Petar Tantilov

Petar Tantulov

Petar Markov Tantilow (also Petar Markov Tantilov written Bulgarian Петър Марков Тантилов ; born November 3 ^{. Jul} / 15. November  1861 ^greg. In Karlovo , then Ottoman Empire ; † 3. May 1937 in Sofia , Bulgaria ) was a Bulgarian officer.

Life

Petar Tantilow was born on November 3rd ^. / November 15, 1861 ^greg. Born in the southern Bulgarian city of Karlovo. After the liberation of Bulgaria , he graduated from the first class of the military academy in the Bulgarian capital in 1879 and was appointed captain in 1880. In 1844 he graduated from the St. Petersburg Military Law Academy in the field of artillery.

Unification of Bulgaria and the Serbian-Bulgarian War

After the unification of Bulgaria on September 6th ^jul. / September 18, 1886 ^greg. Tantilow was appointed commander of the 5th battery of the 1st artillery regiment. As the Bulgarian army was preparing for war with the Ottoman Empire, the main armed forces were concentrated in the former Ottoman province of Eastern Rumelia , when unexpectedly on November 1st, ^July / November 13, 1885 ^greg. Serbia , supported by Austria-Hungary , declared war on Bulgaria.

In the subsequent Serbian-Bulgarian War , Tantilov's unit marched the line from Saranbej train station in Eastern Rumelia (today Septemwri ) to Slivnitsa , a total of 135 km, in two (cavalry) or three days (infantry). So he was able to arrive at the battlefield near Slivnitsa at the decisive moment , where he commanded the 5th battery of the 1st artillery regiment on the south wing under Captain Christo Popow . In the further course of the war he took part in the battles of Gurgoljat and Keltasch , for which he was honored with the Military Order for Valor VI class.

After the war he became the commander of the 3rd Plovdiv Artillery Regiment. A year later, the Bulgarian Prince Alexander I was forced to abdicate by an officer coup initiated by Russia and was taken prisoner to Russia. Tantilov and his regiment took an active part in the counter-coup led by the President of Parliament, Stefan Stambolow , in Plovdiv. In 1887 he became inspector of all Bulgarian artillery and on May 1st he was promoted to major .

On August 18, 1889, Tantilow was appointed lieutenant colonel . In 1892, after a conflict with the Bulgarian Prince Ferdinand I , he ended his military career, but returned in 1898 as commander of the Bulgarian artillery. Also in 1898 Tantilow became the commander of the mountain infantry artillery. In 1901 he was made a colonel . In 1904 he became the commander of the 7th Artillery Regiment and two years later of the 4th Artillery Regiment. In 1908 he graduated from the Officers Academy in Turin , Italy . In 1911 he became inspector of all troops in the Bulgarian army.

Balkan Wars and World War I

In the First Balkan War (1912-1913) Tantilow commanded the artillery of the 3rd Bulgarian Army, which invaded the Strandscha Mountains in Eastern Thrace in Turkey . He took part in the Battle of Lüleburgaz , the Battle of Bunarchisar and the Battle of Lozengrad . In the Second Balkan War (1913) he again fought successfully against Serbian units near Tran . After the war he was made major general and was transferred to the reserve on December 5, 1914.

At the beginning of the First World War (1915-1918) Tantilow was mobilized like other officers of the reserve. Between 1915 and 1916 he was first head of the 1st division area, then head of the Niš defense line, head of the central rearguard line and then worked in the general staff. Between 1916 and 1918 Tantilov was Bulgaria's representative in the Romanian military leadership .

In 1918 he ended his career in the army with the rank of lieutenant general .

Awards

• Military Order for Valor III. and VI. class
• Bulgarian Order of St. Alexander , III. and VI. class
• Bulgarian Military Order of Merit III. class

swell

• S. Nedew: Командването на българската войска през войните за национално обединение. Publishing house “Св. Георги Победоносец “, Sofia 1993, pp. 81–82.
• I. Dimitrov: Съединението 1885 - енциклопедичен справочник. Sofia 1985, p. 176.