Battle of Monastir (1917)

Location of Hill 1248 and Pelister mountain range

Date	12 March 1917 - 26 May 1917
Location	West and North of Monastir, Kingdom of Serbia (present day Republic of Macedonia)
Result	Central Powers victory

Belligerents

Kingdom of Bulgaria

German Empire

French Third Republic

Commanders and leaders

Strength

5 French divisions

Casualties and losses

unknown

14,000 killed, wounded or sick

The Battle of Monastir (1917) was a failed French attack against German-Bulgarian fortifications North and West of Monastir, between March 12 and May 26, 1917 during the Salonika Campaign in World War I.

The battle, or, better said, series of operations, is known under several names. In French it is known as Bataille de la cote 1248 (Battle of Hill 1248) and Bataille de Pelister (or Péristéri) after the Pelister mountain. In Bulgarian it is known as the Battle of Chervena Stena, after the Chervena Stena or Crvena Stena ridge, also in the Pelister mountain range. This could be translated as the Battle of the Red Wall, but that name wasn't used in French or English. Another used name is the Battle of Lake Prespa.

In November 1916 the Entente had managed to capture Monastir but it was impossible for them to use the city because it was within the range of the Bulgarian artillery in the Pelister mountain range to the West and Hill 1248 to the north of the city. The Allied commander-in-chief, Maurice Sarrail, made plans for a large spring offensive in 1917, besides attacking the Crna Bend and Doiran, he also planned an attack north and west of Monastir to give the city, which was always under enemy fire, a wider breathing space.

For this attack, Sarrail disposed of the French 57th Infantry Division,11th Colonial Infantry Division, 16th Colonial Infantry Division, 76th Infantry Division and 156th Infantry Division.

Sarrail's plan was to attack the enemy line between the Lakes Ohrid and Prespa and to also launch a frontal attack North from Monastir against Hill 1248. On March 11, the operations between the two lakes began with an intense bombardment and an attack by the 76th French Division against the Crvena Stena west of Monastir, where they captured some strong entrenchments around the villages of Dihovo, Tirnova (Tirnovo) and Snegovo. But the enemy's resistance proved more vigorous than expected, and together with the extremely bad weather, this caused the attack to fail.

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