Which Came First - Tito's Macedonians or Pulevski's Macedonians?

[Karposh]

It’s funny to witness how the Greek view on Macedonian identity has evolved over the last 20 or so years since Macedonian independence. Back in 1992, when Greeks had just about reached a crescendo to their outrage, their propaganda wheels were working overtime flooding the newspapers with full page ads in which they tried their best to inform the uninformed and disinterested public at large about the reasons for their outrage. They explained how this artificial, Comintern inspired Yugoslav nationality of so-called Macedonians was invented by Tito after WWII with the ultimate, and not so hidden, agenda of annexing the northern Greek port city of Thessaloniki in order to get access to the Aegean Sea. That, in a nutshell, was their argument and they stuck to it.

These days, they more or less accept the fact that maybe there was such a thing as a Macedonian identity before Tito. Otherwise it would be hard to explain Krste Misirkov and his book “On Macedonian Matters”, IMRO and all the old revolutionaries that fought for a free and independent Macedonia. In light of this, the tactics have changed somewhat. The new strategy now is to ride the coattails of the Bulgarians and portray everything that is Macedonian from the 19th Century, which is impossible to pass off as Greek, as Bulgarian. The existence of a Macedonian intelligentsia during the 19th Century that advocated for Macedonian autonomy and self determination is sometimes explained with a “handful of Bulgarian traitors” who colluded together to invent a new nation.

Greeks today find comfort in the fact that Bulgaria is inadvertently helping their own Greek cause by claiming the struggles of the Macedonian people during the 19th Century for self determination as Bulgarian in nature. The reasoning being that when Macedonians fought for an independent Macedonia they did so, not as ethnic Macedonian patriots but as Bulgarians with a strong sense of “regional” Macedonian identity. As a consequence, many of Macedonia’s 19th Century beacons of Macedonian nationhood have been tainted with Bulgarian stains.

Yet even Greeks and Bulgarians would be hard pressed to paint a Bulgarian portrait of the tough old Macedonian from Galichnik, with a warrior’s heart, Georgi Pulevski. This was a man who spent his whole life fighting for Macedonia’s freedom. And he didn’t particularly care whose army he fought under so long as he got the chance to fight Macedonia’s oppressors, the Ottoman Turks. Besides being a fearless warrior in defence of his beloved Macedonia and Macedonian nation, he was also literate and could express his thoughts as a poet, writer and an intellectual. In 1875, when he was quite old, while those “handful of Bulgarian traitors” were still toddlers or not even born yet, he published his “Dictionary of Three Languages”, one of which was Macedonian, in which he made a number of statements that the linguist H.G. Lunt considers “cannot possibly reflect a feeling of Bulgarian nationality”. This is Pulevski’s idea of what a nation is:

“A nation is called people who are of one kind and who speak the same language and who live and associate with one another and who have the same customs and songs and celebrations – these people are called a nation, and the place in which they live is called the fatherland of that nation. So too the Macedonians are a nation, and this place of theirs is Macedonia”.

Whether biased or impartial, you would have to agree, it would be pretty damn hard to stick a Bulgarian label on Pulevski with quotes such as these. Incidentally, Pulevski considered the modern Macedonians to be direct descendants of the ancient Macedonians. Much of his poetry praises the Macedonians’ fearless fighting spirit and actually credits it to their ancestors Philip, Alexander and the ancient Macedonians. Clearly, Georgi Pulevski was a Macedonian through and through, and an ethnic one at that, not just a regional one.

From the Mijak village of Galichnik in the far western reaches of Macedonia to the Nevrokop village of T’rlis in the far eastern reaches of Macedonia, another unblemished Macedonian made his mark that can in no way be tarnished by a Bulgarian paintbrush. His name was Theodosius Gologanov, who went on to become the Exarchate Metropolitan of Skopje. Gologanov actively promoted Macedonian ecclesiastical independence from within the ranks of the Bulgarian Exarchate. I won’t get into his historical biography suffice to say that he appointed like-minded Macedonians to positions of authority, advocated for the adoption of the Macedonian language as the official language of the Macedonians and the restoration of the Archbishopric of Ohrid as the national church of the Macedonians.

Gologanov confronted Ottoman authorities, arguing for the closure of foreign operated schools. “There are no Greeks, Serbs or Bulgarians in Macedonia, he argued. The country is inhabited by Macedonians, who are ethnically distinct from the other three Balkan peoples”.

He expressed his views in a letter to Archimandrite Dionysius in Sofia, another Macedonian (from Strumica) who shared Gologanov’s views. Among the grievances which he expressed, he also added: “We the Macedonians do not suffer as much from the Turks…as by the Greeks, the Bulgarians and the Serbs, who have set upon us like vultures upon a carcass in this tortured land and want to split it up”.

Macedonians today often find themselves having to justify to their Greek adversaries that they did not wake up one day and decide to become Macedonians. Despite the relentless propaganda by their Balkan neighbours, they are Macedonians because their parents were Macedonians and their parents’ parents were Macedonians and so on and so on for, God only knows, how many generations. In the same way, Georgi Pulevski and Theodosius Gologanov did not wake up one day and decide they would be Macedonians from that day forth. They understood themselves to be Macedonians because that is what their folks told him them they were. Surely, it would not be a stretch of the imagination to presume that Pulevski’s and Gologanov’s sense of Macedonian nationhood was also shared by their co-villagers from Galichnik and T’rlis, the whole Mijak and Nevrokop regions and further beyond in Macedonia.

Just a final thought, as far as I know, these two never met in life and so couldn’t possibly be accused of colluding together to invent a new nation. They were from opposite ends of Macedonia and proudly asserted their ethnic Macedonian identity independently.

[Risto the Great]

Tito created Yugoslavians. Not Macedonians.

[Karposh]

Yes, you and I both know that Risto. The title of the thread was aimed at Greeks and other negators of Macedonian identity. I hope the sarcasm wasn't lost on you.

[Soldier of Macedon]

Hi Karposh, good article. It looks a bit familiar, did you write this or obtain it from a source?

[Risto the Great]

Yes, you and I both know that Risto. The title of the thread was aimed at Greeks and other negators of Macedonian identity. I hope the sarcasm wasn't lost on you.

Nah, not at all.
It was enjoyable. Sorry if you thought otherwise.

[George S.]

Karposh avery amusing article.

[Karposh]

Nah, not at all.
It was enjoyable. Sorry if you thought otherwise.

Pogreshno te sfativ. Se izvinuvam brat. Malo nedorazbiranje, nishto. It's all good

[Karposh]

Hi Karposh, good article. It looks a bit familiar, did you write this or obtain it from a source?

I have always revered these two pillars of our recent history. As I mentioned, many of our Macedonian heroes have been stained by Bulgarian stains but these two stand alone. There is nothing ambiguous about there declarations and self identification as Macedonians. They were Macedonians and nothing else. Not regional Macedonians, not Bulgarian Macedonians...Just Macedonians.

I'm flattered if the article is similar to something you have read. It means there are more of us who think alike. The article is mine but the details regarding Pulevski and Gologanov I had to source for the sake of credibility.

[Karposh]

Slednava statija bi sakal na makedonski da ja izrazam. Na prv pogled, od ona shto go kazhav prethodno, izgleda kako da se otkazhuvam od makedonskite dejci od 19-tiot vek. Koga zboruvam za nekakva si bugarska vapsa vrz tie dejci, namerata ne mi e da gi stavam nivnite makedonski nacionalni chuvstva vo prashanje. Naprotiv, sakam kako svesni i ne iskomplecirani Makedonci da bidime otvoreni za razgovor na site temi shto se odnesuvaat na makedonskata samobitnost. Pa makar da se tie temi i malku chuvstvitelni, duri i tabu-temi.

Nekoj mozhi opravdano ke rechi vakvite razgovori mu odat vo prilog na bugarite. Ali ova ne e neshto novo. Neprijatelite i predavnicite na Makedonija odamna gi otvorija ovie temi, od tipot na Ljubcho Georgievski. Od druga strana, iskrejno da kazham, ne me interesira shto mislat dushmanite. Ovaa e nasha internet stranica za nashite interesi i ne treba da gi preskoknuvame ovie otvoreni temi.

Koga sum veke kaj predavnikot Ljubcho, nekoi od negovite izjavi shto gi ima dadeno se zachuduvachki. A ushte pozachuduvachki e shto nikoj ne go predizvika za tie izjavi. Edna negova izjava shto imav prilika da ja vidam i chujam na YouTube, shto mnogu me voznemiri, e deka starite vmrovci gi sudele na smrt site koj ke govorele deka se potomci na antichkite Makedonci. Se chudam, od kade gi zema ovie podatoci ovoj izdajnik. Neli Nikola Karev, kako primer broj eden, ne izjavil vo intervjuto za grchkiot vesnik “Akropolis” vo Bitola deka se smetal sebesi za Makedonec, direkten potomok na antichkite Makedonci? Neli preambulata na “Pravilata na Makedonskiot Vostanichki Komitet od 1878”, za vreme na Kresnenskot-Razloshkoto Vostanie, ne ja spomnuva vojskata na Aleksandar Makedonski?

Jas lichno mislam, i ubeden sum, deka nashite dejci od 19-tiot vek, kako shto se Goce Delchev, Jane Sandanski, Gjorche Petrov, Dame Gruev i drugi, bea sfesni kako Makedonci. Nivnite izjavi zboruvaat, ne samo za slobodata na makedonskata zemja tuku i za makedonskiot narod. Zboruvaat za makedonska nacija razlichna od bugarskata pa zatoa ne se soglasuvam so bugarskoto tvrdenje deka “makedonski narod” tie go smetale za celokupnoto naselenije vo Makedonija, vkluchuvajkigi i drugite nacionalnosti. No sepak, kako shto ke kazhat nashite komshii od Trakija, postojat izjavi vo koi se deklarirale za bugari.

Ajde da rechime deka ne se falsifikati ovie izjavi i da gi prifatime za tochni. Koga veke znaeme deka ne idi vo prashanje nivnoto chuvstvo za etnichki Makedonci, togash mozhebi treba da se prashame shto vo sushtina znachel zborot “bugarin” vo toa vreme. Nekoi od nashite nauchnici tvrdat deka zborot “bugarin” vo tie vreminja ne nosel etnichki konotacii. Naselenieto na golem del od deneshna Bugarija i Makedonija go razbirale zborot “bugarin” za pravoslaven sloven. Za dokaz se posochuva i primerot so ruskiot tsar. Ruskiot tsar, kako shto naveduvaat nashite nauchnici, golem del od balkanskoto naselenije go smetale za bugarski tsar zatoa shto bil pravoslaven sloven. Ova za mene pretstavuva realna i svesna mozhnost.

Od druga gledna tochka, makedonskite revolucioneri vo toa vreme se borele vo razni predizvikuvachki okolnosti. Pa se snajduvale kako shto ke najdele. Tie ja manipuliraa bugarskata javnost za nivni celi. Koga se reshija bugarite da ja premestat nivnata prestolnina od Veliko Trnovo vo Sofija, toa mu ojde vo prilog i korist na makedonskite revolucioneri. Sofija, glavniot grad na Bugarija se pretvori vo bezbedno gnezdo makedonsko. Koga imeto makedonsko bilo brisheno i zabraneto vo drugite balkanski drzhavi, bugarite ne go osporuvale toa ime. Makedoncite imale kakva-takva podrshka od bugarite, no pod eden vazhen uslov - da se raboti za vklopuvanje na Makedonija vo Bugarija, shto ne bila krajna cel na makedoncite.

Ne treba da se zaboravi deka Makedonija vo toa vreme bila siromashna i robska zemja bez uslovi za vo-oruzhuvanje. Makedoncite imale neiscrpliva hrabrost no nemale dovolno oruzhje. Toa oruzhje moralo da se nabavi od nekade pa ako mozhelo da se izkoristi Bugarija, zoshto da ne.

Na krajot, ovie se moi lichni stavovi kako shto jas lichno gi gledam. Ako ima nekoj porazlichno mislenje, mu preporachuvam neka go izrazi slobodno tuka. Se nadevam deka ima mesto ovde za razlichni pogledi i stavovi da se izrazat.

[Karposh]

I started this thread by singling out Georgi Pulevski and Theodosius Gologanov as two Macedonians who were in no doubt as to their own national identity. My intention was to seek out Macedonians who were born in the early half of the 19th Century who identified as Macedonians and nothing else but Macedonians. Like I mentioned in my earlier post, an argument that is often used to diminish the significance of a very apparent Macedonian identity that existed during the 19th Century is the old chestnut of “a handful of Bulgarian traitors who colluded together during the second half of the 19th Century to invent a new nation”. This argument, however, falls flat when you consider that there were people who self identified as Macedonians long before these so called conspirators were even born.

I’d like to add one more name to the list that I just recently became aware of. His name is Aleksa Popov from the Prilep village of Varosh. Aleksa was born in 1809 and died in 1912 at the ripe old age of 103. I have put him in the company of Pulevski and Gologanov due to his unambiguous pro-Macedonian stance during his lifetime. He was a teacher and an orthodox priest who, like Gologanov, served under the Bulgarian Exarchate Church. And, like Gologanov, Aleksa was a Macedonian activist who fought to introduce the Macedonian language in his liturgies. Aleksa is most notable for striving to establish a Macedonian school, even petitioning the Turkish Sultan Abdul Hamid to that end.

He conducted his church liturgies and services in the Macedonian language and continued doing so even after he was directly prohibited by his Exarchate superiors, who demanded that he use Bulgarian. He is perhaps best known for his petition to the Turkish authorities in 1887 for the establishment of a Macedonian school and church, which he composed and signed as the main signatory together with co-signatories from Prilep. I have translated it below:

“Proclamation”
We, the undersigned from the town of Prilep, loyal subjects of his Imperial Majesty, the Augustan Sultan Abdul Hamid II, wish to have a Macedonian national school. As we are not Bulgarians by birth, we do not recognize their church council and their schools. As religious patron we recognize the pope, however, without changes to the dogma of the Orthodox Church.
2nd July 1887
Prilep

This is a historical document of some significance for Macedonians as it is proof positive of the existence of a distinct Macedonian ethnic identity during the 19th Century with no associated baggage or adjectives attached to it. I’m surprised I had never heard of Aleksa Popov until very recently. I stumbled onto his biography on Macedonian Wikipedia. There is no English language version of it but it is mentioned on Bulgarian Wikipedia. By all accounts it is an authentic document which is not disputed as a forgery by Bulgarian Wikipedia. The explanation they have for Aleksa is that he was an early “Macedonist” (as opposed to a Macedonian).

I love how Bulgarians try to demonise anyone with a clear-cut Macedonian self awareness as “Macedonists”, as if to say they belong to some heretic sect that needs to be purged out of existence.

A common theme now begins to appear. The common message of all three of these individuals, Pulevski, Gologanov and Aleksa Popov was the same. It was more or less directed at Macedonia’s neighbours and simply said “Bugger off and leave us in peace to live as free and independent Macedonians.”

Also, my argument in my earlier post that Macedonians owe their identity to their parents is now getting stronger. From the far western reaches of Macedonia to the far eastern reaches of Macedonia to straight-bang in the middle of Macedonia, in the Prilep village of Varosh – another Macedonian proudly asserts his identity and stands up in defence of his nation’s right to be Macedonian for the whole world to hear.

You can see where I’m going with this. When you follow the logic that a people’s sense of identity is passed down to them from their parents, and very rarely invented or decreed, then we are no longer just entertaining the idea of a Macedonian identity that appeared for the first time in the 19th Century, as a relatively recent and freakish new phenomenon, that happened to suddenly come about with the aid of a few conspirators. We are now talking about a Macedonian identity that would have, in accordance with the laws of perpetuation, been around certainly during the 18th Century (i.e. 1700’s) and, no doubt, much earlier.

Back in 1809, when the proud parents of the newly born Aleksa Popov welcomed him into the world, they would have instilled in him a strong sense of Macedonian identity very early in his life for him to take up the cause of Macedonian emancipation from Bulgarian national oppression. He did this in a fearless and determined manner, despite coming at a great personal cost to himself and his family. His own son and grandson, who were also priests, were murdered to get him to cease his pro-Macedonian ways. It didn’t deter him, however. Aleksa remained a Macedonian right up until the day that he died (lesna da mu bidi zemjata).

If I’m not mistaken, the oldest written document that refers to the modern Macedonian nation is the letter that Leopold I of Austria issued on 26th April 1690, approximately 5 months after the failed Karposh Uprising, where the “Macedonian people” are specifically mentioned and where he declared Macedonia and her people under his protection. Apparently, Leopold acted on the advice of the Macedonians Marko Krajda of Kozhani and Dimitri Georgija Popovich of Salonica. Among other things, the letter stated that “we graciously accept the Macedonian people, in its entirety in every respect, under our imperial and regal protection.” Similar letters were issued to Bulgaria, Serbia and Albania, extending Austria’s protection of these lands as well. Unfortunately, Leopold never managed to back up his well-meaning gestures and Macedonia continued to be under strict Ottoman control.

I think many will agree that there is a commonly held misconception out there that the inhabitants of Macedonia during the Ottoman occupation did not have any particular established sense of identity and that they couldn’t care less if they were labelled Greeks, Bulgarians or Serbs. The picture we often get is that of illiterate and ignorant peasants who were happy to go about their everyday life without drawing attention to themselves by asserting their identity as being one way or the other.

The Bulgarian label given to Macedonians of the 19th Century should be taken for what it is, opportunistic propaganda, in a sinister attempt to denationalise a whole people. “Opportunistic” is actually a very apt word to describe the disgraceful behaviour of the nations that surrounded Macedonia during that time. There’s a good reason why Macedonians often use the metaphor of wolves and vultures to describe their neighbours' conduct during this time. Because that is exactly how they behaved, opportunistic vultures circling over the vulnerable and poorly armed Macedonians, just waiting for their chance to swoop down on them. Their propaganda may have achieved its purpose in denationalising some Macedonians by transforming them into Bulgarians, Greeks and Serbs but, sadly, for our immoral Balkan neighbours, it was not enough to wipe Macedonia off the map. We, the true Macedonians and custodians of the Macedonian name, land and history are still around and we’re here to stay until God decides otherwise.

I actually feel sorry for all those countless Macedonians that succumbed to the propaganda of Macedonia’s neighbours over the last century and a half. As Jesus once said, “forgive them father for they know not what they do”. And it really is like that. It’s not their fault. It would be easy to label them as traitors but I just can’t bring myself to do that.

I have no such pity, however, for some of Macedonia’s more notorious traitors. Most countries have them and Macedonia is no different. Thanks to the 150 years of incessant propaganda by Greeks, Bulgarians and Serbs, Macedonia has had more than her share of traitors as well. To name a few, off the top of my head: there is Ivan Mihailov, a Bulgarian sell-out; Konstantinos Christou (Konstantin Hristov Sarovski from Rulja), a Greek sell-out; Jovan Babunski, a Serb sell-out; and so on and so on. To compile a comprehensive list of Macedonia’s traitors would require hundreds of pages of wasted time and effort. They can all burn in hell as far as I’m concerned. More recently, we have the example of another unashamed Bulgarian sell-out, the Macedonian Judas, Ljubcho Georgievski.

Yet, on the bright side, no-one should ever overlook the fact that, for every Macedonian traitor, mother Macedonia gives birth to hundreds more loyal Macedonian sons and daughters.

[DraganOfStip]

Great find Karposh.
Is there a copy of this Proclamation online?
Or is the original kept anywhere?
It seems like a very important document and it would be a shame if we couldn't obtain it here.

[Amphipolis]

Yet even Greeks and Bulgarians would be hard pressed to paint a Bulgarian portrait of the tough old Macedonian from Galichnik, with a warrior’s heart, Georgi Pulevski.

From the Mijak village of Galichnik in the far western reaches of Macedonia to the Nevrokop village of T’rlis in the far eastern reaches of Macedonia, another unblemished Macedonian made his mark that can in no way be tarnished by a Bulgarian paintbrush.

Is it really difficult to paint a Bulgarian portrait? Take a look at this.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgi_Pulevski

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodosius_of_Skopje

You seem to have missed some parts of their biographies.

[Karposh]

Great find Karposh.
Is there a copy of this Proclamation online?
Or is the original kept anywhere?
It seems like a very important document and it would be a shame if we couldn't obtain it here.

I’m really not sure. The proclamation itself isn’t referenced on Macedonian Wikipedia, which raised my suspicions at first but then I crossed referenced the same document on Bulgarian Wikipedia and they didn’t seem to have a problem with it, which leads me to believe that it is genuine. After all, it’s not in Bulgaria’s interest not to dispute the document’s authenticity, regardless of what they really believe. They seem to throw mud on everything else Macedonian, so why not in this case? Don’t know.

I’ll pass on the same challenge. If anyone knows where this document is kept, please let us know.

[Karposh]

Is it really difficult to paint a Bulgarian portrait? Take a look at this.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgi_Pulevski

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodosius_of_Skopje

You seem to have missed some parts of their biographies.

Hi Amphipolis,

Yes, I am aware of the inconsistencies that English language Wikipedia articles point out on Pulevski and Gologanov. Firstly, don’t put too much emphasis on Wikipedia about anything Macedonian. I don’t need to tell you, it pretty much takes the Bulgarian point of view on all things Macedonian. It generally adheres to the “delusional Macedonists with split personalities” view on 19th Century Macedonian activists. Don’t forget, Wikipedia is hardly a reputable Encyclopaedia. It is a useful tool to get basic and quick info on points of interest but, more than that, and you’re taking a big risk. I’m sure you’ll agree, it is exposed to bias and must be taken with a grain of salt.

Without trying to patronise you, you seem like an intelligent person who knows how the real world works. Let’s start with Gologanov. He was not a citizen of a “Macedonia”. As much as he, and thousands like him dreamed of belonging to a united and independent Macedonia, that was not the reality. The reality was that, during the early 1900’s, he was a citizen of Bulgaria whose internal and external policy was to annex Macedonia, which it considered rightly hers. Any talk of a separate Macedonian identity did not go down well, as you can imagine. This was made worse after the second Balkan war, where an aggressively nationalistic Bulgaria was licking her wounds after having lost most of Macedonia to her former allies. I can confidently tell you, Bulgaria would not have taken too kindly to someone like Gologanov going against Bulgaria’s interests and espousing a separate Macedonian identity at a time when emotions were running high about the recently lost “Bulgarian lands” and the death of hundreds of thousands of men in vain.

Alexa Popov had two generations of his immediate family wiped out in order to shut him up, and he was a citizen of Ottoman Turkey at the time. What do you suppose Bulgarian authorities of 1913 Bulgaria would have told Gologanov, an Exarchate theologian, if he continued to go about his pro-Macedonian ways unabated? There was no Republic of Macedonia at the time for him to defect into, only “Southern Serbia”, or “Vardarska Banovina”, as your countrymen will eagerly point out. Bulgaria was the devil he knew and it was better than the one he didn’t know. I will stake my right arm that whatever he told the Bulgarians, which Wikipedia now points to as dubious self identification, he did not do willingly. Sure, he could have died for his cause, like others before him, but he knew he still had much to offer the Macedonian movement.

As for Pulevski, Wikipedia in fact has nothing Bulgarian on him. Try as it may to cast a Bulgarian shadow on Pulevski, it is flogging a dead horse. Again, Pulevski, lived out the final years of his life in Bulgaria along with hundreds of thousands of other Macedonians that escaped the recent Balkan wars. As you know, Bulgarian is similar to Macedonian, more so than Serbian, so if he expressed the idea that the Bulgarians were a “brotherly” nation, how does that negate his views on Macedonian individualism? It doesn’t. It’s just Wikipedia fishing for something that isn’t there.

Let me give you the example of the Bulgarian parliamentarian, Dimitar Blagoev (1856 – 1924). Blagoev was an ethnic Macedonian from the village of Zagorichani in the Kostur region and courageously self identified as such. Gorna Djumaja is now named after him – Blagoevgrad. You would think Wikipedia would respect this personal conviction and declaration of being ethnically different from the Bulgarians. But no, Wikipedia seems to know better, “he occasionally identified as a Macedonian Slav.”

I have singled out one Blagoev quote, in particular, which he made in a heated session of parliament where they were discussing Bulgaria’s participation in the Balkan Wars and WW1:

“I was born in Zagorichani, however I am not a Bulgarian, I am a Macedonian, a Macedonian Slav!...And, as such, if you really want to know, I am for a Macedonia as a Slavic land which will have its own government”.

Amphipolis, whether you choose to believe it or not, there was such a thing as a Macedonian identity during the 1800’s. Don’t take my word for it. Look at the evidence, its right there in front of you, if you choose to see it. Don’t buy into propaganda, whatever direction it may come from, which aims to denationalise Macedonians and show them in an ethnically ambiguous light to the rest of the world.

[makedonche]

I finally worked out the answer to the thread heading.....Macedonians came before Tito & Pulevski!