Serbia was the country attacked first in world war one. On July 29th 1914 forces of the Austria-Hungarian Empire began bombarding the Serbian capital of Belgrade. The tiny Serbian army fought like lions for two years and was only overcome by impossible odds. The Serbian National Army, led by Chief of Staff Voyvoda (Field Marshall) Radomir Putnik, was small as was its country. Drawing from a population of only 4.7 million the peacetime strength of the Serbian army was some 45,000 men spread over 70 infantry and 12 cavalry regiments. The army of the 56 million inhabitants Austria-Hungarian Empire was more than seven times this size. Officer training, especially for techinal skills like artillery and engineering, was undertaken in Russia and several Russian officers even served in the Serbain army. Underequipped, outnumbered, and fighting with its back to the mountains the Serbian National Army never shrank from its duties in World War One. http://militaryhistory.suite101.com/article.cfm/the_wwi_serbian_army_of_1914_
