Central Powers
Central Powers | |||||||||||||
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| 1914–1918 | |||||||||||||
The Central Powers as of 14 October 1915 | |||||||||||||
| Status | Military alliance | ||||||||||||
| Membership |
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| Historical era | World War I | ||||||||||||
• Established | 1914 | ||||||||||||
• Dissolved | 1918 | ||||||||||||
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The Central Powers, also known as the Central Empires, were one of the two main coalitions that fought in World War I (1914–1918). It consisted of the German Empire, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulgaria; this was also known as the Quadruple Alliance.
The Central Powers' origin was the alliance of Germany and Austria-Hungary in 1879. Despite having nominally joined the Triple Alliance before, Italy did not take part in World War I on the side of the Central Powers and later joined on the side of the Allies. The Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria did not join until after World War I had begun. The Central Powers faced, and were defeated by, the Allied Powers, which themselves had formed around the Triple Entente. They dissolved in 1918 after they lost the war.