On September 14, 1918, the Entente attack at Dobro Pole began.
In the autumn of 1918, the Entente decided to end with a small Bulgaria. The plan was that through two breakthroughs at Dobro Pole and Dojran, our 600,000-strong army in Macedonia would fall into a "sack" and be liquidated, and our country would be occupied and taken out of the war.
The Romanians wanted everything up to the Balkan Mountains, Greece - everything up to Plovdiv, and Serbia - up to Mesta and Iskar. The plan started successfully - the French managed to break through our defenses at Dobro Pole. At this moment, when the front collapses, and a mutiny breaks out in the rear, a single Bulgarian division will save their country from mortal danger. 34,500 men from Pleven, Lovech, Troyan and their surroundings will inflict the most terrible defeat on the English army in its entire history.
By the beautiful Doyran Lake, the Entente has amassed colossal forces - 4 English, 2 Greek and one French division. The 9th Pleven is alone. There are no reserves. Knowing the balance of forces, our people are preparing to die. Many officers put on their ceremonial uniforms, the soldiers put on the white shirts prepared for the last time. On September 16, 350,000 shells, including gas, were fired at them, but General Vazov's fortifications still speak for themselves - we give 9 killed and 40 wounded. At 5:00 a.m. on September 18, three English and one Greek division launched an attack.
At that moment, 220 artillery guns began to spit fire. General Vazov did not spare the shells - there was no time left. 400 Bulgarian mortars turned the slopes of the hills into hell. 440 machine guns simply mowed down the attackers. The Bulgarians, who had escaped from the bunkers, maintained such dense fire that only 20-30 percent of the attackers reached the trenches. And there they were met with a terrible and crushing counterattack like a knife.
The enemy was stopped and turned into flight, which soon covered the entire Doiran front. More than 10,000 corpses in British uniforms remained on the battlefield. The desperate British General Milne sends the two reserve divisions on a detour through Belasitsa to try to break through between the 9th Pleven and 11th Macedonian divisions. Ours let them go 50 meters and kill them point blank with their machine guns and flamethrowers. 10,000 Greeks burn on the slopes of Belasitsa.
On September 19, General Milne collects everything he can carry in weapons to replenish his depleted units. But even the last attack is drowned in blood. The furious Bulgarian artillery mows down with drum fire, and for the first time uses gas shells. This is the bloodiest battle in the entire First World War, with the highest density of dead per kilometer of front. In no war have the British suffered so many casualties at once as at Dojran.
In all this slaughter, the Ninth Pleven Division suffered only 494 killed and 1,208 wounded. On September 20, intelligence reported to General Vazov that there were no enemy units in front of him. He asked Sofia if he could advance on Thessaloniki, which was no longer defended by anyone. He was not allowed to do so. Thanks to the Dojran victory, however, in the armistice agreement being prepared there, Bulgaria, which had lost the war, was saved from occupation.
In 1936, a meeting of veterans of the First World War was organized in London. The Bulgarian delegation was led by the specially invited General Vladimir Vazov. At Victoria Station, it was personally greeted by the Mayor of London, holder of the highest English noble title. General Vazov was accommodated in Lord Harboly's castle, where Napoleon had resided. The parade of veterans includes 3,000 reserve soldiers and 200 battle flags. When our delegation appears, Field Marshal Lord Milne commands:
"Take down the flags! General Vazov is passing by - the winner of Doiran!"
The Bulgarian victory at Doiran - the greatest in our entire 14-century history - is studied in all military academies. It has recorded an incredible statistic: nearly 70,000 killed by the Entente against less than 500 dead Bulgarians. Seven divisions - completely destroyed by one.