Battle of Bregalnica

The Battle of Bregalnica is the collective name for all the engagements fought between 17 and 26 June along the middle reaches of the Vardar River, the slopes of the Osogovo Mountains and the Bregalnica River. Bulgarian history books describe this period as the fighting of the Bulgarian Fourth Army at the beginning of the Balkan War.

In the middle months of 1913, the Bulgarian Fourth Army was stationed on the banks of the Bregalnica River. It received orders to advance along the entire line between the Vardar and the Osogovo Mountains. The attacks aimed less at capturing territory than at weakening the Serbian troops by cutting their railway supplies and exerting psychological pressure that would help negotiations over the division of Macedonian lands between the allied states. The Serbs defended two fronts, the first along the Bregalnica River and the second along the Sveti Nikola River, while awaiting Greek reinforcements.

The battles ended with the Bulgarian units retreating towards Tsarevo Selo. The military tactics and strategies used during this series of attacks were severely criticised by contemporaries and historians. There had been no central plan, since war had not been expected.