Krushevo, Macedonia

During the Ilinden Uprising of 1903, Krushevo became the site of an intense rebellion against the Ottoman Empire and the short-lived Krushevo Republic.

 Razlovci Uprising | Kresna Uprising |  Ilinden Uprising |  V.M.R.O.

The first major Macedonian uprising aimed at overthrowing the Ottoman Turks occurred in May 1876. The Razlovci Uprising was brief but it established a premise for future uprisings. The Macedonian people became well-organized in their demands for an independent state. The symbol of the rebellion was of a lion on a red and black background with the motto, 'Rise up that I might liberate you, Macedonia'.

"The second half of the nineteenth century saw the appearance of the Macedonian Revivalist movement, when the Macedonian people led an active struggle for liberation from suppression by the Greek Patriarchate of Constantinople, and later from the Bulgarian Exarchy, and for the reestablishment of the Archbishopry of Ohrid, abolished in 1767, as a Macedonian national church. In this period, Macedonian educational church communes began to be formed to support the struggle for spiritual, cultural, and national-political independence, both from Turkish political rule and Greek and Bulgarian spiritual rule. At the same time, the 'Macedonian question' appeared, and it was of political-diplomatic dimensions, with aspirations for the liberation of the Macedoinan people from Ottoman rule and for the creation of a separate state of their own. The Macedonian uprising in Razlovci, in May of 1876, has the characteristicss of a more organized movement, without the participation of foreign elements, and represents the beginning of more organized national liberation insurgences and uprisings." 1

"The Kresna Uprising took place in October 1878 in an utterly new situation; it was a reaction to the decisions of the Congress of Berlin and was greatly influenced by Russian victories in the war to liberate Bulgaria (1877-78), in which hundreds of Macedonians took part as volunteers. The uprising began along the middle course of the Struma river, reached the Russo-Turkish demarcation line, and spread to neighbouring regions. It is important to note that among the rebels were people from all parts of Macedonia and among the above-mentioned volunteers the leading political figure was D. Berovski, whose fighters continued their activities beyong 1876 right up to the end of the Russo-Turkish war. Local rebel organizations were established in the liberated villages, regulated by a specific constitution, and the ultimate goal was to establish political autonomy for Macedonia. The national and liberationist character of the uprising is clearly expressed in the programmatic document 'Constitution (Regulations) for the Macedonian Uprising Committee', and in the inscription on the seal 'Seal of the Chief of Staff of the Macedonian Uprising, 1878'. The uprising was put down in June 1879 but it had further repurcussions in western Macedonia in the area between Bitola, Ohrid and Kicevo, in the Prespa region, the vicinity of Kostur, etc. The Osmanli reaction was brutal; many people were imprisioned, and even more were exiled, mainly to Bulgaria, Serbia and Romania. This was a heavy blow, especially to the intelligentsia, popular leaders and Macedonian patriots." 2

The following is an excerpt from Macedonia and Its Relations With Greece 3

It took a decade for these forces to regroup to the point at which they could initiate a new phase in the struggle for liberation. Thus, in 1893, the Macedonian Revolutionary Organization was formed in Salonical later to be known first as the Secret Macedonian Odrin Revolutionary Organization (TMORO), and then as the Internal Macedonian Odrin Revolutionary Organization (VMORO). In the decade before the uprising of 1903, this organization spread its network throughout the territory of Macedonia and devised a complex organizational structure, from village committees up to the Central Committee and Representatives Abroad. It became a mass popular organization, led by the intelligentsia and with grass-root support primarily among the Macedonian peasantry. The main role in winning mass support for the organization was played by the armed formations (chetas), with one or two in each district. Their commander was Goce Delchev from Kukush, an inspired organizer and ideologist of the movement (Delchev was killed in a battle with a Turkish regiment in May 1903). The basic programmatic goal of TMORO was to win statehood for Macedonia and its military slogan was "Macedonia for the Macedonians". Membership of the Organization was open to all oppressed inhabitants, and it included a great number of Macedonian Vlachs (Aromanians), and also some Greeks and Jews.

On St. Elijah's Day (Ilinden, 2nd August 1903), in answer to TMORO's call, the people rose up in rebellion. During the previous month preparations had been made and the whole territory divided into rebel regions and districts led by staff officers. The fiercest battles were fought in the Bitola region of western Macedonia. The armed rebels, who numbered about 30,000, were under the command of the General Staff, and in the course of the first month of the rebellion they gained control of an area of about 10,000km . Many of the rebels were recruited from Macedonian emigrants, students and workers who had been organized in all the neighbouring countries, and some of whom had even come from Russia, Istanbul and Asia Minor. By the end of August, the rebel offensive had liberated several hundred villages and small towns.

The greatest rebel victories were achieved in the Krushevo area. On 3rd August the town of Krushevo with its 15,000 inhabitants of Macedonian and Vlach origin was liberated. The regional staff of the rebels immediately set out to organize a new local authority with representative executive and legislative bodies, known to history as the Krushevo Republic. The leader and organizer was Nikola Karev, a teacher from Krushevo. The new bodies included elected civilians from the three church communities: the Exarchy, the Patriarchate, and the Roman community. However, the Republic lasted for only ten days; under siege, it could not withstand the bombardment of the enemy artillery. Its most tenacious defender was Pitu Guli, a Vlach from Krushevo and voivode of a regiment, whose bravery was later praised in many folk songs.

During the uprising, the Internal Organization took various steps to inform world opinion of the intentions and ideas of the uprising. The most important diplomatic document was the "Declaration of the Internal Organization to the Governments of the Great Powers" issued on 10th August 1903, which was sent to the missions of the great powers in Sofia, and published in "Autonomy", the organ of their Representative Office Abroad.

The Declaration began from the premise that, in the absence of any visible solution by peaceful means, the Christian population was forced "to resort to armed self-defense" in order to induce the involvement of Europe. The intervention of the six European powers was expected, in accordance with their recognized obligations as set out in the Treaty of Berlin (1878). Considering that the palliative measures taken in the intervening years had only worsened the situation, and with a view to a more efficient intervention of the great powers, the Declaration demanded that the following principles be taken into consideration:

"1. The appointment, with the agreement of the great powers, of a Governor-General, who would be a Christian from Macedonia, who had never been part of the osmali administration, and who would perform his functions independently of the Sublime Porte.

2. The introduction of permanent international controls, with wide powers to introduce sanctions."

Furthermore, it is stated that if the above-mentioned, are not implemented, the Internal Organization will continue to support the popular struggle and will take no responsibility for any unwanted consequences.

In September, the Ottoman army began a counter-offensive, and military confrontation continued until the middle of November 1903. Faced with the military superiority of the enemy and the severity of winter, the General Staff ordered a cessation of hostilities. Nevertheless, in the following years there were sporadic clashes, taking enormous human and material toll, until the establishment of the constitutional order in Turkey, and in Macedonia, in July 1908.

The following is an excerpt from The Macedonian Conflict, by Loring M. Danforth: 4

The national reawakening of the Macedonian people had political and military dimensions as well. After the establishment of the Bulgarian Exarchate in 1870 the Macedonian people became victims of the compteting nationalist campaigns of Serbia, Bulgaria, and Greece, each of which sent priests, teachers, and bands of guerrilla fighters to terrorize the local population and force these Macedonians to adopt a Serbian, Bulgarian, or Greek national identity. The founding of VMRO, the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization, in 1893 by a small group of Macedonian patriots was a powerful affirmation of Macedonian identity and of the desire of the Macedonian people to achieve national independence and self-determination (Radin and Popov n.d.a:8). The rallying cry of VMRO was "Macedonia for the Macedonians."

One of the leaders of VMRO was Goce Delchev, the father of the Macedonian revolution and the most powerful symbol of the dedication of the Macedonian people to the ideals of freedom and independence. On August 2, 1903, VMRO led the Macedonian peasantry in the Ilinden Uprising, named after the festival of the Prophet Elijah on which it began. This was one of the greatest events in the history of the Macedonian people. The high point of the Ilinden Revolution was the establishment of the Krushevo Republic in the town of Krushevo in central Macedonia. The leaders of the Krushevo Republic called on all the people of Macedonia, Muslims and Christians alike, to join them in fighting for an independent Macedonia. The Krushevo Republic was short-lived, however. Ten days after its liberation, the town of Krushevo was recaptured by the Turks. By November 1903 the Ilinden Uprising had been suppressed.

The following is an excerpt from Macedonia and its Relations With Greece: 5

At the heart of the great Macedonian uprisings, which laid the foundations of the movement for national liberation, was the struggle of the Macedonian people to create a separate and independent state. In its program, VMRO (The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization) defined the foundations of the future Macedonian state, and, in the course of the war for liberation, created political forms of authority. This authority, which existed on the territory over which the Organization had political power, organized a movement for national liberation and can be called a de facto authority.

To create a new Macedonian state, VMRO started from the idea that Macedonia would thus be spared the aggressive politics of the neighboring Balkan states, and the continuing development of the idea of national liberation would be ensured. In the attempt to realize its programmatic goals, TMORO tried to give Macedonia the standing of a new state, explaining to Balkan and European governments that only thus could the peaceful co-existence of the Balkan peoples, and peace in general, be guaranteed. In appeals, memoranda, declarations sent to Balkan and European governments giving historical and scientific arguments, VMRO insisted on the need for Macedonia to constitute a new state in the Balkans, pointing out that the Macedonian people, like other free peoples, has the right to self-determination within its own state.

In the period following the Ilinden Uprising, VMRO survived, despite the severe reprisals carried out by the Ottoman authorities. In the first months of 1904, VMRO supervised the laying of wide ideological and political foundations for the building of Macedonian statehood, preserving at the same time the independence of the movement for national liberation.

In the new conditions following the Iliden Uprising, the idea of Macedonian statehood was revealed in the conviction that "the masses (the Macedonian people) should not rely on the possibility that Bulgaria or any other country might come and liberate them ". At the same time the future of Macedonia w defined as that of a state with independent status within a Balkan federation. These assumptions were also founded on the condemnation of attempts by Balkan States to divide Macedonia into spheres of interest and influence, and to partition its territory. The programmatic documents of VMRO, agreed on at the General Congress held in the Rila Monastery in 1905, contain the ideological, political and statutory grounds for the establishment of a new, de facto, Macedonian state. That is to say, it was agreed, as the basic premise, that, under the existing conditions of foreign sovereignty over the state, the Organization should constitute its organs and institutions as a state within a state.

The kernel of the future Macedonian state was still the local revolutionary committees of VMRO (both in the villages and in the towns), but it was necessary that they develop and hold authority in local self-government . The Constitution of the Organization separated the existing legal commissions from the local revolutionary committees, as independent for the hearing of court cases brought by the population.

In drawing up regulations for the state, the Organization assigned concrete functions to its political organs for the exercise of authority. Thus, the General Congress constituted itself as the leading legal body, with the right to pass binding regulations and legal acts valid throughout the territory. It was declared the court of last resort with the right to grant pardons and amnesties. At the same time, a number of principles of judicial procedure were defined. It was pointed out that, in the course of their work, the courts should be guided by a revolutionary consciousness, local common law, scrupulousness, equity and agreement between litigants.

After the revolution of the Young Turks, the idea of a Macedonian state was also incorporated into the program of the newly-created People's Federal Party . This states that the structure of Turkey as such should be founded on the principles of recognition of a people's sovereignty, consolidation of the parliamentary system, election by the people of a government responsible to the people, and recognition of universal, proportional, secret and direct suffrage.

The idea of a Macedonian polity and state demanded that equality of nations and minorities be established and that privileges based on nation, class, station and religion be abolished. In insisting on the democratization of social and political life and on a constitutional and parliamentary system, the separation of church and state was sought. Thus, religious and educational matters should be in the hands of religious and educational institutions, under the supervision of elected representatives of the Macedonian people.

At this stage, there was a modification of the thesis of an independent Macedonian state within a Balkan federation. In the new situation created by the introduction of the parliamentary system, four Macedonians were elected to the Turkish Parliament, and a concept of state and judiciary was built on the legal premise that Turkey should be reorganized as self- governing territorial units, beginning with recognition of a federal structure. On the basis of this concept the Organization believed that Macedonia would acquire the status of a federal unit, and, as such, would have precisely defined responsibilities and authority, as would the central organs, i.e. the organs of the federation.

However, the establishment of a constitutional system in Turkey and changes in constitutional law did not bring about any change in the position of Macedonia.

The further development of the idea of a Macedonian state was tied to the events which occurred after the declaration of the Balkan War against Turkey and the Second Balkan War between the allies, and continued up to the end of the First World War and the conclusion of the Treaty of Versailles, when the partition of Macedonia was confirmed.

At this stage in the development of the idea of a Macedonian state, different groups and individuals came forward with various programs, views and attitudes, all expressing the vital interests of the nation. Most prominent among them were the Macedonian colony in St. Petersburg, Russia, led by Dimitrija Chupovski, the Association of Macedonian Students in Switzerland, the temporary office of VMRO in Sofia, and the group of Macedonian Autonomists in Serbia led by Grigorie Hadzhitashkovic.

All these representatives of the Macedonian people shared the idea of preserving the territorial integrity of Macedonia. Fighting against its partition, they appealed in their programmatic declarations to the international community to recognize the right of Macedonians to self-determination and the creation of their own state. They insisted that the Macedonian state should become a federal unit within a Balkan federation, and provided a political and legal conception for the proposed federation.

The autonomy, i.e. the independence, of Macedonia is viewed within the framework of a Balkan federation. The independent existence of Macedonia requires the elimination and extinction of the rivalry between Balkan states over the partition of Macedonia. According to the proponents of this idea, if the existence of one Balkan state excludes the existence of another, this brings about discord and strife between the Balkan peoples. They point out that the Pan-Hellenic idea excludes the idea of a Greater Bulgaria, and each excludes the idea of a Greater Serbia.

In order to eradicate the origins of discord, the proponents of this idea put their faith in a federal Balkan state consisting of an Balkan peoples, which would be able to ensure peaceful co-existence and progress.

Such a constitutional position for Macedonia would enable Macedonia to serve as a unifying link between the Balkan states. In this way they would meet, not with weapons in their hands, but otherwise, and thus Macedonia would contribute to the founding of a Balkan confederation.

References

1. Ortakovski, Vladimir, Minorities in the Balkans, Transnational Publishers, Shtip, 2001; p.41
2. Macedonia and Its Relations With Greece, Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Skopje, 1993; p.49-50
3. Ibid.; p.50
4. Danforth, Loring M., The Macedonian Conflict, New Jersey, Princeton University Press, 1995; p.50-51
5. Macedonia and Its Relations With Greece, Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Skopje, 1993; p.53-57

© Copyright Macedonia for the Macedonians
Created and maintained by Bill Nicholov