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Nikola Zhekov
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nikola Zhekov (1864 - 1949) was a Minister of War of Bulgaria in 1915 and served as Commander-in-Chief from 1916-1918 during World War I.
Zhekov served during two earlier conflicts: Serbo-Bulgarian War in 1885, and the Balkan Wars 1912-1913, where during the latter he served as Second Army's Chief of Staff. In August-October 1915 Zhekov was Bulgaria's Minister of War, working to prepare his country for its entry into the First World War on the side of the Central Powers (and determined upon an invasion of Serbia).
After the declaration of war to Serbia, Zhekov was consequently appointed the army's Commander-in-Chief on the Balkan Front. Attached to Mackensen's Army Group, the Bulgarian First Army liaised with the Germany and Austria-Hungary in crushing the Serbian army at home. Under Mackensen's command, the Bulgarian Army also participated in the militarily highly successful Romanian Campaign. Separately, Zhekov managed in throwing back the Allied offensives in Salonika in the autumn of 1916 and the spring of 1917 at the Battles of Florina and Lake Prespa. Zhekov's force also participated in the successful attack against the port of Kavalla in August-September 1917.
After the war Zhekov chose to flee into exile in Germany. He returned in 1923 to defend his reputation and was jailed for 3 years. After that he went back to exile in Germany, where he later became a Nazi.