Editing First World War (section)

=== Eastern and Balkan fronts ===

The Eastern Front covered a far larger area than the Western Front and remained more mobile. Germany defeated a Russian army at the [[Battle of Tannenberg]] in August 1914. Russian forces fought Austria-Hungary in Galicia and later withdrew from Poland during the Central Powers' offensive of 1915.

Serbia resisted Austro-Hungarian invasions in 1914. A combined German, Austro-Hungarian and Bulgarian offensive overran the country in late 1915. The Serbian army retreated through Albania and was later reorganized on the Salonika Front. Allied forces remained around Thessaloniki until their offensive in September 1918 broke Bulgarian resistance.

Romania entered the war on the Allied side on 27 August 1916. Central Powers forces captured Bucharest in December and occupied much of the country. Romania continued limited resistance from [[Moldavia]] before signing an armistice in December 1917. It re-entered the war on 10 November 1918.

Russia's military position weakened during 1917. The February Revolution removed Nicholas II, while the October Revolution brought the Bolsheviks to power. The new government signed the [[Treaty of Brest-Litovsk]] with the Central Powers on 3 March 1918 and withdrew Russia from the war. The treaty transferred extensive territories in eastern Europe out of Russian control.