The “Inquiry” and American Research on the Balkan Borders (1918)

This paper examines the work of the American “Inquiry” during World War I, focusing on its research and recommendations concerning the postwar borders of the Balkan states, with a special focus on the Romanian-Bulgarian boundary in the region of Dobrudja. Based on materials from the Yale Inquiry Papers – an archival collection that includes draft reports and internal documents – the study reconstructs the biographies and views of key members of the Balkan study committee (Clive Day, William S. Monroe, Albert Sonnichsen, and William S. Ferguson, among others). The paper highlights the diverse and often conflicting perspectives within the committee, shaped by personal biases and varying degrees of familiarity with the region. Through an analysis of internal reports, especially those authored by Day and Monroe, the article details the competing ethnic, economic, and strategic arguments that informed American proposals for the postwar peace settlement. An appendix includes a full transcript of one of Clive Day’s reports on Dobrudja.