November 3, 1912 · Thrace Theater
November 3, 1912
The Siege of Adrianople lasted from early November 1912 until March 26, 1913 — over four months. Adrianople (modern Edirne) was the third city of the Ottoman Empire and a place of enormous symbolic importance, having been the empire's capital before the conquest of Constantinople. Its garrison of roughly 60,000 men under the resolute Şükrü Pasha held out through the winter against Bulgarian and Serbian forces. The Bulgarians used aircraft for aerial reconnaissance and even conducted some of the first bombing raids in military history during the siege. When the fortress finally fell on March 26, 1913, after artillery had reduced its outer works, Şükrü Pasha surrendered with the remnants of his garrison.
Commanders