For the Macedonian people, as for neighbouring peoples in the
Balkans. the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century were
full of armed insurrections aimed at the overthrow of Osmanli
political domination. and the formation of national states. The
first
wave of insurrections (1804-1830) washed over Serbia, Greece and
Romania, and the second over Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria,
Macedonia and Albania (1876-1889).
The Macedonians, organized
for the first time, took up arms in
the Razlovci Uprising of May 1876. This rebellion was autochthonous
and short-lived, but had clear national and political goals: it was
planned to spread and intensify the rebellion in order to bring about
the diplomatic intervention of Europe on Macedonia's behalf.
The
character of the rebellion was revealed in the symbols on the rebels'
flag: a figure of a lion rampant on a red ground, above the motto
"Rise up that I might liberate you, Macedonia".
The second uprising (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 beyond 1876
right up to the end of the RussoTurkish 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) of 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 repercussions in western Macedonia in
the
area between Bitola, Ohrid and Kichevo, in the Prespa region, the
vicinity of Kostur, etc.
The Osmanli reaction was
brutal; many people were imprisoned,
and even more were exiled, mainly to Bulgaria, Serbia and Romania.
This was a heavy blow, especially to the intelligentsia (teachers and
priests), popular leaders and Macedonian patriots. 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.