Ivan Kolev Survives

[JEF_300]

This video from The Great War is a great introduction to this man, if you don't know of him.

And his Wikipedia page:

Ivan Kolev (general) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

He died on 29 of July 1915, in Vienna while being treated for tuberculosis (according to the Great War; Wikipedia just said 'an illness').

I imagine that, while he probably wouldn't have done much to change the outcome of the war, he probably would've done much to influence Bulgaria and military tactics in the interwar period.

I find the idea of cavalry surviving into the 20th century fascinating, and Kolev is fascinating for figuring out tactics that made that possible, but I don't know enough about Bulgaria to make any claims about what would change.

 

[samcster94]

Bulgaria might get more territory I imagine, but the war still would likely be nearly identical otherwise.

 

[Whiteshore]

I wonder what impact he would have on Interwar Bulgarian politics, in that case.

 

[Dementor]

This video from The Great War is a great introduction to this man, if you don't know of him.

And his Wikipedia page:

Ivan Kolev (general) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

He died on 29 of July 1915, in Vienna while being treated for tuberculosis (according to the Great War; Wikipedia just said 'an illness').

I imagine that, while he probably wouldn't have done much to change the outcome of the war, he probably would've done much to influence Bulgaria and military tactics in the interwar period.

I find the idea of cavalry surviving into the 20th century fascinating, and Kolev is fascinating for figuring out tactics that made that possible, but I don't know enough about Bulgaria to make any claims about what would change.

Certainly a charismatic figure, but a hero of the twilight of cavalry, so to speak. By WWI, cavalry was on its way out and the specific personality of cavalry officers was not likely to change that. It's not a coincidence that even in WWI, the Bulgarian cavalry played only a significant role in that part of the Balkans that most closely resembled the Russian steppes where during the Civil War cavalry played a significant role for the last time.

I wonder what impact he would have on Interwar Bulgarian politics, in that case.

Unfortunately, a likely negative one. In OTL, while there were exceptions, the Bulgarian officer corps in the interwar period as a rule supported reactionary political movements, while violently opposing any progressive political leaders. There were two military coups, the brutal suppression of two uprisings against the first coup 1923 and a wave of White terror against anyone even remotely left-wing in 1925. And of course they were easily the most pro-German part of the Bulgarian population in WWII.