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{{Short description|Cultural and military conflicts between various Balkan peoples in the region of Macedonia}}
The '''Greek Struggle for Macedonia''' ]-] (in ]: Μακεδονικός Αγῶν, "Macedonian Struggle") is how the ] describe their military conflicts against the Bulgarians (]) and the Turkish forces in ] occupied ] during the first decade of the ].
{{Distinguish|text=], known as the National Liberation Struggle of Macedonia}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict = Macedonian Struggle
| partof = the ]
| image = Greater Macedonia.png
| image_size =
| caption = The geographical region of Macedonia as defined in the 1800s
| date = 1893–1912 ({{Age in months, weeks and days|year1=1893|year2=1912}})
| place = ]
*]
*]
*]
| territory =
| result = Bulgarian and Greek dominance
* Rise of the ]
| status =
| combatants_header =
| combatant1 = {{ubl|] ]|{{flagicon image|Flag of the Greek Orthodox Church.svg}} ] | '''Supported by:'''|{{flagicon|Greece|royal}} ]}}
----
{{ubl|{{flagicon|Chetniks}} ] |'''Supported by:''' |{{flagcountry|Kingdom of Serbia}} }}
----
{{ubl|{{flagicon image|Stindardul Societății de Cultură Macedo-Române, avers.png}} ] |'''Supported by:'''|{{flagcountry|Kingdom of Romania}}}}
| combatant2 = {{ubl|{{flagicon image|Flag of the IMRO.svg}} ] |{{flagicon|Bulgaria}} ] | {{flagicon|Bulgaria}} ] | {{flagicon|Bulgaria}} ] | '''Supported by:''' | {{flagcountry|Principality of Bulgaria}} }}
----
{{flagicon image|Flag of Albanian Provisional Government (Jun-Nov 1912).svg}} ] ]
----
{{flag|Ottoman Empire}}
| commander1 = {{ubl|] ] | ] ] |] ]|] ]{{KIA}} | ] ]{{Executed}}|] ]{{KIA}}}}
----
{{ubl|{{flagicon|Chetniks}} ] | {{flagicon|Chetniks}} ]{{KIA}} | {{flagicon|Chetniks}} ]|{{flagicon|Chetniks}} ]{{KIA}} }}
----
{{flagicon image|Stindardul Societății de Cultură Macedo-Române, avers.png}}{{flagicon image|Aromanian flag.svg}} ]{{KIA}}<ref name="Yak">{{cite journal |last=Sfetas|first=Spyridon|year=2001|title=Το ιστορικό πλαίσιο των ελληνο-ρουμανικών πολιτικών σχέσεων (1866-1913) |trans-title=The Historical Context of Greco-Romanian political relations (1866–1913) |language=el |url=https://ejournals.epublishing.ekt.gr/index.php/makedonika/article/view/5839 |journal=Makedonika |publisher=] |volume=33 |issue=1 |pages=23–48 |doi=10.12681/makedonika.278|issn=0076-289X |access-date=8 May 2017|doi-access=free }}</ref>
| commander2 = {{ubl|{{flagicon image|Flag of the IMRO.svg}} ]{{KIA}} | {{flagicon image|Flag of the IMRO.svg}} ]{{KIA}}|{{flagicon image|Flag of the IMRO.svg}} ] | {{flagicon image|Flag of the IMRO.svg}} ] | {{flagicon image|Flag of the IMRO.svg}} ] | {{flagicon image|Flag of the IMRO.svg}} ]{{KIA}} | {{flagicon image|Flag of the IMRO.svg}} ]{{KIA}} }}
----
{{flagicon image|Flag of Albanian Provisional Government (Jun-Nov 1912).svg}} ]
----
{{ubl|{{Flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} ] | {{Flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} ] | {{Flagicon|Ottoman Empire}} }}]
| notes =
| campaignbox = {{Campaignbox Macedonian Struggle}}
| casualties1 = 8,000 militants and civilians killed (1903–1908)<ref>Ryan Gingeras: ''The Last Days of the Ottoman Empire'', Penguin Random House, 2022, {{ISBN|978-0-241-44432-0}}.</ref>
}}


The '''Macedonian Struggle'''{{efn|Macedonian Struggle – {{langx|bg|Македонска борба|translit=Makedonska borba}}; {{langx|el|Μακεδονικός Αγώνας|translit=Makedonikós Agónas}}; {{langx|mk|Борба за Македонија|translit=Borba za Makedonija}}; {{langx|sr|Борба за Македонију|translit=Borba za Makedoniju}}; {{langx|tr|Makedonya Mücadelesi}}}} was a series of social, political, cultural and military conflicts that were mainly fought between ] and ] subjects who lived in ] between 1893 and 1912. The conflict was part of a wider ] in which revolutionary organizations of Greeks, Bulgarians and Serbs all fought over Macedonia. Gradually the Greek and Bulgarian bands gained the upper hand. Though the conflict largely ceased by the ], it continued as a low intensity insurgency until the ].
==Causes==
]


==Background==
The defeat of Greece in the ] was a painful blow that appalled Greeks. The nationalist organisation "Ethniki Etairia," considered to be responsible for the outbreak of the war, dissolved under the pressure of Prime Minister Theotokis. But the young officers that had established the organisation did not lose contact. They conferred with each other over the situation in Macedonia where the Bulgarians had made intense and systematic interventions, with the support of the ], especially for the foundation of schools.
{{See also|Decline of the Ottoman Empire|Slavic speakers in Ottoman Macedonia|Nationalism|Ethnographic cartography of the Balkans in the late 19th and early 20th century}}
Initially the conflict was waged through educational and religious means, with a fierce rivalry developing between supporters of the ] (Greek-speaking or Slavic/Romance-speaking people who generally identified as Greek), and supporters of the ], which had been recognized by the Ottomans in 1870.{{sfn|Clogg|1992|pp=70, 74}}
]
] from 1899 depicting Christian Bulgarians (light green), Christian Greeks (horizontal blue and yellow stripes), Bulgarians and Serbs mixed (diagonal blue and yellow stripes), Christian Serbs (diagonal blue and white stripes), Christian Aromanians (light blue)]]
As Ottoman rule in the Balkans crumbled in the late 19th century, competition arose between Greeks and Bulgarians (and to a lesser extent also other ethnic groups such as Serbs, ] and Albanians) over the multi-ethnic region of ].{{sfn|Clogg|1992|pp=57–61, 70–75, 79–85, 88–97}}{{efn|Clogg (1992). p.{{nbsp}}70: "For the last two decades of the nineteenth century and the first of the twentieth, Macedonia, with its inextricably mixed populations of Greeks, Bulgars, Serbs, Albanians, Turks and Vlachs, was to be the focus of the competing nationalisms of Greece, Bulgaria and Serbia, as each sought to carve out as large a stake as possible of the crumbling Ottoman possessions in the Balkans."{{sfn|Clogg|1992|p=70}} }} The Bulgarians founded in 1893 the ] (initially known as ])<ref>Poulton, Hugh (2000). ''Who are the Macedonians''. Indiana University Press, {{ISBN|9780253213594}} p. 53.</ref>{{sfn|Bechev|2019|p=11}}<ref>Denis Š. Ljuljanović (2023) ''Imagining Macedonia in the Age of Empire. State Policies, Networks and Violence (1878–1912)'', LIT Verlag Münster; {{ISBN|9783643914460}}, p. 211.</ref> which coordinated the majority of Bulgarian actions in the region. The defeat of Greece in the ] was a loss that appalled Greeks{{sfn|Clogg|1992|pp=71–73}} which led to the dissolution of the ], by Prime Minister ]. With little prospect of liberation by ], the ] took their fate into their own hands and began to form various armed bands that would ultimately fall under the control of the ]. The region quickly became a constant battleground among various armed groups, with hostilities peaking in 1904-1908. The ] was also involved in the conflict and perpetuated atrocities against the Christian population in attempt to quell the unrest. Due to the Christian population of Macedonia, whether Greek, Serb, Bulgarian or Aromanian, engaging in more or less constant rebellion against the Ottoman Empire, in conjunction with the revolutionary activities of Armenian nationalists in Anatolia, many Ottoman officers believed that all Christians of the empire were disloyal and treasonous.{{Sfn|Akmeşe|2005|pp=50–53}}


==Bulgarian activity==
Since ], the guerrillas of the ] turned against Ottoman authorities with the slogan "autonomy for Macedonia". The guerrillas purported to be protectors of all Christians in the area, for this reason they initially did not bother Greece. But gradually, increasing tensions emerged among the followers of the ] (the patriarchalists, mostly, but not only, Greeks) and those of the ]; this brought to the assassination by the IMRO of members of pro-Greek and pro-Serbian parties.
{{See also|Bulgarian Millet|Bulgarian Exarchate}}


=== Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organisation ===
The situation became heated in Macedonia and started to affect Greek, Serbian and European public opinion. In April ], a group called "Gemidzhii" (in Greek: βαρκάρηδες) with some assistance from the ] blew up the French ship "Guadalquivir" and the Ottoman Bank in the harbour of ]. In August ], ] managed to organise an uprising (the ]) in ] and the ] Vilayet. After the forming of the shortlived Krushevo Republic, the insurrection was suppressed by the ] with the subsequent destruction of many villages and the devastation of large areas in Western Macedonia and around Kirk-Klisse near ].
] of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization containing the motto ].]]
In 1893, the Bulgarian ] (IMRO) had been founded in ].{{efn|For further on this, see:
* Sherman (1980). p.{{nbsp}}10: "The revolutionary committee dedicated itself to fight for 'full political autonomy for Macedonia and Adrianople'. Since they sought autonomy only for those areas inhabited by Bulgarians, they denied other nationalities membership in IMRO. According to Article 3 of the statutes, 'any Bulgarian could become a member'."{{sfn|Sherman|1980|p=10}}
* Lange-Akhund (1998). p.{{nbsp}}39: "As a Bulgarian historian, Pandev underlined the fact that, since its foundation the organization chose its Bulgarian identity by selecting the name 'Bulgarian revolutionary committees'."{{sfn|Lange-Akhund|1998|p=39}}
* Bechev (2009). "Introduction": "The IMARO activists saw the future autonomous Macedonia as a multinational polity, and did not pursue the self-determination of Macedonian Slavs as a separate ethnicity. Therefore, Macedonian (and also Adrianopolitan) was an umbrella term covering Bulgarians, Turks, Greeks, Vlachs, Albanians, Serbs, Jews, and so on. While this message was taken aboard by some Vlachs as well as some Patriarchist Slavs, it failed to impress other groups for whom the IMARO remained the 'Bulgarian Committee'.".{{sfn|Bechev|2009|loc="Introduction"}} }}<ref>{{cite book |last1=Karakasidou |first1=Anastasia |title=Fields of Wheat, Hills of Blood: Passages to Nationhood in Greek Macedonia, 1870–1990 |date=2009 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |page=100 |isbn=978-0226424996}}</ref><ref>İpek Yosmaoğlu (2013) ''Blood Ties: Religion, Violence and the Politics of Nationhood in Ottoman Macedonia, 1878–1908''. Cornell University Press. {{ISBN|0801469791}}, p. 16.</ref><ref>Dimitris Livanios (2008). ''The Macedonian Question: Britain and the Southern Balkans 1939–1949''. Oxford Historical Monographs, OUP: Oxford. {{ISBN|0191528722}}. p. 17.</ref> Initially its membership was ], but later it opened itself to all ethnic groups in Macedonia and Adrianople regions. Earlier on, IMRO claimed that it was fighting for the ] and not for annexation to Bulgaria. However, later it became an agent serving Bulgarian interests in Balkan politics with the aim of eventually ] with ], first in struggles against the Ottoman Empire and later against the Serbian-led Yugoslav successor state controlling the territory of ] and the Greek state which controlled the ].<ref>Combs, Cindy C.; Slann, Martin W. (2009). ''Encyclopedia of terrorism''. Infobase Publishing. {{ISBN|1438110197}}. p. 135.</ref> One major event representing the culmination of these actions is the assassination of the Serbian King of the ] during the inter-war period by an IMRO sniper. In practice, most of the followers of the IMRO were native Macedonian Bulgarians, though they also had some Aromanian allies,<ref>Andrew Rossos (2013). ''Macedonia and the Macedonians: A History''. Hoover Press. {{ISBN|081794883X}}. p. 105.</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Jowett |first1=Philip S. |last2=Walsh |first2=Stephen |title=Armies of the Balkan Wars 1912–13: The priming charge for the Great War |date=2011 |publisher=Osprey; Bloomsbury |page = 21 |location=Oxford; Long Island City, New York |isbn=978-1849084192}}</ref><ref>Raymond Detrez (2014). ''Historical Dictionary of Bulgaria''. Rowman & Littlefield, {{ISBN|1442241802}}, p. 520.</ref> like ], ], ] and Alexandru Coshca.<ref>{{cite journal |journal=Macedonian Historical Review |url=https://www.scribd.com/document/77282547/The-Aromanians-and-IMRO-Nikola-Minov |title=The Aromanians and IMRO |first=Nikola |last=Minov |volume=2|date=2011 |pages=181–200 |via=Scribd}}</ref><ref>Maxwell, Alexander. "Slavic Macedonian Nationalism: From 'Regional' to 'Ethnic'." ''Ethnologia Balkanica'' 11 (2007): 127–155. p. 141.</ref> The IMRO ultimately weakened due to a split into a left-wing faction (federalist) and a right-wing faction (centralists) following the failed ]. Many of the members of the organization saw Macedonian autonomy as an intermediate step to unification with Bulgaria,{{efn|Among others, the memoirs of the IMRO revolutionary ] are used, in which Tsipushev, citing Delchev,<ref>{{cite book|script-title =bg:Идеята за автономия като тактика в програмите на национално освободителното движение в Македония и Одринско 1893–1941. |last=Гоцев |first=Димитър Г |date=1983 |title= |trans-title=The idea for autonomy as tactics in the programs of the National Liberation movements in Macedonia and Odra (Adrianople) regions, 1893–1941 |location= Sofia, Bulgaria |publisher=Bulgarian Academy of Sciences |id=by Dimitar G. Gotsev |page=34 |language=bg}}</ref> writes that autonomy was only tactics for that time, with the eventual aim being future unification with Bulgaria.<ref>{{cite book |last1= Ципушев |first1=Коста |last2=Radev |first2=Simeon |script-title=bg: 19 години в сръбските затвори: Спомени. |title= |date=2006 |publisher=Св. Климент Охридски |location=Sofia |isbn=954-91083-5-X |pages=31–32 |trans-title=19 years in Serbian prisons: Memories |language=bg |author-link1=Kosta Tsipushev}} (55. ЦПА, ф. 226).</ref>}} but others saw as their aim the creation of a Balkan federal state, with Macedonia as an equal member.


=== Bulgarian efforts ===
In ], nationalist organisations organised demonstrations against Bulgaria, but the official Greek State, numbed from the defeat of ] hesitated over what to do.
Already from 1895 the ]s were formed in Sofia in order to reinforce the Bulgarian actions in Ottoman Empire. One of ]s' first activities was the capture of the predominantly Greek town of Meleniko (today ], Bulgaria), but they couldn't hold it for more than a few hours.{{sfn|Sherman|1980|p=15}}<ref name="balkanologie">{{cite journal|title=Le meurtre du prêtre comme violence inaugurale (Bulgarie 1872, Macédoine 1900)|journal=http://balkanologie|date=December 2005|volume=IX|issue=1–2|url=http://balkanologie.revues.org/index572.html|access-date=9 April 2012}}</ref> Bulgarian bands destroyed the Pomak village of ] where they massacred local inhabitants.<ref name="balkanologie" /> This kind of activity alerted Greeks and Serbians, who made a farce of the slogan "Macedonia to Macedonians", being against the constitution of Macedonia as separate state.{{sfn|Dakin|1993|pp=, , }}
]'s cheta during the Ilinden Uprising.]]
As Bulgarian efforts intensified, they started to affect European public opinion. In April 1903, a group known as the ''],'' with assistance from the IMRO, blew up the French ship ''Guadalquivir'' and the Ottoman Bank in ]. In August 1903, the IMRO organised the ] in ] and the ] which led to the formation of the short-lived ]. The uprising was ultimately suppressed by the ] with the subsequent destruction of many villages and the devastation of large areas in Western Macedonia and around ] near ].


==Early Stage== ==Greek activity==
{{See also|Ottoman Greeks|Rum Millet}}
]


=== Hellenic Macedonian Committee ===
From ] onwards, the danger of Bulgarian control had upset the ]. The Bishop of ], ] sent to Macedonia by the ambasador of Greece Nikolaos Mavrokordatos<ref name="multiple">ΑΡΧΕΙΟΝ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΥ ΑΓΟΝΟΣ ΠΗΝΕΛΟΠΗΣ ΔΕΛΤΑ <br />1. ΓΕΡΜΑΝΟΥ ΚΑΡΑΒΑΓΓΕΛΗ, Ο ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΣ ΑΓΩΝ (ΑΠΟΜΝΗΜΟΝΕΥΜΑΤΑ)<br />ΕΤΑΙΡΕΙΑ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΝ ΣΠΟΥΔΩΟΝ<br />ΙΔΡΥΜΑ ΜΕΛΕΤΩΝ ΧΕΡΣΟΝΗΣΟΥ ΤΟΥ ΑΙΜΟΥ<br />ΘΕΣΣΑΛΟΝΙΚΗ, 1959</ref> and the consul of Greece in ], ], realised that it was time to act in a more efficient way and started organising Greek opposition.
] and Byzantine Emperor ]]]
] in ''Macedonomachos'' uniform]]


In order to strengthen Greek efforts for Macedonia, the ] was founded in 1903 by ] and functioned under the leadership of wealthy publisher ]. Its members included many Greek notables in addition to the fighters. Among its members were ] and ].{{sfn|Vakalopoulos|1990|pp=429–430}} Its fighters were known as ''Makedonomachoi'' ("Macedonian fighters").<ref name="BrownHamilakis2003">{{cite book|author1=Keith S. Brown|author2=Yannis Hamilakis|title=The Usable Past: Greek Metahistories|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2NIBVfBX99oC|year=2003|publisher=Lexington Books|isbn=978-0-7391-0384-5|page=79}}</ref>
As Ion Dragoumis wrote in his calendar ''I am thinking how these communities of Greece outside of the Greek Kingdom can affiliate in our state. Why wait their liberation only from Greece? Let them work as Greece didn’t exist and then she will help them.''


Under these conditions, in 1904 a vicious guerrilla war broke as response of IMRO activities between Bulgarian and Greek bands within Ottoman Macedonia. The Bishop of ], ], who was sent to Macedonia by Nikolaos Mavrokordatos, the ambassador of Greece, and ], the consul of Greece in ], realised that it was time to act in a more efficient way and began to organise the intensification of the Greek opposition.
While Dragoumis concerned himself with the financial organisation of the efforts, Bishop Germanos animated the ] against the IMRO and formed committees to promote the Greek national interests. Taking advantage of the internal political and personal disputes<ref name="multiple">ΑΡΧΕΙΟΝ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΥ ΑΓΟΝΟΣ ΠΗΝΕΛΟΠΗΣ ΔΕΛΤΑ <br />1. ΓΕΡΜΑΝΟΥ ΚΑΡΑΒΑΓΓΕΛΗ, Ο ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΣ ΑΓΩΝ (ΑΠΟΜΝΗΜΟΝΕΥΜΑΤΑ)<br />ΕΤΑΙΡΕΙΑ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΝ ΣΠΟΥΔΩΟΝ<br />ΙΔΡΥΜΑ ΜΕΛΕΤΩΝ ΧΕΡΣΟΝΗΣΟΥ ΤΟΥ ΑΙΜΟΥ<br />ΘΕΣΣΑΛΟΝΙΚΗ, 1959</ref> in VMRO, Karavangelis innitially succeded to recruit some IMRO former members and to organize guerrilla groups, that were later enstrenghten with people sent from Greece and thus were mainly composed of officers of the ],<ref name="multiple">ΑΡΧΕΙΟΝ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΥ ΑΓΟΝΟΣ ΠΗΝΕΛΟΠΗΣ ΔΕΛΤΑ <br />1. ΓΕΡΜΑΝΟΥ ΚΑΡΑΒΑΓΓΕΛΗ, Ο ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΣ ΑΓΩΝ (ΑΠΟΜΝΗΜΟΝΕΥΜΑΤΑ)<br />ΕΤΑΙΡΕΙΑ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΝ ΣΠΟΥΔΩΟΝ<br />ΙΔΡΥΜΑ ΜΕΛΕΤΩΝ ΧΕΡΣΟΝΗΣΟΥ ΤΟΥ ΑΙΜΟΥ<br />ΘΕΣΣΑΛΟΝΙΚΗ, 1959</ref> volunteers brought from ],<ref name="multiple">ΑΡΧΕΙΟΝ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΥ ΑΓΟΝΟΣ ΠΗΝΕΛΟΠΗΣ ΔΕΛΤΑ <br />1. ΓΕΡΜΑΝΟΥ ΚΑΡΑΒΑΓΓΕΛΗ, Ο ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΣ ΑΓΩΝ (ΑΠΟΜΝΗΜΟΝΕΥΜΑΤΑ)<br />ΕΤΑΙΡΕΙΑ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΝ ΣΠΟΥΔΩΟΝ<br />ΙΔΡΥΜΑ ΜΕΛΕΤΩΝ ΧΕΡΣΟΝΗΣΟΥ ΤΟΥ ΑΙΜΟΥ<br />ΘΕΣΣΑΛΟΝΙΚΗ, 1959</ref> ]<ref name="multiple">ΑΡΧΕΙΟΝ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΥ ΑΓΟΝΟΣ ΠΗΝΕΛΟΠΗΣ ΔΕΛΤΑ <br />1. ΓΕΡΜΑΝΟΥ ΚΑΡΑΒΑΓΓΕΛΗ, Ο ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΣ ΑΓΩΝ (ΑΠΟΜΝΗΜΟΝΕΥΜΑΤΑ)<br />ΕΤΑΙΡΕΙΑ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΝ ΣΠΟΥΔΩΟΝ<br />ΙΔΡΥΜΑ ΜΕΛΕΤΩΝ ΧΕΡΣΟΝΗΣΟΥ ΤΟΥ ΑΙΜΟΥ<br />ΘΕΣΣΑΛΟΝΙΚΗ, 1959</ref> and other parts of Greece, as well as recruited ]<ref name="multiple">ΑΡΧΕΙΟΝ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΥ ΑΓΟΝΟΣ ΠΗΝΕΛΟΠΗΣ ΔΕΛΤΑ <br />1. ΓΕΡΜΑΝΟΥ ΚΑΡΑΒΑΓΓΕΛΗ, Ο ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΣ ΑΓΩΝ (ΑΠΟΜΝΗΜΟΝΕΥΜΑΤΑ)<br />ΕΤΑΙΡΕΙΑ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΝ ΣΠΟΥΔΩΟΝ<br />ΙΔΡΥΜΑ ΜΕΛΕΤΩΝ ΧΕΡΣΟΝΗΣΟΥ ΤΟΥ ΑΙΜΟΥ<br />ΘΕΣΣΑΛΟΝΙΚΗ, 1959</ref> such as Vangelis Strebreniotis or Natsis from the village of Asprogia and Christos Kottas from the village of Rulya, a former adherent of the ].These Greek forces were in certain occasions backed up by the Ottoman authorities and armed forces, since the Turks were giving their support accorting to their interests also in VMRO.<ref name="multiple">ΑΡΧΕΙΟΝ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΥ ΑΓΟΝΟΣ ΠΗΝΕΛΟΠΗΣ ΔΕΛΤΑ <br />1. ΓΕΡΜΑΝΟΥ ΚΑΡΑΒΑΓΓΕΛΗ, Ο ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΣ ΑΓΩΝ (ΑΠΟΜΝΗΜΟΝΕΥΜΑΤΑ)<br />ΕΤΑΙΡΕΙΑ ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΙΚΟΝ ΣΠΟΥΔΩΟΝ<br />ΙΔΡΥΜΑ ΜΕΛΕΤΩΝ ΧΕΡΣΟΝΗΣΟΥ ΤΟΥ ΑΙΜΟΥ<br />ΘΕΣΣΑΛΟΝΙΚΗ, 1959</ref> against the IMRO.<br />


While Dragoumis concerned himself with the financial organisation of the efforts, the central figure in the military struggle was the very capable ] officer ].<ref>{{cite journal|journal=Bulgarian Historical Review |volume= 31 |url=https://www.ceeol.com/search/journal-detail?id=125 |url-access=subscription |title= The Stance of the Great European Powers on the Creation of Albania and the Question of Scutari in 1913|issue=3–4 |pages= 86–117 |date=2003 |quote-page= 117 |quote=Only a few days later – on November 1 – Katehakis arrived in Macedonia as Melas' successor.|first1=Saša |last1= Knežević |first2=Boris |last2=Vukićević}}</ref> Bishop Germanos Karavangelis travelled to raise morale and encourage the ] to take action against the IMRO. Many committees were also formed to promote the Greek national interests.
The fighters for the Greek cause labelled themselves "Makedonomachoi" (Macedonian Fighters) and were portrayed by Greek writer Penelope Delta in her novel "Ta Mystika tou Valtou" (The Secrets of the Swamp) as well as in the book of memoirs "The Macedonian struggle" by Germanos Karavangelis, while on the other side, the fighters of VMRO and their activities are depicted in the book "Confessions of a Macedonian Bandit: A Californian in the Balkan Wars" written by Albert Sonnichsen, an American volunteer in the IMRO during the Greek struggle for Macedonia.


Katechakis and Karavangelis succeeded in the recruitment and organization of guerrilla groups that were later reinforced with volunteers from Greece. Volunteers often came from ] and the ] area of the ]. They even recruited former IMRO members, taking advantage of their political and/or personal disputes within the organisation. Additionally, officers of the ] were encouraged to join the struggle to provide experienced leadership, as many had served in the ]. The officers who elected to join provided a logistical advantage to the Makedonomachoi. The ], however, would form the core of the fighting force and proved to be the most important fighters due to their knowledge of the region's geography and some possessing knowledge of the Bulgarian language. Many ], such as ], were also involved in the smuggling and stashing of weapons and ammunition around the region.
==Official Greek Involvement==
]
<!-- Unsourced image removed: ]' unit during conflicts in Giannitsa Lake]] -->


=== Greek efforts ===
The official Greek State became anxious not only because of the Bulgarian penetration in Macedonia, but also due to the Serbian interest, which was concentrated mainly in Skopje and Bitola area. The rioting in Macedonia, the atrocities of Bulgarian guerrilla troops against locals who considered themselves as Greeks and especially the death of ] in ] (he was the first Greek officer to enter Macedonia with guerrillas) caused intense nationalistic feelings in Greece. This led to the decision to send more guerrilla troops in order to thwart Bulgarian efforts to bring all of the Slavic speaking majority population of Macedonia on their side.
] from ] with co-fighters|left]]The Greek state became concerned, not only because of Bulgarian penetration in Macedonia but also due to Serbian interests, which were concentrated mainly in ] and ] area. The rioting in Macedonia, especially the death of ] in 1904, caused intense nationalistic feelings in Greece. This led to the decision to send more volunteers to reinforce and better organise the armed bands and thwart the Bulgarian efforts to bring all of the ] on under their influence.] (seated right) and ] (seated left).]]


The Greek Consulate in ] became the centre of the struggle, coordinating the guerrilla troops, distributing of military material and nursing wounded. Fierce conflicts between the Greeks and Bulgarians started in the area of ] , in the Giannitsa Lake and elsewhere; both parties committed cruel crimes at points. The greatest bloodshed was the massacre in the village Zagorichani (predomintantly populated by Bulgarians) in Kastoria district on ] ] when 79 villagers were executed. The Greek General Consulate in ], under ], became the centre of the struggle, coordinating the Greek bands, distributing, and nursing the wounded. Fierce conflicts between the Greeks and Bulgarians started in the area of ], in the ] area, and elsewhere. During 1905, guerrilla activity increased and the Makedonomachoi gained significant advantage within 10 months, extending their control towards the areas of ] and East Macedonia, Kastanohoria (near Kastoria), the plains north and south of ] and the routes around ].{{sfn|Gounaris|2007|p=194}} However, from early 1906 the situation became critical and the forces of the Makedonomachoi were forced to withdraw from various areas. Nevertheless, the groups of ] and ] had some success in the marsh of ].{{sfn|Gounaris|2007|p=194}} There were great advances of the Serb forces, joined by Muslim Slavs, in summer of 1906 in the northern areas of the ].<ref name="Aarbakke2003">{{cite book|author=Vemund Aarbakke|title=Ethnic rivalry and the quest for Macedonia, 1870-1913|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kLoUAQAAIAAJ|year=2003|publisher=East European Monographs|isbn=978-0-88033-527-0|page=141}}</ref>


While the armed bands confronted the ], the Ottoman administration often ignored the activities of the Greek guerrillas,<ref name="Hanioğlu2010">{{cite book|author=M. Şükrü Hanioğlu|title=A Brief History of the Late Ottoman Empire|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nK5ZDKf3JgkC|date=8 March 2010|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-1-4008-2968-2|page=134}}</ref> and according to Dakin assisted them against the Bulgarians outright.{{sfn|Dakin|1993|pp=, , }} However, once the subversive potential of the Bulgarians had been neutralised, Ottoman policy ended the favourable neutrality to the Greek side and embarked upon relentless persecutions against the Greeks.{{sfn|Gounaris|2007|p=196}} During the course of the conflict Greek armed bands numbered 2,000 men. Of whom over 700 were killed in action along with 1,250 pro-Greek civilians.{{sfn|Christopoulos|Bastias|1977|p=254}}
Both guerilla groups had also to confront the Turkish Army. These conflicts ended after the revolution of "]" in July, ], as they promised to respect all ethnicities and religions and generally to provide a constitution.


==Aromanian activity==
==Consequences==
]
The Greek–Romanian conflict concerning the ] reached its climax during the Macedonian Struggle, with Aromanians being no longer divided into pro-Greek and pro-Romanian factions but into "Greeks" and "Romanians" proper.{{sfn|Kahl|2002}} The pro-Greek faction was the largest and most powerful.{{sfn|Clogg|2002|p=118}}


=== Pro-Greek Aromanians ===
The success of Greek efforts in Macedonia was an experience that gave confidence to the country. It helped develop an intention to annex areas with ] and in general establish Greek presence in Macedonia. After the ] the part of Macedonia ceded to Greece included some of the areas that they controlled during the conflicts with the Bulgarians from ] to ].
Most Aromanians during the Macedonian Struggle were pro-Greek, supporting the Greek revolutionaries and the ].{{sfn|Kahl|2002}}{{sfn|Clogg|2002|p=}}{{page needed|date=June 2024}}<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kofos |first=Evangelos |date=1989 |title=National Heritage and National Identity in Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Macedonia |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/026569148901900205 |journal=European History Quarterly |language=en |volume=19 |issue=2 |pages=229–267 |doi=10.1177/026569148901900205 |s2cid=145106821 |issn=0265-6914}}</ref> These Aromanians escaped or resisted the influence of Romanian interventionism,<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Chenoweth |first1=Erica |url= |title=Rethinking Violence: States and Non-State Actors in Conflict |last2=Lawrence |first2=Adria |date=2010-08-27 |publisher=MIT Press |isbn=978-0-262-26575-1 |pages=107–108 |language=en}}</ref> in which a considerable amount of money was spent on by the ].{{sfn|Dakin|1993|pp=26, 103, 217, 309, 365–366}} They were indifferent or even hostile to their ].{{sfn|Kahl|2002}} In the archives of the ] there are numerous testimonies from Aromanian communities denouncing Romanian "propaganda" and proclaiming their ].{{sfn|Dakin|1993|pp=26, 103, 217, 309, 365–366}}
In ], there was a small local unit which was under the leadership of a pro-Greek Aromanian, ]. This unit, being small and somewhat isolated, had been operating without definite objectives, but it proved to be very important for the Greek cause as it helped in fights against local Turkish chiefs, pro-Romanian Aromanians, and Bulgarian '']s''.{{sfn|Dakin|1993|pp=26, 103, 217, 309, 365–366}} Additionally, local support from pro-Greek Aromanians in ] empowered Greek activity in the region.{{sfn|Dakin|1993|pp=26, 103, 217, 309, 365–366}} A notable Greek ''makedonomachos'' of Aromanian descent was ].
]
In ], the pro-Greek sentiments of Aromanians during the Macedonian Struggle contributed to their displacement.{{sfn|Koykoudis|2003|p=469}} When they migrated to ], they were already financially ruined.{{sfn|Koykoudis|2003|p=470}}


=== Pro-Bulgarian Aromanians ===
== References ==
]
{{reflist}}
Many Aromanians were also pro-Bulgarian, joining their efforts in the struggle. They were aligned with the ] rather than the ] and sympathized with the goals and aspiration of the Bulgarian cause. Some notable pro-Bulgarian Aromanians include ] and ].


== Further reading == === Pro-Romanian Aromanians ===
As the Bulgarians had managed to introduce their language in church services and education in the Ottoman Empire, so did the pro-Romanian ] start demanding the same rights. The Greek ] reacted strongly to this however amid increased rivalry in the region and eight Aromanian churches were closed by his personal order in 1875. This produced protests from the pro-Romanian Aromanians to the Ottoman and Romanian government, and also increased tensions between the pro-Romanian Aromanians and the Greeks{{sfn|Arslan|2003|p=81}} as well as with pro-Greek Aromanians,{{sfn|Kōfos|1993|pp=}} which led to physical violence that often ended in fatalities.{{sfn|Arslan|2003|p=81}}
* Dakin, Douglas: "The Greek Struggle in Macedonia 1897-1913" Thessaloniki, 1966 ISBN 960-8303-2-6

* Vakalopoulos, Apostolos: "History of the Greek Nation 1204-1985" (in Greek language)
In 1903, following the failure of the ] in which many pro-Romanian Aromanian and Bulgarian soldiers had fought with the aim of creating a Macedonian autonomy, the Ottoman Empire allowed the intervention of Greek militias, known as antartes and formed within Greece with commanders from the Greek state, to suppress potential renewed attempts of this objective. These commanders began to threaten the leaders of various Romanian schools in Aromanian villages, warning them that if they did not close down their activities, they would be attacked. Given this, some pro-Romanian Aromanian fighters referred to as armatoles ({{lang|rup|armatoli}}, {{lang|rup|armatol}} in singular) began to take up arms, the first ones being Mihail Handuri from ] ({{lang|rup|Giumala de Jos}} or {{lang|rup|Livãdz}}) and Hali Joga from {{ill|Ano Grammatiko|bg|Горно Граматиково|el|Άνω Γραμματικό Πέλλας|mk|Горно Граматиково}} ({{lang|rup|Grãmãticuva}}), who having been joined by various young pro-Romanian Aromanian fighters, began to attack Greek bands in the area of ] and ]. These pro-Romanian Aromanian bands were allied with Bulgarian bands in Ottoman Macedonia. In 1906, under Ioryi Mucitano,{{sfn|Nicea|2001|p=4}} they were organized into two committees, one in Bucharest led by Alexandru Coshca and Sterie Milioru and the other in Sofia led by Mucitano. He decided to divide their area of operations into districts led by a so-called ]. These bands were allowed free passage by Bulgarian villages.{{sfn|Nicea|2001|p=5}}
* Karavangelis, Germanos: "The Macedonian Struggle" (Memoirs)

* , ISBN 1-58976-237-1 (the Macedonian struggle from a perspective of an American volunteer in ])
=== Clashes ===
Starting from summer of 1904, clashes between pro-Romanian Aromanian and ethnic Greek{{sfn|Nicea|2001|p=5}} or pro-Greek Aromanian bands,{{sfn|Kōfos|1993|pp=}} be it only between themselves or with other combatants involved, erupted in the village of Condusula (between Edessa and ]), Ano Grammatiko,{{sfn|Nicea|2001|p=5}} ] and Dervent.{{sfn|Nicea|2001|p=6}} Pro-Greek schools and churches were destroyed by the pro-Romanian Aromanians and pro-Greek Aromanians retaliated by doing the same to pro-Romanian schools and churches.{{sfn|Sawayanagi|2010}} The two factions expelled each other and even murdered opponent schoolteachers and clergy.{{sfn|Sawayanagi|2010}} One such case took place in 1911, when ]s and pro-Romanian Aromanians murdered {{ill|Emilianos Lazaridis|el|Μητροπολίτης Γρεβενών Αιμιλιανός}}, {{ill|Metropolis of Grevena|lt=Metropolitan of Grevena|el|Ιερά Μητρόπολις Γρεβενών}}.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://efkozani.gr/30-9-1911-dolofoneitai-me-martyriko-thanato-o-mitropolitis-grevenon-aimilianos-lazaridis-se-ilikia-34-eton/|title=30. 9. 1911 : δολοφονείται με μαρτυρικό θάνατο ο Μητροπολίτης Γρεβενών Αιμιλιανός Λαζαρίδης, σε ηλικία 34 ετών|first=Alexandrou|last=Tziola|newspaper=Efimerida Kozani|date=1 October 2023|language=el}}</ref> Another example is {{ill|Haralambie Balamaci|ro}}, an Aromanian priest murdered in 1914 by Greek antartes.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://infoprut.ro/52166-comemorarea-martirilor-din-balcani-105-ani-de-la-martirizarea-parintelui-haralambie-balamaci.html|title=Comemorarea martirilor din Balcani. 105 ani de la martirizarea părintelui Haralambie Balamaci|first=Iulia|last=Modiga|newspaper=InfoPrut|date=25 March 2019|language=ro}}</ref>

Greeks and pro-Greek Aromanians suffered attacks from Turkish troops and '']'' who killed 41 of them and destroyed 366 and 203 of their houses and shops respectively.{{sfn|Dakin|1993|pp=26, 103, 217, 309, 365–366}}

==Albanian activity==
=== Conflict with Serbian Chetniks ===
In 1907, ] came into conflict with Serbian Chetniks that were operating in Eastern Kosovo. Radivojević and his Serbian Chetnik band were sent across ] as aid to fight the ] at Vardar, they were all wearing ] with the plan to reach Poreče disguised as Albanian ]. However, they were discovered and in July Idriz fought and killed Dragoljub Nikolić and ], both high ranking Serbian Chetniks, along with their entire ] in ] and ].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Qeriqi |first=Zamir |date=2022-03-24 |title=Idriz Seferi (1847- 1927) tribun i vegjëlisë, luftëtar i paepur i çlirimit dhe i bashkimi të trojeve shqiptare |url=https://www.radiokosovaelire.com/idriz-seferi-1847-1927-tribun-i-vegjelise-luftetar-i-paepur-i-clirimit-dhe-i-bashkimi-te-trojeve-shqiptare/ |access-date=2022-12-30 |website=Radio Kosova e Lirë |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Conflict with the Ottomans ===
] (])]]
In July, during the ], the Albanian rebels gathered their forces in ] after successfully capturing major cities in the region, including ], ], and ], which were previously under control of the ]. As early August approached, Albanian troops embarked on a southwards march to the provincial capital, ] (]). A four-day battle ensued, which ended in an Albanian Victory and the ] by Albanian rebels. Following this battle, Albanian rebels from the Karadak Mountains (]), under ], marched on ] and ], liberating both of them.{{sfn|Dakin|1993|pp=26, 103, 217, 309, 365–366}}{{sfn|Clogg|2002|p=}}{{page needed|date=June 2024}} {{citation needed span|Meanwhile, a smaller unit marched towards ], also capturing it for the Albanians.|date=June 2024}}

==Crimes==
War crimes were committed by both sides during the Macedonian struggle. According to a 1900 British report compiled by ], who is considered to have heavily relied on Greek intelligence agents,<ref name="SMEA">{{cite journal |last1=Barchard |first1=David |date=2006 |title=The Fearless and Self-reliant Servant: The Life and Career of Sir Alfred Biliotti (1833–1915), An Italian Levantine in British Service |url=https://www.levantineheritage.com/pdf/The_life_and_career_of_Sir_Alfred_Biliotti-David_Barchrd.pdf |journal= Studi Miceni ed Egeo-Anatolici SMEA |volume=48 |pages= 5–53 |id=}}</ref> starting from 1897, the members of the ] committees had embarked upon a systematic and extensive campaign of executions of the leading members of the Greek side.{{sfn|Gounaris|2007|p=189}} Moreover, Bulgarian Komitadjis, pursued a campaign of extermination of Greek and ]n teachers and clergy.<ref>{{cite book|last=Jezernik|first=Božidar|title=Wild Europe: the Balkans in the gaze of Western travellers|year=2004|publisher=Saqi |location=London|isbn=978-0-86356-574-8|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ji5pAAAAMAAJ|page=183}}</ref> On the other hand, there were attacks by Greek Andartes on many ] villages, with the aim of forcing their inhabitants to switch their allegiance from the Exarchate back to the Patriarchate and accept Greek priest and teachers,<ref>{{cite book|title=Hazell's Annual|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=acBPAAAAMAAJ|year=1908|publisher=Hazell, Watson and Viney|page=574}}; {{cite book|author=Edmund Burke|title=The Annual Register of World Events: A Review of the Year|volume=148|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XJU-AAAAYAAJ|year=1907|publisher=Longmans, Green|page=334}}</ref> but they also carried out massacres against the civilian population,<ref>{{cite book|title=The Encyclopedia Americana: A Library of Universal Knowledge|volume=27|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ouZPAAAAMAAJ|year=1920|publisher=Encyclopedia Americana Corporation|page=194}}</ref> especially in the central parts of Macedonia in 1905<ref>{{cite book|author=Henry Noël Brailsford|title=Macedonia; its races and their future|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_nsbQAAAAMAAJ|year=1906|publisher=Metheun|pages=–216}}</ref> and in 1906.{{sfn|Dragostinova|2011|pp=39–40}} One of the notable cases was the massacre<ref>{{cite Hansard |jurisdiction=Great Britain |title= |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=tuILAQAAIAAJ |house=House of Commons |date=1906 |volume=137|column= |speaker= |page=24 |quote=<!--Zagorichani-->|position=}}</ref> at the village Zagorichani (today Vasiliada, Greece), which was a Bulgarian Exarchist stronghold{{sfn|Dakin|1993|pp=, , }} near ] on 25 March 1905, where between 60 and 78 villagers were killed by Greek bands.{{sfn|Dragostinova|2011|pp=39–40}}{{sfn|Lange-Akhund|1998|pp=1, }}

According to British reports on political crimes (including the above-mentioned Biliotti report), during the period from 1897 to 1912 over 4000 political murders were committed (66 before 1901, 200 between 1901 and 1903, 3300 between 1903 and 1908 and 600 between 1908 and 1912), excluding those killed during the ] and the members of the Bulgarian and Greek bands. Of those who were killed, 53% were Bulgarians, 33.5% were Greeks, Serbs and Aromanians together 3.5% and 10% were of unknown ethnicity.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gounaris |first1=Basil C. |title=Preachers of God and martyrs of the Nation: The politics of murder in ottoman Macedonia in the early 20th century |journal=Balkanologie |date=December 2005 |volume=IX |issue=1–2 |doi=10.4000/balkanologie.573 |url=https://journals.openedition.org/balkanologie/573}}</ref>

These conflicts decreased their intensity after the revolution of ] in July 1908, as they promised to respect all ethnicities and religions, and to provide a constitution.

==Consequences==

The success of Greek efforts in Macedonia was an experience that gave confidence to the country. It helped develop an intention to annex Greek-speaking areas, and bolster Greek presence in the still Ottoman ruled Macedonia.
The events in Macedonia, specifically the consequences of the conflicts between Greek and Bulgarian national activists, including Greek massacres against the Bulgarian population in 1905 and 1906, gave rise to pogroms against the ca. 70,000–80,000-strong Greek communities that lived in Bulgaria, who were considered to share responsibility for the actions of the Greek guerrilla groups.{{sfn|Lange-Akhund|1998|pp=1, }}{{sfn|Dragostinova|2011|p=: "New Greek massacres of Bulgarians in Macedonia in 1906 led to a repetition of anti-Greek violence in the Principality of Bulgaria"}}

Nevertheless, the Young Turk movement resulted in a few instances of collaboration between Greek and Bulgarian bands, while this time the official policy in both countries continue to support the penetration of armed fighters into Ottoman Macedonia, but without having fully ensured that there would be no attacks on each other.{{sfn|Gounaris|2007|p=201}}

== Commemoration and historiography ==
Many museums have been dedicated to the conflict, including:
* ], which is housed in the former Greek consulate
* ]
* ]
* ].<ref>{{Cite journal |department=Editorial |date=2015-12-01 |title=The Museum for the Macedonian Struggle |url=https://ojs.aims.edu.au/index.php/msj/article/view/7 |pages= |journal=Macedonian Studies Journal |language=en |volume=2 |issue=1 |issn=2204-3128}}</ref>

There have been fiction and non-fiction accounts of the events of the struggle and its participants, including:
* Greek writer ] wrote the novel {{lang|el|Τά μυστικά τοῦ Βάλτου}} about the fighting around the ].
* ] published his memoirs as {{lang|el|Ὁ Μακεδονικός Ἀγών}} .{{sfn|Koliopoulos|2000}}
* The 1973 Greek film ''Pavlos Melas'' depicts the life and death of ].
* ], an American volunteer in the IMRO depicted Bulgarian activities in the book ''Confessions of a Macedonian Bandit: A Californian in the Balkan Wars''.{{sfn|Sonnichsen|2004}}


==See also== ==See also==
*]
*]
*]
*]

*]
==Notes==
*]
{{notelist}}
*]

*]
==References==
===Citations===
{{Reflist}}

===Works cited===
{{refbegin|2}}
* {{Cite book|last=Akmeşe|first=Handan Nezir|title=The Birth of Modern Turkey: The Ottoman Military and the March to World War I|publisher=IB Tauris|year=2005|isbn=|location=London|pages=}}
* {{cite journal|last=Arslan|url=https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=1654|title=Greek-Vlach conflict in Macedonia|first=Ali|journal=Études balkaniques|issue=2|pages=78–102|year=2003|url-access=subscription}}
* {{cite book |last1=Bechev |first1=Dimitar |title=Historical dictionary of North Macedonia |date=2019 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |location=Lanham, Maryland (US) |isbn=9781538119624 |edition=2nd |id=(Author name also rendered: Bečev)}}
** {{cite book |last1=Bechev |first1=Dimitar |title=Historical dictionary of the Republic of Macedonia |date=2009 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |location=Lanham, Maryland (US) |isbn=978-0810862951}}
* {{cite book|last1=Christopoulos|first1=Georgios|first2=Ioannis|last2=Bastias|title=Ιστορία του Ελληνικού Εθνους: Νεώτερος Ελληνισμός απο το 1881 ως 1913|trans-title=History of the Greek Nation: Modern Greece from 1881 until 1913|volume=XIV|publisher=Ekdotiki Athinon|pages=|language=el|location=Athens|year=1977|isbn=}}
* {{cite book |last1=Clogg |first1=Richard |title=A Concise History of Greece |date=1992 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge; New York |isbn=978-0-521-37830-7 |pages=47–99 |chapter=Nation building, the 'Great Idea' and National Schism 1831–1922|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/concisehistoryof0000clog/page/70/mode/2up? |chapter-url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/concisehistoryof0000clog/page/n5/mode/2up |author1-link=Richard Clogg}}
* {{Cite book |editor-last=Clogg |editor-first=Richard |title=Minorities in Greece: Aspects of a Plural Society |date=2002 |publisher=Hurst |isbn=978-1-85065-705-7|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=231XALxmFFsC |language=en |url-access=limited }}
** Winnifrith, T. J. (2002). "Vlachs". (Chapter 7). In ] (ed.) ''Minorities in Greece: Aspects of a Plural Society''. pp.{{nbsp}}112–121.
** Karakasidou, Anastasia (2002). "Cultural illegitimacy in Greece: The Slav-Macedonian 'non-minority'" (Chapter 8). In Richard Clogg (ed.) ''Minorities in Greece: Aspects of a Plural Society''. pp.{{nbsp}}122–164.
* {{cite book |last1=Dakin |first1=Douglas |title=The Greek struggle in Macedonia, 1897–1913 |date=1993 |publisher=] |location=Thessaloniki |orig-date=First published 1966 |isbn= 9607387007 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/greekstruggleinm0000daki/page/n7/mode/2up |author-link1 = Douglas Dakin}}
* {{cite book|first=Theodora |last=Dragostinova|title=Between Two Motherlands: Nationality and Emigration among the Greeks of Bulgaria, 1900–1949|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eUjV1Fd3W8oC|date=2011|publisher=Cornell University Press|isbn=978-0-8014-6116-3|url-access=limited}}
* {{cite book|last=Gounaris|first=Basil C.|date=2007 |title=The History of Macedonia |editor=Ioannis Koliopoulos |chapter=IX. National Claims, Conflicts and Developments in Macedonia, 1870–1912 |access-date=8 May 2012 |chapter-url=http://www.macedonian-heritage.gr/HistoryOfMacedonia/Downloads/History%20Of%20Macedonia_EN-09.pdf |location=Thessaloniki |publisher=Museum of the Macedonian Struggle |via=macedonian-heritage.gr |pages=183–213}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Kahl |first=Thede |date=2002 |title=The Ethnicity of Aromanians after 1990: the Identity of a Minority that Behaves like a Majority |url=https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=8532 |journal=Ethnologia Balkanica |language=en |issue=6 |pages=145–169 |via=] |url-access=subscription}}
* Karavangelis, Germanos. {{cite book |title=Ὁ Μακεδονικός Ἀγών: Αναμνήσεις Γερμανού Καραβαγγέλη |date=December 1980 |publisher=Μπαρμπουνάκη |isbn=978-9602672204 |language=el-gr}} (memoir). In {{cite book |editor-last1=Koliopoulos |editor-first1=Ioannis (Giannēs) |script-title=el:Ιστορία της Ελλάδας από το 1800: Το Έθνος, το Κράτος και η Κοινωνία |date=2000 |publisher=Ekdoseis Vanias |location=Thessalonikē |isbn=960-288-072-4 |language=el |trans-title=The History of Greece from 1800: The Nation, State and Society}}
* {{cite book |last1=Kōfos |first1=Evangelos |title=Nationalism and Communism in Macedonia: Civil conflict, politics of mutation, national identity |date=1993 |publisher=Aristide D. Caratzas, Publisher |location=New Rochelle, New York |isbn=978-0-89241-540-3 |url=https://archive.org/details/nationalismcommu0000koph/page/n5/mode/2up |url-access=registration |id=(Author name also rendered: Euangelos Kōphos)}}
* {{cite book |last1=Koykoudis |first1=Asterios I. |title=The Vlachs: Metropolis and Diaspora |date=2003 |publisher=Zitros Publications |location=Thessaloniki |series=Volume 2 of ''Studies on the Vlachs'' (in four volumes) |url=https://www.vlachs.gr/en/table-of-contents|id=(Author name also rendered: Koukoudēs)|url-access=subscription}}
* {{cite book |last1=Lange-Akhund |first1=Nadine |title=The Macedonian question, 1893–1908, from Western sources |date=1998 |publisher=East European Monographs; Distributed by Columbia University Press |location=Boulder, Colorado (US); New York |isbn=9780880333832}}
* {{cite journal|last=Nicea|url=http://www.proiectavdela.ro/pdf/cola_nicea_memoriile.pdf|title=Memorii|first=Cola|author-link=Cola Nicea|journal=Scara – revistă de oceanografie ortodoxă|issue=7|year=2001|pages=1–32|language=ro}}
* Rappoport, Alfred: . {{link note|note=Detail only; text not available}} Librarie Universitaire J. Gamber, Paris, 1927. Memoirs of the General Consul of Austro-Hungary in Macedonia. Cat. No. 7029530203814.
* {{cite journal|last=Richards|first=Louise Parker|date=November 1903|title=What the Macedonian Trouble Is|journal=]|volume=VII|pages=4066–4073|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FoXNAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA4066|access-date=10 July 2009}}
* {{cite book |last1=Sherman |first1=Laura Beth |date=1980 |volume=62 |isbn=0914710559 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9pdpAAAAMAAJ&q=%22committee+in+1895%2C+Sarafov+led+a+group+in+an+attack+on+Melnik%22 |title=Fires on the mountain: The Macedonian revolutionary movement and the kidnapping of Ellen Stone |publisher=East European Monographs; distributed by Columbia University Press |location=Boulder, Colorado (US); New York}} {{isbn|978-0-914710-55-4}}.
* {{cite book|last=Sonnichsen |first=Albert|orig-date=First published 1908 |title=Confessions of a Macedonian Bandit: A Californian in the Balkan Wars |date=2004 |publisher=Narrative Press |url-access=subscription |isbn=978-1-58976-237-4 |url=https://archive.org/details/confessionsofmac0000albe}} {{ISBN|1-58976-237-1|}}. (The Macedonian struggle from the perspective of an American volunteer in IMRO)
**
* {{Cite journal |last=Sawayanagi |first=Nanako Murata |date=2010 |title=Greek Communities Relocated in the Making of the Balkan Nations: The Greek Parliament's Tackling of Refugee Settlement and Land Distribution in Thessaly (1906–1907) |url=https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/ajames/26/2/26_KJ00007063834/_article |journal=Annals of Japan Association for Middle East Studies |volume=26 |issue=2 |pages=151–184 |doi=10.24498/ajames.26.2_151}}
* {{cite book |last1=Vakalopoulos |first1=Kōnstantinos A. |script-title=el:Ιστορία του Βορείου Ελληνισμού |title= |date=1990 |edition=2nd |publisher=Ekdot. Oikos Aphōn Kyriakidē |location=Thessalonikē |isbn=9603430056 |trans-title=History of Northern Hellenism}}
{{Refend}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Chotzidis |editor1-first=Angelos A. |editor2-last=Gounaris |editor2-first=Basil C. |editor3-last=Panayotopoulou |editor3-first=Anna A. |title=The events of 1903 in Macedonia as presented in European diplomatic correspondence |date=1993 |publisher=Museum of the Macedonian Struggle |location=Thessaloniki |isbn=978-960-85303-3-1 |url=https://archive.org/details/eventsof1903inma0000unse |language=en |others=Annotated by Angelos A. Chotzidis; Basil C. Gounaris; Anna A. Panayotopoulou. Introduction by Basil C. Gounaris |url-access=registration}} {{in lang|en}}.
* {{cite book |last1=Mavridis |first1=Dimitris X. |title=Ο Μακεδονικός Αγώνας στη περιοχή των Ποροΐων (1895-1912) |date=2016 |publisher=Democritus University of Thrace |url=https://archive.org/details/91489771 |language=el |id=(Author name transliterated from the Greek, Δημήτρης Ξ. Μαυρίδης)}}
* {{cite book |last1=Vakalopoulos |first1=Apostolos E. |oclc=221373229 |author1-link=Apostolos Vakalopoulos |title= |date=1988 |publisher=εκδόσεις Βάνιας |location=Thessaloniki |edition=3rd |url= |language=el |script-title=el:Νέα Ελληνική Ιστορία, 1204–1985 |trans-title=Modern Greek History, 1204–1985}}
* {{cite book |last1=Vakalopoulos |first1=Apostolos E. (Apostolos Euangelou) |title=Origins of the Greek nation: The Byzantine period, 1204–1461 |date=1970 |location=New Brunswick, New Jersey (US) |publisher=Rutgers University Press |isbn=978-0-8135-0659-3 |url=https://archive.org/details/originsofgreekna0000vaka/page/n7/mode/2up |url-access=registration |language=en |translator-last=Moles |translator-first=Ian}} {{in lang|en}}.
* {{cite book |last1=Vakalopoulos |first1=Apostolos E. (Apostolos Euangelou) |title=The Greek nation, 1453–1669: The cultural and economic background of modern Greek society |date=1975 |publisher=Rutgers University Press |location=New Brunswick, N.J. (US) |isbn=978-0-8135-0810-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/greeknation145310000vaka/page/n7/mode/2up |url-access=registration |translator-last1=Moles |translator-first1=Ian |translator-last2=Moles |translator-first2=Phania|language=en}} {{in lang|en}}.
{{Refend}}


{{Balkan Wars}}
==External links==
{{Aromanians}}
* `
{{Hellenic Macedonian Committee}}
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{{Megali Idea}}
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{{Greek nationalism}}{{Greek Macedonia}}
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Latest revision as of 09:39, 15 December 2024

Cultural and military conflicts between various Balkan peoples in the region of Macedonia Not to be confused with World War II in Yugoslav Macedonia, known as the National Liberation Struggle of Macedonia.

Macedonian Struggle
Part of the decline of the Ottoman Empire

The geographical region of Macedonia as defined in the 1800s
Date1893–1912 (19 years)
LocationOttoman Macedonia
Result

Bulgarian and Greek dominance

Belligerents



Albanian Cheta


 Ottoman Empire
Commanders and leaders


Ștefan Mihăileanu 

Idriz Seferi


Mahmud Shevket Pasha
Casualties and losses
8,000 militants and civilians killed (1903–1908)
Early IMRO / SMAC activity

The Macedonian Struggle was a series of social, political, cultural and military conflicts that were mainly fought between Greek and Bulgarian subjects who lived in Ottoman Macedonia between 1893 and 1912. The conflict was part of a wider guerrilla war in which revolutionary organizations of Greeks, Bulgarians and Serbs all fought over Macedonia. Gradually the Greek and Bulgarian bands gained the upper hand. Though the conflict largely ceased by the Young Turk Revolution, it continued as a low intensity insurgency until the Balkan Wars.

Background

See also: Decline of the Ottoman Empire, Slavic speakers in Ottoman Macedonia, Nationalism, and Ethnographic cartography of the Balkans in the late 19th and early 20th century

Initially the conflict was waged through educational and religious means, with a fierce rivalry developing between supporters of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople (Greek-speaking or Slavic/Romance-speaking people who generally identified as Greek), and supporters of the Bulgarian Exarchate, which had been recognized by the Ottomans in 1870.

A 1903 map of the Salonika Vilayet depicting Greek (red), Bulgarian (green), Romanian (purple), and Serbian (blue) schools, in addition to Greek churches (red cross) and monasteries (red cross on red dot)
Austrian ethnographic map from 1899 depicting Christian Bulgarians (light green), Christian Greeks (horizontal blue and yellow stripes), Bulgarians and Serbs mixed (diagonal blue and yellow stripes), Christian Serbs (diagonal blue and white stripes), Christian Aromanians (light blue)

As Ottoman rule in the Balkans crumbled in the late 19th century, competition arose between Greeks and Bulgarians (and to a lesser extent also other ethnic groups such as Serbs, Aromanians and Albanians) over the multi-ethnic region of Macedonia. The Bulgarians founded in 1893 the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (initially known as Bulgarian Macedonian-Adrianopolitan Revolutionary Committees) which coordinated the majority of Bulgarian actions in the region. The defeat of Greece in the Greco-Turkish War of 1897 was a loss that appalled Greeks which led to the dissolution of the Ethniki Eteria, by Prime Minister Georgios Theotokis. With little prospect of liberation by Greece, the Macedonian Greeks took their fate into their own hands and began to form various armed bands that would ultimately fall under the control of the Hellenic Macedonian Committee. The region quickly became a constant battleground among various armed groups, with hostilities peaking in 1904-1908. The Ottoman Army was also involved in the conflict and perpetuated atrocities against the Christian population in attempt to quell the unrest. Due to the Christian population of Macedonia, whether Greek, Serb, Bulgarian or Aromanian, engaging in more or less constant rebellion against the Ottoman Empire, in conjunction with the revolutionary activities of Armenian nationalists in Anatolia, many Ottoman officers believed that all Christians of the empire were disloyal and treasonous.

Bulgarian activity

See also: Bulgarian Millet and Bulgarian Exarchate

Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organisation

Seal of the CC of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization containing the motto Svoboda ili smart.

In 1893, the Bulgarian Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO) had been founded in Thessaloniki. Initially its membership was allowed only for Bulgarians, but later it opened itself to all ethnic groups in Macedonia and Adrianople regions. Earlier on, IMRO claimed that it was fighting for the autonomy of Macedonia and not for annexation to Bulgaria. However, later it became an agent serving Bulgarian interests in Balkan politics with the aim of eventually uniting the entirety of Macedonia with Bulgaria, first in struggles against the Ottoman Empire and later against the Serbian-led Yugoslav successor state controlling the territory of Vardar Macedonia and the Greek state which controlled the southern portion of the region. One major event representing the culmination of these actions is the assassination of the Serbian King of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes during the inter-war period by an IMRO sniper. In practice, most of the followers of the IMRO were native Macedonian Bulgarians, though they also had some Aromanian allies, like Pitu Guli, Mitre The Vlach, Ioryi Mucitano and Alexandru Coshca. The IMRO ultimately weakened due to a split into a left-wing faction (federalist) and a right-wing faction (centralists) following the failed Ilinden–Preobrazhenie Uprising. Many of the members of the organization saw Macedonian autonomy as an intermediate step to unification with Bulgaria, but others saw as their aim the creation of a Balkan federal state, with Macedonia as an equal member.

Bulgarian efforts

Already from 1895 the Supreme Macedonian-Adrianople Committees were formed in Sofia in order to reinforce the Bulgarian actions in Ottoman Empire. One of Komitadjis' first activities was the capture of the predominantly Greek town of Meleniko (today Melnik, Bulgaria), but they couldn't hold it for more than a few hours. Bulgarian bands destroyed the Pomak village of Dospat where they massacred local inhabitants. This kind of activity alerted Greeks and Serbians, who made a farce of the slogan "Macedonia to Macedonians", being against the constitution of Macedonia as separate state.

A Supreme Macedonian Committee's cheta during the Ilinden Uprising.

As Bulgarian efforts intensified, they started to affect European public opinion. In April 1903, a group known as the Boatmen of Thessaloniki, with assistance from the IMRO, blew up the French ship Guadalquivir and the Ottoman Bank in Thessaloniki. In August 1903, the IMRO organised the Ilinden Uprising in Macedonia and the Adrianople Vilayet which led to the formation of the short-lived Kruševo Republic. The uprising was ultimately suppressed by the Ottoman Army with the subsequent destruction of many villages and the devastation of large areas in Western Macedonia and around Kırk Kilise near Adrianople.

Greek activity

See also: Ottoman Greeks and Rum Millet

Hellenic Macedonian Committee

Seal of the Greek Macedonian Committee depicting Alexander the Great and Byzantine Emperor Basil II
Pavlos Melas in Macedonomachos uniform

In order to strengthen Greek efforts for Macedonia, the Hellenic Macedonian Committee was founded in 1903 by Stefanos Dragoumis and functioned under the leadership of wealthy publisher Dimitrios Kalapothakis. Its members included many Greek notables in addition to the fighters. Among its members were Ion Dragoumis and Pavlos Melas. Its fighters were known as Makedonomachoi ("Macedonian fighters").

Under these conditions, in 1904 a vicious guerrilla war broke as response of IMRO activities between Bulgarian and Greek bands within Ottoman Macedonia. The Bishop of Kastoria, Germanos Karavangelis, who was sent to Macedonia by Nikolaos Mavrokordatos, the ambassador of Greece, and Ion Dragoumis, the consul of Greece in Monastir, realised that it was time to act in a more efficient way and began to organise the intensification of the Greek opposition.

While Dragoumis concerned himself with the financial organisation of the efforts, the central figure in the military struggle was the very capable Cretan officer Georgios Katechakis. Bishop Germanos Karavangelis travelled to raise morale and encourage the Greek population to take action against the IMRO. Many committees were also formed to promote the Greek national interests.

Katechakis and Karavangelis succeeded in the recruitment and organization of guerrilla groups that were later reinforced with volunteers from Greece. Volunteers often came from Crete and the Mani area of the Peloponnese. They even recruited former IMRO members, taking advantage of their political and/or personal disputes within the organisation. Additionally, officers of the Hellenic Army were encouraged to join the struggle to provide experienced leadership, as many had served in the Greco-Turkish War of 1897. The officers who elected to join provided a logistical advantage to the Makedonomachoi. The Macedonian Greeks, however, would form the core of the fighting force and proved to be the most important fighters due to their knowledge of the region's geography and some possessing knowledge of the Bulgarian language. Many local Greeks, such as Periklis Drakos, were also involved in the smuggling and stashing of weapons and ammunition around the region.

Greek armed band (Athens War Museum Collections)

Greek efforts

Periklis Drakos from Kavala with co-fighters

The Greek state became concerned, not only because of Bulgarian penetration in Macedonia but also due to Serbian interests, which were concentrated mainly in Üsküp and Monastir area. The rioting in Macedonia, especially the death of Pavlos Melas in 1904, caused intense nationalistic feelings in Greece. This led to the decision to send more volunteers to reinforce and better organise the armed bands and thwart the Bulgarian efforts to bring all of the Slavic-speakers of Macedonia on under their influence.

The band of Gonos Yiotas (seated right) and Apostolis Matopoulos (seated left).

The Greek General Consulate in Thessaloniki, under Lambros Koromilas, became the centre of the struggle, coordinating the Greek bands, distributing, and nursing the wounded. Fierce conflicts between the Greeks and Bulgarians started in the area of Kastoria, in the Giannitsa Lake area, and elsewhere. During 1905, guerrilla activity increased and the Makedonomachoi gained significant advantage within 10 months, extending their control towards the areas of Mariovo and East Macedonia, Kastanohoria (near Kastoria), the plains north and south of Florina and the routes around Monastir. However, from early 1906 the situation became critical and the forces of the Makedonomachoi were forced to withdraw from various areas. Nevertheless, the groups of Tellos Agras and Ioannis Demestichas had some success in the marsh of Giannitsa. There were great advances of the Serb forces, joined by Muslim Slavs, in summer of 1906 in the northern areas of the Sanjak of Üsküp.

While the armed bands confronted the Ottoman Army, the Ottoman administration often ignored the activities of the Greek guerrillas, and according to Dakin assisted them against the Bulgarians outright. However, once the subversive potential of the Bulgarians had been neutralised, Ottoman policy ended the favourable neutrality to the Greek side and embarked upon relentless persecutions against the Greeks. During the course of the conflict Greek armed bands numbered 2,000 men. Of whom over 700 were killed in action along with 1,250 pro-Greek civilians.

Aromanian activity

Aromanian revolutionaries in Veria

The Greek–Romanian conflict concerning the Aromanians reached its climax during the Macedonian Struggle, with Aromanians being no longer divided into pro-Greek and pro-Romanian factions but into "Greeks" and "Romanians" proper. The pro-Greek faction was the largest and most powerful.

Pro-Greek Aromanians

Most Aromanians during the Macedonian Struggle were pro-Greek, supporting the Greek revolutionaries and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. These Aromanians escaped or resisted the influence of Romanian interventionism, in which a considerable amount of money was spent on by the Romanian state. They were indifferent or even hostile to their national movement. In the archives of the Greek Foreign Ministry there are numerous testimonies from Aromanian communities denouncing Romanian "propaganda" and proclaiming their Greekness. In Veria, there was a small local unit which was under the leadership of a pro-Greek Aromanian, Tasos Koukotegos. This unit, being small and somewhat isolated, had been operating without definite objectives, but it proved to be very important for the Greek cause as it helped in fights against local Turkish chiefs, pro-Romanian Aromanians, and Bulgarian komitadjis. Additionally, local support from pro-Greek Aromanians in Kastoria empowered Greek activity in the region. A notable Greek makedonomachos of Aromanian descent was Anastasios Pichion.

Anastasios Pichion, a pro-Greek Aromanian

In Pelagonia, the pro-Greek sentiments of Aromanians during the Macedonian Struggle contributed to their displacement. When they migrated to Greece, they were already financially ruined.

Pro-Bulgarian Aromanians

Pitu Guli, a pro-Bulgarian Aromanian

Many Aromanians were also pro-Bulgarian, joining their efforts in the struggle. They were aligned with the Bulgarian Exarchate rather than the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople and sympathized with the goals and aspiration of the Bulgarian cause. Some notable pro-Bulgarian Aromanians include Pitu Guli and Mitre Pangiaru.

Pro-Romanian Aromanians

As the Bulgarians had managed to introduce their language in church services and education in the Ottoman Empire, so did the pro-Romanian Aromanians start demanding the same rights. The Greek Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople reacted strongly to this however amid increased rivalry in the region and eight Aromanian churches were closed by his personal order in 1875. This produced protests from the pro-Romanian Aromanians to the Ottoman and Romanian government, and also increased tensions between the pro-Romanian Aromanians and the Greeks as well as with pro-Greek Aromanians, which led to physical violence that often ended in fatalities.

In 1903, following the failure of the Ilinden–Preobrazhenie Uprising in which many pro-Romanian Aromanian and Bulgarian soldiers had fought with the aim of creating a Macedonian autonomy, the Ottoman Empire allowed the intervention of Greek militias, known as antartes and formed within Greece with commanders from the Greek state, to suppress potential renewed attempts of this objective. These commanders began to threaten the leaders of various Romanian schools in Aromanian villages, warning them that if they did not close down their activities, they would be attacked. Given this, some pro-Romanian Aromanian fighters referred to as armatoles (armatoli, armatol in singular) began to take up arms, the first ones being Mihail Handuri from Livadia (Giumala de Jos or Livãdz) and Hali Joga from Ano Grammatiko [bg; el; mk] (Grãmãticuva), who having been joined by various young pro-Romanian Aromanian fighters, began to attack Greek bands in the area of Edessa and Veria. These pro-Romanian Aromanian bands were allied with Bulgarian bands in Ottoman Macedonia. In 1906, under Ioryi Mucitano, they were organized into two committees, one in Bucharest led by Alexandru Coshca and Sterie Milioru and the other in Sofia led by Mucitano. He decided to divide their area of operations into districts led by a so-called voivode. These bands were allowed free passage by Bulgarian villages.

Clashes

Starting from summer of 1904, clashes between pro-Romanian Aromanian and ethnic Greek or pro-Greek Aromanian bands, be it only between themselves or with other combatants involved, erupted in the village of Condusula (between Edessa and Naousa), Ano Grammatiko, Pyrgoi and Dervent. Pro-Greek schools and churches were destroyed by the pro-Romanian Aromanians and pro-Greek Aromanians retaliated by doing the same to pro-Romanian schools and churches. The two factions expelled each other and even murdered opponent schoolteachers and clergy. One such case took place in 1911, when komitadjis and pro-Romanian Aromanians murdered Emilianos Lazaridis [el], Metropolitan of Grevena [el]. Another example is Haralambie Balamaci [ro], an Aromanian priest murdered in 1914 by Greek antartes.

Greeks and pro-Greek Aromanians suffered attacks from Turkish troops and bashibazouks who killed 41 of them and destroyed 366 and 203 of their houses and shops respectively.

Albanian activity

Conflict with Serbian Chetniks

In 1907, Idriz Seferi came into conflict with Serbian Chetniks that were operating in Eastern Kosovo. Radivojević and his Serbian Chetnik band were sent across Kosovo as aid to fight the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization at Vardar, they were all wearing Albanian clothes with the plan to reach Poreče disguised as Albanian kachaks. However, they were discovered and in July Idriz fought and killed Dragoljub Nikolić and Rade Radivojević, both high ranking Serbian Chetniks, along with their entire Četa in Pasjane and Gjylekar.

Conflict with the Ottomans

Albanian rebels entering Üsküp (Skopje)

In July, during the Albanian revolt of 1912, the Albanian rebels gathered their forces in Kosovo after successfully capturing major cities in the region, including Pristina, Ferizaj, and Gjakova, which were previously under control of the Ottoman Empire. As early August approached, Albanian troops embarked on a southwards march to the provincial capital, Üsküp (Skopje). A four-day battle ensued, which ended in an Albanian Victory and the capture of Üskup by Albanian rebels. Following this battle, Albanian rebels from the Karadak Mountains (Skopska Crna Gora), under Idriz Seferi, marched on Kumanova and Preševo, liberating both of them. Meanwhile, a smaller unit marched towards Tetovo, also capturing it for the Albanians.

Crimes

War crimes were committed by both sides during the Macedonian struggle. According to a 1900 British report compiled by Alfred Biliotti, who is considered to have heavily relied on Greek intelligence agents, starting from 1897, the members of the Exarchist committees had embarked upon a systematic and extensive campaign of executions of the leading members of the Greek side. Moreover, Bulgarian Komitadjis, pursued a campaign of extermination of Greek and Serbian teachers and clergy. On the other hand, there were attacks by Greek Andartes on many Macedonian Bulgarian villages, with the aim of forcing their inhabitants to switch their allegiance from the Exarchate back to the Patriarchate and accept Greek priest and teachers, but they also carried out massacres against the civilian population, especially in the central parts of Macedonia in 1905 and in 1906. One of the notable cases was the massacre at the village Zagorichani (today Vasiliada, Greece), which was a Bulgarian Exarchist stronghold near Kastoria on 25 March 1905, where between 60 and 78 villagers were killed by Greek bands.

According to British reports on political crimes (including the above-mentioned Biliotti report), during the period from 1897 to 1912 over 4000 political murders were committed (66 before 1901, 200 between 1901 and 1903, 3300 between 1903 and 1908 and 600 between 1908 and 1912), excluding those killed during the Ilinden Uprising and the members of the Bulgarian and Greek bands. Of those who were killed, 53% were Bulgarians, 33.5% were Greeks, Serbs and Aromanians together 3.5% and 10% were of unknown ethnicity.

These conflicts decreased their intensity after the revolution of Young Turks in July 1908, as they promised to respect all ethnicities and religions, and to provide a constitution.

Consequences

The success of Greek efforts in Macedonia was an experience that gave confidence to the country. It helped develop an intention to annex Greek-speaking areas, and bolster Greek presence in the still Ottoman ruled Macedonia.

The events in Macedonia, specifically the consequences of the conflicts between Greek and Bulgarian national activists, including Greek massacres against the Bulgarian population in 1905 and 1906, gave rise to pogroms against the ca. 70,000–80,000-strong Greek communities that lived in Bulgaria, who were considered to share responsibility for the actions of the Greek guerrilla groups.

Nevertheless, the Young Turk movement resulted in a few instances of collaboration between Greek and Bulgarian bands, while this time the official policy in both countries continue to support the penetration of armed fighters into Ottoman Macedonia, but without having fully ensured that there would be no attacks on each other.

Commemoration and historiography

Many museums have been dedicated to the conflict, including:

There have been fiction and non-fiction accounts of the events of the struggle and its participants, including:

  • Greek writer Penelope Delta wrote the novel Τά μυστικά τοῦ Βάλτου about the fighting around the Giannitsa Lake.
  • Germanos Karavangelis published his memoirs as Ὁ Μακεδονικός Ἀγών .
  • The 1973 Greek film Pavlos Melas depicts the life and death of Pavlos Melas.
  • Albert Sonnichsen, an American volunteer in the IMRO depicted Bulgarian activities in the book Confessions of a Macedonian Bandit: A Californian in the Balkan Wars.

See also

Notes

  1. Macedonian Struggle – Bulgarian: Македонска борба, romanizedMakedonska borba; Greek: Μακεδονικός Αγώνας, romanizedMakedonikós Agónas; Macedonian: Борба за Македонија, romanizedBorba za Makedonija; Serbian: Борба за Македонију, romanizedBorba za Makedoniju; Turkish: Makedonya Mücadelesi
  2. Clogg (1992). p. 70: "For the last two decades of the nineteenth century and the first of the twentieth, Macedonia, with its inextricably mixed populations of Greeks, Bulgars, Serbs, Albanians, Turks and Vlachs, was to be the focus of the competing nationalisms of Greece, Bulgaria and Serbia, as each sought to carve out as large a stake as possible of the crumbling Ottoman possessions in the Balkans."
  3. For further on this, see:
    • Sherman (1980). p. 10: "The revolutionary committee dedicated itself to fight for 'full political autonomy for Macedonia and Adrianople'. Since they sought autonomy only for those areas inhabited by Bulgarians, they denied other nationalities membership in IMRO. According to Article 3 of the statutes, 'any Bulgarian could become a member'."
    • Lange-Akhund (1998). p. 39: "As a Bulgarian historian, Pandev underlined the fact that, since its foundation the organization chose its Bulgarian identity by selecting the name 'Bulgarian revolutionary committees'."
    • Bechev (2009). "Introduction": "The IMARO activists saw the future autonomous Macedonia as a multinational polity, and did not pursue the self-determination of Macedonian Slavs as a separate ethnicity. Therefore, Macedonian (and also Adrianopolitan) was an umbrella term covering Bulgarians, Turks, Greeks, Vlachs, Albanians, Serbs, Jews, and so on. While this message was taken aboard by some Vlachs as well as some Patriarchist Slavs, it failed to impress other groups for whom the IMARO remained the 'Bulgarian Committee'.".
  4. Among others, the memoirs of the IMRO revolutionary Kosta Tsipushev are used, in which Tsipushev, citing Delchev, writes that autonomy was only tactics for that time, with the eventual aim being future unification with Bulgaria.

References

Citations

  1. Sfetas, Spyridon (2001). "Το ιστορικό πλαίσιο των ελληνο-ρουμανικών πολιτικών σχέσεων (1866-1913)" [The Historical Context of Greco-Romanian political relations (1866–1913)]. Makedonika (in Greek). 33 (1). Society for Macedonian Studies: 23–48. doi:10.12681/makedonika.278. ISSN 0076-289X. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  2. Ryan Gingeras: The Last Days of the Ottoman Empire, Penguin Random House, 2022, ISBN 978-0-241-44432-0.
  3. Clogg 1992, pp. 70, 74.
  4. Clogg 1992, pp. 57–61, 70–75, 79–85, 88–97.
  5. Clogg 1992, p. 70.
  6. Poulton, Hugh (2000). Who are the Macedonians. Indiana University Press, ISBN 9780253213594 p. 53.
  7. Bechev 2019, p. 11.
  8. Denis Š. Ljuljanović (2023) Imagining Macedonia in the Age of Empire. State Policies, Networks and Violence (1878–1912), LIT Verlag Münster; ISBN 9783643914460, p. 211.
  9. Clogg 1992, pp. 71–73.
  10. Akmeşe 2005, pp. 50–53.
  11. Sherman 1980, p. 10.
  12. Lange-Akhund 1998, p. 39.
  13. Bechev 2009, "Introduction".
  14. Karakasidou, Anastasia (2009). Fields of Wheat, Hills of Blood: Passages to Nationhood in Greek Macedonia, 1870–1990. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 100. ISBN 978-0226424996.
  15. İpek Yosmaoğlu (2013) Blood Ties: Religion, Violence and the Politics of Nationhood in Ottoman Macedonia, 1878–1908. Cornell University Press. ISBN 0801469791, p. 16.
  16. Dimitris Livanios (2008). The Macedonian Question: Britain and the Southern Balkans 1939–1949. Oxford Historical Monographs, OUP: Oxford. ISBN 0191528722. p. 17.
  17. Combs, Cindy C.; Slann, Martin W. (2009). Encyclopedia of terrorism. Infobase Publishing. ISBN 1438110197. p. 135.
  18. Andrew Rossos (2013). Macedonia and the Macedonians: A History. Hoover Press. ISBN 081794883X. p. 105.
  19. Jowett, Philip S.; Walsh, Stephen (2011). Armies of the Balkan Wars 1912–13: The priming charge for the Great War. Oxford; Long Island City, New York: Osprey; Bloomsbury. p. 21. ISBN 978-1849084192.
  20. Raymond Detrez (2014). Historical Dictionary of Bulgaria. Rowman & Littlefield, ISBN 1442241802, p. 520.
  21. Minov, Nikola (2011). "The Aromanians and IMRO". Macedonian Historical Review. 2: 181–200 – via Scribd.
  22. Maxwell, Alexander. "Slavic Macedonian Nationalism: From 'Regional' to 'Ethnic'." Ethnologia Balkanica 11 (2007): 127–155. p. 141.
  23. Гоцев, Димитър Г (1983). Идеята за автономия като тактика в програмите на национално освободителното движение в Македония и Одринско 1893–1941. [The idea for autonomy as tactics in the programs of the National Liberation movements in Macedonia and Odra (Adrianople) regions, 1893–1941] (in Bulgarian). Sofia, Bulgaria: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. p. 34. by Dimitar G. Gotsev.
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