete disaster for the empire of Ottoman, and it lost nearly 83% of European territories and 69% of its population. As a result of this war, the league was captured, and at the same time, most of the part of the Ottoman Empire remained in Europe. This also leads to the creation of an independent place in Albania. Serbs got angered due to this war. Meanwhile, the Balkan Wars was a kind of dissatisfaction that led to the division of spoils in the city of Macedo.

Second Balkan War

This war of Balkan resulted in the casualties of the military. The Bulgarians lost nearly 65,000 men, whereas in the case of the Greeks, about 9,500. It was the loss of many lives. Apart from this, thousands of civilians also die because of the disease that arises from the war. Deliberated forms of atrocities were raised in many parts of the country, mainly in Kosovo.

As a result of the Balkan war, the rise of nationalism and nationalist appetites among the war’s participants. The Greeks took more gains in Asia Minor. Even the Ottomans also wanted to gain the power they had a lot after the war by participating in World War I. This, in turn, led to catastrophes even after the world war.

Note on the Balkan Powder Keg

The continued shed down of the Ottoman empire is actually the Balkan powder keg. Powder keg meaning coincided along with the nationalism rise in the state of the Balkans, which also led to the rise in tensions and differences in the many parts of the Balkan region. This “powder keg” served as a major form of catalyst for the breakout of World War I.

The states of the Balkan were successful in defeating the empire of Ottoman in the first war of the Balkan. One out of four Bulgaria endured defeat after the second war. The tension and the conflicts that arose were often raised as the Balkan powder keg. 

There was too much overlapping of territories and the spheres, which influenced many European powers like the Russian Realm, The Empire of German, The United Kingdom, and Italy. The relationship between Serbia as well as Austria led to an increase in bitterness, and Russia was left humiliated after Germany and Austria were prevented from leading its helping hand to Serbia.

The powder keg gradually led to the cause of World War I, which in turn led to the conflict between the imperial state of Austria-Hungry and Pan-Slavic Serbia.

Outcomes Within the Balkan State

The Balkan power is also referred to as the powder keg of Europe. It mainly indicates the early 20th century episodes preceding world war I. Apart from the ambition, feeling of imperialism and interest in acquiring the region started growing to the greatest extent. This also led to the formation of many independent Greece, Romania, Bulgaria, Montenegro, and Albania.

Due to the Balkan keg, the boundaries were enlarged, which was beyond the areas. There was the growth of nationalism among the different sections of people, which in turn led to the formation of independent states. On the negative part, it also led to the rise of differences between the Balkan states that harmed the neighbouring places again.

On the other hand, the philosophy of the city of Pan-Slavism, which was popular throughout the Balkans, grew in favour. The events that occurred in this region generated a sense of oneness among Slaves and a place in the Balkans. As a result, Hungary-Austria is now staunchly opposed to Pan-Slavism. However, it was backed by the Russian state, which elevated it to the position of head of all Slavic nations. These facts define the Balkan Powder Keg.    

Results of the Powder Keg of Balkan

This prepared the ground for the world war. It created the situation of tangle that arose due to hunger for power among the alliances. Followed by the Napoleonic Wars, there was the existence of balanced power. This was created to do away with the major wars. This was the perfect theory that seemed to help overcome the problems arising from the combinations of various powers that were centred in Europe.

This system led to the fall of the Ottoman Empire, and at the same time, it served as the power to check the concentration of power in one single nation. It crumbled the power and resulted in the loss of the confederation that was seen in the minor states and resulted in the formation of one single power. This led to the power realignment as well as the realignment of interest.

Conclusion:

In the long run, the Balkan wars heightened tension in the Balkans. Relations between Austria and Serbia got strained and increased the bitterness against one other. Russia felt humiliated after Germany and Austria stopped to help Serbia.