upright=1.1, Allied collaboration: an Italian captain, a Russian lieutenant, a Serb colonel, a French lieutenant, and a Greek gendarme The Allied Army of the Orient (AAO) (french: Armées alliées en Orient) was the name of the unified command over the multi-national allied armed forces on the

Salonika front The Macedonian front, also known as the Salonica front (after Thessaloniki), was a military theatre of World War I formed as a result of an attempt by the Allied Powers to aid Serbia, in the autumn of 1915, against the combined attack of German ...

during the First World War. When Germany,

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

and, the newly joined ally, Bulgaria were about to overrun Serbia, in September–October 1915, the returning multi-national troops from the failed Gallipoli campaign disembarked in the Greek port of

Salonika Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

to establish the

Macedonian Front The Macedonian front, also known as the Salonica front (after Thessaloniki), was a military theatre of World War I formed as a result of an attempt by the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers to aid Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, in the autumn of 191 ...

. A side-effect of the landing was the further burdening the

National Schism The National Schism ( el, Εθνικός Διχασμός, Ethnikós Dichasmós), also sometimes called The Great Division, was a series of disagreements between King Constantine I and Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos regarding the forei ...

between the Greek King and the

Prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

, and the forced resignation of the latter. By August 1916, some 400,000 allied soldiers from five different armies occupied the Salonika front. A unified command imposed itself and after long discussions, French General

Maurice Sarrail Maurice Paul Emmanuel Sarrail (6 April 1856 – 23 March 1929) was a French general of the First World War. Sarrail's openly socialist political connections made him a rarity amongst the Catholics, conservatives and monarchists who dominated t ...

was placed in command of all Allied forces at Salonika, although they retained right of appeal to their governments. Greece itself remained at first neutral. After a coup on 30 August 1916, the

Provisional Government of National Defence The Provisional Government of National Defence (), also known as the State of Thessaloniki (Κράτος της Θεσσαλονίκης), was a parallel administration, set up in the city of Thessaloniki by former Prime Minister Eleftherios Ven ...

, led by

Eleftherios Venizelos Eleftherios Kyriakou Venizelos ( el, Ελευθέριος Κυριάκου Βενιζέλος, translit=Elefthérios Kyriákou Venizélos, ; – 18 March 1936) was a Greek statesman and a prominent leader of the Greek national liberation move ...

, was created in Salonika. It started assembling an army and soon participated in operations against the Central Powers. In June 1917, after increasing pressure from the allies, King

Constantine I of Greece Constantine I ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Αʹ, ''Konstantínos I''; – 11 January 1923) was King of Greece from 18 March 1913 to 11 June 1917 and from 19 December 1920 to 27 September 1922. He was commander-in-chief of the Hellenic Army ...

was forced to abdicate from the throne. Venizelos assumed control of the entire country and Greece officially declared war against the Central Powers on 30 June 1917. The Greek forces also operated under command of the AAO.

Commanders of the AAO

* 11 August 1916: General

* 15 December 1917: General

Adolphe Guillaumat Marie Louis Adolphe Guillaumat (4 January 1863 – 18 May 1940) was a French Army general during World War I. Early years Adolphe Guillaumat was born in Bourgneuf, Charente-Maritime. He graduated first from his class of 1884 at the Saint-Cyr ...

* 17 June 1918: General

Louis Franchet d'Espèrey Louis Félix Marie François Franchet d'Espèrey (25 May 1856 – 8 July 1942) was a French general during World War I. As commander of the large Allied army based at Salonika, he conducted the successful Macedonian campaign, which caused t ...

Composition

France

* Armée d'Orient (1915–19): 8 divisions

Great Britain

* British Salonika Army: 6 divisions

Serbia

The Serbian armies were corps sized formations. * First Army, under command of

Živojin Mišić Field Marshal Živojin Mišić ( sr-cyrl, Живојин Мишић; 19 July 1855 in Struganik – 20 January 1921 in Belgrade) was a Field Marshal who participated in all of Serbia's wars from 1876 to 1918. He directly commanded the First Se ...

and later

Petar Bojović Petar Bojović (, ; 16 July 1858 – 19 January 1945) was a Serbian military commander who fought in the Serbo-Turkish War, the Serbo-Bulgarian War, the First Balkan War, the Second Balkan War, World War I and World War II. Following the ...

* Second Army, under command of Stepa Stepanović * Third Army, under command of

Pavle Jurišić Šturm Pavle Jurišić Šturm KCMG ( sr-cyr, Павле Јуришић Штурм; 8 August 1848 – 13 January 1922), born Paulus Eugen Sturm, was a Serbian general of Sorbian origin, best known for commanding the Serbian 3rd Army in World War I ...

and later Colonel Miloš Vasić (dissolved in May 1917)

Russia

* 2 brigades of the Russian Expeditionary Force under command of

Mikhail Diterikhs Mikhail Konstantinovich Diterikhs (russian: Михаи́л Константи́нович Ди́терихс, r=Michaíl Konstantinovič Díterichs; May 17, 1874 – September 9, 1937) served as a general in the Imperial Russian Army and subsequent ...

Italy

Troupes italiennes Sarrail et Petitti di Roreto

* 35th Infantry division ('' :it:Corpo di spedizione italiano in Macedonia'') under ** Carlo Petitti di Roreto (July 1916 – April 1917) ** Giuseppe Pennella (26 April – 24 May 1917) ** Ernesto Mombelli (24 May 1917 – end 1918) * XVI Italian Army Corps: This ''Corpo di spedizione Italiano in Oriente'' (CSIO), an Italian Army Corps in Albania, remained under direct Italian HQ command and thus wasn't part of the AAO ** Emilio Bertotti (20 November 1915 – 8 March 1916) **

Settimio Piacentini Settimio Piacentini (6 January 1859 – 2 November 1921) was an Italian General of the Kingdom of Italy who actively participated in the World War I, especially in the Sixth and Seventh Battle of the Isonzo. In 1916 he commanded the XVI Itali ...

(8 March – 17 June 1916) ** Oreste Bandini (18 June – 11 December 1916), was killed in the sinking of the ''Regina Margherita'' **

Giacinto Ferrero Giacinto Ferrero (1862–1922) was an Italian general. He was an officer and grand officer of the Military Order of Savoy. Biography At the outbreak of the First World War he was Major General and was deployed on the Dolomite front. In Decembe ...

(11 December 1916 - end of war)Italian Army in Albania
/ref>

Greece

222 14 Venizelos Jérôme passent la nouvelle armée grecque

* In September 1916, 10,000 men under command of Colonels Zymvrakakis and Mazarakis * By January 1918, 10 divisions (204,000 men) under command of

Panagiotis Danglis Panagiotis Danglis ( el, Παναγιώτης Δαγκλής; – 9 March 1924) was a Greek Army general and politician. He is particularly notable for his invention of the Schneider-Danglis mountain gun, his service as chief of staff in the Balk ...

** I Army Corps (Lieutenant General

Leonidas Paraskevopoulos Leonidas Paraskevopoulos ( el, Λεωνίδας Παρασκευόπουλος; 7 October 1860 – 16 May 1936) was a senior officer of the Hellenic Army and politician. He played a major role in Greece's war effort during World War I, and was the ...

) *** 1st Larissa Division (Major-General

Konstantinos Nider Konstantinos Nider ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Νίδερ, 1865–1942) was a Hellenic Army officer, who rose to the rank of lieutenant general and distinguished himself during the First World War and the subsequent Asia Minor Campaign. Biogra ...

) *** 2nd Athens Division (Colonel Ioulianos Kondoratos) *** 13th Chalkida Division (Major General Ioakovos Negropondis) ** National Defence Army Corps (Major General Emmanuil Zimvrakakis) *** Serres Division (under Major General Epaminondas Zimvrakakis) ***

Archipelago Division The Archipelago Division ( el, Μεραρχία Ἀρχιπελάγους, Merarchia Archipelagous) was an infantry division of Greece in World War I and the early stages of the Asia Minor Campaign. Establishment The division began being raised ...

(General

Dimitrios Ioannou Dimitrios Ioannou ( el, Δημήτριος Ιωάννου, 1861–1926) was a senior officer of the Hellenic Army who fought in the Macedonian front during World War I and in the opening stages of the Greco-Turkish War of 1919–1922. Biography ...

) ***

Crete Division Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...

(Major General Panayiotis Spiliades) ** II Αrmy Corps (Lieutenant General Konstantinos Miliotis-Komninos) *** 3rd Patras Division (Colonel

Nikolaos Trikoupis Nikolaos Trikoupis ( el, Νικόλαος Τρικούπης; 1868–1956) was a Greek general and politician, most notable for his service in the Greco-Turkish War of 1919–1922, where he was taken as a prisoner of war. He also participate ...

) *** 4th Nafplion Division (Colonel

Nikolaos Vlachopoulos Nikolaos Vlachopoulos ( el, Νικόλαος Βλαχόπουλος, 1868–1957) was a Hellenic Army officer who rose to the rank of Lieutenant General. He participated in all the Greek wars of the early 20th century, and served twice as chief o ...

) *** 14th Kalamata Division (Colonel Ioannis Orfanides) **Reserves *** 9th Nafplion Division (Major General

Georgios Leonardopoulos Georgios Leonardopoulos (; 1867–1936) was a Greek army major general who fought in the Greco-Turkish War of 1897, the Balkan Wars, World War I, and the Greco-Turkish War of 1919–1922, and leader of a failed coup attempt in 1923. Life He was ...

)

Others

* Portugal: 1 brigade * Albania: 1,000 irregular troops under

Essad Pasha Toptani Essad Pasha Toptani or Esad Pasha Toptani ( sq, Esad Pashë Toptani; 1863/4 or 1875 – 13 June 1920), mainly known as Essad Pasha, was an Ottoman army officer who served as the Albanian deputy in the Ottoman Parliament. He was a prominent po ...

* Montenegro: irregular troops

Notes

References

* * {{Greece during World War I, state=collapsed Macedonian front Military units and formations established in 1916 Military units and formations of World War I