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    Macedonia Above all - Part 3‏














    risto stefov


    23/06/2013








    To: ;






    Picture of risto stefov



















    Macedonia Above all – Part 3



    By Stoian Georgiev Tomovichin

    Translated and Edited by Risto Stefov

    [email protected]

    June 23, 2013



    Naturally I was not pleased with either of Vapcharov’s answers so I walked out of the lecture hall. I then immediately began to fashion an etching on a stamp with the word “Macedonia”. I worked for three nights with a knife, a needle and a number of other tools to create the stamp. I then placed blotting paper moistened with ink in a shoe box and began to stamp the word “Macedonia” on thousands of pieces of paper.



    One word and a young conspirator kept the entire police force in the Blagoevgrad District busy and tense for the next two months. This went on until the dreaded Wednesday, November 26, 1956 when, at the entrance of our high school, my friend Toma and I were detained by two state security agents. I will tell you about this later.



    When I was in the ninth grade in high school I was introduced to a dark eyed girl, not very pretty, but who spoke so sweetly that it felt like honey flowed from her mouth. It was not anything in particular that she talked about but whatever it was, in me a 15-16 year-old boy, she awakened a sense of idealism for which I gave it my all. Unfortunately the girl found another friend and I was left disappointed.



    In 1954 I attended grade nine with a boy named Liupcho Rupanov. He lived in my neighbourhood and was very weak in math.



    I don’t know how he managed but Liupcho completed grade nine. I on the other hand, who had much higher marks and an “A” in most subjects, did not make it! Why? I suspected because I was Macedonian! This was my first time coming into collision with the “Bulgarian way” and from then on I began my long and hard route to Macedonia.



    My grade nine Bulgarian language class was taught by a lady teacher from Sofia who went by the last name Georgieva. I don’t know why but we, her students, among ourselves called her “the Goat”. She did not like me at all because I would not make the effort to speak literary Bulgarian. When I was asked a question I replied in the same language that I spoke at home. I refused to speak any differently. I preferred using Petrich words and expressions; the kind we used at home. Unfortunately that made her even madder and she did not hesitate to take her anger out on me.



    What made her especially angry was when I intentionally said, “Madam this is the Macedonian language that I am speaking!”



    But for the “Macedonian language” that I demonstrated in front of her, she failed me and I lost my entire year of school. I was very embittered by it, especially since I was one of the top students in my class and no one was better or faster in doing their school work than me.



    Because I always helped my classmate Liupcho with his work, my classmates began to tease me saying: “The student made it into to the next grade while the teacher failed and will have to repeat grade nine.” I was called “the teacher” because I helped Liupcho with his math.



    I lost a year and it caused me a lot of grief, especially the next year when I had to repeat grade nine. I went to school without any interest, despondent and with low morale.



    I now realize that I was embittered for nothing for the one year I lost. What I lost afterwards for insisting on being a Macedonian and struggling for our Macedonian independence, was ten times worse, more significant and more frightening!



    I caught up with Liupcho in grade ten and we again began to go to and from school together. That was in 1955 when we were both in our teen years and nearly every evening took the opportunity to go for a walk. In those days it was fashionable for two or three people to walk together. We walked from the restaurant “Iavorite” (maples) which we then called “Parkot” (Park) to the Petrich town square. The place was busy and there were unbroken rows of people flowing uninterrupted in both directions. If you ever wanted to meet someone, chances were you would find them there walking.



    Both Liupcho and I became interested in two girls from the eighth grade in our high school. Their names were Velichka and Vaska. Both lived in our neighborhood so, for the next 3 to 4 months, we looked for ways to meet them and talk to them. The winter was very cold and we spent many cold days gathering courage until one day we finally managed to talk to them.



    It was May 1956 and nature was already decorated with colorful flowers. The hills of Petrich Mountain were loud with the chorus of bird’s songs, many wonderful melodies competing; one bird attempting to out sing another, trying to prove its love or wanting to be loved. Amidst the many bird’s songs stood the song of the nightingale with that sweet, stretched out lovely melody “piu-piu-pii-piu-piu-pii.”



    In spite of the great intellectual opportunities presented to us, no one as of yet has been able to solve the mystery of the bird’s song, to be able to translate it and describe what that chirping magic means. It is well known that birds have their own way of communicating, but what are they saying?



    The spring aroma of the blooming grasses, the blossoming flowers attracts thousands of bees that constantly fly from flower to flower, tirelessly guided by instinct that they need to collect nectar for their offspring, not realizing that after forty days of living in this crazy game they leave this world without ever returning.



    And in that wild frenzy of a living nature, in the middle of the cool and fresh Balkan air, I and “my” Velichka were slowly climbing up “Love lane” beside the hunter’s house. Finally after several months of fruitless chasing “our” girls, they finally came to the realization that Liupcho and I were serious boys worthy of their attention.



    I asked Velichka: “Tell me Velichka, why did you avoid us for so long and never once stop and talk to me?”



    And she said: “Well, because I am still very young.”



    Indeed, she was only fourteen years old, a fragile, gentle little girl of medium build. But that did not matter to me because I wanted to have a friend for the future, someone I could enjoy being with and talking to. That is why I tried so many times to talk to her.



    “Velichka,” I said to her seriously, “did you not see that all winter I was trying to meet you? Every time I passed by your house I looked at your window in hopes of seeing you.”



    She lived only about 400 to 500 metres away from my house and the shortest route to my high school, which I took twice daily, was past her house on “Kiril and Metodi” Street. Every time I walked by her house, she stood at the window. So every day she met and intercepted my look until we finally met face to face that spring day.



    As I spoke she bowed her head and listened in silence while gently digging at the soft moist soil with her foot. We stood alone on “Love lane” near some bushes. Finally, encouraged by her silence, I said: “Velichka, I can’t sleep at night because I think about you all the time”.



    She looked at me with her shy eyes and quietly said: “I can’t sleep either.”



    When I heard those words the entire world began to spin around me. I heard what she said but at the same time I could not believe that it was true. I looked at her with a stunned look on my face for about 20 to 30 seconds until finally, instinctively, I grabbed her by the arms and gave her a long passionate kiss on her hot lips.



    That was one of the happiest moments in my life because it was the first kiss I had exchanged with a girl.



    A great love began that day which would have been the envy of many. We found a quiet place near “Love lane” and saw each other and enjoyed our mutual love every day. We went to the cinema together. When they took us to “labour day” activities, be it harvesting chestnuts in Belasitsa or picking cotton in the fields, regardless of the different classes we attended, Velichka and I were always together. I felt really happy because our love was mutual, full and lasting. She truly believed in my feelings and hoped to become mine one day. We both felt like crying out of love. We used to say to each other: “Only death can separate us.” But as people often say, “Too much good is not good!”



    So our love did not end well. About six months after our first meeting we were forcibly taken apart for an indefinite period of time, during which each of us lived on our own. It was a time when I fell in love with both Velichka and mother Macedonia! I had already made a stamp with the word “Macedonia” and had stamped thousands of pieces of paper and spread them all throughout the city Petrich and its surroundings.



    I believed that there was reason for a man to live. I, along with my friend Toma, was devoted to our secret activities. It was the fall of 1956 and we both were students in the eleventh grade. Besides Toma, Ivanov and three other students from my class had joined our “organization”. They were Zhivko Donkiev and Vasil Kantardzhiev both from Petrich and Veselin Palushev from the village Kapotovo, who to this day has not stopped loving mother Macedonia.



    Naturally I had Velichka, my first love involved in my secret deeds, who at the time was expected to embroider the flag of our next Macedonian revolution. Such was our youthful vigour and audacity. We all had sworn in the name of something sacred, but we did not know what that was, but we strongly wanted it to be something. We thought that in only a few nights we could organize thousands of Macedonians and like a bolt of lightning; we would strike and unite the three parts of Macedonia - Vardar, Pirin and Aegean!



    We began to look for “like-minded” people in “Gotse Delchev” High School in order to build our Macedonian youth organization with people from the territory of Petrich, which was unheard of before and which, like my first love, I will never forget.



    Then, on November 26, 1956, for the first time I fell into the paws of the State Security Services.



    After detaining us at the entrance of “P.K. Iavarov” High School, the State Security agents brought us to the Ministry of Internal Affairs Regional Administration office in Petrich. The Chief of Administration there was Captain Shakin - an extremely wild person with a hideous look. Perhaps that’s why he chose such a career. For the many times I met with that man, I never became comfortable around him. But he never laid a finger on me!



    I have met other chiefs like him, with higher and lower ranks, and in their eyes I found some warmth and, once in a while, I would even notice a smile. But never in this person! When you were in his grasp you felt like a mouse circled by a snake ready to strike.



    Following his orders the guards took me into a room where a stout, tall agent was waiting for me.



    He asked me my name, where I came from and why they had brought me here. I replied that I knew nothing about the case. He then began to search my pockets and when he found a crumpled piece of paper with the word “Macedonia” stamped on it, he cheerfully asked: “Where did you get this?” I said, “I found it on the street!”



    He continued to search my pockets, including those inside my school sweater where he found several pieces of paper with the word “Macedonia” stamped on them. He looked at me with a victorious look in his glossy eyes as a half-smile developed on his lips, a sign of satisfaction. “And whose are these?” he asked sternly.



    I took about 10 to 15 seconds to think about what to say, whether to lie or not? If I said they were not mine, then who put them in my pocket? My thoughts were moving at lightning speed looking for the best and most convincing answer to explain how the pieces of papers in his hand were not mine. Unfortunately the interrogator lost patience at my silence and once again yelled out: “Whose pieces of papers are these?!”







    МАКЕДОНИЈА НАД СЕ - 3



    Стојан Георгиев Томовичин



    Јас, природно, не бев задоволен од двата одговора, ја напуштив салата и веднаш се зафатив да правам од друго клише со натпис “Македонија”. За три ноќи, со нож, игла и друг прибор го изработив клишето, подготвив во кутија за обувки тампон од попивателна хартија, наквасена со мастило и започнав да отпечатувам илијади примероци со тој единствен збор “Македонија”.



    Еден збор и еден малечок конспиратор во текот на наредните два месеци ја држеа во напрегнатост целата милиција ба Благоевградскиот округ, додека не дојде оној ноемвриски ден, Среда, 26 Ноември 1956 година, кога пред влезот на нашата гимназија, мене и мојот пријател Томата, не задржаа двајца агенти од државната безбедност. Но, за тоа покасно.



    Кога бев во IX клас на гимназијата, се запознав со едно црнооко девојче, не многу симпатично, но зборуваше толку слатко, небаре мед се лееше од нејзината уста. Не, нешто кој знае што зборуваше, туку во мене под напонот на 15-16 годишната возраст, разбуди едно чуство за совршенство, за кое што се би дал. Но, девојчето веќе си беше нашло пријател и јас останав разочаран од неподелената љубов.



    Во 1954, во IX клас, учевме во една паралелка јас и едно момче од нашето маало. Се викаше Љупчо Рупанов, беше многу слаб ученик по математика.



    Било како било, Љупчо го заврши IX клас, а јас кој имав само три оценки среден (3), а останатите беа четворки и петки, зацапав и тоа зошто? За тоа што бев Македонец! Тука за прв пат се удрив со Бугарштината и од тогаш почна мојот трилив пат кон Македонија.



    Во IX клас Бугарски јазик ни придаваше софианка која се презиваше Георгиева. Незнам зашто, но ние учениците меѓу себе ја викавме “козата”. Таа госпоѓица многу се јадосуваше на мене зашто јас воопшто не се трудев да зборувам литературен Бугарски јазик. Кога раскажував урок, јас зборував како што си зборуваме дома. Редовно КЕ-КАВ, никогаш не ги употребував частиците “ШТЕ” и “ШЕ” за да изразам некоја глаголска форма за идно време.



    Употребував типични петрички изрази: бегајте, елајте, немојте, неќу, сакам, бендисувам, ујдисувам, ќе дом, ќе терам, ќе пишам и уште многу други изрази кои таа не можеше да ги разбере. А кога ќе и речев “Максус скапах муцката на брдако” таа просто побеснуваше.



    - Е другарке – и велев тогаш максус (намерно) - тоа е Македонски јазик.



    За тој Македонски јазик што го демонстрирав пред неа, јас ја изгубив целата година. Многу се јадосував за ради тоа, а особено што бев меѓу најдобрите ученици во класот, а по математика никој не можеше да ги решава задачите подобро и побрзо од мене.



    Соучениците ме зафркаваа: “Ученикот премина на X клас и учителот остана да го повтори IX клас”. “Учителот” бев јас зашто му помагав на Љупчо по математика.



    Загубив една година и толку многу тагував по неа, што следната године, кога го повторував IX – клас, одев на училиште без интерес, очаен и со спласнато настроение.



    Сега сфаќам дека напразно сум се јадосувал за таа загубена година, зашто она што потоа го загубив зареди докажувањето на нашата Македонска самобитност е десет пати поголемо, позначајно и пострашно!



    Во X клас одново се стигнавме со Љупчо и пак заедно одевме и се враќавме од училиште. Тоа беше во 1955 година. Веќе ергенчиња, скоро секоја вечер со Љупчо излегувавме на прошетка. Во тие години традиција беше шетањето по двајце или тројца. Од ресторанот “Јаворите” кого тогаш го викавме “Паркот” до плоштадот на градот Петрич, течеше непрекината редица од луѓе во двата правци, и ако сакаше некого да го сретниш, задолжитело бе го нашол тука, се разбира доколку тој беше излезен на прошетка.



    Двајцата со Љупчо почнавме да се интересираме за две ученички од осми клас на гимназијата во која и ние учевме. Се викаа Величка и Васка. И двете живееја во нашиот кварт. Во текот на наредните 3-4 месеци постојано баравме начин да ги сретниме и разговараме со нив. А зимата беше доста мразовита, и ние собравме доста студ додека најпосле успеавме да ги наговориме за разговор.



    Беше веќе Мај 1956 година, а природата целата се беше накитила со својата шарена цветна промена. Петричка планина се огласуваше од оној неповторлив птичиј хор, од оној прекрасен натревар, која птичка поубаво, по мелодично да го исполни својот утрешен репертоар, да ја докаже љубовта кон љубењиот или љубената. Среде многузвучното чурликање, ефектно се издвојуваше песната на славејот со она мило растегнато “пиу-пиу-пии-пиу-пиу-пии”.



    И покрај големите интелектуалци можности, човек сеуште не може да ја одгатне тајната на птичјиот говор, за да може да го опише волшебството на нивното чуруликање. А се знае дека тие имаат свој начин на комуницирање, но каков?



    А пролетната арома на расцутените треви, дахот на свежото и зеленото го впиваа душите на илјадите пчели кои непрестано летаа од цветче на цветче, одлетуваа и долетуваа неуморно, водени од инстиктот дека треба да соберат нектар за својте поколенија, не сфаќајќи дека во тој луд натпревар после четириесетина дена живеење, заминуват без поврат од овој свет.



    И во тој див кипеж на живата природа, среде ладот на свежиот Балкански воздух, јас и “мојата” Величка бавно се искачувавме по “Љубовните алеи” покрај ловечкиот дом. Најпосле по неколкумесечното бесплодно одење по “нашите” девојки, тие поверуваа дека и јас и Љупчо сме сериозни момчиња за да се поведе приближно следниот дијалог меѓу мене и Величка:



    - Кажи Величке, зошто толку долго време одбегнуваше да застанеш и разговараш со мене?



    - Па, затоа што мислам се уште сум малечка – рече таа.



    Навистина, со своите четиринаесет години таа беше едно кревко, нежно девојче кое штотуку се беше оформило како девојка со среден раст, но мене многу ми се допадна и јас сакав да ја имам како идна пријателка, затоа и толку многу настојував да разговараме.



    - Величе, не гледаш ли дека цела зима трчам по тебе? Цело време те барам да те видам на прозорецот, кога минувам покрај вас – реков јас сериозно.



    Таа живееше на 400-500 метри далеку од нашата куќа и најкусиот пат за в гимназија кој го минував два пати дневно, беше нивната улица “Кирил и Методиј”. Секој пат кога минував крај нивната куќа, таа стоеше на прозорецот. Така, секој ден со погледот ме пресретнуваше и испраќаше, додека најпосле не дојде оној пролетен ден.



    Јас и зборував, а таа со наведната глава молчеше и ровеше со врвот од обувката во меката влажна земја, до неколку грмушки на една од “Љубовните алеи”, до кој стоевме сами. Најпосле, охрабрен од нејзиното молчење и реков.



    - Величке, по цели ноќи не можам да заспијам, само на тебе мислам!



    На овие зборови таа ме погледна со срамежливите очи и тивко ми рече.



    - И јас исто така.



    Кога ги слушнав тие зборови како земјата да почна да се врти околу мене. Ја слушнав и истовремено не верував дека е вистина тоа што ми го рече. Ја гледав како замаен, како потонат во сон цели 20-30 секунди, додека најпосле инстиктивно не ја зграбив во прегратките, после што долго време страстно и ги целував жешките усни.



    Тоа беше еден од најсреќните мигови што сум ги доживеал, зашто беше првиот бакнеж што го разменив со девојче во мојот живот.



    Од тој ден започна една голема љубов, на која мнозина би завиделе. Почнавме секој ден да се среќаваме. Бевме си нашле едно тивко местенце покрај “Љубовните алеи”, кадешто секој ден одевме и се насладувавме на взаемната љубов. Во кино одевме секогаш заедно. Кога не носеа на “Трудов ден”, дали на берење костени во Беласица, или на берење памук во полето, независно што учевме во различни класови, јас и Величка секогаш бевме заедно. Се чуствувавме вистински среќни зашто љубовта ни беше взаемна, полна, без останок. Таа наполно веруваше во мојте чувства за да стане целосно моја. Се случуваше и двајцата да плачеме од љубов. Си велевме: “Само смртта може да не раздели”. Но како што луѓето велат “Многу арно не е за арно!”.



    Така и нашата љубов не заврши добро. Половина година по нашата прва средба ние принудно се разделивме за неопределено време, време, кое секој од нас го живееше по свое. Тоа беше времето кога истовремено се заљубив и во Величка и во мајка Македонија! Веке го бев направил печатот со зборот “Македонија” и илијади примероци од тој за мене најмил збор расфрлив во градот Петрич и околината.



    Верував, сега има смисла човек за што да живее. Бев посветил на моите тајни работи еден друг пријател, Томата. Веќе бевме ученици од XI клас, а тоа беше есента 1956 година. Освен Томата Иванов и други тројца ученици од нашиот клас се зачленија во нашата организација: Живко Донќев и Васил Кантарџиев, двајцата од Петрич и Веселин Палушев од с. Капотово, кој и до ден денешен не престана да ја сака мајка Македонија.



    Природно, во мојте тајни дела ја бев посветил и мојата прва љубов - Величка, која требаше да го навезе знамето на идната Македонска револуција. Такви ни беа тогаш младешката полет и дрскост. Се заколнавме во името не нешто свето, кое се уште не знаевме што ќе биде, но кое многу силно го сакавме. Мислевме дека само за неколку ноќи ќе подготвиме илјадици Македонци и со еден секавичен удар ќе ги обединиме трите дела на Македонија – Вардарскиот, Пиринскиот и Егејскиот!



    Почнавме да наоѓаме истомисленице и од гимназијата “Гоце Делчецв”, со цел да направиме Македонска младинска организација на територијата на градот Петрич, додека еден ден не се случи она, кое, како и првата моја љубов, никогаш нема да го заборавам.



    Оној 26-ти Ноември 1956 година, кога за прв пат паднав во шепите на Државната безбедност.



    Одкако не задржаа пред влезот на гимназијата “П.К. Јаворов”, не одведоа во Реонската управа на МВР (Министрерство за Бнатрежни Работи) во Петрич. Началник на управата тогаш беше капетан Шакин – еден исклучително див и одвратен тил. Дали затоа што службата му беше таква, дали дека физиономијата му беше грозна, одвратна, но тој изрод, толку пати да го сретнев по тоа, никогаш не мислев убаво за него. А со прст не ме допре!



    Сум среќавал и други началници како него, со повисок и понизок чин, но во погледот ќе им сретнев некаква топлина, а на уште ќе забележев дури и насмевка. Но кај овој тил ниту едното ниту другото не можеше да се види. Кога му си на располагање, чувствуваш дека те гледа како змија, готов со очите да те испиев.



    По негова наредба ме одведоа во една соба во која ме чекаше еден крупен и висок агент.



    Ме праша како се викам, од каде сум и зошто ме водат кај него. Јас одговорив дека ништо не знам за случајот. Тогаш тој почна да ми ги пребарува џеповите и кога најде едно изгужвано ливче со името “Македонија”, радосно ме праша:



    - А од каде го имаш ова нешто?



    - Го најдов ви улицата – одговорив спокојно.



    Продолжи со пребарување на џеповите од мојата ученичка блуза и од внатрежниот џеп извади неколу лисја исполнети со зборот “Македонија”. Ме погледна победнички со светнати од задоволство очи и со полусвисните усни ме запраша строго:



    - А чии се овие лисја?



    Само 10-15 секунди размислував каков одговор да дадам. Дали да излажам или не? Ако речам дека не се мој, тогаш, кој ми ги стави во џепот? Мислете молњевито ми работеа барајќи најдобра и најубедлива варијанта за да доказам дека лисјата кои иследникот ги држеше во својте раце, не се мои. Но иследникот завреска:



    - Чии се овие лисја?






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    Macedonia Above all - Part 3‏














    risto stefov


    23/06/2013








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    Macedonia Above all – Part 3



    By Stoian Georgiev Tomovichin

    Translated and Edited by Risto Stefov

    [email protected]

    June 23, 2013



    Naturally I was not pleased with either of Vapcharov’s answers so I walked out of the lecture hall. I then immediately began to fashion an etching on a stamp with the word “Macedonia”. I worked for three nights with a knife, a needle and a number of other tools to create the stamp. I then placed blotting paper moistened with ink in a shoe box and began to stamp the word “Macedonia” on thousands of pieces of paper.



    One word and a young conspirator kept the entire police force in the Blagoevgrad District busy and tense for the next two months. This went on until the dreaded Wednesday, November 26, 1956 when, at the entrance of our high school, my friend Toma and I were detained by two state security agents. I will tell you about this later.



    When I was in the ninth grade in high school I was introduced to a dark eyed girl, not very pretty, but who spoke so sweetly that it felt like honey flowed from her mouth. It was not anything in particular that she talked about but whatever it was, in me a 15-16 year-old boy, she awakened a sense of idealism for which I gave it my all. Unfortunately the girl found another friend and I was left disappointed.



    In 1954 I attended grade nine with a boy named Liupcho Rupanov. He lived in my neighbourhood and was very weak in math.



    I don’t know how he managed but Liupcho completed grade nine. I on the other hand, who had much higher marks and an “A” in most subjects, did not make it! Why? I suspected because I was Macedonian! This was my first time coming into collision with the “Bulgarian way” and from then on I began my long and hard route to Macedonia.



    My grade nine Bulgarian language class was taught by a lady teacher from Sofia who went by the last name Georgieva. I don’t know why but we, her students, among ourselves called her “the Goat”. She did not like me at all because I would not make the effort to speak literary Bulgarian. When I was asked a question I replied in the same language that I spoke at home. I refused to speak any differently. I preferred using Petrich words and expressions; the kind we used at home. Unfortunately that made her even madder and she did not hesitate to take her anger out on me.



    What made her especially angry was when I intentionally said, “Madam this is the Macedonian language that I am speaking!”



    But for the “Macedonian language” that I demonstrated in front of her, she failed me and I lost my entire year of school. I was very embittered by it, especially since I was one of the top students in my class and no one was better or faster in doing their school work than me.



    Because I always helped my classmate Liupcho with his work, my classmates began to tease me saying: “The student made it into to the next grade while the teacher failed and will have to repeat grade nine.” I was called “the teacher” because I helped Liupcho with his math.



    I lost a year and it caused me a lot of grief, especially the next year when I had to repeat grade nine. I went to school without any interest, despondent and with low morale.



    I now realize that I was embittered for nothing for the one year I lost. What I lost afterwards for insisting on being a Macedonian and struggling for our Macedonian independence, was ten times worse, more significant and more frightening!



    I caught up with Liupcho in grade ten and we again began to go to and from school together. That was in 1955 when we were both in our teen years and nearly every evening took the opportunity to go for a walk. In those days it was fashionable for two or three people to walk together. We walked from the restaurant “Iavorite” (maples) which we then called “Parkot” (Park) to the Petrich town square. The place was busy and there were unbroken rows of people flowing uninterrupted in both directions. If you ever wanted to meet someone, chances were you would find them there walking.



    Both Liupcho and I became interested in two girls from the eighth grade in our high school. Their names were Velichka and Vaska. Both lived in our neighborhood so, for the next 3 to 4 months, we looked for ways to meet them and talk to them. The winter was very cold and we spent many cold days gathering courage until one day we finally managed to talk to them.



    It was May 1956 and nature was already decorated with colorful flowers. The hills of Petrich Mountain were loud with the chorus of bird’s songs, many wonderful melodies competing; one bird attempting to out sing another, trying to prove its love or wanting to be loved. Amidst the many bird’s songs stood the song of the nightingale with that sweet, stretched out lovely melody “piu-piu-pii-piu-piu-pii.”



    In spite of the great intellectual opportunities presented to us, no one as of yet has been able to solve the mystery of the bird’s song, to be able to translate it and describe what that chirping magic means. It is well known that birds have their own way of communicating, but what are they saying?



    The spring aroma of the blooming grasses, the blossoming flowers attracts thousands of bees that constantly fly from flower to flower, tirelessly guided by instinct that they need to collect nectar for their offspring, not realizing that after forty days of living in this crazy game they leave this world without ever returning.



    And in that wild frenzy of a living nature, in the middle of the cool and fresh Balkan air, I and “my” Velichka were slowly climbing up “Love lane” beside the hunter’s house. Finally after several months of fruitless chasing “our” girls, they finally came to the realization that Liupcho and I were serious boys worthy of their attention.



    I asked Velichka: “Tell me Velichka, why did you avoid us for so long and never once stop and talk to me?”



    And she said: “Well, because I am still very young.”



    Indeed, she was only fourteen years old, a fragile, gentle little girl of medium build. But that did not matter to me because I wanted to have a friend for the future, someone I could enjoy being with and talking to. That is why I tried so many times to talk to her.



    “Velichka,” I said to her seriously, “did you not see that all winter I was trying to meet you? Every time I passed by your house I looked at your window in hopes of seeing you.”



    She lived only about 400 to 500 metres away from my house and the shortest route to my high school, which I took twice daily, was past her house on “Kiril and Metodi” Street. Every time I walked by her house, she stood at the window. So every day she met and intercepted my look until we finally met face to face that spring day.



    As I spoke she bowed her head and listened in silence while gently digging at the soft moist soil with her foot. We stood alone on “Love lane” near some bushes. Finally, encouraged by her silence, I said: “Velichka, I can’t sleep at night because I think about you all the time”.



    She looked at me with her shy eyes and quietly said: “I can’t sleep either.”



    When I heard those words the entire world began to spin around me. I heard what she said but at the same time I could not believe that it was true. I looked at her with a stunned look on my face for about 20 to 30 seconds until finally, instinctively, I grabbed her by the arms and gave her a long passionate kiss on her hot lips.



    That was one of the happiest moments in my life because it was the first kiss I had exchanged with a girl.



    A great love began that day which would have been the envy of many. We found a quiet place near “Love lane” and saw each other and enjoyed our mutual love every day. We went to the cinema together. When they took us to “labour day” activities, be it harvesting chestnuts in Belasitsa or picking cotton in the fields, regardless of the different classes we attended, Velichka and I were always together. I felt really happy because our love was mutual, full and lasting. She truly believed in my feelings and hoped to become mine one day. We both felt like crying out of love. We used to say to each other: “Only death can separate us.” But as people often say, “Too much good is not good!”



    So our love did not end well. About six months after our first meeting we were forcibly taken apart for an indefinite period of time, during which each of us lived on our own. It was a time when I fell in love with both Velichka and mother Macedonia! I had already made a stamp with the word “Macedonia” and had stamped thousands of pieces of paper and spread them all throughout the city Petrich and its surroundings.



    I believed that there was reason for a man to live. I, along with my friend Toma, was devoted to our secret activities. It was the fall of 1956 and we both were students in the eleventh grade. Besides Toma, Ivanov and three other students from my class had joined our “organization”. They were Zhivko Donkiev and Vasil Kantardzhiev both from Petrich and Veselin Palushev from the village Kapotovo, who to this day has not stopped loving mother Macedonia.



    Naturally I had Velichka, my first love involved in my secret deeds, who at the time was expected to embroider the flag of our next Macedonian revolution. Such was our youthful vigour and audacity. We all had sworn in the name of something sacred, but we did not know what that was, but we strongly wanted it to be something. We thought that in only a few nights we could organize thousands of Macedonians and like a bolt of lightning; we would strike and unite the three parts of Macedonia - Vardar, Pirin and Aegean!



    We began to look for “like-minded” people in “Gotse Delchev” High School in order to build our Macedonian youth organization with people from the territory of Petrich, which was unheard of before and which, like my first love, I will never forget.



    Then, on November 26, 1956, for the first time I fell into the paws of the State Security Services.



    After detaining us at the entrance of “P.K. Iavarov” High School, the State Security agents brought us to the Ministry of Internal Affairs Regional Administration office in Petrich. The Chief of Administration there was Captain Shakin - an extremely wild person with a hideous look. Perhaps that’s why he chose such a career. For the many times I met with that man, I never became comfortable around him. But he never laid a finger on me!



    I have met other chiefs like him, with higher and lower ranks, and in their eyes I found some warmth and, once in a while, I would even notice a smile. But never in this person! When you were in his grasp you felt like a mouse circled by a snake ready to strike.



    Following his orders the guards took me into a room where a stout, tall agent was waiting for me.



    He asked me my name, where I came from and why they had brought me here. I replied that I knew nothing about the case. He then began to search my pockets and when he found a crumpled piece of paper with the word “Macedonia” stamped on it, he cheerfully asked: “Where did you get this?” I said, “I found it on the street!”



    He continued to search my pockets, including those inside my school sweater where he found several pieces of paper with the word “Macedonia” stamped on them. He looked at me with a victorious look in his glossy eyes as a half-smile developed on his lips, a sign of satisfaction. “And whose are these?” he asked sternly.



    I took about 10 to 15 seconds to think about what to say, whether to lie or not? If I said they were not mine, then who put them in my pocket? My thoughts were moving at lightning speed looking for the best and most convincing answer to explain how the pieces of papers in his hand were not mine. Unfortunately the interrogator lost patience at my silence and once again yelled out: “Whose pieces of papers are these?!”







    МАКЕДОНИЈА НАД СЕ - 3



    Стојан Георгиев Томовичин



    Јас, природно, не бев задоволен од двата одговора, ја напуштив салата и веднаш се зафатив да правам од друго клише со натпис “Македонија”. За три ноќи, со нож, игла и друг прибор го изработив клишето, подготвив во кутија за обувки тампон од попивателна хартија, наквасена со мастило и започнав да отпечатувам илијади примероци со тој единствен збор “Македонија”.



    Еден збор и еден малечок конспиратор во текот на наредните два месеци ја држеа во напрегнатост целата милиција ба Благоевградскиот округ, додека не дојде оној ноемвриски ден, Среда, 26 Ноември 1956 година, кога пред влезот на нашата гимназија, мене и мојот пријател Томата, не задржаа двајца агенти од државната безбедност. Но, за тоа покасно.



    Кога бев во IX клас на гимназијата, се запознав со едно црнооко девојче, не многу симпатично, но зборуваше толку слатко, небаре мед се лееше од нејзината уста. Не, нешто кој знае што зборуваше, туку во мене под напонот на 15-16 годишната возраст, разбуди едно чуство за совршенство, за кое што се би дал. Но, девојчето веќе си беше нашло пријател и јас останав разочаран од неподелената љубов.



    Во 1954, во IX клас, учевме во една паралелка јас и едно момче од нашето маало. Се викаше Љупчо Рупанов, беше многу слаб ученик по математика.



    Било како било, Љупчо го заврши IX клас, а јас кој имав само три оценки среден (3), а останатите беа четворки и петки, зацапав и тоа зошто? За тоа што бев Македонец! Тука за прв пат се удрив со Бугарштината и од тогаш почна мојот трилив пат кон Македонија.



    Во IX клас Бугарски јазик ни придаваше софианка која се презиваше Георгиева. Незнам зашто, но ние учениците меѓу себе ја викавме “козата”. Таа госпоѓица многу се јадосуваше на мене зашто јас воопшто не се трудев да зборувам литературен Бугарски јазик. Кога раскажував урок, јас зборував како што си зборуваме дома. Редовно КЕ-КАВ, никогаш не ги употребував частиците “ШТЕ” и “ШЕ” за да изразам некоја глаголска форма за идно време.



    Употребував типични петрички изрази: бегајте, елајте, немојте, неќу, сакам, бендисувам, ујдисувам, ќе дом, ќе терам, ќе пишам и уште многу други изрази кои таа не можеше да ги разбере. А кога ќе и речев “Максус скапах муцката на брдако” таа просто побеснуваше.



    - Е другарке – и велев тогаш максус (намерно) - тоа е Македонски јазик.



    За тој Македонски јазик што го демонстрирав пред неа, јас ја изгубив целата година. Многу се јадосував за ради тоа, а особено што бев меѓу најдобрите ученици во класот, а по математика никој не можеше да ги решава задачите подобро и побрзо од мене.



    Соучениците ме зафркаваа: “Ученикот премина на X клас и учителот остана да го повтори IX клас”. “Учителот” бев јас зашто му помагав на Љупчо по математика.



    Загубив една година и толку многу тагував по неа, што следната године, кога го повторував IX – клас, одев на училиште без интерес, очаен и со спласнато настроение.



    Сега сфаќам дека напразно сум се јадосувал за таа загубена година, зашто она што потоа го загубив зареди докажувањето на нашата Македонска самобитност е десет пати поголемо, позначајно и пострашно!



    Во X клас одново се стигнавме со Љупчо и пак заедно одевме и се враќавме од училиште. Тоа беше во 1955 година. Веќе ергенчиња, скоро секоја вечер со Љупчо излегувавме на прошетка. Во тие години традиција беше шетањето по двајце или тројца. Од ресторанот “Јаворите” кого тогаш го викавме “Паркот” до плоштадот на градот Петрич, течеше непрекината редица од луѓе во двата правци, и ако сакаше некого да го сретниш, задолжитело бе го нашол тука, се разбира доколку тој беше излезен на прошетка.



    Двајцата со Љупчо почнавме да се интересираме за две ученички од осми клас на гимназијата во која и ние учевме. Се викаа Величка и Васка. И двете живееја во нашиот кварт. Во текот на наредните 3-4 месеци постојано баравме начин да ги сретниме и разговараме со нив. А зимата беше доста мразовита, и ние собравме доста студ додека најпосле успеавме да ги наговориме за разговор.



    Беше веќе Мај 1956 година, а природата целата се беше накитила со својата шарена цветна промена. Петричка планина се огласуваше од оној неповторлив птичиј хор, од оној прекрасен натревар, која птичка поубаво, по мелодично да го исполни својот утрешен репертоар, да ја докаже љубовта кон љубењиот или љубената. Среде многузвучното чурликање, ефектно се издвојуваше песната на славејот со она мило растегнато “пиу-пиу-пии-пиу-пиу-пии”.



    И покрај големите интелектуалци можности, човек сеуште не може да ја одгатне тајната на птичјиот говор, за да може да го опише волшебството на нивното чуруликање. А се знае дека тие имаат свој начин на комуницирање, но каков?



    А пролетната арома на расцутените треви, дахот на свежото и зеленото го впиваа душите на илјадите пчели кои непрестано летаа од цветче на цветче, одлетуваа и долетуваа неуморно, водени од инстиктот дека треба да соберат нектар за својте поколенија, не сфаќајќи дека во тој луд натпревар после четириесетина дена живеење, заминуват без поврат од овој свет.



    И во тој див кипеж на живата природа, среде ладот на свежиот Балкански воздух, јас и “мојата” Величка бавно се искачувавме по “Љубовните алеи” покрај ловечкиот дом. Најпосле по неколкумесечното бесплодно одење по “нашите” девојки, тие поверуваа дека и јас и Љупчо сме сериозни момчиња за да се поведе приближно следниот дијалог меѓу мене и Величка:



    - Кажи Величке, зошто толку долго време одбегнуваше да застанеш и разговараш со мене?



    - Па, затоа што мислам се уште сум малечка – рече таа.



    Навистина, со своите четиринаесет години таа беше едно кревко, нежно девојче кое штотуку се беше оформило како девојка со среден раст, но мене многу ми се допадна и јас сакав да ја имам како идна пријателка, затоа и толку многу настојував да разговараме.



    - Величе, не гледаш ли дека цела зима трчам по тебе? Цело време те барам да те видам на прозорецот, кога минувам покрај вас – реков јас сериозно.



    Таа живееше на 400-500 метри далеку од нашата куќа и најкусиот пат за в гимназија кој го минував два пати дневно, беше нивната улица “Кирил и Методиј”. Секој пат кога минував крај нивната куќа, таа стоеше на прозорецот. Така, секој ден со погледот ме пресретнуваше и испраќаше, додека најпосле не дојде оној пролетен ден.



    Јас и зборував, а таа со наведната глава молчеше и ровеше со врвот од обувката во меката влажна земја, до неколку грмушки на една од “Љубовните алеи”, до кој стоевме сами. Најпосле, охрабрен од нејзиното молчење и реков.



    - Величке, по цели ноќи не можам да заспијам, само на тебе мислам!



    На овие зборови таа ме погледна со срамежливите очи и тивко ми рече.



    - И јас исто така.



    Кога ги слушнав тие зборови како земјата да почна да се врти околу мене. Ја слушнав и истовремено не верував дека е вистина тоа што ми го рече. Ја гледав како замаен, како потонат во сон цели 20-30 секунди, додека најпосле инстиктивно не ја зграбив во прегратките, после што долго време страстно и ги целував жешките усни.



    Тоа беше еден од најсреќните мигови што сум ги доживеал, зашто беше првиот бакнеж што го разменив со девојче во мојот живот.



    Од тој ден започна една голема љубов, на која мнозина би завиделе. Почнавме секој ден да се среќаваме. Бевме си нашле едно тивко местенце покрај “Љубовните алеи”, кадешто секој ден одевме и се насладувавме на взаемната љубов. Во кино одевме секогаш заедно. Кога не носеа на “Трудов ден”, дали на берење костени во Беласица, или на берење памук во полето, независно што учевме во различни класови, јас и Величка секогаш бевме заедно. Се чуствувавме вистински среќни зашто љубовта ни беше взаемна, полна, без останок. Таа наполно веруваше во мојте чувства за да стане целосно моја. Се случуваше и двајцата да плачеме од љубов. Си велевме: “Само смртта може да не раздели”. Но како што луѓето велат “Многу арно не е за арно!”.



    Така и нашата љубов не заврши добро. Половина година по нашата прва средба ние принудно се разделивме за неопределено време, време, кое секој од нас го живееше по свое. Тоа беше времето кога истовремено се заљубив и во Величка и во мајка Македонија! Веке го бев направил печатот со зборот “Македонија” и илијади примероци од тој за мене најмил збор расфрлив во градот Петрич и околината.



    Верував, сега има смисла човек за што да живее. Бев посветил на моите тајни работи еден друг пријател, Томата. Веќе бевме ученици од XI клас, а тоа беше есента 1956 година. Освен Томата Иванов и други тројца ученици од нашиот клас се зачленија во нашата организација: Живко Донќев и Васил Кантарџиев, двајцата од Петрич и Веселин Палушев од с. Капотово, кој и до ден денешен не престана да ја сака мајка Македонија.



    Природно, во мојте тајни дела ја бев посветил и мојата прва љубов - Величка, која требаше да го навезе знамето на идната Македонска револуција. Такви ни беа тогаш младешката полет и дрскост. Се заколнавме во името не нешто свето, кое се уште не знаевме што ќе биде, но кое многу силно го сакавме. Мислевме дека само за неколку ноќи ќе подготвиме илјадици Македонци и со еден секавичен удар ќе ги обединиме трите дела на Македонија – Вардарскиот, Пиринскиот и Егејскиот!



    Почнавме да наоѓаме истомисленице и од гимназијата “Гоце Делчецв”, со цел да направиме Македонска младинска организација на територијата на градот Петрич, додека еден ден не се случи она, кое, како и првата моја љубов, никогаш нема да го заборавам.



    Оној 26-ти Ноември 1956 година, кога за прв пат паднав во шепите на Државната безбедност.



    Одкако не задржаа пред влезот на гимназијата “П.К. Јаворов”, не одведоа во Реонската управа на МВР (Министрерство за Бнатрежни Работи) во Петрич. Началник на управата тогаш беше капетан Шакин – еден исклучително див и одвратен тил. Дали затоа што службата му беше таква, дали дека физиономијата му беше грозна, одвратна, но тој изрод, толку пати да го сретнев по тоа, никогаш не мислев убаво за него. А со прст не ме допре!



    Сум среќавал и други началници како него, со повисок и понизок чин, но во погледот ќе им сретнев некаква топлина, а на уште ќе забележев дури и насмевка. Но кај овој тил ниту едното ниту другото не можеше да се види. Кога му си на располагање, чувствуваш дека те гледа како змија, готов со очите да те испиев.



    По негова наредба ме одведоа во една соба во која ме чекаше еден крупен и висок агент.



    Ме праша како се викам, од каде сум и зошто ме водат кај него. Јас одговорив дека ништо не знам за случајот. Тогаш тој почна да ми ги пребарува џеповите и кога најде едно изгужвано ливче со името “Македонија”, радосно ме праша:



    - А од каде го имаш ова нешто?



    - Го најдов ви улицата – одговорив спокојно.



    Продолжи со пребарување на џеповите од мојата ученичка блуза и од внатрежниот џеп извади неколу лисја исполнети со зборот “Македонија”. Ме погледна победнички со светнати од задоволство очи и со полусвисните усни ме запраша строго:



    - А чии се овие лисја?



    Само 10-15 секунди размислував каков одговор да дадам. Дали да излажам или не? Ако речам дека не се мој, тогаш, кој ми ги стави во џепот? Мислете молњевито ми работеа барајќи најдобра и најубедлива варијанта за да доказам дека лисјата кои иследникот ги држеше во својте раце, не се мои. Но иследникот завреска:



    - Чии се овие лисја?






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    "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
    GOTSE DELCEV

    Comment

    • George S.
      Senior Member
      • Aug 2009
      • 10116

      The 1913 Treaty of Bucharest is no longer valid for the Macedonians!

      World Macedonian Congress
      The 1913 Treaty of Bucharest is no longer valid for the Macedonians!
      Translated and edited by Risto Stefov
      July 25, 2012

      July 23, 2013, Bucharest, Romania – On August 9, 2013 at 10:00 AM in the IMRO Museum great hall in Skopje, the World Macedonian Congress will be holding a public hearing during its 23rd General Assembly during which it will proclaim a Resolution on the Balkan Wars of 1912, 1913 and on the August 10th, 1913 Treaty of Bucharest. All proposals for amendments are welcome. (Please send your comments to: Todor Petrov at his e-mail: [email protected])

      This will be done in order to bring awareness of the consequences of the 1912, 1913 Balkan Wars and of the August 10, 1913 Treaty of Bucharest on Macedonia’s integrity and on the Macedonian people, and

      Taking into consideration that August 10, 2013 marks 100 years of Macedonia’s occupation and 100 years of genocide against the Macedonian people,

      The World Macedonian Congress invites all Macedonians from all parts of Macedonia and from all parts of the world to join them in their Twenty-third General Assembly on August 9th, 2013 in Skopje to ascertain this historic proclamation.

      RESOLUTION

      Regarding the 1912-1913 Balkan Wars and the August 10, 1913 Treaty of Bucharest:

      (1) The Balkan Wars of 1912, 1913 were Wars of occupation. The States that participated in the International Conference in Bucharest, from July 28 to August 10, 1913, that ended those Wars and were signatories of the August 10, 1913 Treaty of Bucharest, sanctioned Macedonia’s occupation and the genocide perpetrated against the Macedonian people; a genocide which is ongoing.

      (2) The August 10, 1913 Treaty of Bucharest is no longer valid for the Macedonian people.

      (3) The Macedonian people have integrated themselves into societies and have incorporated themselves in the countries in which they live and are seeking their rights and freedoms (of assembly, of association, of education and of religion in the Macedonian language) due to them in accordance with the highest standards of international law. They want to be treated fairly and as equals to the other citizens of those states.

      (4) From the countries where Macedonians live and from the United Nations, OSCE, Council of Europe, the European Union, NATO and its member states, the Macedonian people demand:

      (a) An apology for Macedonia’s occupation and for the genocide perpetrated against the Macedonian people,

      (b) Reparation for damage to life and property and for the exploitation of natural resources in the Macedonian occupied territories,

      (c) Restitution of the entire Macedonian material, cultural and historical heritage, and

      (d) Restoration of citizenship, civil rights, property and inheritance rights to all forcibly exiled Macedonians and their descendants from the 1912-1913 Balkan Wars and from the 1946-1949 Greek Civil War and onwards.

      (5) The Macedonian people proclaim their inalienable and inviolable right to self-identification and self-determination as a Macedonian people and the Macedonian unification, by peaceful means, in accordance with international law.

      (6) This Resolution shall enter into force upon its approval.

      (7) A copy of this resolution will be sent to: The Archive of the World Macedonian Congress and its members, the World Community, the United Nations, OSCE, Council of Europe, the European Union and NATO and its member states.


      СВЕТСКИ МАКЕДОНСКИ КОНГРЕС
      БУКУРЕШКИОТ ДОГОВОР ЗА МАКЕДОНЦИТЕ ПОВЕЌЕ НЕ ВАЖИ!

      23 јули 2013 година, Букурешт, Романија - Во прилог ја објавуваме на јавна расправа Резолуцијата за Балканските војни 1912-1913 година и за Букурешкиот договор од 10 август 1913 година, предложена за 23 Генерално Собрание на Светскиот Македонски Конгрес што треба да се одржи на 9 август 2013 година во 10.30 часот во гиолемата сала на Музејот на ВМРО во Скопје. Сите предлози за изменување и дополнување се добредојдени.

      СВЕСНИ за последиците од Балканските војни 1912-1913 година и Букурешкиот договор од 10 август 1913 година врз интегритетот на Македонија и на македонскиот народ, и

      ИМАЈЌИ предвид дека на 10 август 2013 година се одбележуваат 100 години окупација врз Македонија и 100 години геноцид врз македонскиот народ,

      Македонците од сите делови на Македонија во целиот свет, на Дваесет и третото Генерално Собрание на Светскиот Македонски Конгрес одржано на 9 спроти 10 август 2013 година, во Скопје, утврдија

      РЕЗОЛУЦИЈА
      за Балканските војни 1912-1913 година и за Букурешкиот договор од 10 август 1913 година

      (1) Балканските војни 1912-1913 година се окупаторски, а земјите учеснички на Меѓународната Конференција во Букурешт од 28 јули до 10 август 1913 година и потписничките на Букурешкиот договор од 10 август 1913 година извршија окупација врз Македонија и геноцид врз македонскиот народ кој се’ уште трае.

      (2) Букурешкиот договор од 10 август 1913 година повеќе не важи.

      (3) Интегрирани во општествата и инкорпорирани во државноста на земјите каде што живеме, бараме права и слободи (собирање, здружување, образование, информирање и вероисповед на мајчин македонски јазик) во согласност со највисоките стандарди на меѓународното право, како еднакви со еднаквите и рамноправни со рамноправните.

      (4) Од државите каде што живеме и од Организацијата на Обединетите Нации, ОБСЕ, Советот на Европа, Европската Унија и НАТО и нивните земји членки, бараме: (1) извинување за окупацијата врз Македонија и за геноцидот врз македонскиот народ, (2) репарации за штетите врз животите и имотите на Македонците и од експлоатацијата на природните ресурси на окупираните територии на Македонија, (3) реституција на културно-историското и градителско наследство и добра од Македонија, и (4) враќање на државјанствата, граѓанските, имотните и наследните права на насилно прогонетите Македонци и нивните потомци од Балканските војни 1912-1913 година и Граѓанската војна во Грција 1946-1949 година до денес.

      (5) Го прокламираме неотуѓивото и неприкосновено право на самоидентификација и самоопределување на македонскиот народ и на обединување на Македонија по мирен пат во согласност со меѓународното право.

      (6) Оваа Резолуција влегува во сила со нејзиното донесување.

      (7) По еден примерок од оваа Резолуција се доставува до: архивата на Светскиот Македонски Конгрес и неговите членки, македонските заедници и здруженија во светот, Организацијата на Обединетите Нации, ОБСЕ, Советот на Европа, Европската Унија и НАТО и нивните земји членки.
      "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
      GOTSE DELCEV

      Comment

      • George S.
        Senior Member
        • Aug 2009
        • 10116

        Macedonia Above all – Part 14

        By Stoian Georgiev Tomovichin
        Translated and Edited by Risto Stefov
        [email protected]
        August 1, 2013

        To Copenhagen and back

        During the Bulgarian Communist Party Plenum, held on November 10, 1989, a number of tumultuous announcements were made regarding the political changes in Bulgaria. When it was time to end the tyranny and depose the despot Todor Zhivkov. When it was time to end the failed experiments with the different types of socialism carried out over the past 35 years, a sufficient period to lead Bulgaria into its current absurd twelve billion dollar debt to the West, empty stores, total corruption in all areas of life and the introduction of a coupon system in peacetime, they “praised” and “thanked” Todor Zhivkov and thousands of his associates for their “merit”. But that was not all! The backwards steps Zhivkov and his regime took in relation to the demographic changes introduced in an attempt to “purify” the Bulgarian nation, were also deemed “very productive”; a credit to Todor Zhivkov’s efforts of which even Hitler would have been very proud.

        The first thing Zhivkov and his cronies did was “baptize” the Macedonians in Bulgaria, then the Gypsies and turned them all into Bulgarians even if it was done against their will. Some time later Zhivkov changed the names of the Pomaks. He did all that by force, by intimidation and by imposing long prison sentences. After that he went after the Turks and turned them into “Islamized Bulgarians”. And all this was “accepted” by the new regime as a good thing, “essential” to Bulgaria’s progress!

        I had discussions about this with Nikola Delev, an active communist from Petrich and husband to my first cousin. I said to him: “Nikola, Todor Zhivkov is going backwards with these issues, especially with the Turks!” “Why?” he asked puzzled. “Because the Turks are not Gypsies, Pomaks, or Macedonians, they have Turkey, a powerful country behind them which will not stand for Bulgarian regimes experimenting with its compatriots,” I said. To my surprise he strongly objected and said: “What compatriots? They are not Turks, they are Islamized Bulgarians!”

        “What kind of Islamized Bulgarians are you talking about? They are pure Turks. Have you forgotten what you were taught in school? For years, before this regime came into power, it was written in our Bulgarian history books that Turks, Bulgarians, Gypsies, Vlachs and others lived in Bulgaria and all of a sudden all these people disappeared! Where did they go? As you may recall, from the 1956 and 1965 census, these books used to also say that Macedonians lived in Bulgaria. Where did they go?” I asked.

        The man did not like what I was saying, especially when I mentioned Macedonians. After all, judging from the “special” pension he was receiving, he was an “active” fighter working for the Bulgarian establishment. After that we did not talk about the Turkish situation in Bulgaria and Bulgaria’s attempts to change the Turkish people’s names. Then, as the saying goes, “the day of reckoning came”, when on November 10, 1989 Todor Zhivkov was removed from the Bulgarian political scene. After that the entire myth of the “Islamized Bulgarians” came crashing down.

        One day I decided to ask Nikola a question about his so-called “Islamized Bulgarians”. I asked: “Nikola, where did your Islamized Bulgarians go now?” The poor man did not know what to say. And what could he say in view of these stupid Bulgarian political tactics, which had forced Bulgaria into isolation from the Islamic world. On November 10, 1989 the sleeping consciousness of the entire Bulgarian nation was reanimated. Almost overnight new parties were formed and new movements organized. It felt like something new and wonderful was going to happen, but what, what kind of something and for whom?... only the future could tell!

        Behind these apparent political changes, we the Macedonians also decided that the long-awaited day had come for us and that we too could perhaps say, without fear, that we are Macedonians and that the Bulgarian government would recognize us as Macedonians and allow us to have our own organizations. In our supposed new found freedom, Giorgi Solunski created the organization VMRO (independent) “Ilinden” in Sofia, while others in Pirin Macedonia created several other organizations including:

        1. Committee to protect the rights of Macedonians in Pirin Macedonia;

        2. Cultural and educational society “Yane Sandanski” in the village Mikrevo; and

        3. Committee of the repressed Macedonians and the Macedonian question.

        My old friend Iordan Kostandinov, from the city Sandanski, and I were very interested to know what kind of a person Georgi Solunski was, so one day in February we went to visit him in Sofia. After we met with him we went to his home. He lived in the attic in a small room with two wooden beds; a very poor living environment. But there was a telephone in the room! There were many books scattered all over the floor; they were all about Macedonia. He also had a Macedonian flag, the one with the lion. We talked with him for the entire day. Then after Iordan and I had left we talked about him and were convinced that he was a good Macedonian and not a vrhovist (a Macedonian supremacist in support of the Bulgarian annexation of Macedonia).

        Our meeting with Georgi Solunski was on Saturday. The previous day I had visited the cultural organization “Gotse Delchev” located next door to the “Macedonia” cinema. There I ran into an old man sticking flyers on the windows. The flyers were invitations to a meeting. I asked the man: “What kind of people are attending this meeting?” He said: “Bulgarians from Macedonia!” He then asked me: “What kind are you?” “I am Macedonian!” I replied. “Where are you from?” he asked. “From Petrich, Pirin Macedonia!” I replied. “And what kind of person is this Georgi Solunski?” I asked. “Leave him alone! He wants an autonomous Macedonia!” he said.

        I thanked the old man and left and went to my younger daughter’s apartment. She lived in Sofia, near the stadium “Gerena”. I was happy to know that Georgi Solunski was not a vrhovist, so when I arrived at my daughter’s apartment at around 9 o’clock in the evening I contacted Solunski and made an appointment to see him the next day.

        I got to talk to Georgi Solunski several times after that about our organization and the problems we were experiencing. Solunski’s initiative was to submit a Petition to the Bulgarian People's Assembly and have the Macedonian people in Bulgaria and their rights recognized by the Bulgarian government.

        In the evening I heard the news on Bulgarian television and found out that VMRO (independent) “Ilinden” was going to submit a petition to the National Assembly the next day. I was delighted by the good news and all night I kept wondering what would happen the next morning at Sofia square.

        At ten o’clock in the morning the next day when I arrived in the square there was a crowd of supporters in front of the National House of Culture. But close to us there was also a gathering of vrhovist supporters with intent to derail the handover of the petition. The vrhovists had come prepared with anti-Macedonian slogans. If it wasn’t for the Bulgarian police, who remained neutral during the entire demonstration, we would have had a violent physical confrontation on our hands. PT Skopje television was witness to this; it filmed the entire episode.

        At eleven o’clock we went to the National Assembly. We were followed by the vrhovists all the way with booing and whistling but we marched peacefully and dignified all the way to Parliament while chanting the word “Macedonia”!, which for most of us was the very essence of our lives.

        The next few days, thanks to television footage from TV Skopje, the Macedonian people from the three parts of Macedonia and from around the world had the opportunity to become acquainted with this historic event.

        On Saturday April 14, 1990 at about eight o'clock in the morning, the leaders of the aforementioned Pirin Macedonian organizations gathered together in Sandanski City to jointly coordinate our Macedonian struggle. Our first priority was to create a new joint organization. After much discussion and debate, it was decided that the name of the new organization would be: United Macedonian Organization “Ilinden” or OMO “Ilinden”. After that we discussed the Articles of the Organization’s Constitution and the Program which we eventually adopted. Following is the Organization’s Constitution:

        CONSTITUTION

        Of the United Macedonian Organization “Ilinden” (OMO “Ilinden”) in Pirin Macedonia

        Article 1

        OMO “Ilinden” aims to unite all Macedonians, citizens of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, on cultural grounds.

        Article 2

        In accordance with Article 19 of the Helsinki Declaration of Human Rights and Article 52 of the Constitution of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, OMO “Ilinden” will seek to recognize the rights of Macedonians in Bulgaria.

        Article 3

        OMO “Ilinden” will establish itself as follows;

        a) Branches of OMO “Ilinden” will be set up in every village;

        b) Each Branch will be led by a local leadership body;

        c) OMO “Ilinden” at its highest levels will be guided by a Coordinating Committee based in the city Blagoevgrad.

        Article 4

        Anyone can become a member of OMO “Ilinden”, regardless of gender, language, religion, party affiliation, or social status, provided the person is not compromised by dishonesty and immorality.

        Article 5

        А person can become a member of OMO “Ilinden” by submitting an application to their local branch.

        Article 6

        Any members who violate the Constitution of the Organization will be expelled.

        Article 7

        OMO “Ilinden” is a voluntary organization. Members can leave of their own will.

        Article 8

        OMO “Ilinden” will not violate the territorial integrity of the People's Republic of Bulgaria.

        Article 9

        OMO “Ilinden” will not be involved in violent, brutal, inhumane and illegal acts in order to achieve its goals.

        Article 10

        OMO “Ilinden” is against any kind of separatism, nationalism, chauvinism, assimilation and genocide.

        Article 11

        OMO “Ilinden” will support the right to self-determination of every person, regardless of their ethnic and religious affiliation.

        Article 12

        Members of OMO “Ilinden” are obliged to help each other like brothers.

        Article 13

        The organization will assist morally and materially all its members who are destitute (repressed or improperly removed from their job).

        Article 14

        To the outside world, OMO “Ilinden” will be represented by its Governing Body: President, Secretary and Speaker.

        Article 15

        The Coordinating Council will consist of 11 members, including: President, Vice President, Secretary, Chief Coordinator and Speaker.

        Article 16

        The Coordinating Council will be elected by majority vote for a period of one year.

        Article 17

        OMO “Ilinden” will hold a Congress once every year on August 2 – on Ilinden, the day in 1903 when the Macedonian Uprising against the Ottomans took place.

        Article 18

        The highest governing body of all OMO “Ilinden” activities will be the Congress. The Coordinating Council will be accountable to the Congress. The Congress will elect the Coordinating Council and assign a position to each member.

        Article 19

        OMO “Ilinden” will be financed by membership fees, voluntary contributions etc… and by other means in accordance with the laws of the People's Republic of Bulgaria.

        Article 20

        OMO “Ilinden” will have its own bank account inside the People's Republic of Bulgaria.



        МАКЕДОНИЈА НАД СЕ - 14

        Стојан Георгиев Томовичин

        ДО КОПЕНХАГЕН И НАЗАД

        Пленумот на Бугарската комунистичка партија што се одржа на 10 Ноември 1989 година, го најави почетокот на бурни промени на политичката сцена во Бугарија. Кога – тогаш требаше да се стави крај на самоволието на раководниот деспот Тодор Живков. Требаше да се стави крај и на експериментите со разните видови социјализам – развиен, напреден, зрел, реален и коков ли уште не, што се редеа во текот на цели 35 години, период достаточен да ја доведе Бугарија до сегашниот апсурд – дванаесет милиарди надворешен долг на Запад, празни продавници, тотална корупција во сите области од животот и воведување купонски систем на снабдување и тоа во мирно време! Ете тие се “заслугите” на Тодор Живков и на илјадите негови соработници. А неговите чекори преземени во однос на демографските промени исто така забележија “врвни достигнувања”. Беше решил да го надмине и Хитлер во настојувањето да создаде “чиста” Бугарска нација.

        Најпрво ги прекрсти Македонците во Бугари, потоа Циганите ги направи Бугари, но некоја година им ги смени имињата на Помаците и тоа по цела на жртви и долгогодишни затоври, и најпосле ги преименува етничките Турци како “исламизирани Бугари”. Сето тоа доведе до сломот на живковиот режим.

        На Никола Делев, активен комунист од Петрич и сопруг на мојата прва братучеда, во врска со тоа му реков:

        - Кољо, ете тука веќе Тодор Живков ќе се ја скрши главата!

        - Зашто? – Праша зачуден човекот.

        - Зашто Турците не се незаштитени Цигани, не се Помаци, не се Македонци. Зад грбот на Турците стои голема држава која нема да дозволи да се преват експерименти со нивните сонародници во Бугарија.

        - Како сонародници? Тие не се Турци туку исламизирани Бугари – рече оштро тој.

        - За какви исламизирани Бугари зборуваш? Тоа се чисти Турци. Толку години во учебниците по истријата на Бугарија секогаш пишуваше дека во Бугарија живеат Турци, Бугари, Цигани, Власи и др., а сега на еднаш сите исчезнаа, откако пред тоа почнаа да исчезнуваат Македонците при пребројувањето во 1956 година и 1965 година.

        На човекот не му се допадна мојот разговор, особено кога ги спомнував Македонците. Па нели и тој беше од сојот на “активните” борци, зашто добиваше посебна пензија. Често зборувавме за менувањето на имињата на Турците. Најпосле, како што вели народот, “дојде Видов ден”, дојде 10 ноември 1989 година и Тодор Живков мораше да се мавне од политичката сцена на Бугарија. Се урна целиот мит на исламизирањето на Бугарија, за ради кое Кољо често го прашував:

        - Каде исчезнаа твојте исламизирани Бугари?

        А тој кутриот ништо не можеше да одговори. И што можеше да каже, кога заради таа глупава политика, Бугарија беше ставена во полна изолација од исламскиот свет. Десетти ноември ја раздвижи заспаната свест на Бугарската нација. Се создадоа десетици партии, движенија и организации. Се чувстуваше дека доаѓа нешто ново, дека доаѓа некаква демократија, но каква, што, и за кого, ќе покаже иднината..!

        На фонот од настапувачките политички промени, и ние, Македонците решивме дека дошол и за нас долгоочекуваниот ден, дека ќе можеме слободно да кажеме оти сме Македонци, дека Бугарската владе ќе не признае како Македонци, ќе ни дозволи да си имаме своја организација. Во Софија Ѓиорѓи Солунски ја формира ВМРО (независна) “Илинден”, а во Пиринска Македонија создадовме неколку организации:

        1. Комитет за заштита правата на Македонците во Пиринска Македонија;

        2. Културно - просветно друштво “Јане Сандански” во с. Микрево;

        3. Комитет на репресираните по Македонското прашање.

        Јас и мојот стар пријател Јордан Костандинов од гр. Сандански, се заинтересиравме да дознаеме каков човек е Георги Солунски. Затоа, еден ден во месец Февруари, заминавме за Софија. Се сретнавме со него и отидовме во неговиот дом. Тој живееше во поткровјето во мала соба, со два дрвени кревета, сосема бедно. Но, имаше телефон! Низ собата беа расфрлени доста книги се со Македонска содржина. Го имаше и Македонското знаме со лавчето. Цел ден разговаравме со него и кога најпосле со Јордан тргнавме за Пиринска Македонија, ние бевме убедени дека е тој добар Македонец и дека не е врховист.

        Средбата со Георги Солунски беше во сабота. Предходниот ден јас отидов во Културно – просветното друштво “Гоце Делчев” кое се наоѓа веднаш до киното “Македонија”. Таму видов еден старец како на витрината лепи соопштение за собрание. Го замолив човекот да ми каже какви луѓе се членовите на нивното друштво, а тој ми рече:

        - Ние сме Бугари од Македонија. А каков си ти?

        - Јас сум Македонец!

        - А од каде си?

        - Од Петрич, од Пиринска Македонија, - реков јас.

        - А каков човек е овој Георги Солунски?

        - Остави го. – рече човекот. – Тој е за автономна Македонија!

        Му се заблагодарив на старчето и тргнав кон станот на мојата помала ќерка што живееше во Софија, до стадионот “Герена” задоволен од зборовите на стариот врховист за Георги Солунски.

        Од станот на ќерка ме, кон 21 часот, јас закажан средба со Солунски за наредниот ден.

        Неколку пати, по тоа, имав можност да разговарам со Георги Солунски за нашите организациони проблеми. Негова иницијатива беше поднесувањето на Петицијата до Народното собране на НР Бугарија за признавање на правата на Македонското малчиство во Бугарија.

        Вечера кога во вестите преку Бугарската телевизија соопштија дека ВМРО (независна) “Илинден” ќе достави петиција до Народното собрание, јас воодушевен и цела ноќ размислував околу тоа што би можело да се случи утрото во центарот на Софија.

        Кога утрото кај 10 часот, пристигнав пред Народниот дворец на културата, таму затекнав многу наши приврзаници. Но блиску до нас се собраа и приврзеници на врховизмот, со намера да го попречат предавањето на Петицијата. Втховистите беа испишале доста пароли со антимакедонска содржина и ако не беше неутралната Бугарска милиција, веројатно уште таму ќе се избиевме со нив. За тоа сведочи телевизиската снимка на РТ Скопје.

        Кон 11 часот тргнавме кон Народното собрание. Цело време не следеа свирежи и викотници од врховистите, но ние мирно и достоинствено стигнавме пред Бугарскиот парламент, скандирајќи го светиот за сите нас, збор, “Македонија”!, кој за мнозина од нас беше смислата и содржината на нашиот живот.

        Наредните денови, благодарение на телевизиската снимка од ТВ Скопје, целиот Македонски народ од трите дела на Македонија и целиот свет имаа можност да се запознаат со овој историски чин.

        На 14 Април 1990 година во Сабота, околу 8 часот утрото, во град Сандански се собравме раководителите на веќе споменатите организации кој делуваа во Пиринскиот дел на Македонија, да ја координираме нашата натамошна заедничка борба. Многу размислувавме какво име да и дадеме на новата заедничка организација што тогаш ја формиравме. После многуте дискусии се определивме за авторитетното име – Обединета Македонска Организација (ОМО) “Илинден”. Доста дискутиравме и околу Уставот на нашата организација. Најпосле ги донесовме Уставот и програмат на ОМО “Илинден”.

        УСТАВ

        На Обединетата Македонска организација “Илинден” во Пиринскиот дел на Македонија.

        Член 1

        ОМО “Илинден” има за цел да ги обедини сите Македонци, граѓани на НР Бугарија на културна основа.

        Член 2

        Согласно член 19. од Хелсиншката декларација за правата на човекот и чл. 52 од Уставот на НР Бугарија, ОМО “Илинден” ќе настојува да се признаат правата на Македонското малчинство во Бугарија.

        Член 3

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе се формира на територијален принцип:

        а) ОМО “Илинден” ќе формира во секое село свои секции;

        б) Секоја сеција ќе се раководи од месно раководно тело;

        в) Целокупната дејност на ОМО “Илинден” ќе се раководи од Координационен одбор со седиште во град Благоевград.

        Член 4

        Член на организацијата може де биде секој, без разлика на полот, јазикот, религијата, партиска припадност и социална положба, којшто не е компромитиран со нечесно и неморално дело пред општеството.

        Член 5

        Примањето на членовите се врши со поднесување пристапница до месната секција.

        Член 6

        Членот на Организацијата што ќе го прекрши Уставот, се исклучува од неа.

        Член 7

        ОМО “Илинден” е доброволна организација. Секој член може да ја напушти по сопствена желба.

        Член 8

        ОМО “Илинден” не се бори за нарушување територијалната целост на НР Бугарија.

        Член 9

        Организацијата нема да се служи со насилни, брутални, нехумани и незаконски дејства заради постигнување на своите цели.

        Член 10

        ОМО “Илинден” е против секаков вид сепаратизам, национализам, шовинизам, асимилација и геноцид.

        Член 11

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе го поддржува правото за самоопределување на секој човек, независно од неговата етничка и религиозна припадност.

        Член 12

        Членовите на ОМО “Илинден” се должи да си помагаат како браќа.

        Член 13

        Организацијата ќе ги помага морално и материјално, попаднатите во беда (репресирани, неправилно отстранети од работа) нејзини членови.

        Член 14

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе биде претставувана пред надворешниот свет од раководното тело: претседателот, секретарот и говорникот.

        Член 15

        Координациониот совет се состои од 11 членови, меѓу кои: претседател, потпретседател, секретар, главен координатор и говорник.

        Член 16

        Координациониот совет се избира со јавно гласање, за период од една година.

        Член 17

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе одржува свој конгрес секоја година на 2 Август – Илинден, денот кога во 1903 година е дигнато востанието во Македонија.

        Член 18

        Највисок раководен орган на целата дејност на ОМО “Илинден” е Конгресот, пред кого Координациониот совет дава отчет за својата работа. Конгресот избира Координационен совет и го определува местото на секој негов член.

        Член 19

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе се финансира од членарината, доброволните прилози и др. видови средства, согласно законите на НР Бугарија.

        Член 20

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе има своја отворена банковна сметка во НР Бугарија.




        Macedonia Above all – Part 14

        By Stoian Georgiev Tomovichin
        Translated and Edited by Risto Stefov
        [email protected]
        August 1, 2013

        To Copenhagen and back

        During the Bulgarian Communist Party Plenum, held on November 10, 1989, a number of tumultuous announcements were made regarding the political changes in Bulgaria. When it was time to end the tyranny and depose the despot Todor Zhivkov. When it was time to end the failed experiments with the different types of socialism carried out over the past 35 years, a sufficient period to lead Bulgaria into its current absurd twelve billion dollar debt to the West, empty stores, total corruption in all areas of life and the introduction of a coupon system in peacetime, they “praised” and “thanked” Todor Zhivkov and thousands of his associates for their “merit”. But that was not all! The backwards steps Zhivkov and his regime took in relation to the demographic changes introduced in an attempt to “purify” the Bulgarian nation, were also deemed “very productive”; a credit to Todor Zhivkov’s efforts of which even Hitler would have been very proud.

        The first thing Zhivkov and his cronies did was “baptize” the Macedonians in Bulgaria, then the Gypsies and turned them all into Bulgarians even if it was done against their will. Some time later Zhivkov changed the names of the Pomaks. He did all that by force, by intimidation and by imposing long prison sentences. After that he went after the Turks and turned them into “Islamized Bulgarians”. And all this was “accepted” by the new regime as a good thing, “essential” to Bulgaria’s progress!

        I had discussions about this with Nikola Delev, an active communist from Petrich and husband to my first cousin. I said to him: “Nikola, Todor Zhivkov is going backwards with these issues, especially with the Turks!” “Why?” he asked puzzled. “Because the Turks are not Gypsies, Pomaks, or Macedonians, they have Turkey, a powerful country behind them which will not stand for Bulgarian regimes experimenting with its compatriots,” I said. To my surprise he strongly objected and said: “What compatriots? They are not Turks, they are Islamized Bulgarians!”

        “What kind of Islamized Bulgarians are you talking about? They are pure Turks. Have you forgotten what you were taught in school? For years, before this regime came into power, it was written in our Bulgarian history books that Turks, Bulgarians, Gypsies, Vlachs and others lived in Bulgaria and all of a sudden all these people disappeared! Where did they go? As you may recall, from the 1956 and 1965 census, these books used to also say that Macedonians lived in Bulgaria. Where did they go?” I asked.

        The man did not like what I was saying, especially when I mentioned Macedonians. After all, judging from the “special” pension he was receiving, he was an “active” fighter working for the Bulgarian establishment. After that we did not talk about the Turkish situation in Bulgaria and Bulgaria’s attempts to change the Turkish people’s names. Then, as the saying goes, “the day of reckoning came”, when on November 10, 1989 Todor Zhivkov was removed from the Bulgarian political scene. After that the entire myth of the “Islamized Bulgarians” came crashing down.

        One day I decided to ask Nikola a question about his so-called “Islamized Bulgarians”. I asked: “Nikola, where did your Islamized Bulgarians go now?” The poor man did not know what to say. And what could he say in view of these stupid Bulgarian political tactics, which had forced Bulgaria into isolation from the Islamic world. On November 10, 1989 the sleeping consciousness of the entire Bulgarian nation was reanimated. Almost overnight new parties were formed and new movements organized. It felt like something new and wonderful was going to happen, but what, what kind of something and for whom?... only the future could tell!

        Behind these apparent political changes, we the Macedonians also decided that the long-awaited day had come for us and that we too could perhaps say, without fear, that we are Macedonians and that the Bulgarian government would recognize us as Macedonians and allow us to have our own organizations. In our supposed new found freedom, Giorgi Solunski created the organization VMRO (independent) “Ilinden” in Sofia, while others in Pirin Macedonia created several other organizations including:

        1. Committee to protect the rights of Macedonians in Pirin Macedonia;

        2. Cultural and educational society “Yane Sandanski” in the village Mikrevo; and

        3. Committee of the repressed Macedonians and the Macedonian question.

        My old friend Iordan Kostandinov, from the city Sandanski, and I were very interested to know what kind of a person Georgi Solunski was, so one day in February we went to visit him in Sofia. After we met with him we went to his home. He lived in the attic in a small room with two wooden beds; a very poor living environment. But there was a telephone in the room! There were many books scattered all over the floor; they were all about Macedonia. He also had a Macedonian flag, the one with the lion. We talked with him for the entire day. Then after Iordan and I had left we talked about him and were convinced that he was a good Macedonian and not a vrhovist (a Macedonian supremacist in support of the Bulgarian annexation of Macedonia).

        Our meeting with Georgi Solunski was on Saturday. The previous day I had visited the cultural organization “Gotse Delchev” located next door to the “Macedonia” cinema. There I ran into an old man sticking flyers on the windows. The flyers were invitations to a meeting. I asked the man: “What kind of people are attending this meeting?” He said: “Bulgarians from Macedonia!” He then asked me: “What kind are you?” “I am Macedonian!” I replied. “Where are you from?” he asked. “From Petrich, Pirin Macedonia!” I replied. “And what kind of person is this Georgi Solunski?” I asked. “Leave him alone! He wants an autonomous Macedonia!” he said.

        I thanked the old man and left and went to my younger daughter’s apartment. She lived in Sofia, near the stadium “Gerena”. I was happy to know that Georgi Solunski was not a vrhovist, so when I arrived at my daughter’s apartment at around 9 o’clock in the evening I contacted Solunski and made an appointment to see him the next day.

        I got to talk to Georgi Solunski several times after that about our organization and the problems we were experiencing. Solunski’s initiative was to submit a Petition to the Bulgarian People's Assembly and have the Macedonian people in Bulgaria and their rights recognized by the Bulgarian government.

        In the evening I heard the news on Bulgarian television and found out that VMRO (independent) “Ilinden” was going to submit a petition to the National Assembly the next day. I was delighted by the good news and all night I kept wondering what would happen the next morning at Sofia square.

        At ten o’clock in the morning the next day when I arrived in the square there was a crowd of supporters in front of the National House of Culture. But close to us there was also a gathering of vrhovist supporters with intent to derail the handover of the petition. The vrhovists had come prepared with anti-Macedonian slogans. If it wasn’t for the Bulgarian police, who remained neutral during the entire demonstration, we would have had a violent physical confrontation on our hands. PT Skopje television was witness to this; it filmed the entire episode.

        At eleven o’clock we went to the National Assembly. We were followed by the vrhovists all the way with booing and whistling but we marched peacefully and dignified all the way to Parliament while chanting the word “Macedonia”!, which for most of us was the very essence of our lives.

        The next few days, thanks to television footage from TV Skopje, the Macedonian people from the three parts of Macedonia and from around the world had the opportunity to become acquainted with this historic event.

        On Saturday April 14, 1990 at about eight o'clock in the morning, the leaders of the aforementioned Pirin Macedonian organizations gathered together in Sandanski City to jointly coordinate our Macedonian struggle. Our first priority was to create a new joint organization. After much discussion and debate, it was decided that the name of the new organization would be: United Macedonian Organization “Ilinden” or OMO “Ilinden”. After that we discussed the Articles of the Organization’s Constitution and the Program which we eventually adopted. Following is the Organization’s Constitution:

        CONSTITUTION

        Of the United Macedonian Organization “Ilinden” (OMO “Ilinden”) in Pirin Macedonia

        Article 1

        OMO “Ilinden” aims to unite all Macedonians, citizens of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, on cultural grounds.

        Article 2

        In accordance with Article 19 of the Helsinki Declaration of Human Rights and Article 52 of the Constitution of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, OMO “Ilinden” will seek to recognize the rights of Macedonians in Bulgaria.

        Article 3

        OMO “Ilinden” will establish itself as follows;

        a) Branches of OMO “Ilinden” will be set up in every village;

        b) Each Branch will be led by a local leadership body;

        c) OMO “Ilinden” at its highest levels will be guided by a Coordinating Committee based in the city Blagoevgrad.

        Article 4

        Anyone can become a member of OMO “Ilinden”, regardless of gender, language, religion, party affiliation, or social status, provided the person is not compromised by dishonesty and immorality.

        Article 5

        А person can become a member of OMO “Ilinden” by submitting an application to their local branch.

        Article 6

        Any members who violate the Constitution of the Organization will be expelled.

        Article 7

        OMO “Ilinden” is a voluntary organization. Members can leave of their own will.

        Article 8

        OMO “Ilinden” will not violate the territorial integrity of the People's Republic of Bulgaria.

        Article 9

        OMO “Ilinden” will not be involved in violent, brutal, inhumane and illegal acts in order to achieve its goals.

        Article 10

        OMO “Ilinden” is against any kind of separatism, nationalism, chauvinism, assimilation and genocide.

        Article 11

        OMO “Ilinden” will support the right to self-determination of every person, regardless of their ethnic and religious affiliation.

        Article 12

        Members of OMO “Ilinden” are obliged to help each other like brothers.

        Article 13

        The organization will assist morally and materially all its members who are destitute (repressed or improperly removed from their job).

        Article 14

        To the outside world, OMO “Ilinden” will be represented by its Governing Body: President, Secretary and Speaker.

        Article 15

        The Coordinating Council will consist of 11 members, including: President, Vice President, Secretary, Chief Coordinator and Speaker.

        Article 16

        The Coordinating Council will be elected by majority vote for a period of one year.

        Article 17

        OMO “Ilinden” will hold a Congress once every year on August 2 – on Ilinden, the day in 1903 when the Macedonian Uprising against the Ottomans took place.

        Article 18

        The highest governing body of all OMO “Ilinden” activities will be the Congress. The Coordinating Council will be accountable to the Congress. The Congress will elect the Coordinating Council and assign a position to each member.

        Article 19

        OMO “Ilinden” will be financed by membership fees, voluntary contributions etc… and by other means in accordance with the laws of the People's Republic of Bulgaria.

        Article 20

        OMO “Ilinden” will have its own bank account inside the People's Republic of Bulgaria.



        МАКЕДОНИЈА НАД СЕ - 14

        Стојан Георгиев Томовичин

        ДО КОПЕНХАГЕН И НАЗАД

        Пленумот на Бугарската комунистичка партија што се одржа на 10 Ноември 1989 година, го најави почетокот на бурни промени на политичката сцена во Бугарија. Кога – тогаш требаше да се стави крај на самоволието на раководниот деспот Тодор Живков. Требаше да се стави крај и на експериментите со разните видови социјализам – развиен, напреден, зрел, реален и коков ли уште не, што се редеа во текот на цели 35 години, период достаточен да ја доведе Бугарија до сегашниот апсурд – дванаесет милиарди надворешен долг на Запад, празни продавници, тотална корупција во сите области од животот и воведување купонски систем на снабдување и тоа во мирно време! Ете тие се “заслугите” на Тодор Живков и на илјадите негови соработници. А неговите чекори преземени во однос на демографските промени исто така забележија “врвни достигнувања”. Беше решил да го надмине и Хитлер во настојувањето да создаде “чиста” Бугарска нација.

        Најпрво ги прекрсти Македонците во Бугари, потоа Циганите ги направи Бугари, но некоја година им ги смени имињата на Помаците и тоа по цела на жртви и долгогодишни затоври, и најпосле ги преименува етничките Турци како “исламизирани Бугари”. Сето тоа доведе до сломот на живковиот режим.

        На Никола Делев, активен комунист од Петрич и сопруг на мојата прва братучеда, во врска со тоа му реков:

        - Кољо, ете тука веќе Тодор Живков ќе се ја скрши главата!

        - Зашто? – Праша зачуден човекот.

        - Зашто Турците не се незаштитени Цигани, не се Помаци, не се Македонци. Зад грбот на Турците стои голема држава која нема да дозволи да се преват експерименти со нивните сонародници во Бугарија.

        - Како сонародници? Тие не се Турци туку исламизирани Бугари – рече оштро тој.

        - За какви исламизирани Бугари зборуваш? Тоа се чисти Турци. Толку години во учебниците по истријата на Бугарија секогаш пишуваше дека во Бугарија живеат Турци, Бугари, Цигани, Власи и др., а сега на еднаш сите исчезнаа, откако пред тоа почнаа да исчезнуваат Македонците при пребројувањето во 1956 година и 1965 година.

        На човекот не му се допадна мојот разговор, особено кога ги спомнував Македонците. Па нели и тој беше од сојот на “активните” борци, зашто добиваше посебна пензија. Често зборувавме за менувањето на имињата на Турците. Најпосле, како што вели народот, “дојде Видов ден”, дојде 10 ноември 1989 година и Тодор Живков мораше да се мавне од политичката сцена на Бугарија. Се урна целиот мит на исламизирањето на Бугарија, за ради кое Кољо често го прашував:

        - Каде исчезнаа твојте исламизирани Бугари?

        А тој кутриот ништо не можеше да одговори. И што можеше да каже, кога заради таа глупава политика, Бугарија беше ставена во полна изолација од исламскиот свет. Десетти ноември ја раздвижи заспаната свест на Бугарската нација. Се создадоа десетици партии, движенија и организации. Се чувстуваше дека доаѓа нешто ново, дека доаѓа некаква демократија, но каква, што, и за кого, ќе покаже иднината..!

        На фонот од настапувачките политички промени, и ние, Македонците решивме дека дошол и за нас долгоочекуваниот ден, дека ќе можеме слободно да кажеме оти сме Македонци, дека Бугарската владе ќе не признае како Македонци, ќе ни дозволи да си имаме своја организација. Во Софија Ѓиорѓи Солунски ја формира ВМРО (независна) “Илинден”, а во Пиринска Македонија создадовме неколку организации:

        1. Комитет за заштита правата на Македонците во Пиринска Македонија;

        2. Културно - просветно друштво “Јане Сандански” во с. Микрево;

        3. Комитет на репресираните по Македонското прашање.

        Јас и мојот стар пријател Јордан Костандинов од гр. Сандански, се заинтересиравме да дознаеме каков човек е Георги Солунски. Затоа, еден ден во месец Февруари, заминавме за Софија. Се сретнавме со него и отидовме во неговиот дом. Тој живееше во поткровјето во мала соба, со два дрвени кревета, сосема бедно. Но, имаше телефон! Низ собата беа расфрлени доста книги се со Македонска содржина. Го имаше и Македонското знаме со лавчето. Цел ден разговаравме со него и кога најпосле со Јордан тргнавме за Пиринска Македонија, ние бевме убедени дека е тој добар Македонец и дека не е врховист.

        Средбата со Георги Солунски беше во сабота. Предходниот ден јас отидов во Културно – просветното друштво “Гоце Делчев” кое се наоѓа веднаш до киното “Македонија”. Таму видов еден старец како на витрината лепи соопштение за собрание. Го замолив човекот да ми каже какви луѓе се членовите на нивното друштво, а тој ми рече:

        - Ние сме Бугари од Македонија. А каков си ти?

        - Јас сум Македонец!

        - А од каде си?

        - Од Петрич, од Пиринска Македонија, - реков јас.

        - А каков човек е овој Георги Солунски?

        - Остави го. – рече човекот. – Тој е за автономна Македонија!

        Му се заблагодарив на старчето и тргнав кон станот на мојата помала ќерка што живееше во Софија, до стадионот “Герена” задоволен од зборовите на стариот врховист за Георги Солунски.

        Од станот на ќерка ме, кон 21 часот, јас закажан средба со Солунски за наредниот ден.

        Неколку пати, по тоа, имав можност да разговарам со Георги Солунски за нашите организациони проблеми. Негова иницијатива беше поднесувањето на Петицијата до Народното собране на НР Бугарија за признавање на правата на Македонското малчиство во Бугарија.

        Вечера кога во вестите преку Бугарската телевизија соопштија дека ВМРО (независна) “Илинден” ќе достави петиција до Народното собрание, јас воодушевен и цела ноќ размислував околу тоа што би можело да се случи утрото во центарот на Софија.

        Кога утрото кај 10 часот, пристигнав пред Народниот дворец на културата, таму затекнав многу наши приврзаници. Но блиску до нас се собраа и приврзеници на врховизмот, со намера да го попречат предавањето на Петицијата. Втховистите беа испишале доста пароли со антимакедонска содржина и ако не беше неутралната Бугарска милиција, веројатно уште таму ќе се избиевме со нив. За тоа сведочи телевизиската снимка на РТ Скопје.

        Кон 11 часот тргнавме кон Народното собрание. Цело време не следеа свирежи и викотници од врховистите, но ние мирно и достоинствено стигнавме пред Бугарскиот парламент, скандирајќи го светиот за сите нас, збор, “Македонија”!, кој за мнозина од нас беше смислата и содржината на нашиот живот.

        Наредните денови, благодарение на телевизиската снимка од ТВ Скопје, целиот Македонски народ од трите дела на Македонија и целиот свет имаа можност да се запознаат со овој историски чин.

        На 14 Април 1990 година во Сабота, околу 8 часот утрото, во град Сандански се собравме раководителите на веќе споменатите организации кој делуваа во Пиринскиот дел на Македонија, да ја координираме нашата натамошна заедничка борба. Многу размислувавме какво име да и дадеме на новата заедничка организација што тогаш ја формиравме. После многуте дискусии се определивме за авторитетното име – Обединета Македонска Организација (ОМО) “Илинден”. Доста дискутиравме и околу Уставот на нашата организација. Најпосле ги донесовме Уставот и програмат на ОМО “Илинден”.

        УСТАВ

        На Обединетата Македонска организација “Илинден” во Пиринскиот дел на Македонија.

        Член 1

        ОМО “Илинден” има за цел да ги обедини сите Македонци, граѓани на НР Бугарија на културна основа.

        Член 2

        Согласно член 19. од Хелсиншката декларација за правата на човекот и чл. 52 од Уставот на НР Бугарија, ОМО “Илинден” ќе настојува да се признаат правата на Македонското малчинство во Бугарија.

        Член 3

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе се формира на територијален принцип:

        а) ОМО “Илинден” ќе формира во секое село свои секции;

        б) Секоја сеција ќе се раководи од месно раководно тело;

        в) Целокупната дејност на ОМО “Илинден” ќе се раководи од Координационен одбор со седиште во град Благоевград.

        Член 4

        Член на организацијата може де биде секој, без разлика на полот, јазикот, религијата, партиска припадност и социална положба, којшто не е компромитиран со нечесно и неморално дело пред општеството.

        Член 5

        Примањето на членовите се врши со поднесување пристапница до месната секција.

        Член 6

        Членот на Организацијата што ќе го прекрши Уставот, се исклучува од неа.

        Член 7

        ОМО “Илинден” е доброволна организација. Секој член може да ја напушти по сопствена желба.

        Член 8

        ОМО “Илинден” не се бори за нарушување територијалната целост на НР Бугарија.

        Член 9

        Организацијата нема да се служи со насилни, брутални, нехумани и незаконски дејства заради постигнување на своите цели.

        Член 10

        ОМО “Илинден” е против секаков вид сепаратизам, национализам, шовинизам, асимилација и геноцид.

        Член 11

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе го поддржува правото за самоопределување на секој човек, независно од неговата етничка и религиозна припадност.

        Член 12

        Членовите на ОМО “Илинден” се должи да си помагаат како браќа.

        Член 13

        Организацијата ќе ги помага морално и материјално, попаднатите во беда (репресирани, неправилно отстранети од работа) нејзини членови.

        Член 14

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе биде претставувана пред надворешниот свет од раководното тело: претседателот, секретарот и говорникот.

        Член 15

        Координациониот совет се состои од 11 членови, меѓу кои: претседател, потпретседател, секретар, главен координатор и говорник.

        Член 16

        Координациониот совет се избира со јавно гласање, за период од една година.

        Член 17

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе одржува свој конгрес секоја година на 2 Август – Илинден, денот кога во 1903 година е дигнато востанието во Македонија.

        Член 18

        Највисок раководен орган на целата дејност на ОМО “Илинден” е Конгресот, пред кого Координациониот совет дава отчет за својата работа. Конгресот избира Координационен совет и го определува местото на секој негов член.

        Член 19

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе се финансира од членарината, доброволните прилози и др. видови средства, согласно законите на НР Бугарија.

        Член 20

        ОМО “Илинден” ќе има своја отворена банковна сметка во НР Бугарија.
        "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
        GOTSE DELCEV

        Comment

        • George S.
          Senior Member
          • Aug 2009
          • 10116

          Macedonians in Ivan the Terrible’s collections

          Discussion about Macedonian Dynasties in three of the twelve luxury edition volumes in Ivan the Terrible’s illustrated encyclopedia

          By Branko Vlahovic, Moscow correspondent
          Translated and edited by Risto Stefov
          July 28, 2013



          Click on link to see some photographs.

          MOSCOW - Macedonian historians, and all those who are interested to know what happened in the Balkans centuries ago, can now find answers for themselves to the many lingering questions by flipping through the pages and reading a copy of the new Russian edition of the 16th century “Illustrated Chronicles”. By reading the text and looking at the beautiful paintings, a person can go back a few centuries and find out what Ivan the Terrible, the Russian Tsar, and his associates knew and thought about Alexander the Great and the Macedonians. From these ancient books, kept in the museums in St. Petersburg and Moscow, one can learn a lot about what many Russians knew about Alexander the Greats’ campaigns against the so-called Hellenes and against the barbarian tribes. Researchers will now have a new source of information in these books and proof of the relationship between the modern Macedonians and Alexander the Great as well as many more interesting things. Now Macedonians and other interested readers have a chance, without rushing, to browse through and analyze the chronicles in detail and find serious evidence for discussion. Even though the chronicles are not scriptures and they cannot be thought of as something that is eternal truth, they will certainly provide an interesting perspective and will serve as “food for thought”.

          ENCYCLOPEDIA – The ancient chronicles we made public thanks to some Russian businessmen and benefactors. The chronicles, which contain valuable information about the Balkan people’s history, up to now not available to anyone, are now available not only to historians but also to ordinary people who are privileged to access them and learn about the past. The just published ten volume facsimile edition of the “16th Century Illustrated Chronicles”, stored in famous Russian museums, can be made available to Macedonians in Skopje if sponsors can be found who would be interested in paying for such a project. The original title of the chronicles was “Lucevoi” which means “illustrated”. The word “lucevoi” literally means “from the face”, painted faces of people. The chronicles consist of 10,000 double sided pages with more than 17,000 painted miniatures, vividly telling windows of history which show the early past. It is so right to call these books an illustrated encyclopedia.

          The first three volumes are dedicated to events from the Bible and world history. Among other things the chronicles describe the Trojan War, Alexandria, the Judean War, Joseph Flavian and more. A large space in the other volumes is dedicated to the Balkan peoples the Serbs, Macedonians and Bulgarians. Especially interesting about the Macedonians is the description and images of Alexander the Great. The second volume covers the territory the Macedonians ruled. Image (587a) illustrates Alexander’s life and achievements. Image (589a) in volume 2 is an illustration of Pella, ancient Macedonia’s capital from which Alexander reigned. Image (615b) shows Alexander conquering Illyria (Iliia), Peonia (Peona) and Tribillia (Tribala). Particularly interesting is image (651b) which describes Alexander’s conquest of all Hellenes and barbarians. From this image one can easily conclude that Alexander was not Greek. If he was, he would not have fought so fiercely against his own people. Analysis of this text will keep even the most informed historians busy for years dealing with issues. Among other things, the Chronicles thoroughly describe the Macedonian dynasties which ruled the Byzantine Empire starting with Basil, its founder.

          There are many frescoes of the millennium old Byzantine Empire, some of which detail the Emperors belonging to the Macedonian Dynasty among whom is its founder Basil Makedonianin, who, it seems, had employed tactics he learned from Alexander the Great, the legendary Macedonian Military Commander, who was unaware of defeat and who created a great empire. Many details of Basil and Alexander are interwoven in these narratives. The Macedonian dynasty was continued by Leo VI the Wise, his younger brother Alexander and his son Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus. Constantine was one of the most educated people of his time. He was author of the “Byzantine arch of practical science”, which was composed of the following parts: “The management of an Empire”, “Ceremonies in the Byzantine Court” and “Biography of Basil Makedonianin”. The following precise formula-definitions for notions of statehood also belonged to Constantine: the empire is “A ship of Worlds”, Constantinople is the “King of all the cities of the world”, God “Has seated kings on the throne and has given them power to rule the entire world”, the emperor among his subjects is as “Jesus Christ was among the apostles” who ruled “truthfully based on law and justice”.

          Proof of the importance of these books is the fact that reprints are supported by both Vladimir Putin and Patriarch Alexei II.

          “Going through the pages of the Chronicle, we feel proud that we had such ancestors who were brave and wise and had great spiritual power”, among other things, wrote Vladimir Putin for future readers of the Russian chronicles.

          SOUTHERN BROTHERS – The two former excellent students in physics and businessmen, Vadim Jakunin and Haris Mustafin, came up with the idea to re-print the Russian chronicles so that everyone would have the opportunity to learn more about their history and the history of the people close to them. After reading and viewing the Chronicles, this writer is convinced that the Russians of the past were truly interested in the fate of their “southern brothers”.

          These unique Chronicles of the 16th century were saved, but few can boast that they had them in their hands. Seven of the books were preserved in St. Petersburg and three in Moscow.

          Thanks to Vadim Jakunin, owner of “Protek”, Moscow’s largest pharmaceutical company, who funded the project, the books have been scanned with one of the most advanced scanners and the copies are almost identical to the original. Now anyone who wants them can have their own complete set of the ten Chronicles.

          Vadim Jakunin sponsored this project not to make money, but to teach the young generations of Russians their history.

          “I have always appreciated people who know their past. I am deeply convinced that a nation can not have a good future if it breaks away from its cultural and historical heritage. The Russian people are a nation with a great history, but the means by which they live and the times in which they live is what shapes the new generations and the more of their history they know, the better they will be in shaping their future. I was lucky to have been born in Yaroslavl, which has always been a cultural and educational centre of Russia. So I was always interested in history,” said Vadim Jakunin.

          To fully realize this project, “Akteon” was established and managed by Haris Mustafin, as a separate company. Jakunin, not caring how much money he spent, purchased the expensive, modern scanner from France.

          Negotiations with the museums to obtain the Chronicles were not easy, but in the end it was worth it. The idea originated in April 2004 and in March 2005 an agreement was signed. It then took three months to scan and record all 10 volumes.

          Afterwards designers were engaged to professionally process each page so that the appearance of the copies would be as good as the originals. This process took a year and a half to complete. Special value was also added to the new facsimile. The publishers decided to add translations to the archaic language. Without these translations the majority of the people would not be able to understand the old texts.

          Vadim Jakunin, owner of “Protek”, also purchased a machine to print the Chronicles turning each page into an artistic masterpiece.

          The Chronicles created during the 16th century, in reality have turned into a great illustrated encyclopedia depicting Russia and the world during Ivan the Terrible’s time. Those who are privileged to leaf through its pages will testify that the encyclopedia is not only interesting for professionals but also for ordinary people who love history.

          THE KOSOVO BATTLE - Who wrote about it? Historically it has yet to be confirmed. As for the images, it is believed that these people who worked on the drawings were real craftsmen hired to paint inside the Kremlin. We came to this conclusion because the same style, colour and content have been used. There are no names to indicate who the authors were. It is assumed that one of the authors was Metropolitan Macarius, about whom there are claims that he was an extremely cultured person.


          It would appear that one of the editors of these books may have been Tsar Ivan the Terrible. In the margin of the tenth volume there is a hand-written note that says “needs correcting”. It is believed that it could have been written by the king himself. Even though printing at the time was not well developed the quality of both paintings and text are exceptionally well done and very interesting. By looking at the dress and armour of the people in the images one can determine which period they depicted, the kind of buildings they built and their occupations.

          As for the Balkans, it is interesting how the Russian Metropolitan Pimen learned of the Kosovo battle. He went to Constantinople in 1389. After traveling by river for a month he eventually reached the Black Sea and then Constantinople where he learned of the loss of Kosovo. The news saddened the Russian monks. Fearing that they too may become targets of the Ottomans, the Russians left Constantinople and returned to Russia.

          According to the Russian Chronicles, Murat, the Ottoman leader, was originally Christian. The description of how Milosh Obilich met the Ottomans and killed their king was also interesting. To get to their king, Milosh told the Ottomans that he had a fight with King Lazar and that’s why he had been sent to Murat, expecting Murat to execute him because he was Christian. The text under the image says that the Ottomans killed who they called “Christian servants”. Images in the seventh volume show how the Ottomans seized King Lazar and cut off his head.

          Another interesting story from the Chronicles is the description of the first clock in the Kremlin, brought there by a Serbian monk named Lazar. The monk brought the large wall clock from Serbia and erected it in the Kremlin in 1504.

          The technique used in creating the images is called “Serpska or Iuzhnoslovenska” koloristika (Serbian or South-Slavic colouring). All images were first drawn with a pencil and then painted.

          It would be an excellent example for Macedonian businessmen to follow the Russian example and invest in enhancing Macedonia’s culture. It would certainly be a beneficial and lasting investment.

          “When we started this project, our desire was to do something grand for our culture. But at the same time we were well aware that it would cost a lot of money. Our wish now is to find a technique to make a cheaper edition and make it available to all the people,” said Jakunin and Mustafin. They also promised that they would continue to invest in new projects which are of historic and cultural significance.


          МАКЕДОНЦИТЕ ВО ЗБИРКИТЕ НА ИВАН ГРОЗНИ

          Во три од дванаесетте тома на луксузното издание на илустрираната енциклопедија на Иван Грозни се говори за македонските династии
          пишува Бранко Влаховиќ
          Наш дописник од Москва



          МОСКВА - Македонските историчари, но и сите оние кои ги интересира што се случувало на Балканот пред многу векови, ќе можат и сами да најдат одговор на многу прашања читајќи го и прелистувајќи го новото факсимилно издание на рускиот „Илустриран летопис на 16 век“. Читајќи го текстот и гледајќи ги преубавите цртежи, човек барем во мислите може да се врати неколку векови наназад и да види што мислеле и знаеле рускиот цар Иван Грозни и неговите блиски соработници за Александар Македонски. Од тие древни книги што се чуваат во најпознатите музеи во Санкт Петербург и во Москва се дознава што и колку знаеле Русите за војните на Александар Македонски „против сите Хелени и варвари“. Бројните истражувачи можеби ќе можат во тие книги да најдат доказ за врската на сегашните Македонци со Александар Македонски и уште многу интересни работи. Сега постои шанса без брзање да се прелистуваат и анализираат летописите во кои можат да се најдат докази за сериозни и теоретски (теориски) расправи. Јасно е дека тој летопис не е свето писмо и во него не може да се верува како во нешто што е вечна вистина, но сигурно може да даде интересен материјал, „материјал за размислување“.

          ЕНЦИКЛОПЕДИЈА Благодарение на руските бизнисмени - добротвори на древните летописи во кои многу се зборува за историјата на балканските народи, сега ќе можат да видат не само историчарите и привилегираните туку и оние кои сакаат да знаат за своето минато. Штотуку објавеното факсимилно издание на „Илустрираниот летопис на 16 век“, тие уникатни десет тома што се чуваат во познатите руски музеи, можат да бидат претставени и во Скопје доколку се најдат заинтересирани спонзори. Оригиналниот назив е „Луцевој летописни свод 16 века“. „Луцевој“ на нашиот јазик би можел да се преведе како илустриран. Зборот „луцевој“ буквално значи „од лице“, значи со нацртани ликови на луѓе. На 10.000 двострани листови со повеќе од 17.000 нацртани минијатури, сликовито кажано, прозорци во историјата, претставено е најраното минато. Затоа со полно право овие книги се нарекуваат илустрирана енциклопедија.

          Во првите три тома од хронолошкиот дел на средновековна Русија се дадени настаните од библиската и светската историја. Во неа, меѓу другото, се опишани Трoјанската војна, Александрија, Јудејската војна, Јосиф Флавиј и друго. Во другите томови голем простор им е даден на балканските народи Срби, Македонци и Бугари. Посебно интересен дел за Македонците е оној во кој се опишува и прикажува со слики на Александар Македонски. За територијата со која владеел се говори во вториот том од илустрираниот летопис. На сликата (587а) се претставени животот и подвизите на царот Александар Македонски. Вo истиот том на сликата (589а) се гледа Пела, главниот град на Македонија во времето на царувањето на Александар. Веќе на следната слика (615б) е покажано како Александар ги освоил Илија, Пеона и Тривада. Посебно е интересна сликата (651б) во чиј опис стои дека е прикажано како Александар ги покорил сите Хелени и варвари. Од тоа некои историчари извлекуваат доказ дека тој не бил Грк, бидејќи не би војувал против својот народ. Сепак, анализа на текстот би требало да дадат доброупатени историчари кои со години се занимаваат со таа проблематика, бидејќи новинар сепак не е компетентен. Во рамките на долгата историја на Византија, во летописот темелно се опишува и македонската династија на византиските императори, почнувајќи од биографиите на нејзиниот основач Василиј.

          Во рамките на милениумската историја на Византија, детално и живописно е отсликана македонската династија на византиските императори, почнувајќи од опишувањето на животот на нејзиниот основоположник Василиј Македоњанин, кој, по се' изгледа, послужил како прототип за легендарниот војсководец Александар Македонски, кој не знаел за пораз и создал голема империја. Неверојатно прецизно, до детали, се преплетуваат нарациите за овие два лика во Лицевиот свод. Македонската династија ја продолжуваат Лав VI Мудриот, неговиот помлад брат Александар и неговиот син Константин VII Порфирогенит (што значи Црвенороден). Тој бил еден од најобразованите луѓе на своето време, автор на „сводот на византиската практична наука“, кој бил составен од следните дела: „За управување на империјата“, „За церемониите на византискиот двор“ и „Биографијата на Василиј Македоњанин“. На Константин му припаѓаат прецизните формули-дефиниции за идеите на државноста: империјата е „светски брод“, Константинопол е „цар на градовите на целиот свет“, Господ „ги устоличува царевите на престолот и им дава власт да управуваат со сиот свет“, императорот помеѓу своите поданици е како „Исус Христос помеѓу апостолите“, кој управува „вистински, врз база на законот и праведноста“. Идеите на државноста се обработуваат и во натамошните написи на страниците од Лицевиот свод.

          Доказ за тоа колку се важни овие книги е и тоа дека идејата за препечатување на летописот ја поддржаа сега веќе бившиот претседател на Русија, Владимир Путин, и патријархот Алексеј Втори.

          „Прелистувајќи ги страниците на летописот, чувствуваме гордост што сме имале вакви предци кои биле храбри и мудри и имале голема духовна сила“, напиша меѓу другото Владимир Путин во писмото за идните читатели на рускиот летопис.

          ЈУЖНИ БРАЌА Двајца некогашни одлични студенти по физика, а сега бизнисмени, Вадим Јакуњин и Харис Мустафин, дошле на идеја повторно да го печатат рускиот летопис и им даваат можност на сите кои сакаат да видат и да читаат за својата историја, но и да ги запознаат народите блиски до себе. Листајќи и читајќи го летописот овие денови, и авторот на овој текст уште еднаш се убеди дека Русите од дамнешни времиња се интересирале за судбината на своите „јужни браќа“.

          Уникантниот летопис од 16 век бил зачуван, но малкумина се оние што можат да се пофалат дека го имале в раце. Неговите седум книги се чуваат во Санкт Петербург, а три во Москва.

          Благодарение на сопственикот на најголемата московска фармацевтска компанија „Протек“, Ведим Јекуњин, кој го финансираше целиот проект, книгите се преснимени со најсовремениот скенер кој ни најмалку не му штетел на оригиналот. Сега секој што сака може да има свој комплет од десет летописи.

          Целта на Ведим Јакуњин не била да заработи пари на книгите, туку да придонесе младите поколенија на Русија подобро да ја научат својата историја.

          „Секогаш ги ценев луѓето кои го знаеја минатото на своите предци. Длабоко сум убеден дека еден народ не може да има добра иднина ако ја прекине врската со културното и историското наследство. И Русите се народ со голема историја, но начинот на живеење и времето во кое живееме го прават своето и младите поколенија, објективно, се' помалку знаат за својата историја. Јас ја имав таа среќа да се родам во Јарослав, кој секогаш бил еден од културните и просветителски центри на Русија. Затоа мене секогаш ме интересирала историјата“, рече Вадим Јакуњин.

          За проектот да се реализира врвно, била основана посебна компанија „Актеон“, со која раководи Харис Мустафин. Јакуњин навистина не жалел пари, па бил купен најмодерниот скенер во Франција.

          Преговорите со музеите не биле лесни, но сепак се' е договорено. Идејата настанала во април 2004, а во март 2005 година веќе бил потпишан договор. За три месеци ударнички се снимени сите 10 тома со бесконтактниот скенер.

          Подоцна се ангажирани дизајнери кои стручно ја обработиле секоја страница, така што изгледот на копиите бил навистина верен на оригиналот. На тоа била потрошена една и пол година. Посебна вредност на новиот факсимил е тоа што издавачите одлучиле заедно со книгите да ги печатат објаснувањата на стариот архаичен јазик. Без тие преводи поголемиот дел од луѓето не би можеле да го разберат стариот текст.

          Сопственикот на компанијата „Протек“, Вадим Јакуњин, инвестирал и во купување машина за печатење на летописот. Секоја страница е уметничко ремек-дело. На крајот се ангажирани луѓе кои на многу квалитетен начин ги сошиле книгите.

          Летописот настанал во 16 век. Во вистинска смисла станува збор за голема илустрирана енциклопедија на светот и на Русија до периодот на Иван Грозни. Оној што ќе има можност да ја прелиста, може да посведочи дека таа ќе биде интересна не само за стручњаците туку и за обичните луѓе кои ја сакаат историјата.

          КОСОВСКА БИТКА Кој ја напишал таа книга - историски се' уште не е потврдено. Што се однесува до сликите, се верува дека нив ги работеле мајсторите што ја сликале внатрешноста на Кремљ. Таков заклучок е донесен врз основа на истиот стил, колоритот и содржината. Никаде не е напишано кој би можел да биде автор на таа книга. Се претпоставува дека автор би можел да биде митрополитот Макариј, за кого се тврди дека бил исклучително образован човек.

          Во редакцијата на книгите, наводно, можел да учествува и царот Иван Грозни. На десеттиот том на маргината е напишано со рака што треба да се поправи. Се верува дека тоа можел да го напише цар. Восхитува и квалитетот на сликите, иако се знае дека во тоа време печатарската техника не била на високо ниво, а текстовите под сликите се многу интересни. Од сликите се гледа како и во кој период биле облечени и вооружени луѓето и војниците, какви им биле градбите и со кои занаети се занимавале луѓето.

          Што се однесува до Балканот, интересно е како рускиот митрополит Пимен дознал за Косовската битка. Тој тргнал кон Цариград во 1389 година. Одел цел месец по реки и на крајот по Црно Море стигнал до Цариград и тогаш дознал за веста за поразот на Косово. Оваа вест ги разжалостила руските монаси. Поради блискоста со Србите, тие помислиле дека Турците може да ги убијат и брзо по разни патишта се вратиле во Русија.

          Во рускиот летопис е запишано дека царот Мурат бил од христијанско потекло. Интересно е и кога се опишува како Милош Обилиќ ги прешол Турците и го убил нивниот цар. Според таа приказна, Милош им рекол на Турците дека се замерил со царот Лазар и затоа бил пуштен кај Мурат. Во текстот под сликата пишува дека Турците веднаш го убиле „христијанскиот слуга“. На сликите во седмиот том се гледа како Турците го заробуваат царот Лазар и му ја отсекуваат главата.

          Секако, интересно во летописот е тоа што е запишано дека првиот часовник во Кремљ го поставил српскиот калуѓер кој се викал Лазар. Тој дошол од Србија и го поставил големиот ѕиден часовник на Кремљ во 1504 година.

          Начинот на кој се направени сликите се вика „серпска или јужнословенска“ колористика. Сите слики биле прво цртани со молив, а потоа боени.

          Би било многу добро кога примерот на руските бизнисмени-добротвори би разбудил слична желба кај нашите бизнисмени, бидејќи вложувањата во културните добра е корисна и трајна инвестиција.

          „Кога го почнувавме овој проект, желбата ни беше да го реализираме врвно. Значи, бевме свесни дека тој не може да биде комерцијален и да се заработи на него. Желба ни е еден ден да направиме поевтино издание кое би било достапно до народот“, велат Јакуњин и Мустафин и ветуваат нови проекти со кои ќе се израдуваат сите што ги интересира словенската историја и култура.
          © 2013 MicrosoftTermsPrivacyDevelopersEnglish (United States)
          © 2013 MicrosoftTermsPrivacyDevelopersEnglish (United States)
          "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
          GOTSE DELCEV

          Comment

          • George S.
            Senior Member
            • Aug 2009
            • 10116

            Macedonia Above all – Part 13

            By Stoian Georgiev Tomovichin
            Translated and Edited by Risto Stefov
            [email protected]
            July 28, 2013

            In the fall of 1979 the Chief of State Security for Petrich, Captain Indzhov, decided to pay the Starozagorski prison a visit. At the same time one day I was summoned to Major Nikolov’s office in the political section of the prison. There I ran into Indzhov who greeted me and told me that he wanted to talk to me about my trial that had taken place about six months ago. “Stoian, we need to talk about the other participants in your conspiracy,” he said. “The trial is over, everything that needed to be done is done, Citizen Indzhov,” I replied. “No Stoian, it’s not all done, there are still others who participated in this crime. We know who they are but we just want to confirm some things with you,” he said. “I don’t know any more individuals other than those who were identified at the trial!” I replied.

            “What about Ruzha the technician, citizen of Yugoslavia? Only you and another person had contacts with her,” he said. “That’s a lie, Citizen Indzhov and you know it. I am not going to be party to this and I will not allow you to manipulate me!” I replied. “Look Stoian, we know what you took from her and that you had discussions with her. We are now waiting for your confession. Besides, if you are honest and tell us everything we can free you from prison immediately. I guarantee you that,” he assured me.

            “Thank for your generosity Citizen Indzhov but I am prepared to serve my four years in prison,” I replied. “You don’t need to answer right away, go back to your cell and think about it. We will bring you back here tomorrow morning and we will talk again,” he added, after which I was escorted out of Major Nikolov’s office.

            After I was taken back to my cell I thought long and hard about the case. I was not thinking about Indzhov’s offer to free me from prison, I was thinking about who could have given the State Security Services information six months later, after we had been tried?

            Some time ago, before I was arrested, I often met with Ruzha; she was my colleague. We often talked about Macedonia but as far as I know I never offered her membership to join our organization or talked about anything that may be construed as conspiratorial. Only Sokrat knew about my conversations with her. But had he said something about it, even during the investigation, the matter would have been cleared during the trial. But not even a word was said about her during the trial, so it would appear that someone else had informed them about her. But who?! A question that kept me up all night!

            The next morning I was again taken to Major Nikolov’s office. I again had a conversation with Captain Indzhov but I told him nothing. Unfortunately I was still puzzled as to how they got this information about my conversations with Ruzha. Most importantly, I did not give in to the temptation to accept Indzhov’s offer to be let out of jail early at the expense of someone else. I never wanted to be free at the expense and suffering of others.

            So I served my second sentence honourably, without complaining, without apathy. I worked and read most of the time and hardly had enough time to even play chess. I never complained, I never thought about home, even though my wife was alone bringing up our children and worrying about where she was going to get the money to pay for fuel to heat our house in the winter, for food, or for whatever. But even if I had thought about it how was I going to help her being locked up in prison? I helped her some with the thirty leva I sent her once a month, money I earned from working. For the work I did they paid me 20% of the regular wage or a maximum of 40 leva per month.

            While serving my four year sentence in prison I kept in touch with my family through letters and visits. I was freed in early spring 1976. It is interesting to note at this point that each time after my release from prison, I was offered a job to work for the State Security Services. This time it was Colonel Atanas Maznakov who offered me the job, which I categorically rejected.

            “I did not become a spy when I was nineteen years old!” I said. “Why would I become one now?” And he said: “It is not spying, it is patriotism!” “I am sorry,” I said “you will have to do without my patriotism!” “Okay then, but if someone comes and tells you that there is a Macedonian Organization, you will come and tell us! Right?” asked Maznakov. “No, I will never do that!” I replied. “Then mark my words, you will be back in jail again!” he said. “That depends on me, now doesn’t it?” I replied.

            With those words I got up and left for home. We were having this conversation in front of Kosta Kirkov, a high school classmate of mine who was now a Major in the State Security Service in Petrich.

            After I was released from prison I looked for work in my profession for about two and a half months. Seeing that I was unable to find anything, I asked two of my friends, Doncho and Zhivko Takov to ask Georgi Zahov, the director of “Nestandardna Oprema” in Petrich if he could hire me as a mechanic. He agreed and allowed me to take the necessary exams, which I passed. I worked there for four months until a friend informed me that the company “Iavor” in Petrich was in need of a construction technician. Their technician had been drafted into the army. I agreed. But as per Article 64, when their technician returned, two years later, I would have to vacate the position.

            Here, under my leadership, we built a prefabricated warehouse, a single monolithic building with a single 200 metre long and 24 metre wide hall, the main part of a future prison.

            When their technician returned the facility was ready to be covered with a roof. I again was left without work in my profession and for the next eight months I worked as a general labourer.

            Four months later I got a job as an assembly technician at the “Domostritelen Kombinat” plant in Blagoevgrad, which was responsible for manufacturing panel blocks for the “Polijani” court near the “Biblijana” factory. Soon after I started work there one of my colleagues left and I took over his job as a technical manager. Here I spent five straight years working, the longest time I had ever held one job. After that I got a job as an investment manager at the school of public nutrition in Petrich.

            Before I went to the Human Dimension Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, my relationship with Angel Iankulski, the school director where I worked, who by the way was born in the same village as my great-great-grandfather Deli Georgi, was excellent. He always asked me to coffee and was glad to talk to me. But when I returned from Copenhagen, the first thing he did was express dissatisfaction with my involvement in the Macedonian cause. He said: “You either mind your job or you mind Macedonia! Not both!” So after he said that, I submitted my resignation! And since then, since August 1st, 1990 I have only worked for Macedonia!



            МАКЕДОНИЈА НАД СЕ - 13

            Стојан Георгиев Томовичин

            Во 1979 година, есента, во старозагорските затвори пристигна началникот на Државната безбедност од Петрич, капетан Инџов. Бев повикан во кабинетот на началникот на политичкиот дел на затворот, мајорот Николов. Таму го затекнав и Инџов, кој се поздрави со мене и побара да разговараме во врска со завршениот пред шест месеци судски процес.

            - Стојане, треба и да поразговараме и за другите учесници во вашата конспирација – рече Инџов.

            - Сето е завршено, граѓанину Инџов – реков јас.

            - Не, Стојане, има уште учесници во делото. Ние знаеме кои се тие, но сакаме за тоа да чуеме од тебе.

            - Јас не познавам такви.

            - Што ке кажеш за техничарката Ружа, граѓанка на СФРЈ. Само ти и уште еден сте имале врска со неа.

            - Тоа е лага, граѓанину Инџов, туку веќе нема да успете. Нема да си допуштам да ме испровоцирате.

            - Гледај што, Стојане, ние знаеме што си земал од неа и што сте зборувале. Сега чекаме да го чуеме од тебе. Освен тоа, ако бидеш искрен можеме веднаш да те ослободиме од затвор. Ти го гарантирам тоа.

            - Благодарам за великодушноста граѓанину Инџов, но јас психички сум се подготвил да ги одлежам четирите години затвор.

            - Не брзај толку со одговорот Стојане. Оди си сега во келијата, размисли добро за мојот предлог. Утре сабајле одново ќе разговараме – рече тој, после што бев изведен од кабинетот на мајорот Николов.

            Си отидов и долго размислував за случајот. Не размислував за неговиот предлог да бидам слободен предвреме од затворот. Размислував за тоа кој можел да ја предаде таа информација во Државната безбедност и тоа шест месеци откако бевме осудени.

            На времето, уште пред да не уапсат, јас невистина се среќавав со Ружа, мојата колежка. Доста често разговаравме за Македонија, но ниту и бев предлаган да влезе во организацијата ниту пак некаква врска имаше тоа со нашата конспиративна дејност. За моите разговори со неа знаеше само Сократ. Но, ако тој им беше кажал нешто за неа, уште за време на истрагата ќе се разјаснеше случајот. А, тогаш ниту, збор не стана за Ружа. Значи дека некој друг информирал за тоа. Но, кои можеше да биде? Ете, тоа ме измачуваше цела ноќ.

            Следното утро пак бев одведен во собата на мајорот Николов. Пак разговараме со капетанот Инџов, но ништо не му казав. Исто така не можев да разберам од каде ја добија таа информација за моите раговори со Ружа. Поважно беше што не се полакомив на предлогот, предвремено да бидам пуштен на слобода по цена на престап, за сметка на туѓата несреќа да го градам мојот успех. Не сакав слобода добиена заради затворање на други луѓе.

            И втората пресуда ја одлежав стоечки, без цимолење, без апатија. Работев и читав и времено не ми достигаше дури шах да играм. Никогаш не сум се жалел, никогаш не сум мислел за дома, независно за што дома остана жена ми со двете дробни дечиња кои имаа потреба од нафта за преку зимата, од моја закрила и од што уште не. Но, и да се јадосував, како можев да и помогнам од затворот? Им помогнав само со триесетте лева што и ги праќав на жена ми секој месец, бидејќи веке работев и добивав месечно по 20 процентно од заработеното или средно на 40 лева.

            Преку писма и средби одржував врска со моето семејство додека помина и тој четиригодишен затвор. Во раната пролет 1976 година веќе бев слободен. Интерсно беше што после секое мое излегување од затворот мене ми предлагаа да соработувам со Државната безбедност. Овој пат полковникот Атанас Мазнаков ми предложи, но јас категорично го одбив.

            - Јас на деветнаесет години не станав шпион, то сега ли?

            А тој ми реч:

            - Тоа не е спионирање, туку патриотизам!

            - И овој пат ќе поминете без мојот патриотизам – му договорив.

            - Е, добро, ако сега некој дојде и ти каже дека има Македонска организација, ќе дојдеш ли да ни соопштиш за тоа?

            - Не! – реков. – Никогаш нема да го сторам тоа!

            - Ти пак ќе влезеш в затвор! – Рече Мазнаков.

            - Тоа зависи само од мене!

            При тие зборови станав и си отидов дома. Разговорот го водевме во присуство на Коста Кирков, мој соученик во гимназијата, сега мајор во Државната безбедност во Петрич.

            Два и половина месеци после моето излегување од затворот за мене немаше работа по мојата специјалност. Најпосле, двајца мои пријатели, Дончо и Живко Таков, го замолија Георги Захов директор на “Нестандардна опрема” – Петрич, да ме прими на работа како механичар. Се јавив и на испит по специјалноста и положив за петти работен разред. Работев тука четири месеци додека еден пријател не ме извести дека во претпријатието “Јавор” во Петрич има потреба од градежен техничар, бидејќи нивниот отишол војник. Јас се согласив по чл. 64, по враќање на нивниот техничар, две години да работам во тоа претпријатие.

            Тука под моето раководство изградивме еден монтажен склад, еден ист таков монолитен и една 200 м. долга и 24 м. широка хала, основниот дел од идниот затвор.

            Кога се врати нивниот техничар објектот веќе беше за покривање. Јас останав пак без работа на мојата струка и 8 месеци работев како општ работник.

            Четири месеци потоа почнав да работам како монтажник во “Домострителен комбинат” - Благоевград, кој ги правеше панелните блокови во квартот “Полијаните” близу до фабриката “Билијана”. Наскоро еден од колегите го напушти објектот и јас стапив на работа како технички раководител во тоа претпријатие. Тука го поминав мојот најголем работен стаж – 5 години. Најпосле работев како инвеститорски контролор на училиштето за општествено исхранување во Петрич.

            Пред да дојдам на конференцијата за човековата димензија во Копенхаген, Данска, со директорот на училиштето Ангел Јанкулски, кој е роден во селото на мојот прадедо Дели Георги, односите не беа одлични. Постојано ме канеше на кафе, мило му беше да разговора со мене. Но кога се вратив од Копенхаген, првата му беше да ми го изкаже незадоволството од мене како раководител. Ми рече:

            - Или работата ќе си ја гледаш или да си ја гледаш Македонија!

            Јас веднаш напишав молба за отпуштање од работата зашто Македонија за мене е на се! Така, од први Август 1990 година јас работам само за Македонија.

            © 2013 MicrosoftTermsPrivacyDevelopersEnglish (United States)
            © 2013 MicrosoftTermsPrivacyDevelopersEnglish (United States)
            "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
            GOTSE DELCEV

            Comment

            • George S.
              Senior Member
              • Aug 2009
              • 10116

              A Message from Aleksandar Donski MA
              Translated and edited by Risto Stefov
              July 25, 2013

              Dear readers,

              Some time ago I received a call from a friend (a businessman from Shtip) who informed me that six people from Hunza (Macedonians from Pakistan) were staying in Shtip and I was invited to join them. Their local Macedonian hosts had informed the Hunza of the kind of research work that I do and one of the Hunza people called me and wanted to meet.

              So I took advantage of this rare opportunity to meet with these people who declare themselves descendants of Alexander’s army in Central Asia. They were here at the invitation of a prominent businessman from Skopje, Macedonia, who paid for their airfare and accommodations and who values my work. I was invited to join the Hunza on his initiative and so I did.

              The first part of my visit included a trip to Bargala archeological site where I met the Hunza. Their host (the Skopje businessman) introduced me, and my first greeting to them was “welcome to the land of your ancestors”. After we toured Bargala we went to the Lesnovski monastery and from there to the fishpond in Zletovo.

              To be honest, although I have seen many things in my life, when I saw the Hunza my skin had goose bumps. They looked like the ancient Macedonian soldiers who led the Macedonian phalanx. Their faces were very similar to ours. One had blue eyes and another reddish hair. Two were members of the local Hunza royal family. One was a member of a family which for centuries had advised their kings (informal rulers of Hunza).

              They were all intellectuals aged between 30 and 40 years old. One had his MA and was preparing for his PhD and the others were all college educated. Our visit was very pleasant and productive; we were able to exchange a lot of information.

              When we arrived at the fishpond, there was a table set up for us where our host (the Skopje businessman) again asked me to welcome our guests who spoke perfect English. I said: “Dear brothers, over 2300 years ago our ancient grandfathers came together and conquered the world. Although we live thousands of miles apart today, it is our duty to renew our friendship and to keep the memory of our ancestors alive.”

              After that I congratulated the first day of Ramadan (because they are now Muslims, although they belong to a separate sect) and they applauded me with satisfaction. Then the leader of the Hunza group gave a very nice speech during which he said he was proud to be a Macedonian and that we should also be proud of them because, amidst an ocean of Chinese and Indians, they managed to preserve the name of our glorious king and proudly carry his blood.

              After that we spent our time leisurely and agreed to take specific actions aimed at mutually exploring our two cultures, about which the public will be duly informed.

              If you wish to assist Aleksandar Donski in this venture, or to purchase any of his publications, please contact him directly at his e-mail: [email protected]


              Порака од историчар Александар Донски

              Пред извесно време ми се јави еден пријател (бизнисмен од Штип), кој ме извести дека во Штип престојувале шесмина Хунзи (Македонци од Пакистан) и ме покани да се придружам на целото тоа друштво. Нивните македонски домаќини им зборувале за моите истражувања и еден од Хунзите исто така ми се јави и кажа дека сакал да се запознаеме.

              Секако дека не ја испуштив таа ретка можност да се сретнам со овие луѓе кои самите себе се декларираат како потомци на војската на Александар во Средна Азија. Тие престојуваа овде на покана од еден познат македонски бизнисмен од Скопје, кој им го плати авионскиот пат и престојот овде, а кој исто така ме почитува, па поканата да им се придружам беше на негова иницијатива. Така отидов.

              Бевме прво на Баргала и таму ги сретнав Хунзите. Домаќинот (скопскиот бизнисмен) ме претстави, а јас ги поздравив со добродошлица во земјата на нивните предци. Од Баргала бевме на Лесновскиот манастир, а од таму во Рибникот во Злетово.

              Да бидам искрен, иако сум видел се и сешто во животот, кога ги видов нив, кожата ми се наежи. Како да видов дамнешни војници на Македонската фаланга. Фаците им беа исти како нашите. Еден имаше сини очи, а друг црвеникава коса. Двајца од нив беа припадници на тамошното кралско семејство на Хунза, а едниот беше член на семејството кое со векови биле советници на нивниот цар (неформален владетел на областа Хунза каде живеат и по која денес се именуваат) .

              Сите беа интелектуалци на возраст од 30 – 40 години. Едниот беше магистер со подготовка на докторат, а и другите беа факултетски образовани. Многу убаво се дружевме и разменивме информации.

              Кога стигнавме во Рибникот, на софрата, домаќинот (скопскиот бизнисмен) пак ме замоли да ги поздравам (сите зборуваат перфектно англиски) и јас им реков: Драги браќа, пред над 2300 години нашите дедовци заедно се дружеле и го освојувале светот. Иако живееме илјадници километри разделени, наша должност денес е да го обновиме нашето дружење и да го чуваме споменот на нашите славни предци.

              Потоа им го честитав првиот ден на Рамазан (затоа што тие сега се муслимани, иако припаѓаат на посебна секта), а тие ми аплаудираа презадоволни. Потоа и нивниот водач на групата одржа многу убав говор и кажа дека се горди што потекуваат од Македонија, но дека и ние треба да бидеме горди на нив затоа што среде океанот од Кинези и Индијци го зачувале името на нашиот најславен цар и се горди што ја носат неговата крв.

              Потоа следуваше општа веселба, а беа договорени и конкретни активности во насока на истражување на нивната култура и споредба со нашата, за кои јавноста ќе биде благовремено информирана.


              © 2013 MicrosoftTermsPrivacyDevelopersEnglish (United States)
              © 2013 MicrosoftTermsPrivacyDevelopersEnglish (United States)
              "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
              GOTSE DELCEV

              Comment

              • George S.
                Senior Member
                • Aug 2009
                • 10116

                N THE NEWS


                SCHOLARLY CONFERENCE ON THE PARTITION OF MACEDONIA A GREAT SUCCESS!
                Melbourne, 11 September 2013
                The Australian Macedonian Human Rights Committee was honoured to host an international scholarly conference on the Partition of Macedonia and the Balkan Wars of 1912-13.
                The conference was held at the Monash University Law Chambers from 4-7 September 2013.
                The aim of the conference was to attempt a historical survey of the context and the effects, both short and long term, of the partition of Macedonia on the inhabitants of Macedonia, from a variety of perspectives, especially linguistic, sociological, anthropological and political.
                The conference and subsequent post-conference dinner dance event attracted strong interest from the Macedonian community and beyond. A number of very high quality papers were delivered, resulting in stimulating discussions and scholarly debate.
                Here is a brief summary of the papers/presentations:
                Professor Andrew Rossos of the University of Toronto presented a paper on The Balkan Wars (1912-13) and the Partition of Macedonia: A Historical Perspective. In his paper Professor Rossos placed the partition of Macedonia in the context of the long history of the Macedonian question.
                Professor Victor Friedman of the University of Chicago presented a paper titled The Effects of the 1913 Treaty of Bucharest on the Languages Spoken in Macedonia. His paper examined the fate of the languages spoken in Macedonia at the time of partition by the 1913 Treaty of Bucharest. Large segments of the population were bi- or multilingual, as evidenced, among other things, by folklore as well as the grammatical and lexical commonalities that characterize the Balkan Sprachbund.
                Professor Katerina Kolozova of the University American College-Skopje made a presentation titled Living beyond identity in which she examined how a name points to the narrative of how one identifies, explains, defines, and positions oneself in the world.
                Dr. Michael Seraphinoff Discussed two Significant Works of Macedonian Literature that Deal with the Balkan Wars and World War One.
                Professor Keith Brown of the Watson Institute for International Studies, Brown University, USA, presented a paper titled How Trauma Travels. His paper sought to understand some of the mechanisms at work, focusing in particular on the transmission of trauma through history, memory and testimony.
                George Vlahov of the Australian Macedonian Human Rights Committee presented a paper titled A Survey of the ‘Macedonian Question’ in Dialogue with Greek Nationalism. His paper surveyed the attempts of the Greek state and some of its supporters to provide historical justifications for preventing the international recognition of the Republic of Macedonia and for denying the right of present-day Macedonians to refer to themselves and their language as Macedonian.
                Dr Vasko Nastevski also of the Australian Macedonian Human Rights Committee presented on The Partition of Macedonia and International Law: From Clausewitz to McDougall. His paper considered the different aspects of international law: from the legal and moral justifications to the preceding armed conflicts; the conduct of belligerents during those conflicts; and the ultimate division of the geographical territory known as Macedonia and the legitimisation of the partition through international treaty.
                Professor Loring Danforth of Bates College USA wrote a paper titled The Scholar and the State: Evangelos Kofos on the International Recognition of the Republic of Macedonia. His paper offer an anthropological critique of Evangelos Kofos’ work on the Macedonian conflict, the “global cultural war” between Greeks and Macedonians over the name by which the Republic of Macedonia should be internationally recognized.
                Professor Christina Kramer of the University of Toronto presented on Partitioning Language Policy and Status Planning in Macedonia. Her paper focused on how the partition of Macedonia in 1913 led to asymmetric developments in the Macedonian language and, more specifically, the use of Macedonian in a number of public and private domains.
                Professor Peter Hill of University of Hamburg presented a paper titled The codification and elaboration of the Macedonian standard language under the conditions of partition. His paper focused on the codification of the Macedonian Standard Language. Like other European standard languages, the MSL contains both indigenous and borrowed elements.
                Professor Grace Fielder of the University of Arizona presented a paper on Partition, Linguistic Identity and Language Standardization. Her paper focused on a specific problem of variation in a local linguistic practice in Sofia, Bulgaria, which cannot fully accounted for nor fully understood without reference to the partition of Macedonia in 1913.
                Dr Akis Gavriilidis of University of Macedonia, Salonika presented on the topic Who was liberated in 1912? Parts, Wholes and States in partibus. His paper drew on psychoanalysis but also from other theoretical traditions such as translation studies, linguistics and philosophy.
                Pandora Petrovska of La Trobe University presented a paper titled Recalibrating the past: using narrative and language education. Her paper explored some of the ways in which Macedonians in the Diaspora have dealt with the consequences of the partition of their homeland, namely the poverty which accompanied the partition, land dispossession and population exchanges. It also considered the refugee experience and the effects of forced migration.
                Dr Jim Hlavac of Monash University presented a paper on Partition without fragmentation: a cross-perspective analysis of Macedonian language maintenance in Australia. His paper presented a study of Macedonian language maintenance across three generations of speakers. The study employed a multi-faceted analysis of a well-established speech community and draws on domain-focussed questionnaires, language attitude data, ethno-linguistic vitality questionnaires and video-taped narratives conducted in the minority language.
                The conference papers will now be complied into a book which is expected to be published in 2014.
                The Australian Macedonian Human Rights Committee would like to express its sincere gratitude to all the speakers and those who attended, as well as to the following sponsors of the conference: Macedonian Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria (St.George, Epping); Australian Macedonian Youth Association; Macedonian Community of Adelaide and South Australia; Macedonian Australian Orthodox Community of Melbourne (Uspenie na Presveta Bogorodica, Sydenham); Macedonian Community of Brisbane; Jim Thomev; and Macedon Publishers and Translators.
                ___________
                Established in 1984, the Australian Macedonian Human Rights Committee (AMHRC) is a non-governmental organisation that informs and advocates before international institutions, governments and broader communities about combating racism and promoting human rights. Our aspiration is to ensure that Macedonian communities and other excluded groups throughout the world, are recognised, respected and afforded equitable treatment. For more information please visit www.macedonianhr.org.au, email [email protected] or via +61 3 9329 8960.

                AUSTRALIAN MACEDONIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE (AMHRC)
                Suite 106, Level 1, 55 Flemington Rd
                North Melbourne VIC 3051, Australia
                Tel/Fax: +61 3 9329 8960
                Email:[email protected]
                Visit our website: www.macedonianhr.org.au
                "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
                GOTSE DELCEV

                Comment

                • George S.
                  Senior Member
                  • Aug 2009
                  • 10116

                  The Other Face of History

                  Part – 10



                  By Stoian Kochov

                  Translated and edited by Risto Stefov

                  [email protected]

                  October 6, 2013



                  Was the program accomplished by the CPY/CPM? No! Was it terrible for the Macedonians! Yes!



                  As I said before, by now we have enough facts to give us a glimpse of our true past. If facts are a sacred thing then, right from the start, let us confess that there were no Macedonian National coats of arms, crests, flags or any other kind of symbol used in the five year war period (Greek Civil War). So what exactly makes this war a “Macedonian Revolution” as we are led to believe by historian Kiriazovski in his many books? And now in the epilogue of his latest book he wrote:



                  “… an attempt has been made to give tribute to the magnificent struggle of the Macedonian peoples from the Aegean part of Macedonia, a struggle which had a deep national and progressive character…!” Further down he wrote: “…The armed struggle of the Macedonian people from Aegean Macedonia in the period from 1945 to 1949 represents a continuation of earlier struggles for survival and for political and national equality and freedom.” (215, 216).



                  Again, as I said before, it was by no “accident” that the history of the “Macedonian people from Greek occupied Macedonia” was written in this manner and as such we should not believe the illusions presented to us without hard, objective and analytical historical facts to back them. The people from Greek occupied Macedonia experienced a traumatic tragedy and deserve to know why they were lied to and who brought the evil that destroyed their lives and uprooted them from their native home forever.


                  The Greek Civil War turned us into a mass of faceless people, and in fact this was the goal of those who designed the war.



                  I say again; I don’t know why we are so timid and don’t have the courage to come out and tell the whole truth about our Macedonian tragedy and admit that it was a conspiracy; since all facts point to that.



                  The first “external” reason for the alleged “Macedonian Revolution”, we are told, was to “Unite Macedonia”.



                  Here’s why this was not possible: Let us first examine how the Balkans were divided after WW II!



                  A historic meeting took place from October 10 to 20, 1944, (14) in Moscow where Stalin and Churchill discussed the fate of the Balkan peoples and how the Balkans were going to be divided between Russia and England.



                  It was during this October 10th, 1944 famous meeting that an agreement was reached where Greece was to go under the British sphere of influence while the rest of the Balkan countries were to remain under the influence of the Soviet Union.” By extension: <ΞΕΝΟΚΡΑΤΙΑ>, ΠΑΠΥΡΟΣ, ΑΘΗΝΑΙ, 1975.



                  So, was this decision and agreement not clear enough for us Macedonians? Were the decisions of two super powers not enough of a deterrent for us Macedonians?



                  This of course, logically leads us to the next question: Do you really think that after the Balkans were divided into spheres of influence, we Macedonians had a chance of “Uniting” Macedonia? Or was the Greek Civil War a Balkan sized conspiracy to destroy us?! Which is more believable?



                  After the world was split into two irreconcilable camps, East and West, one side aimed to exterminate its class of enemies by filling the Siberian camps with political prisoners. The other side, meanwhile, persecuted the communists at an unprecedented level, us Macedonians along with them; by ethnic cleansing us from our own homeland and by perpetrating genocide against us with the ultimate goal of driving us all out of our ancestral hearths forever.



                  These acts perpetrated against us are neither offered nor explained in Kiriazovski’s book, which leads us to wonder:



                  “Did the evil that befell the Macedonian people in Greek occupied Macedonia fall from the sky?! Or did someone intentionally bring it there? Perhaps not willingly but, nonetheless, the Macedonian people did suffer and need to know:



                  “Who activated the “Macedonian syndrome” of (self) sacrifice in the years 1945 to 1949 and why?!”



                  “Why did the CPY/CPM do this (1945-1946) before the Greek Civil War started? Why did they organize the Macedonian people and push them to fight against the Greek Monarcho-Fascist human flesh grinding machine, when they very well knew that the borders between Yugoslavia and Greece would not change and would remain “status quo”? Was it not Tito himself who spoke so many times in speeches and in diplomatic circles against a “United Macedonia”? So why push the people to fight for a “United Macedonia”?



                  After living with them for nearly 40 years, from 1900 to 1940, did we Macedonians not know what the Greeks were capable of? And now that 100 years have passed let us ask ourselves: “How have the Greeks changed?” They have not changed at all! After annexing Macedonian territories, the Greeks have been persistent; have never stopped, in their pursuit of the Macedonian heritage. They have never subsided in their quest to wage a fascist ideological war against us with aims of exterminating us and everything that we stand for. It has been a historic mission for them to trample on us, on our culture, our history, our traditions, our language and to deny us our identity since they first laid hand on our Macedonian territories.



                  There was massive fraud committed against us in the years 1940 to 1950. The communist Greeks, because they were communists, seemed to show some more understanding for us Macedonians but when it came to our National interest (human rights) they were no different than their Fascist counterparts. When it came to recognizing the rights of the Macedonian people, both the Left and the Right proved to be the same. This is an irrefutable confirmed fact which holds true to this day!



                  Historian Kiriazovski, who had been silent on this subject for years, now claims that both Yugoslavia and Greece interfered in the Greek Civil War.



                  Who actually were our allies in the Greek Civil War? The answer is: No one! Not even the CPM because it was completely subordinated to the CPY.



                  First axiom: The Macedonian people from Greek occupied Macedonia, from October 1944 to October 14, 1946 were led by the CPY/CPM during which time the Macedonian Organizations NOF and AFZH were formed with their own programs, goals and objectives. And as such, NOF took its instructions from the CPM Central Committee.



                  The first instructor to instruct NOF was a Slovenian named Miha Marinko. After him came Nikola Minchev and Dimitar Dimitrievski - Pekar. Who could have even imagined that at that time those people were preparing the Macedonian nation for war? Imagine, this little group of instructors playing “god” with the lives of the Macedonian people.



                  The hidden evil had a face and a name but eluded Macedonian history for the last 60 years.



                  Second axiom: How and why did the “Macedonian story” remain in the shadows from October 1946, when “Tito surrendered the Macedonian people from Greek occupied Macedonia, like slaves, to Zahariadis (15)”, until August 27, 1949 when the Greek Civil War, under the leadership of the CPG, ended.



                  Also let us not forget another, a second “internal strategic obstacle” that stood in the way of a “United Macedonia” and that was the “new ethnic composition” of the population in Greek occupied Macedonia which had recently changed with the colonization of the Macedonian territory with 660,000 newcomer colonists delivered to Macedonia after its 1913 division. (16) This particular group of colonists came from Asia Minor and although they were Christian by religion, they were a multi-ethnic group consisting mainly of Turks, Armenians etc., who in Greece were considered to be Greeks. These people, combined, made up a large chunk of the total population in Greek occupied Macedonia and would have opposed and resisted the Macedonian territory being separated from Greece. General Markos Vafiadis, who led DAG during the early part of the Greek Civil War, belonged to this group of colonists brought to Greece from Asia Minor. Do we seriously believe that he would have led a “Macedonian Revolution” and would have acted against his own personal and his people’s interests?



                  And how can we forget the circumstances that brought those Asia Minor colonists to Macedonia in the first place? How could we forget the 1913 genocide perpetrated against the Macedonian people to make colonization possible in Macedonia? The Macedonian people in Greek occupied Macedonia have experienced continuous waves of ethnic cleansing and genocide from 1913 to 1940 (17). It is well known that Greece, through a number of diplomatic maneuvers and population exchanges has managed to exile countless Macedonians from Greek occupied Macedonia. Legal, by signed conventions, or by any other means they are judged by history as evicting people from their own native homes, and that in my book makes them illegal and immoral. Just because they were done by “signed conventions” does not make them less painful for those involved!



                  Even though Greece was charged with the responsibility of “caring” for the people living on Macedonian soil when it was awarded its share of Macedonian territory by the 1913 Treaty of Bucharest, Greece it seems, was more interested in “grabbing” the territory than caring for the people or respecting their rights as Macedonians. In fact, by repeatedly ethnically cleansing Macedonian territory of its Macedonian population, Greece has demonstrated continuous and uninterrupted genocide! It did this under the conventions:



                  a) The Neuilly Convention signed on November 27, 1919 between Greece and Bulgaria. By virtue of this convention alone, Greek authorities forced 86,517 Macedonians out of their native homes and expelled them to Bulgaria.



                  b) Then came the Treaty of Lausanne signed in July, 1923 after the Greko-Turkish war ended. This Treaty called for the compulsory exchange of populations between Greece and Turkey. The Greko-Turkish War (1919-1922) was Greece’s last historic, small but ambitious, attempt to expand the Greek kingdom, to realize the “Megali Idea” of a Greater Hellas. Through the Treaty of Lausanne, Greece forcibly exiled 354,000 ethnic Macedonians because they were Muslim by religion.



                  The consequences of these so-called “legal” acts are indescribable and have caused unprecedented genocide against the Macedonian population not only because 354,000 ethic Macedonians were evicted from Macedonian territory but also because 660,000 Asia Minor colonists were deposited in Macedonia, who in fact changed the Macedonian demographic for the first time in Macedonia’s history. The colonists or “Prosfigi” or “Madzhiri” as the Macedonians called them, or “Ponti” as they called themselves, spoke their own languages which were not Greek, and during the wars of 1940 to 1949 the Macedonian people wholeheartedly accepted them for who they were. Now it seems, official Greek policy is to call them “autochthonous Macedonians” while they deny the real Macedonians their rights and identity. Greek propaganda now claims that a population of 2.5 million pure Macedonians lives in “Greek Macedonia”; this includes their Prime Minister Karamanlis who is an Asia Minor colonist.



                  If identity is inherited from our ancestors then how can these Asia Minor colonists call themselves “indigenous Macedonians” and legal heirs to the indigenous, centuries old Macedonian heritage?! Since the idea of annexing Macedonian territories got inside the Greek heads, Greeks on both sides of the ideological fence (left and right) have been busy creating various identities for us and for those replacing us. While the Greeks were busy finding new names for us and calling us “Bulgars”, “Bulgarophone Greeks”, “Slavophone Greeks”, “Slavs”, Skopjans, Gypsies etc., they never hesitated for an instant to call the newcomer Asia Minor colonists and settlers “Macedonians”. Even the colonists and settlers themselves are shamelessly encouraged to tell the world that they are Macedonians, descendents of the ancient Macedonians (and therefore Greeks)!



                  Yesterday’s colonists and settlers from Asia Minor today are today’s modern Greeks, descendents of the ancient Greeks, Spartans, Athenians, Thracians, Byzantines, Epirotes, Macedonians and what not! The real Macedonians, on the other hand, have no right to their own identity. But, from old demographic maps and census statistics, we very well know what kind of people used to live in that part of Macedonia. According to these old stats, Macedonians, Turks, Armenians, Albanians, Vlachs and others used to live in that part of Macedonia. With the exception of the colonists and settlers, a Christian Turkish population, brought there in the 1920’s, the same people (Macedonians, Turks, Armenians, Albanians, Vlachs and others) still live there. So we don’t need Greek lies and Greek myths to tell us who we are and who else lives amongst us!



                  NOTES:



                  (14) Here is what Churchill wrote in his memoirs about the Balkans: We arrived in Moscow in the late hours of October 9, 1944. We had our first significant meeting and counseling in the Kremlin the next day, October 10. Attending the meeting were Stalin, Molotov, Eden and myself. The Majors Boris and Popov performed the translations… An agreement was reached on the division of spheres of influence. Under this deal, Greece was entirely left to the British sphere of influence, with rights, if necessary at any time to be able to intervene with all possible means.



                  (15) Nikos Zahariadis was born on April 27, 1903 in Edirne, Eastern Thrace. His father was employed as a clerk at “Razim”, a French commercial tobacco company based in Constantinople. From 1911 to 1912 Nikos Zahariadis lived and attended school in the “Ibin Paiko” settlement in Skopje, where his father worked as a representative of the “Razim” Company. In 1913 he moved to Solun. In 1922 and 1923 he worked as a sailor, a job which took him to the Soviet Union where he became a member of the Communist Party. In 1924, with the exchange of populations between Turkey and Greece, Zahariadis’s family was moved to Greece. In 1924 he visited the famous Communist University of Eastern European nations KUTVE in Moscow. Nikos Zahariadis was leader of the Greek communist movement and secretary general of the CPG from 1936 to 1956. Zahariadis treated the CPG like a cult and had absolute confidence in Stalin and his Communist Party, which he believed to be infallible. He himself admitted to this.

                  Zahariadis committed suicide in 1973 while serving a prison sentence in Sorgun, Siberia.



                  (16) As a consequence of the Balkan Wars (1912-1913) and the 1913 Treaty of Bucharest signed August 10, 1913, and sanctioned by the Neuilly Agreement, signed August 10, 1920, Macedonia was divided between Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria and Albania. Albania later was awarded Mala Prespa and Golo Brdo. Greece received 34,356 km2 or 51% of the Macedonia’s ethnic and historical territory; Serbia received 25,713 km2 or 39%; Bulgaria received 6798 km2 or 9.5% and Albania received 0.5%.



                  (17) See: a) Neuilly Convention and b) Treaty of Lausanne.







                  ДРУГОТО ЛИЦЕ НА ИСТОРИЈАТА - 10



                  Стојан Кочов







                  Се оствари ли таа програма КПЈ/КПМ? Не! Беше ли кобна за Македонците Да!



                  Но сега ги има доволно фактите кои ни овозмозуваат да го обелоденине нашето минато. Ако фактите се света работа, уште на почетокот треба да се каже дека низ петогодишниот период на Граѓанската војна намаше национални нишани со кои можеме да ја наречеме Македонска Револуција, како што тоа го правеше историчарот Кирјазовски во досегашните негови книги со искривените факти. Но тој, и сега во својот епилог на оваа книга, внесува стари и неодржливи заклучоци и пишува:



                  “Направен е обид да се даде почит на величествената борба на Македонците од Егејскиот дел на Македонија, која имаше длабок национален и прогресивен карактер...?” И понатака пишува: “Оружената борба на Македонците од Егејскиот дел на Македонија во периодот 1945-1949 година преставува продолжение, односно континуитет на поранешните борби за опстанок, и за политичка и национална рамноправност и слободи.” (215, 216)



                  Значи, ете како е пишува историјата и не треба да имаме некакви илузии, туку макотрпно, објективно и аналитички со историските факти кои ќе ни овозможат да ја согледаме трагедијата на Македонците од Егејска Македонија, а не да ги оправдуваме потезите на сите оние кои го донесоа злото и го измамија народот.



                  Граѓанската војна се претвори во маса безлични луѓе, а всушност тоа е беше и целта на тие што ја проектираа таа војна.



                  Не знам зошто, се криеме зад прстот и немаме смелост докрај да ја кажеме вистината на Македонската трагедија за која сите аргументи зборуваат дека тоа беше заговор.



                  Првата надворешна пречка за наводната револуција на Македонците за обединета Македонија.



                  Ете зошто: Да видиме како настана деление на Балканот по Втората светска војна?



                  “Од 10 до 20 Октомври 1944 година во Москва се случи едно меѓународно историско советување (14): Сталин и Черчил разговара и се пазареа. Што разговараа; за судбината на Балканските народи. Што се пазареа; за поделбата на народите по меѓу Русија и Англија.



                  Познатиот договор по меѓу Сталин и Черчил на 10 Октомври 1944 година во Москва за поделбата на сфери на влијание помеѓу Советскиот сојуз и Велика Британија фактички, му овозможи на премиерот Черчил да ја сочува за западните сојузници единствено Грција, додека сите останати Балкански земји останаа под влијание на СССР.” Поопширно: <ΞΕΝΟΚΡΑΤΙΑ>, ΠΑΠΥΡΟΣ, ΑΘΗΝΑΙ, 1975 (13).



                  Значи, зар ова за нас Македонците не беше доволно јасно и дека некој турка пред најголема и несовладлива стратешка пречка, не само од Грчките власти, туку и од двете супер сили: Англија и Америка?!



                  Логично следи прашањето: Дали навистина по поделбата на свери на влијание за нас Македонците не постоеше заговор од Балкански размери?!



                  По ова се подели светот на два непомирливи табори – Источен и Западен блок. И едните тежнеа кон истребување на класниот непријател полнејќи ги Сибирксите лагори, а другиот со невиден прогон на комунистите и конкретно со нас Македонците; етничко чистење со крајна цел – геноцид за навек губење на татковата грутка македонска земија и лишени од желбата за етничко однесување.



                  Такви елементи во книгате самиот Киријазовски ни ги нуди, но не ги објаснува? И човек се прашува:



                  - Злото во Егејска Македонија не падна од небото?! Туку некои организирано со умисла го донесе. Можеби не по нивна волија, ама на Македонецот треба да му се каже:



                  - Кој го активира конечно “Македонскиот Синдром” за нашето (само) жртвување во годините (1945-1949)!



                  - Зошто тоа го сторија КПЈ/КПМ (1945-1946) пред да почне Граѓанската војна? Го организира и турна Македонскиот народ во монархофашистичката машина за мелење човечко месо, кога се знаеше дека границите по меѓу Југославија и Грција се “status quo”. Нели, самиот Тито, беше против за обединета Македонија?



                  Дали ние Македонците не знаевме дека Грците четириесет години (од 1900 до 1940, а сега поминаа сто години, а тие си останаа исти) против нас низ историјата водеа идеолошка фашисоидна политика со геноцидни цели. Грците владаи во анектираната територија на Македонија ја имаа сотрено: културате, историјата, традицијата и јазикот кој беше основнен идентитет.



                  За голема измама во годините (1940-1950) надежта доаѓаше од фактот што тие се комунисти и имаат поголем слух за нас Македонците, но сите тие, и левицата и десницата во однос на нашите национални интересе се покажаа дека се исти. Тоа сега го потврдуваат многу непобитни факти.



                  Историчарот Киријазовски, низ изнесените факти пишува и сега тврди дека низ годините на Граѓанската војна, буричкале две држави (Југославија и Грција), а тоа значи и две вистини:



                  - Кој беа всушност нашите сојузници во Граѓанската војна? Одговорот е: Никој! Па ниту ни КПМ, бидејќи таа беше целосно потчинета од КПЈ.



                  Првата аксиома: Од октомври 1944 година до 14 Октомври 1946 година, Македонците од Егејска Македонија биле под раководство на КПЈ/КПМ и дека “Оформените Македонску организации НОФ и АФЖ имале свои програмски цели и задачи. И дека работата на НОФ ја раководеа инструктори на ЦК на КПМ.”



                  Прв иструктор беше Словенецот Миха Маринко, потоа Никола Минчев и Димитар Димитриевски-Пекар. И кој би можел денес да помисли и сфати дека луѓе во сопсвеното време има ангажмани и непосредна врска со активизмот; како да го турната масовно Македонскиот народ во војна, а оваа група луѓе како инструктори кои си играа мали богови со големи овластувања.



                  Притаеното зло имало лице и име а се притајуваше цели 60 години во Македонската историја



                  Втората аксиома: Како и зошто Македонската приказна остана во сенка. Од Октомври 1946 година кога “Тито им ги отстапива (1946 година) Егејските Македонци (како робовите – моја забелешка) на Захариадис (15)” до 27 Август 1949 година (кога заврши војната под раководство на КПГ).



                  Но да не заборавиме дека Втората внатрешна стратешка пречка за револуција на Македонците за обединета Македонија беше истотака промената на етничкиот состав на населението во Егејска Македонија со донесувањето на новородното население од околу 660 илијади, кое беше донесено по поделата на Македонија 1913 (16) година. (Тоа население беше со христијанска вера, но не беа исти по етничка основа. Тие беа од разни националности-Ерменици, Туркофони и други.)



                  Како можеше да се заборави дека во Грција над Македонците е вршено етничко чистење, токму во годините од 1913 до 1940 (17) година. Многу познати се фактите кога преку дипломатски трампи исчезнаа неброени Македонци, токму од Македонија под Грција. Душите ин ги сомле историјата по потпишаните конвенции и нивното иселување.



                  Грција, по освојувањето на “новите предели”, наместо почитување на правата на Македонците, таа почна со етничко чистење. Тоа го правеше со конвенциите:



                  А/ Нејскиот мировен договор потпишан на 27 Ноември 1919 година, по меѓу Грција и Бугарија. Грчките власти до 1925 година по силата на оваа конвенција речиси 86.517 Македонци беа принудени од своите родни огништа да заминат за Бугарија.



                  Б/ Потоа уследи и Лозанскиот мировен договор потпишан во 1923 година за задолжителната размена на населението меѓу Грција и Турција. Турско-Грчката војна (1919-1922) беше последен историски обид на малото, но амбициозно Грчко кралство да наметне и да реализира една дамнешна великодржавничка политика за “Мегали” и чиста национална Елада. Со Лозанскиот мировен договор од Македонија под Грција се иселија 354.000 Македонски муслимани.



                  Последниците од тие “легални” договори се неописив и е направен невиден геноцид и сето тоа падна на грбот на Македонците, бидејќи на нивно место беа донесени колонисти (само во Македонија) повеќе од 660.000 т.н. Просфиги-Маџири, односно Понтдии од Средна Азија (кои имаа свој посебни јазик и го зборуваа во Македонија, дури и за време на војните 1940-1949, а сесрдно беа прифатени од Македонците), кои денеска официјалната политика на Грција – ги претставува како автоктоно население од 2,5 милиони луѓе и дека тие денес се сметаат за Македонци меѓу кои е и премиерот Караманлис.



                  Ако наследството е идентитет, тогаш овие колонисти, како можат да градат идентитет на нашето староседелско вековно Македонско наследство?! Но, како самата држава, така и комунистите, упорно градеа идентитиет на нажето наследство, оти нивното го оставија во Мала Азија-Пондиаја. Сега најголеми гласоговорници се токму тие пред светот кажуваат дека тие се Македонци!



                  Тие денес претставуваат како современи Грци, но и претендираат да бидат Спартикијци и Тракицјци, и Визандици и Епирци, и Македонци и антички Грци, а што уште не! Само современите Македонци не можат да имаат свој идентитет. Но и од статистиката се знае дека токму во тој дел на Македонија (некои живееле) сега живеат голем дел Турци, Ермени, Власи, се разбира и ние Македонците.



                  ЗАБЕЛЕШКИ



                  (14) Денес на Балканот: Черчил го опишува во своето мемоари: “Пристигнавме во Москва во доцните часови на 9 Октомври 1944 година. На 10 Октомври ја имавме првата значајна средба и советување и се договоривме во Кремељ. Беше Сталин, Молотов, Иден и јас. Мајорите Бирис и Попов го извршуваа преводот...” Значи, постигната е согласност за поделба на интересни сфери. Според договорот, Грција беше целосно препуштена на Британското влијание, со право, по потреба во секое време, да може да интервенира со сите можни средства.



                  (15) Никос Захариадис, е роден на 27 Април 1903 година во Одрин (Адријануполис). Источна Тракија. Татко му бил вработен како службеник – експерт во Француската трговска команија за тутун “Рази” со седиште во Цариград. Никос Захариадис од 1911-1912 година живее во Скопје во населба “Ибин Пајко”, каде неговиот татко работел во преставништвото на споменатата компанја “Рази”. Во Скопје Захариадис заоди на училиште. Во 1913 година се преселува во Солун. Во 1922 и 1923 година како морнарски работник допатува во Советскиот Сојуз, каде се зачлени во КПСС. Во 1924 со размена на населенијата меѓу Турција и Грција, семејството Захаријадис се преселива во Грција. Во 1924 година го посетува познатиот комунистички универзитет за народите од Источна Европа КУТВЕ во Москва. Никос Захаријадис бил лидер на Грчкото комунистичко движење и генерален секретар на КПГ, од 1936 година до 1956 година. Захаријадис упорно го култивираше во редовите на КПГ култот и сета доверба во апсолутната непогрешност на КПСС и на Сталин, факт, како што и самиот призна, многу скоро го плати Грчкото комунистичко движење, Грчкиот и Македонскиот народ и самиот тој. Се самоуби како робијаш во градот Соргун во Сибир 1973 година.



                  (16) Како последица од Балканските војни (1912-1913) и со Букурешкиот мировен договор од 28 Јули (10 Август) 1913 година, санкциониран од Нејскиот мировен договор од 28 Јули (10 Август) 1920 година, Македонија беше поделена меѓу Грција, Србија, Бугарија и подоцна Албанија која ги доби Долна Преспа и Голо Брдо. Грција доби 34.356 км2 или 51% од Македонската етничко-историска територија; Србија 25.713 км2 или 39%; Бугарија 6.798 км2 9,5% и Албанија 0.5% од Македонската-историска територија.



                  (17) Види под А/Нејскиот мировен договор и под Б/лозанскиот мировен договор.




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                  "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
                  GOTSE DELCEV

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                  • George S.
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                    The Other Face of History - Part - 30‏














                    risto stefov


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                    The Other Face of History

                    Part – 30



                    By Stoian Kochov

                    Translated and edited by Risto Stefov

                    [email protected]

                    December 15, 2013



                    ***



                    Macedonians showed themselves to be trustworthy and such trust served as a mobilization success factor. But then came what was unexpected: thousands of our Macedonian young people being sent by Markos’s orders to the depths of Greece. And what was their fate? That’s a different story; most of them disappeared as if walking through a pit of quicksand. I will mention this; I was among the 350 young men, aged 17 to 18, recruited from the Macedonian villages Turie, Bapchor, Visheny, Kolomnati etc. between October 5th and 10th, 1947 who were sent to the Headquarters in Epirus and Antihashia and who fought in Konitsa. I was among the few who survived when about two thirds of us left our lives on those battlefields. But let us see how our history assessed our sacrifice:



                    “The Macedonian military formations, now units of DAG, were sent south into Greece in order to strengthen the existing partisan movement there. And they truly furthered the armed struggle in that part of the country…” (See: Kiriazovski 1985/166).



                    ***



                    That is exactly why we Macedonians, during the Greek Civil War, were unable to impose our political or military will and shift the orientation of our struggle towards defending and saving our homeland and preventing the eradication of our homes.



                    And what happened to us after the war? For Greece we no longer existed! And for the communists who got us into this mess in the first place, we were nothing… For the last half century or so we were nobodies; after this war no one cared about how the Macedonians from Greek occupied Macedonia coped or how they existed, roaming the world as permanent refugees…



                    The CPG 3rd Plenum was held from September 15 to 17, 1947 in order to discuss military matters. This was when the famous slogan: “All to arms and everything for victory!” was coined. This was when it was also decided to create a free territory in the Kozheni plateau, which was surrounded by the mountain Massifs of Pindus, Pieria, Karakamen, Kaimakchalan and Vicho.



                    September 27, 1947 – The General Headquarters of Markos’s Partisan units, before the Democratic government was declared, which makes this act illegal, issued orders to mobilize fighters aged 17 to 35 years. But after this mobilization, because it was carried out only in the Macedonian villages, only 15,000 to 17,000 fighters were mobilized. Just for comparison: in the spring of 1946 when the Greek Civil War began, the Greek government possessed the following numbers: 27,000 policemen from whom 14,000 were from Northern Greece (i.e. Greek occupied Macedonia); paramilitaries about 5,000; national military units 17,000 (40 battalions); 75,000 regular soldiers (7 armies and two free brigades) (See: “DAG-strategic issues and management tactics,” G. Maltezos Dzhumerkiotis, p.60).



                    According to Dzhumerkiotis: “It is well known that in 1947 DAG had not resolved either the issue of military supplies or the issue of arming its fighters with ordinary battle machine guns and other battle assets, as well as ammunition. It also remains to be explained why on the one hand Zahariadis gave Markos orders to increase the number of fighters in DAG to 60,000 while Ioannidis gave Markos orders to acquire arms for only 4,500 thousand fighters. It is also well known that Markos, in 1947, ended up sending home thousands of fighters who wanted to voluntarily enter the ranks of DAG.” (p. 354). The question is: “Why did General Marcos conduct an illegal mobilization only in Macedonia, mobilizing young and old and wreaking havoc on the Macedonians?”



                    The decisions made by the CPG Central Committee during the 3rd Plenum, held in Belgrade in September 1947, is also a problem for Greek analysts. According to Gusias (p.251) the Plenum was attended by only six CPG Central Committee members and several military personnel, but not a single Macedonian was present!



                    The Plenum decided to oblige DAG General Headquarters to start mobilizing recruits right across the country so that by March 1948, there would be 60,000 armed fighters in DAG. At the same Plenum it was decided to switch fighting tactics from self-defense to going on the offensive and take power by force. To achieve this goal plan “S” was put into effect, also known as operation “Lake”. This plenum also coined the slogan: “All to arms and everything for victory!” At this Plenum it was decided to create a free territory on the Kozheni plateau, which was surrounded by the mountain Massifs of Pindus, Pieria, Karakamen, Kaimakchalan and Vicho. The plan was to liberate the towns Lerin, Voden, Negush, Sobotsko, Konitsa and others as a first stage to liberating all of Greece.



                    From what was said above, there is clear confirmation that all these decisions were made without Macedonian presence or consent and that the Greek Civil War was intended to be fought in Greek occupied Macedonia. All this was decided at the Belgrade Plenum in September 1947 with no Macedonian representation!



                    Mobilization beyond the borders of Greece to include all those people who had fled to Yugoslavia to save themselves from the Greek terror



                    September 27, 1947 – DAG Headquarters ordered the mobilization of all men between the ages of 17 to 35. With much intensity, over the course of 4 to 9 months, the Macedonian political refugees who had fled to Yugoslavia and were living in Skopje, Veles, Shtip and Bitola were also mobilized into DAG and shipped from Yugoslavia to the front in Greece, in trucks covered with tarps during the night. (See: F.M INI SK.4-271/60 p.73-76).



                    (42) Memorial service for 150 young people was held in Shtip. The 150 were forcibly taken from sovereign Yugoslavia and sent to Greece to fight in the Greek Civil War where they were all killed. The reason they were taken to Greece was because they were born in Greek occupied Macedonia. In the pages of “Н. М.” of May 29, 1994 the person who took these young people and made them pay their “national debt”, showed them the way to their “freedom” and left their bones in Gramos was openly identified. That person was “sindrofos Michos” (who presented himself as a politician, revolutionary and mobilization officer). He said: “…I came to Skopje and in four months I recruited hundreds of fighters into the ranks of DAG!”







                    ДРУГОТО ЛИЦЕ НА ИСТОРИЈАТА - 30

                    Стојан Кочов



                    ***



                    Таквата доверба, послужи како мобилизационен успешен фактор. Но, потоа, се случи она што не се очекуваше: илјадници наши Македонци се најдоа(беа испратени) по налог на Маркос во длабината на Грција, а каква им беше судбината, тоа е посебна прикаска, оти се знае дека тие исчезнаа како во жив песок. Само ќе наведам дека и јас сум едно од тие млади момчиња (сите бевме на возраст од 17-18 година), кога на 5-10 октомври 1947 година, околу 350 деца бевме регрутирани (од селата. Турје, Бапчор, Вишени, Кономлати и др) од Македонија за штабовите во Епир и антихашија, за кои по борбите во Коница не останавме ниту една третина. Но, да видеме, како го има оценето таквиот зафат нашата историја:



                    “Македонските воени формации, сега единици на ДАГ беа испратени во внатрешноста на Грција со цел-да се омасови и таму партизанското движење. И НАВИСТНА МНОГУ ПРИДОНЕСОА ЗА РАЗВОЈОТ НА ВООРУЖНАТА БОРБА И ВО ТИЕ ПОДРАЧЈА. “. (Види: Кирјазовски 1985 /166).



                    ***



                    Ете зошто ние Македонците во Граѓанската војна не можевме да му наметнеме, ни политичка ориентација, ниту воена ориентација или некаква стратегија и требаше да сватиме дека татковина не се брани со уривање на домовите и искоренување на човекот.



                    А по таа војна што не снајде ние -Македонците по војната за државата Грција не постоеме, ниту пак комунистите, пола век не не побараа и не не заштитија... Од 15 до 17 септември 1947 година е одржан III-от Пленум на КПГ, на кој се расправало за воените прашања. На пленумот е истакната паролата: “Сите на оружје, се за победата!” Решено е да се создаде слободна територија на Кожанската висорамнина, која е опкружена со планинските масиви на Пинд, Пиерија, Каракемен, Кајмакчилан и Вичо.



                    На 27 септември 1947 година, Главниот Штаб на партизанските единици на Маркос (бидејки уште не беше прогласена Демократската влада, а тоа е незаконито и недозволено) издава наредба да се изврши моболизација од 17 до 35 години. Но, и по оваа мобилизација, бидејќи се спроведе само во македонските села одвај ја достигна бројката од 15.000 до 17.000 борци учесници во ДАГ. Само за споредба: пролетта 1946 година кога почна Граѓанската војна, Владата на Грција располагаше со следните оружени сили:



                    27.000 милиционери од кои 14.000 имаше во Ворија Елада (Е. Македонија);



                    Парадржавни организации околу 5.000;



                    Национални воени единци 17.000 (околу 40 батаљони);



                    Редовна војска од 75.000 војници (7 армии и 2 слободни бригади), (Види: ”ДАГ-стратешките прашања и тактиката на раководењето”, од Г. Малтезос-Џумеркиотис стр.60). Тој понатаму пишува:” Познато е дека во 1947 година ДАГ, не само што го немаше решено прашањето за воените резерви, туку го немаше решено и прашањето на вооружувањето со обичните бојни пушкомитралези и други бојни средства, но и муниција и тоа останува необјаснето, зошто од една страна Захаријадис му даваше на Маркос наредба да го зголеми бројот на силите во единиците на ДАГ до 60.000, а Иоанидис на Маркос му даваше (обезбедуваше) вооружување само за 4.500 илјади борци, а пак тој Маркос се до крајот на 1947 година враќаше илјадници симпатизери-војници кои сакаа доброволно да стапат во редовите на ДАГ” (стр.354). Се поставува прашањето:Зошто генерал Маркос само во Македонија вршеше незаконски мобилизации, од старо до младо и направи пустош од Македонците?



                    Проблем за грчките аналитичари е и решението на 3-от Пленум на ЦК на КПГ што се одржа во Белград, во септември 1947 година, и како што пишува Гусиас (стр.251), на пленумот присуствуваа само шест членови на ЦК на КПГ и неколку воени лица, но ниту еден Македонец.



                    Пленумот реши и го задолжи Главниот Штаб на ДАГ да почне со мобилизација во целата земја и до март 1948 година наоружаните сили на ДАГ да нарасне на 60.000 борци. На истиот Пленум е донесено решение, од централното тежиште на самоодбрана да се премине во напад, во борба за власт. За постигнување на таа цел беше изработен воено-оперативен план “С”, односно познат како “Езеро”. На овој Пленум се истакна и паролата: ”Сите на оружје, се за слободата!” Решено е да се создаде слободна територија на Кожанската висорамнина, окружена со планинските масиви на Пинд, планината Пиерија, Каракамен, Кајмакчалан и Вичо, и со тој план требаше да се ослободат градовите Лерин, Воден, Негуш, Соботско, Коница и други. Тоа би било како прва етапа за ослободување на Грција.



                    Ете, сето ова ни потврдува и е уште еден непобитен факт, дека се сакало Граѓанската војна да биде лоцирана во Егејскиот дел на Македонија, а тоа било решено во Белград на тој пленум, без никаков обѕир спрема македонскиот народ и неговата судбина, туку се во интерес на туѓите политички цели.



                    Мобилизации надвор од границите на Грција на сите луѓе кои имаа пребегано од теророт во Југослвија



                    На 27. 09. 1947 година, Главниот штаб на ДАГ издаде наредба за мобилизација на сите мажи од 17 до 35 години. Со не помал интензитет, веќе за неколку месеци (од 4-9 месеци) се вршеше мобилизација на бегалците Македонци (политичката емиграција во Југославија) низ Скопје, Велес, Штип и Битола, од разни Ворјасовци и се испраќаа во единиците на ДАГ (Види: Ф.М во ИНИ, СК.4-271/60, стр.73-76).



                    (42) Панихида во Штип за 150 млади, кои беа насилно земени од суверената Југославија и испратени во суверена Грција, во прегратките на смртта во Граѓанската војна, само затоа што тие беа родени таму...) . На страниците на “Н.М” од 29 мај 1994 година веќе и отворено се идентификува кој го правел таквиот “национален долг” и им го покажал патот до “слободата”, на овие млади луѓе, кои што ги оставија коските на Грамос. Тоа е синдрофос Мичос (како што се претстави: политичар, револуционер и мобилизатор). Тој вели: “...Дојдов во Скопје и за четири месеци испратив стотина борци во редовите на ДАГ” (Во заклетвата на борецот во редовите).






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                    "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
                    GOTSE DELCEV

                    Comment

                    • George S.
                      Senior Member
                      • Aug 2009
                      • 10116

                      Excerpt from: Makedonski Icelenuchki Almanac '97 1

                      Important Dates in Macedonian History

                      C. 653 B.C.
                      King Perdiccas I establishes the Macedonian Kingdom.

                      359-336 B.C.
                      Significant military and financial reforms carried out during the reign of Phillip II, determining the geographical, historical, and ethnic boundaries of Macedonia.

                      336-323 B.C.
                      Reign of Alexander the Great, King of Macedon. Macedonia reaches the peak of its military power. He spreads Macedonian culture to the East.

                      215-205, 200-193, 171-167 B.C.
                      Macedonian - Roman wars. Macedonia falls under Roman rule.

                      A.D. 535
                      The Byzantine Emperor establishes the town of Justiniana Prima (in the vicinity of Skopje), an important church (archbishop's seat) and political centre in the Balkans.

                      End of 6th and beginning of 7th centuries
                      Slavs settle the territory of Macedonia.

                      855
                      The brothers Cyril and Methody create the first Slavonic alphabet.

                      886
                      Clement comes to Macedonia, spreads Christianity in the Slavonic language and founds the Ohrid Literary School.

                      969
                      The sons of komes Nicholas (David, Moses, Aaron, and Samuil) rebel against Bulgarian authority and establish the medieval Macedonian state, which in 997 becomes the Macedonian Empire.

                      1014
                      Battle of Mount Belasica. The army of the Macedonian Tsar Samuil is defeated by the Byzantines.

                      1018
                      The Macedonian Empire falls under Byzantine rule.

                      1040-1042
                      Insurrection against Byzantine authority led by Petar Deljan.

                      1072-1073
                      Gjorgji Vojteh's insurrection based in Macedonia.

                      1371
                      The Battle of Marica and penetration of the Turks into the Balkans.

                      1395
                      Macedonia falls under Turkish domination. King Marko dies in a battle near Rovin.

                      1564-1565
                      The Mariovo - Prilep Rebellion, the first known rebellion of the Macedonian peasants.

                      1689
                      The Karpos Uprising, insurrection of the Macedonian people against the Turks in the Kriva Palanka and Kumanovo regions.

                      1767
                      The Abolition of the Archbishopric of Ohrid by an irade of the Sultan under the pressure of the Greek Patriarchate of Constantinople.

                      1822
                      The Negus Uprising, insurrection of the Macedonians for liberation in the Aegean part of Macedonia.

                      1876
                      The Razlovci Uprising, insurrection in eastern Macedonia which heralded the national liberation struggle.

                      1878-1879
                      The Macedonian Kresna Uprising, insurrection which adopted a constitution known as The Rules of the Macedonian Uprising Committee.

                      1894
                      Establishment of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization. Gotse Delchev joins the Organization.

                      1902
                      Foundation of the Slavonic - Macedonian Scholarly Literary Society in St. Petersburg, Russia.

                      1903
                      The Ilinden Uprising and the ten days of the Krushevo Republic.

                      1909
                      Establishment and activity of the Popular Federal Party.

                      1912-13
                      The Balkan Wars and Macedonia's partition with the Peace Treaty of Bucharest.

                      1914-1918
                      The First World War.

                      1919
                      The Treaty of Versailles sanctions the partition of Macedonia.

                      1924
                      The May Manifesto, resolution of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia on the right of the Macedonian people to self- determination.

                      1925
                      The establishment of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (United).

                      1934
                      The Fourth Nationwide Conference of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia. This passed a decision on the establishment of a national party in Macedonia.

                      1936
                      Establishment and ideational-political formation of the MANAPO (Macedonian National Movement).

                      1936
                      Foundation of the Macedonian Literary Society in Sofia by outstanding Macedonian writers.

                      1940
                      The Fifth Nationwide Conference of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia. This passed a resolution on the equality and self- determination of the Macedonian people.

                      1939-1945
                      The Second World War.

                      1941-1944
                      Macedonia's participation in the Second World War (National Liberation War of Macedonia).

                      1944
                      Proclomation of the Macedonian state. (August 2).

                      1945
                      Formation of the first government of the People's Republic of Macedonia (April 16).

                      1945
                      Adoption of the Macedonian alphabet.

                      1946
                      Start of university education in Macedonian (Faculty of Philosophy).

                      1946
                      Adoption of the first constitution of the People's Republic of Macedonia.

                      1967
                      Foundation of the Macedonian Academy of Arts and Sciences.

                      1967
                      Proclomation of the autocephalous Macedonian Orthodox Church (Restoration of the Archbishopric of Ohrid).

                      1991
                      Referendum on a sovereign and independent state (September 8).

                      1991
                      Adoption of the Constitution of the Republic of Macedonia (November 17).

                      1993
                      Macedonia is admitted to the United Nations.

                      1995
                      Macedonia becomes a member of the Council of Europe.

                      Prepared by the Institute of National History


                      Click here for a chronology of the rule of Greece in Aegean Macedonia


                      Reference

                      Makedonski Icelenuchki Almanac '97, Matitsa na Icelenitsite od Makedonija; Skopje: 1997; p. 39-41


                      Back to top

                      © Copyright Macedonia for the Macedonians
                      Created and maintained by Bill Nicholov
                      "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
                      GOTSE DELCEV

                      Comment

                      • George S.
                        Senior Member
                        • Aug 2009
                        • 10116

                        Introduction | Chronology of Ancient Macedonian History | The Ancient Macedonian Language
                        Ethnic Affiliation of the Ancient Macedonians | Conclusion

                        Introduction

                        "When the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples and, after encouraging them, said good-by and set out for Macedonia. He travelled through that area, speaking many words of encouragement to the people, and finally arrived in Greece, where he stayed three months. Because the Jews made a plot against him just as he was about to sail for Syria, he decided to go back through Macedonia."

                        The Holy Bible - Acts 20:1-3

                        Greek propagandists claim that ancient Macedonia was Greek. Why then, would the Holy Bible distinguish between the two?

                        The history of the Macedonian people began in approximately 2200 B.C. The Ancient Macedonian Empire reached its pinnacle with the conquests of King Philip of Macedon and his son Alexander the Great. Greek propagandists insist that the ancient Macedonians were Greek and therefore, Greece has the right to the name, Macedonia. Worldwide scholarly opinion accepts that the ancient Macedonians were a distinct people from the Greeks and that the name Macedonia belongs to the Macedonians.

                        Here are some quotes...

                        "Examining the dynamics of Macedonian relations with the Greek city-states, he (Borza) suggests that the Macedonians, although they gradually incorporated aspects of Greek culture into their own society, maintained a distinct ethnicity as a Balkan people". 1

                        "It is universally known that the classical Greek authors did not recognise the Macedonians as their fellow countrymen, calling them barbarians, and they considered Macedonian domination in Greece as an alien rule, imported from outside by the members of other tribes, the, as Plutarch says, Allophyloi." 2

                        "The language of these Macedonians was not Greek, nor were their gods, nor were they recognized by the Greeks." 3

                        "The tension at court between Greeks and Macedonians, tension that the ancient authors clearly recognized as ethnic division." 4

                        "Macedonian was the language of the infantry and that Greek was difficult, indeed a foreign tongue to them." 5

                        Excerpt from Macedonia Through the Ages 6

                        In the course of the second pre-Christian millennium, the ancient Greeks descended in several migratory waves as goatherds and shepherds from the interior of the Balkans to Greece. Some passed through the Morava-Vardar Valley and across the plain of Thessaly on their way south, while others went south through Epirus. More recent scholars point to Asia Minor as the original Greek homeland. There is no evidence that prehistoric Macedonia was ever occupied by ancient Greeks. Archeological finds from Macedonia are meager and sporadic. The scholars believe that ancient Macedonia lay beyond the cultural and ethnic borders of the Bronze Age Mycenaean Greek Civilization (1400-1100 BC).

                        King PhilipAncient Macedonia was home to many tribes and nations. The ancient Macedonians claimed kinship with the Illirians, Tracians, and Phrygians, but not with the Greeks. In fact, the Brygians of Macedonia are believed to be the European branch of people, who in Asia Minor were known as Phrygians.

                        Greek migrants came to Macedonia, Trace, and Illiria after they exhausted the possibilities of settlement in Asia Minor, Italy, France, Spain and Scythia (Ukraine and Russia). However, they did not consider Macedonia especially attractive for permanent settlement. Neither did the Macedonians welcome them as openheartedly as did the Italians and Scythians. By the middle of the fourth century BC, the Greek settlers were expelled from Macedonia and their cities, including Aristotle's native Stragira, razed to the ground by the Macedonian king Philip II (360-336). Aristotle died in exile in Greece.

                        The Macedonian "barbarian" defeated Greece at the battle of Chaeronea in August 338 BC and appointed himself "Commander of the Greeks". This battle had established Macedonian hegemony over Greece and this date is commonly taken as the end of Greek history and the beginning of the Macedonian era. Greece did not regain its independence until 1827 AD.

                        In 335 BC, Philip's son Alexander campaigned toward the Danube, to secure Macedonia's northern frontier. On rumors of his death, a revolt broke out in Greece with the support of leading Athenians. Alexander marched south covering 240 miles in two weeks. When the revolt continued he sacked Thebes, killing 6,000 people and enslaving the survivors. Only the temples and the house of the poet Pindar were spared.

                        Back to top

                        Chronology of Ancient Macedonian History

                        The following are excerpts from: Chronicle of the World 7

                        359BC
                        Philip becomes regent of the small kingdom of Macedonia on the death of his brother, King Perdiccas, whose son is a mere child. Philip, aged 22, already displays unusual diplomatic and military acumen.

                        356BC
                        Amyntas, son of the late King Perdiccas, is deposed and Philip is confirmed as absolute king. He signs a pact with the Chalcidian league which names Athens as the common enemy, and goes on to take the city of Potidaea. During the year Philip has more good news: his horse wins at Olympia and his wife, Olympias, gives birth to a son, Alexander.

                        351BC
                        The orator Demosthenes denounces the expansionist policies of Philip of Macedon and castigates his fellow citizens for their lack of awareness.

                        348BC
                        Philip of Macedon takes Olynthus by siege and utterly destroys it, securing control of the Chalcidice peninsula. When the Chalcidian league learnt of Philip's intentions, they broke with their former ally and appealed to Athens. Convinced by Demonsthenes, Athens at last sent an expeditionary force - but it was too late.

                        346BC - Despised Macedonia crushes the Greeks in the "Sacred War"

                        The Sacred War, waged for the last ten years for possession of Greece's supreme oracle at Delphi, has ended with Philip of Macedon, despised as a barbarian by the Athenians, winning ascendancy over Greece. This unforeseen result of yet another internecine quarrel bodes ill for the city states.

                        It started when the Thebans, who controlled the Amphictiony, the multi-state council which administers the shrine, forced through a threat of war against the Phocians unless they paid a fine for cultivating sacred ground.

                        The Phocians, who had once had control of Delphi, chose to go to war to re-establish their position, but there then followed a period of cruel, confused warfare during which the Phocians were generally successful. But then the war drew in the ambitious Philip, who saw his opportunity to seize Greek territory.

                        His advance and involvement in Greek affairs drew bitter attacks from Demonsthenes, who issued the first of his "Philippics" in 351BC. Athens belatedly sent an army to help Athens' allies besieged by Philip at Olynthus.

                        It was too little and too late. Philip captured the city and razed it to the ground. Phocis has now been forced to sue for peace and Philip the Barbarian holds power in Greece.

                        346BC - "Puny Village" becomes a hub of empire

                        Pella, the capital of the Ancient Macedonian Empire

                        Pella, the capital of the Ancient Macedonian Empire

                        Athenian propaganda asserting that the Macedonian capital, Pella, is 'a puny little village' (as Demosthenes, the anti-Macedonian lobbyist, has suggested) is contradicted by eye-witness accounts of recent travellers who visited it.

                        Far from its being an inaccessible shanty town, they say, it is approaced by a well-engineered road some 30 feet wide. It is ona vast fertile plain flanked by the sea, with a thriving port. This prime site was developed some 50 years ago by King Archelaus. Elegant buildings, with walls six feet thick, are decorated with rare pebble mosaics, Ionic and Doric colonnades, and three-foot roof tiles stamped "Pella".

                        The palace contains murals by the great artist Zeuxis. Standards of public hygiene, water supply and drainage match the aesthetic quality of the city. The plays of Euripides are performed and the heir to the throne, young Alexander, has Aristotle as a visiting tutor. Pella is unquestionably the hub of a growing empire.

                        340BC - Macedonia Conquers Thrace, a flourishing kingdom of contrasts renowned for warlike shepherds and sophisticated jewellery

                        After 20 years at war, Macedonians under Philip II are beginning to take stock of the huge and wealthy Thracian empire they now control.

                        With lands that stretch from the Danube to the Bosporus, Philip II now rules one of the most culturally, economically and politically advanced regions in the world.

                        Thracian treasure with its fine filigree work in silver and gold is internationally famous, with Thracian craftsmen setting new standards in fashioning jewellery, helmets and breastplates in gold and silver. Much noted are those decorated with unusual combinations of human and animal subjects, reflecting Thrace's eastern influences.

                        This ability to generate items of wealth was a weapon in the unsuccessful campaign by Thrace's last overall ruler, Kotys, to win allies and influence friends.

                        Kotys tried to unite Thrace's tribes of wild shepherds into an empire, reminiscent of the Persians' that would extend from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean.

                        339BC
                        Hostilities are renewed between Athens and Macedonia, marking the start of the fourth Sacred War. Philip II occupies Elateia, two days' march from Attica. Demosthenes saves the day for the panic-stricken Athenians by engineering an alliance between Athens and Thebes.

                        338BC
                        Philip II of Macedon defeats the combined forces of Athens and Thebes at the battle of Chaeronea. With the surrender of Thebes the Boeotian league is dissolved. Philip imposes peace terms on Athens which include allying with Macedonia and dissolving the Athenian league. Struck by the generosity of their conqueror, the Athenians offer citizenship to Philip and his son, Alexander.

                        337BC - Philip of Macedon conquers the Greeks

                        After a decisive defeat by Philip II of Macedon, Athenian leaders have accepted peace on terms which effectively end the traditional independence of Greek city states. In a war which began more than 20 years ago, the Macedonian "barbarian" has proved himself a master of political strategy as well as a military genius. He has used the wiles of diplomacy, marriage, banking, corruption and sabotage. His military coups include the defeat of Illyria to the north, together with Athens' maritime ally, Chalcidice, to secure his southern Aegean flank and the remorseless occupation of mainland cities.

                        Athens, a tardy opponent, held his advance after a long battle in 352BC to control the strategic Thermopylae Pass. Philip used a temporary peace with Athens to join Thebes in its "Sacred War" against Phocis. Theses, a hollow victor, was spent. The real winner was Philip.

                        Other governments anointed him as a peacemaker, but in 341BC he attacked Athens' allies in Thrace-Gallipoli. Renewed warfare culminated in an evenly-matched combat at Chaeronea last year. The turning point was a feigned retreat by Philip behind piles of corpses, enticing the Athenians into hot pursuit and an ambush. This was sprung by seasoned Macedonian cavalry, led by Philip's son Alexander.

                        In the immediate aftermath of the war, Thebes has been occupied by Macedonians. Nominal self-government continues elsewhere, but without autonomy overseas. Most states must join Philip's new League of Corinth as he prepares to repay Persia for its earlier attacks. Greece is unified, but at a great cost.

                        337BC
                        Philip's decision to marry Cleopatra, a woman from the Macedonian nobility, causes a stir at court. The marriage, which will be polygamous, stems from Philip's concern about his line of succession. Alexander is his heir-designate but, as his second son, Arrhidaeus, suffers from epilepsy, he thinks it wise to have a third son.

                        336BC - Philip slain: Alexander is in power

                        King Philip II of Macedon has died at the hands of an assassin in his hour of triumph. After attending a state ceremony at which his own statue was displayed as a new Olympian god, he was stabbed by Pausanias, a royal bodyguard with a grudge. Philip is succeeded by his son Alexander, aged just 20.

                        In spite of his youth Alexander is already a veteran of warfare and of government. Four years ago, while Philip was on an expedition to Byzantium, Alexander acted as regent of Macedonia and fought his own local war against the Thracian Maedi. His role in the battle of Chaeronea spread his reputation throughout Greece.

                        Alexander has had a rich and complex education. Along with the studies normally pursued by a young aristocrat he has been exposed to hard lessons in practical politics within the family circle. In his early years at Pella, the Macedonian capital, he came under the influence of his mother, Olympias.

                        Her kinsman Leonidas introduced him to the Homeric legends as a guide to practical living from the art of war to navigation. At the age of 13 he was taken by his father to become a pupil of Aristotle. A liberal education with others in residence at Miezeincluded medicine, geometry, rhetoric and literature.

                        Throughout his formative years his mother's influence remained. When Philip married a younger woman named Cleopatra polygamously last year, it provoked a near fatal division between the two men. At the wedding feast, the bride's uncle unwisely predicted a "legitimate heir to the throne". An enraged Alexander, war veteran as well as true heir, started fighting. Philip intervened but collapsed, drunk. Alexander left, saying: "Here's the man who was making ready to cross from Europe to Asia, and who cannot cross from one table to another without losing his balance." Only recently was Alexander persuaded by his father to come out of self-imposed exile in Illyria, after escorting his mother to sanctuary.

                        335BC
                        After succeeding his father as king of Macedonia, Alexander sets out on his first military campaign, aiming to punish the Triballi for their rebellion of 339BC and re-establish order in the Balkans. His victory reinforces Macedonian power in the region of the lower Danube.

                        337BC - Alexander subdues restless Greeks

                        Alexander's attacks on regional enemies have been bold. He led a pre-emptive attack against the Triballi and the Illyrians which took him across the Danube. In his absense, however, there was disaffection in Sparta and Athens.

                        It was in Thebes that the most serious trouble occurred, ignited by rumour that Alexander had been killed in action. After a forced march of 310 miles (500km) in 13 days, Alexander stormed the city and systematically destroyed everything except temples and the home of Pindar the poet. The city's 8,000 people were sold as slaves and their homeland split into lots which were also sold. Other states tempted to dissent hastily sought the king's pardon.

                        To complete preparations for his campaign against Persia, Alexander consulted the Oracle at Delphi, but chose a day regarded by temple authorities as inauspicious for any "reading". The king promptly summoned the presiding priestess, who refused to perform the ceremony. Alexander manhandled her towards the temple. The frightened woman shouted words to the effect that Alexander was "invincible". A delighted Alexander released her and said he had no further need of prophecies.

                        Beneath his confidence, though, it is clear that Alexander is not ready to place people from the old city-states of Athens, Sparta or Thebes in positions of trust. Regiments from these areas are now second-rate members of his expeditionary force, or potential hostages.

                        333BC
                        Already in control of a large part of Asia Minor (Anatolia), Alexander defeats Darius III of Persia at Issus. This follows his great victory over the Persians last year at the river Granicus. Darius is put to flight and Alexander captures his camp and family, sleeping in the Persian king's tent on the night of his victory.

                        332BC
                        Alexander has taken the city of Tyre after an eight-month siege. It is reported that 8,000 citizens have been killed and 30,000 sold into slavery. After Alexander's recent rout of the Persians the cities of Phoenicia - except for Tyre - wisely surrendered to him.

                        331BC
                        After his unopposed expedition to Egypt, Alexander moves into Persia and defeats the Persian army at Gaugamela. Babylonia and Susa surrender to him.

                        331BC - Egyptian city commemorates triumphs of Macedonian conqueror

                        Foreigners from all parts of the eastern Medierranean are flocking to a splendid city which the conqueroring Macedonian king, Alexander, is building on the Egyptian coast in the west of the Nile delta. A great harbour, being created by constructing a mole linking the mainland with the island of Pharos, will be used as a naval base for Alexander's war against the Persian empire.

                        The architect Dinocrates, who gained notoriety when he suggestd that Mount Athos be carved into a gigantic seated statue, is marking out the new city, to be called Alexandria, in a grid pattern of straight streets intersecting each other at right angles.

                        Alexander's decision to found the city was announced after he had visited the oracle of Ammon, at the Siwa oasis in neighbouring Libya. The Greeks identify Ammon with their own Zeus, and it is said that Alexander wanted to trace his birth back to Ammon. He was not disappointed. Having been guided to the oasis by two black crows, he was greeted by a priest who hailed him as a "son of the god".

                        330BC
                        Alexander marches on Persepolis and allows his army to pillage the royal city. He wants to take Darius alive, but the Persian king is assassinated by rebels. His death marks the collapse of the Achaemenid dynasty.

                        330BC - Military genius wins war against Persians

                        Early on a summer's morning, Alexander and his army, crossing the mountainous region of western Iran, came upon the remnants of the once-mighty forces of Darius III. Most of them fled, and when Alexander caught up with the Persian wagons he found Darius in one of them, dead from stab wounds inflicted on the orders of his cousin Bessus. The campaign that had begun three years before, when Alexander crossed into Asia Minor with 30,000 men, was over. At last he was master of the Persian empire.

                        The Persians had the bigger army, but Alexander had the better one. The first battle took place at the Granicus river, near the Sea of Marmora. It was the first battle of the war in which the phalanx was used. This close formation of long spears behind a wall of overlappping shields devastated the Persian lines.

                        327BC
                        Alexander secures the conquest of Bactria and Sogdiana, begun two years ago when he crossed the Hindu Kush after conquering the eastern states of the Persian empire.

                        327BC
                        The official historian of Alexander's expedition, Callisthenes, is executed for his alleged complicity in a conspiracy.

                        325BC - Alexander expands his empire into India

                        Alexander has arrived back in this capital (Susa, Persia), his army victorious in their Indian campaign - but almost halved in numbers by the toll taken on them by hear, hunger and thirst on the long march from the Punjab.

                        Alexander had fought his way across Afghanistan and penetrated the Khyber Pass to descend on to the Punjab plain where he vanquished Porus, the last rajah to have been brought under Persian influence. Porus met him on a river bank with 40,000 men and 200 elephants, but Alexander secretly crossed the river by night and swept down on Porus' exposed flank. Some 20,000 Indian infantry and 3,000 cavalry were killed, for the loss of about 80 of Alexander's men.

                        It has been an heroic saga, with Alexander winning battle after battle, year after year. He struck through the Hindu Kush into Turkestan, crossed the Oxus river to reach Samarkand and captured the Scythian chief Oxartes, whose daughter Roxana he married.

                        In his desire to unite his newly-conquered empire he encouraged his men to form marriage alliances with Asian women. He himself has adopted some Persian customs. As king of the rugged Macedonian tribes he had striven to gain acceptance by the cultivated Greeks.

                        Now he seems to be betraying that ideal, and discontent is growing in his army. He has begun to scent conspiracies and has even had Parmenio, his faithful chief of staff, put to death. Alexander's ambition was to penetrate as far as the Ganges, where he expected to find the eastern limit of the inhabited world. But his troops refused to go further. For three days he sulked in his tent before giving way.

                        He divided his forces. He sent the main body back through Afghanistan, and dispatched a fleet down the Indus river with orders to sail along the coast to reach the Persian Gulf. A third force he led across the desert of Baluchistan. It was to be a terrible three months' march.

                        323BC - Alexander dies aged 32

                        In the spring Alexander came down to Babylon, where embassies from all parts of the known world were waiting to pay homage to the conqueror of the east. He was already planning his next great enterprise, the exploration of the seas around his empire.

                        In the year since he had returned from India he had devoted himself to overhauling the imperial administration, dismissing officials judged to be incompetent and dealing with complaints of corruption. He sought to bind the conquered Persians to his cause by offering satrapies to Persian grandees and recruiting 30,000 Persian youths for his armies. He took another oriental wife, Satira, the daughter of Darius, before leaving Susa for Babylon.

                        In Babylon he ordered the construction of an immense fleet, and under dis supervision a great basin was excavated in the Euphrates capable of taking 1,000 ships. He wanted to open a maritime route from Babylon to Egypt, round Arabia. Later, in the far north of his empire, he would seek a passage from teh Caspian Sea to the Northern Ocean.

                        By the summer everything was ready and a date fixed for his departure He spent two nights carousing with friends. Afterwards he awoke with a fever, which at first he dismissed as trivial. But soon he became delirious. The palace swarmed with generals, soothsayers, and priests making sacrifices and uttering incantations. Once, during a lucid moment, he was asked who should inherit his empire. His reply: "The best man."

                        One by one the men of his Macedonian army passed through the sickchamber, bidding him farewell. It is said that he recognised each man by name. He died as the sun was setting on the plain of Babylon. He was 32 years old.

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                        The following are excerpts from: Macedonia and Its Relations With Greece and Macedonia FAQ 8

                        The Ancient Macedonian Language

                        In Greece today people start from the a priori assumption the "Greek identity of Macedonia is an obvious fact". Identifying the Greeks from the ethnic and linguistic point of view with the ancient Macedonians is not scientifically supportable.

                        Although none of the Mycenaean scholars in the world takes seriously Greek hypothetical interpretations of the Mycenaean texts, Greek scholarship nevertheless wishes to discover in them "proofs" that the ancient Macedonians were Indo-Europeans, proto-Hellenes, and that their language was the oldest, purest and most conservative Greek dialect which at the same time cast a new light on the history of the Greek ethnos (Istoria tou Elinikou ethnous, Proistoria kai proto istoria, Athens, 1970). This thesis reached its culmination at the beginning of the 1980's when an unusual jubilee under the title of 4000 years of Greek Macedonia was celebrated with great pomp.

                        Ancient Macedonian House of PsalmsThe theory thus constructed has pretensions to scholarship, but in fact it starts out from unsupported presuppositions. The history of the Ancient Macedonians over a lengthy period of 1 600 years (2200-600 BCE) has been reconstructed on the basis of a pre-judgement that they could have been nothing other than Greeks.

                        In fact there is no argument that will prove any phase of a alleged close relation between the Greeks and the Macedonians in the ancient period. The assertation, very often emphasized, that there is no preserved documents about the language of the Macedonians, is unconvincing and is result of a prejudiced policy. It is impossible that the great and powerful Macedonian state should not have produced numerous administrative documentation. The question is where that documentation had been kept; is it still on that undiscovered place or is it destroyed, and if this is true who destroyed it and when.

                        Only about hundred words of the old Macedonian language are known. While earlier on Doric forms were being sought in the Macedonian words, Greek linguists are now investing great efforts in revealing archaic Aeolian, Arcado-Cypriot and Mycenaean parallels. The hypothesis that ancient Macedonian was closest to the Thessalian and Magnesian Aeolian dialect is based upon a fragment from Greek mythology in Hesiod (Fr.7-MW), that Magnes and Makedon were first cousins by the sons of Helen. It is methodologically unsound to reconstruct histor y on the basis of. The same myth offers a similar link between the Romans and Greeks, and consequently, according to the modern Greeks, this would imply that even the Romans were Greeks ??? It is clear that among the glosses there are borrowings from Greek which in antique times was a language of great prestige (as English and French are today, and Latin was in the Middle Ages).

                        "The Kultursprache of ancient Macedonians, as soon as they felt the need for one, was inevitably Greek, as it was in the case of various other ancient peoples. There was no feasible alternative. But as N.G.L. Hammond remarked, in the memorable closing words of volume I of his History of Macedonia, "a means of communications is very far from assuring peaceful relations between two peoples, as we know from our experience of the modern world."9
                        It is equally far (we might add) from betokening any consciousness of a common interest.

                        The Greek words however have been adapted according to a different, non-Greek phonetic system, just as English borrowed words from Latin (dignity = dignitas, tatis) and just as any language today borrows words from English and Latin (English Computer, Macedonian, Serbian, Croatian, Slovenian, kompjuter; or Latin - dignitas, tatis, English - dignity, Macedonian - dignitet). Here are some examples from ancient Greek and Macedonian:

                        Macedonian Greek
                        ade (sky) aither (air)
                        danos (death) thanatos (death)
                        keb(a)le (head) kephale (head)

                        But at the same time there are among the glosses such words that are not found in Greek but have parallels in other Indo - European languages:

                        Macedonian: aliza (a white layer under a bark of tree)
                        Slavonic: e/olha (a white layer under a bark of tree)

                        Macedonian: goda (innards)
                        Greek: entera (innards)
                        Old Indian Sanskrit: gudam (intestine)

                        From the analysis of the ancient Macedonian glosses it can be concluded that ancient Macedonian was an Indo-European language distinct from Greek. The well-known French Indo-European scholar A. Meje says that Greek is no closer to ancient Macedonian than it is to any other Indo-European language.

                        Another fact proving the idea that ancient Macedonian was a separate language is the fact that the mother tongue of Alexander the Great was not understood by the ancient Greeks: a fact of which there are explicit proofs. (Quintus Curtius Rufus, VI, 9, 37 ). Plutarchus wrote that the Macedonians had their own language:

                        "But, he [Alexander]...jumped up on his feet and started to call his shield bearer in Macedonian [and that was a sign of great danger]..."

                        Plutarchus, Alexander, 51.

                        The question of the use of the Macedonian language was raised by Alexander himself during the trial of Philotas, one of his generals accused of treason. Alexander said to Philotas:

                        "The Macedonians are about to pass judgment upon you; I wish to know whether you will address them in their native tongue." Thereupon Philotas replied: "Besides the Macedonians there are many present who, I think, will more easily understand what I shall say if I use the same language which you have employed, for no other reason, I suppose, than in order that you speech might be understood by the greater number." Then said the king: "Do you not see how Philotas loathes even the language of his fatherland? For he alone disdains to learn it. But let him by all means speak in whatever way he desires, provided that you remember he holds our customs in as much abhorrence as our language."

                        Quintus Curtius Rufus, Alexander, VI. ix. 34 - 36

                        There is no doubt that the letters sent by the soldiers to their relatives home were written in their mother tongue, in Macedonian.

                        Alexander in battleThose historical testimonies are strengthened by the information of N.Oikonomides about the existence of more then 5,000 writings in Macedonian, collected within the frames of the Greek program KERA, but not published in order not to be of use to the "State of Skopje", referring to the Republic of Macedonia. Oikonomides fully denied allegations of the scientists, that written material in Macedonian had not been preserved. Since they write about the Macedonians and their language, and define their ethnic affiliation, they had to take into consideration the serious rebuke and indications of N. Oikonomides (N. Oikonomodes, Book Review, History Department, University of Chicago, 1988, p. 121-6). By the way, only as information and without any suggestion let it be known that at his first visit to Greece after this was published, Mr. Oikonomides died suddenly, and the Greek authorities explained that as alcohol abuse.

                        But even if (the key word here is IF) the Macedonians might have spoken a form of Greek dialect, it still does not make them Greeks, and it does not nullify the proofs that say the opposite:

                        "Let us again look at the Jews - those who in the 1930s were living in Eastern Europe. Their names were Hebrew with a slight admixture of German and Slav elements; their alphabet and their sacred writings were Hebrew. Yet their vocabulary was largely, and the structure of their vernacular language almost entirely, that of a German dialect." 10

                        As a precious survival of a pro-nationalist world, they are of special interest in such comparisons. One wonders what scholars would have made of them, if they had been known only through tombstones and sacred objects. In any case, interesting though the precise affinities of Ancient Macedonian must be to the linguistic specialist, they are again of very limited interest to the historian. Linguistic facts as such, just like archaeological finds as such, are only some of the pieces in the puzzle that the historian tries to fit together. In this case, unfortunately, as every treatment of the problem nowadays seems to show, discussion has become bedeviled by politics and modern linguistic nationalism: the idea that a nation is essentially defined by a language and that, conversely, a common language means a common nationhood - which is patently untrue for the greater part of human history and to a large extent even today.

                        The allegation, groundless again, that the Macedonian population was not Slavic at all, is a great and complex historical question. Whether the thesis that the Slavs decided to come down to the Balkans much later, which is defined according to Greenberg's writings as a "nomadic-rural settlement" is true, is again an unconfirmed fact. We find confirmation of this thesis (especially) in the writings of G. S. Grinevich, dealing with the subject of pre - Slavic literacy (Genadij Stanistavlovich Grinevich, World History Department, Russian Physical Society, Moscow, 1994).

                        The decoding and the linguistic coding results that Grinevich had revealed show that the pre-Slavic literacy existed much before the creation of the letters and coding of the Slavic language by the brothers Sts. Cyril and Methody.

                        The most important argument to the proto-Slavic origin of the Macedonians is that Grinevich has decoded the inscriptions using a language, according to him, spoken by the Aegean Pelasti who were pre-Slavs (p. 175). Grinevich concludes that the pre-Slavic written language had been very close to the Old Slavic written literary language of all Slavs, the later was introduced by the brothers Sts. Cyrilus and Methodius and their students, Sts. Clement and Naum of Ohrid. Since we know the Old-Slavic language from the area around Salonica, it will lead us to the conclusion that that is the language of the Macedonians. The applied antonym Macedonians is in complete accordance to the Ph. Papazoglu's estimation:

                        Having ceased to exist as a state [after the Roman defeat]... Macedonian people did not vanish; it continued to exist within the frames of the new political community, then Roman State, preserving its ethnic characteristics, its language, religion and customs.

                        The presence of a pre-Slavic language, such as that one of the Pellastis, is not a new discovery. Even in the distant 1815 the German philosopher L.F. Pasof said that Homer's language is as a matter of fact a form of Slavic. In 1850 his work was translated in English and published in New York (a proof that this theory was not discarded once it emerged). Pasof said that Homer's lexic in the Illiad actually corresponds to the lexic of the Slavic Languages. Because contemporary Macedonian language is also a Slavic language, and according to a lot of research the ancient Macedonian language was of the same kind as the language of the Pellastis, being the oldest recognized Slavic language, it is very likely that contemporary Macedonian in certain laxic elements is like the Homeric Language.

                        It should be taken into consideration, that the Iliad became popular in Athens in 592 BCE, in the time of king Solon, and his heir, Pysistrates, ordered that the be Iliad translated and decorated in Greek so that the Greek people can be familiar with the victory of the Hellenic peoples over the non-Hellenes (M.N. Gjuric, History of Hellenic Literature, 67 - 8). Plutarchus says that the Iliad was not originally written in Greek, and that Solon used Homer's masterpiece in his own advantage:

                        Linguistic continuity between the ancient and modern Macedonians is shown by the continuity of the name of the ancient capital of Macedonia, Edessa. The Macedonians knew this city as 'Voden' long before linguists discovered that the Slavic name was a translation of the original name and that both meant "watertown." The Greeks, on the other hand, unless they study linguistics, do not know the meaning of the name.

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                        Ethnic Affiliation of the Ancient Macedonians

                        The Macedonians in Ancient times were an ethnic group of Indo-European origin, distinct from the ancient Greeks and the other neighbors (Illirians and Trakians). It is a common knowledge that the classical Greek authors did not recognize the Macedonians as fellow countrymen, calling them barbarians (non-Hellenes):

                        Makedonsko Sonce - KutleshThe ancient Macedonians regarded the Greeks as potentially dangerous neighbors, never as kinsmen. The Greeks unanimously stereotyped the Macedonians as "barbarians" and treated them in the same bigoted manner in which they treated all non-Greeks. Herodotus, the Father of History, relates how the Macedonian king Alexander I (498 - 454 BCE), a Philhellene, that is, "a friend of the Greeks", and logically a non-Greek, wanted to take part in the Olympic games. The Greek athletes protested, saying they would not run with a barbarian. The historian Thucydides, himself half barbarian, considered the Macedonians as barbarians. Demosthenes, the great Athenians statesman and orator, spoke of the Macedonia king Philip II as:

                        "...not only no Greek, nor related to the Greeks, but not even a barbarian from any place that can be named with honors, but a pestilent knave from Macedonia, whence it was never yet possible to buy a decent Slave." 11

                        The Hellenes considered Macedonian domination in the Greek states as an alien rule, imported from outside by the members of other tribes, the, as Plutarchus says, allophyloi (Plutarchus, Vita Arati, 16).

                        In his eighth book, Herodotus wrote about the ethnic affiliation of the Macedonian royal line and emphasized the Spartan thesis about Alexander I as a Macedonian. So, it was in interest of the Hellenes not to believe the Persian emissary, Alexander the Macedonian:

                        "Don't let the Alexander the Macedonian persuade you, he who sweetens the message of the Macedonians [the Persian Commander]. He has to do so since the tyrant cooperates with the tyrant."

                        Herodotus, The Histories VIII, 142.

                        The ethnic distinction between the Macedonians and the Hellenes is emphasized by other authors as well. Namely, Alexander III the Great, as Plutarchus wrote, told his soldiers:

                        "For the Macedonians, I will conquer the world...but not for the Hellenes."

                        Plutarchus, Alexander, 47

                        Ancient bronze utensilIt is very interesting and important to know according to what source and on what grounds, this very clearly stated commitment of the Macedonian king was made. Very often this statement is overturned by the Historians and his conquest is interpreted as an action in favor of the Hellenes and as an alleged cause of their uniting. The facts are clear, and do not allow any further interpretation.

                        However, the modern Greeks offer the idea that the Macedonians were just another Hellenic tribe. Proofs offered by the Greek side include sources such as Herodotus and Thukydides:

                        "..the Hellenic nation.. settled about Pindos under the name Makedon."

                        Herodotus, The Histories 1.56

                        "..all these (groups).. belong to the Dorian and Macedonian nation (and) had emigrated last from Erineus and Pindos and Dryopis."

                        Herodotus, The Histories 8.43

                        "Now that the men of this family are Greeks, sprung from Perdiccas, as they themselves affirm, is a thing which I can declare on my own knowledge, and which I will hereafter make plainly evident. That they are so has been already adjudged by those who manage the Pan-Hellenic contest at Olympia"

                        Herodotus, The Histories 5.22

                        "Hereupon Pausanias...addressed the generals, and said, - 'Since the battle is to come with tomorrow's dawn, it were well that you Athenians should stand opposed to the Persians and we Spartans to the Boeotians and the other Greeks;..."

                        Herodotus, The Histories 9.46

                        "Next to the Persians he placed the Medes, facing the Corinthians, Potideans, Orchomenians, and Sicyonians; then the Bactrians, facing the Epidaurians, Troezinians, Lepreats, Tirynthians, Myceneans, and Phliasians; after them the Indians, facing the Hermionians, Eretrians, Styreans, and Chalcidians; then the Sacans, facing the Ambraciots, Anactorians, Leucadians, Paleans, and Eginetans; last of all, facing the Athenians, the Plateans, and the Megarians, he placed the troops of the Boeotians, Locrians, Malians, and Thessalians, and also the thousand Phocians.. Besides those mentioned above, Mardonius likewise arrayed against the Athenians the Macedonians and the tribes dwelling about Thessaly"

                        Herodotus, The Histories 9.31

                        "`Alexander, I demand you remember Greece, for the sake of which you embarked on this expedition, with the intention to add Asia to Greece...so that by the Hellenes and Macedonians you are treated as a man in the way fitted for Hellenes to honor."

                        Arrian, Anabasis 4.11.7 - 12.1

                        Let's look at part of that quote: ...so that by the Hellenes and Macedonians you are treated as a man in the way fitted for Hellenes to honor...First, Arrian says "Macedonians and Hellenes". If Hellenes and Macedonians were the same, then this is the same as saying Californians and Americans. What are Californians, non - Americans??? No, they are Americans, therefore this phrase is wrong. If Arrian used and, then they are not the same, otherwise if he's such a great historical source he shouldn't make such big grammatical mistakes. It is not a mistake, but Arrian is saying that the Macedonians were not Hellenes!

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                        Conclusion

                        Excerpt from: Macedonia and Its Relations With Greece and Macedonia FAQ

                        Greek scholarship underestimates the migration of peoples, which fundamentally redrew the ethnic map of Europe, and especially of the Balkans, during the early Byzantine period. Macedonia has been represented as a buffer zone protecting Hellenism form the waves of the barbarians throughout the centuries. The Slavonic element in Greece is either denied or minimized and it is well known that the Byzantine historian Constantine Porphyrogenitus openly says that the whole of Hellas had been Slavicized. It is likewise a known fact that Slavonic tribes of the Ezerites and the Milingi were independent in the Peloponnese in the 7th and 8th centuries and did not pay tribute to Byzantium. If such facts are borne in mind, it is not difficult to understand whether Macedonia at that period was really a "Bastion of Hellenism".

                        There have been protests in Greece that the Republic of Macedonia has not used toponyms from the Aegean part of Macedonia in the forms which were given to them by a decree in 1913 and more specially in 1926 because this has called Greek sovereignty into question. Demelios J. Georgakas notes that in Peloponnese no matter which direction one moves one cannot go three miles without encountering a Slavonic place-name (D. J. Georgacas - W. A. McDonald, Place-Names in Southwest Peloponesus, Athens, 1967, 15). Similar statements have been made by Ph. Malingudis (Ph. Malingudis, Studien zu den Slavischen Ortsnamen Griechelands, 1. Slavische Flurnamen aus der messenischen Mani, Mainz, Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur, 1981). If there are so many Slavonic place - names in the Peloponnese, how many more are there in the Aegean part of Macedonia where the Slavonic tribes dwelt? And today Slavs have been living there for a period of 1,400 years. What is more natural, than that the Balkanized Slavs who have lived so long and continuously in Macedonia should be called Macedonians and their language Macedonian.

                        References

                        Borza, Eugene N., In the Shadow of Olympus - the Emergence of Macedon, New Jersey, Princeton University Press, 1990
                        Macedonia and Its Relations With Greece, Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Skopje, 1993; p. 11
                        Macedonia and Greece-The Struggle to Define a New Balkan Nation, John Shea, McFarland and Company Inc., North Carolina, 1997; p.12
                        Borza, Eugene N., In the Shadow of Olympus - the Emergence of Macedon, New Jersey, Princeton University Press, 1990
                        Ernst Badian, (from Harvard University, History Department)
                        Macedonia Through the Ages, Jacques Bacid, Macedonian World Congress, 1983.
                        Chronicle of the World, Mercer, Derrick, et al., Dorling Kindersley Limited, London, 1996
                        Obtained from the Macedonia FAQ website. A project of RMacedonia.org
                        URL: http://faq.RMacedonia.org/
                        Studies in the History of Art Vol.10, Macedonia and Greece in the Late Classical and early Hellenistic Times, The National Gallery of Art, Washington, Prof. E. Badian, Department of History, Harvard University, Boston, Ma.
                        Ibid.
                        Ibid.

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                        © Copyright Macedonia for the Macedonians
                        Created and maintained by Bill Nicholov
                        "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
                        GOTSE DELCEV

                        Comment

                        • George S.
                          Senior Member
                          • Aug 2009
                          • 10116

                          "All-consuming ambition, a visionary of his time. Proud soldier and Macedonian. Inventor of the famous 'phalanx' military formation, great governor and strategist. A man under who's heel succumbed the foreign Hellenic states, in all of their glory."


                          The following are some quotes regarding the Ancient Macedonians and King Philip:

                          "He was not, however, a Greek politician or even a Greek, but king of the Macedonians". 1

                          "Even in Philip’s day the Greeks saw in the Macedonians as a non-Greek foreign people...The dislike was reciprocal, for the Macedonians had grown into a proud masterful nation, which with highly developed national consciousness looked down upon the Hellenes with contempt." 2

                          "Neither Greeks nor Macedonians considered the Macedonians to be Greeks." 3

                          "The “unrest in Greece” encompasses all the city-states in Greece. These city-states were ready to throw off the Macedonian yoke. Here we have a clear delineation between Greek city-states, who were the conquered party, and Macedonia, the conqueror." 4


                          The following is an excerpt from Macedonia FAQ 5

                          Philip II of Macedonia (382-336 BC), king of Macedonia (359-336 BC), was born in Pella, the capital of ancient Macedonia. Long before Philip was born, the ancient Macedonians regarded the ancient Greeks as potentially dangerous neighbors, not as kinsmen. The Greeks stereotyped the Macedonians as "barbarians" and treated them in the same bigoted manner in which they treated all non-Greeks. Herodotus, the Father of History, relates how the Macedonian king Alexander I (498-454 BC), a Philhellene (that is "a friend of the Greeks" and logically a non-Greek), wanted to take a part in the Olympic games. The Greek athletes protested, saying they would not run with a barbarian. Historian Thucydidis also considered the Macedonians as barbarians.

                          Philip II, the Macedonian "barbarian" was a hostage in Thebes, from 367 to 365, then the greatest power in Greece. During that period he observed the military techniques of Thebes, which will help him later reorganize the Macedonian army on the model of the Theban phalanx. In 364 Philip returned to Macedonia and in 359 he was made regent for his infant nephew Amyntas. Later that year he seized the Macedonian throne.

                          Philip came to power at the time when the Macedonians had just suffered a defeat from the Illyrians. Macedonia was in political and military turmoil, and Philip immediately set about bringing the people of Macedonia under his control. In less than two years he will secure the safety of his kingdom and firmly establish himself on the throne. After defeating the Illyrians in 358 BC, Philip sought to bring all of Upper Macedonia under his control and make them loyal to him. Apart from military, Philip had several political inventions that helped turn Macedonia into a world power. His primary method of creating alliances and strengthening loyalties was through marriage. In 357 BC he married Olympias, from the royal house of Molossia, and a year later they had a son, Alexander.

                          But Alexander never got along well with his father, although Philip was proud of Alexander for the Bucephalus incident. Alexander had always been closer to Olympias than to Philip. Philip and Olympias also did not get along all that well.

                          The family essentially was split apart irreparably when Philip married a woman named Cleopatra, a Macedonian. At the wedding banquet, Cleopatra's father made a remark about Philip fathering a "legitimate" heir, i.e., one that was pure Macedonian. Alexander took exception and threw his cup at the man, and some sources say Alexander killed him. Enraged, Philip stood up and charged at Alexander, only to trip and fall on his face in his drunken stupor. Alexander, rather upset at the scene, is to have shouted:

                          "Here is the man who was making ready to cross from Europe to Asia, and who cannot even cross from one table to another without losing his balance."

                          OlympiasWhen Philip divorced Olympias Alexander fled. Although allowed to return, he remained isolated and insecure until Philip was assassinated (some think that Olympias may have even had a role in Philip's murder), in the summer of 336 BC.

                          Philip allowed the sons of nobles to receive education in the court of the king. Here the sons would not only develop a fierce loyalty for the king, but it was also a way for Philip to, in a sense, hold the children hostage to keep their parents from interfering with his authority. He also gave more people positions of power and more of a sense of belonging to the kingdom.

                          From then on, Philip's policy was aggressive. In 357 he conquered the Athenian colony of Amphipolis in Thrace. That gave him a possession of the gold mines of Mount Pangaeus, which will finance his wars. In 356 he captured Potidea in Chalcidice, Pydna on the Thermaic Gulf, and in 355 the Thracian town of Crenides, later acquiring new name Philippi. In 354 Philip conquered Methone, advanced into Thessaly but did not attempt to take the pass of Thermopylae in 352 because it was strongly guarded by the Athenians. In 351 the great Athenian orator Demosthenes delivered the first of his Philippics, a series of speeches warning the Athenians about the Macedonian menace to Greek liberty. The great Athenian statesman, spoke of Philip II:

                          "... not only no Greek, nor related to the Greeks, but not even a barbarian from any place that can be named with honors, but a pestilent knave from Macedonia, whence it was never yet possible to buy a decent slave." [Third Philippic, 31]

                          The Macedonian "barbarian" defeated Greece at the battle of Chaeronea in August 338 BC and appointed himself "Commander of the Greeks". Philip's army was greatly outnumbered by the Athenian and Theban forces, yet his phalanxes overwhelmed the Athenians and Thebans. His victory made him complete master of Greece. This battle had established Macedonian hegemony over Greece and this date is commonly taken as the end of Greek history and the beginning of the Macedonian era.

                          Two years later, in the spring of 336 BC, Philip start preparing for his big invasion of Persia. He sent Attalus and Parmenion with 10,000 troops over into Asia Minor but just before he was to travel to Asia to begin the conquest, he was assassinated.

                          His vision to conquer the Middle East, will be carried away by his son Alexander the Great. However, without the military and political efforts of Philip, Alexander would have never been as successful as he was. According to Bosworth, Philip's work with the Macedonian army and establishment of alliances with the Balkan peoples gave both himself and Alexander the resources necessary to carry out such conquests.

                          Philip introduced the 6 meter long sarissa, a wooden pike with metal tip, for use by his infantry in the phalanx. The sarissa, when held upright by the rear rows of the phalanx (there were usually eight rows), helped hide maneuvers behind the phalanx from the view of the enemy. When held horizontal by the front rows of the phalanx, it was a rather brutal weapon. People could be run through from 20 feet away, giving quite an advantage to the phalanx in hand-to-hand combat.

                          Philip made the military a way of life for many Macedonian men. He made the military a professional occupation that paid well enough that the soldiers could afford to do it year-round, unlike in the past when the soldiering had only been a part-time job, something the men would do during the off peak times of farming. This allowed him to count on his man regularly, building unity and cohesion within the army. In addition to the basic phalanx, Philip and Alexander used light auxiliaries, archers, a siege train, and a cavalry.

                          The royal tomb excavated in 1977 at Vergina (Kutlesh), near Salonika (Solun), is believed to be Philip's.

                          References

                          Encyclopedia Britannica, vol.14, p.225
                          Alexander the Great, Ulrich Wilken, WW Norton & Co., New York/London 1967, p.22-23
                          In the Shadow of Olympus - the Emergence of Macedon, Eugene N. Borza, New Jersey, Princeton University Press, 1990
                          The History of Alexander, Quintus Curtius Rufus
                          Obtained from the Macedonia FAQ website: faq.macedonia.org


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                          © Copyright Macedonia for the Macedonians
                          Created and maintained by Bill Nicholov
                          "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
                          GOTSE DELCEV

                          Comment

                          • George S.
                            Senior Member
                            • Aug 2009
                            • 10116

                            "Touched by the hand of God, youth immortalized, wearing his golden crown of glory. A symbol of strength and power for his Macedonian comrades-in-war. His military genius too great to be wasted on Europe, he looked east, to conquer Persia, the greatest kingdom of all. More than a conqueror, an intellectual with a team of all the finest minds in the world. Visualizing a universal empire for all, he left the legacy of the greatest empire the world has ever seen."

                            Introduction | Early Life | Alexander on the Macedonian Throne - The Crash of the Greek Resistance
                            The Battles of Granicus and Issus | Alexander in Egypt | The End of the Persian Empire
                            Alexander in India | Alexander's Marriage | Alexander's Death

                            Introduction

                            Greek propagandists claim that the King of Macedonia, Alexander the Great, was in fact, Greek, despite the universal acceptance of historians and scholars that Alexander was indeed Macedonian. Furthermore, Alexander and the ancient Macedonians were not regarded as kinsmen by the Greeks, nor did they view themselves as Greek. The following will prove that Alexander the Great and the Ancient Macedonians were Macedonian.

                            The following are excerpts from Macedonia FAQ 1

                            Early Life
                            Alexander the Great's Macedonian Empire

                            Alexander the Great (356-323 BC), the king of Macedonia that conquered the Persian empire and annexed it to Macedonia, is considered one of the greatest military geniuses of all times. He is the first king to be called "the Great."

                            Alexander is supposed to have been fair skinned, with a ruddy tinge to his face and chest. Plutarch stated that he had a pleasing scent. Like all Macedonians, Alexander liked his liquor; his fondness for wine also caused some of his outbursts of rage. Alexander liked drama, the flute and the lyre, poetry and hunting bur what he truly wanted in his life, was a glory and valor, rather than easy living and riches. He was not fond of athletic contests, according to Plutarch.

                            Alexander, born in Pella, the ancient capital of Macedonia, was the son of Philip II, king of Macedonia, and of Olympias, a princess of Epirus. Philip and Olympias wanted nothing less than the best for their son, so when he was 13, his parents hired Aristotle to be his personal tutor. Aristotle gave Alexander a thorough training in rhetoric and literature and stimulated his interest in science, medicine, and philosophy, all of which became of the utmost importance for Alexander in his later life. The two later became estranged, due to their difference of opinion on the status of foreigners; Aristotle saw them as barbarians, while Alexander sought to merge Macedonians and foreigners.

                            In 340 BC, when Philip went to Byzantium to fight rebels, Alexander, a mere 16 years old, was left in charge of Macedonia as regent, with the power to rule in Philip's name in his absence. That Alexander was given such a position at such a young age indicates that he was already accomplished in battle. But Alexander never got along well with his father, although Philip was proud of Alexander for the Bucephalus incident. Alexander had always been closer to Olympias than to Philip. Philip and Olympias also did not get along all that well, owing primarily to Olympias' "barbarian" heritage of Epirus, now Albania.

                            The family essentially was split apart irreparably when Philip married a woman named Cleopatra, a Macedonian. At the wedding banquet, Cleopatra's father made a remark about Philip fathering a "legitimate" heir, i.e., one that was pure Macedonian. Alexander took exception and threw his cup at the man, and some sources say Alexander killed him. Enraged, Philip stood up and charged at Alexander, only to trip and fall on his face in his drunken stupor. Alexander, rather upset at the scene, is to have shouted:

                            "Here is the man who was making ready to cross from Europe to Asia, and who cannot even cross from one table to another without losing his balance."

                            When Philip divorced Olympias Alexander fled. Although allowed to return, he remained isolated and insecure until Philip was assassinated (some think that Olympias may have even had a role in Philip's murder), in the summer of 336 BC.

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                            Alexander on the Macedonian Throne - The Crash of the Greek Resistance
                            Bust of Alexander the GreatAlexander ascended to the Macedonian throne when his father died. Once on power, he disposed quickly of all conspirators and domestic enemies by ordering their execution. Then he descended on Thessaly, where partisans of independence had gained ascendancy, and restored Macedonian rule. Before the end of the summer of 336 BC he had reestablished his position in Greece and was elected by a congress of states at Corinth.

                            But, Greek cities, like Athens and Thebes, which had pledged allegiance to Philip, were unsure if they wished to do the same for a twenty-year-old boy. Likewise, northern barbarians that Philip had subdued were threatening to break away from Macedonia and wreak havoc in the north. Alexander's advisors suggested that he let Athens and Thebes go and to be gentle with the barbarians to prevent a revolt. However, in 335 BC, Alexander campaigned toward the Danube, to secure Macedonia's northern frontier. He carried out a successful campaign against the defecting Thracians, penetrating to the Danube River. Alexander marched quickly north and drove the rebelling barbarians beyond the Danube River and out of the way. On his return he crushed in a single week the threatening Illyrians.

                            On rumors of his death, a revolt broke out in Greece with the support of leading Athenians. Alexander marched south covering 240 miles in two weeks. Arrian related the story of how Alexander dealt with Thebes and Athens. There were rumors in these cities that Alexander had been killed, and that the time was right for them to separate themselves from Macedonia. Instead, in the fall of 335 BC, Alexander marched up to the gates of Thebes, and let them know that it was not too late for them to change their minds. The Thebans responded with a small contingent of soldiers, which Alexander repelled with archers and light infantrymen. The next day, Alexander's general, Perdiccas, attacked the gates. Perdiccas broke through and into the city, and Alexander moved the rest of his force in behind to prevent the Thebans from cutting Perdiccas off from the rest. The Macedonians then stormed the city, killing almost everyone in sight, women and children included. They plundered, sacked, burned and razed Thebes, as an example to the rest of Greece. Only the temples and the house of the poet Pindar were spared from distraction. Athens then quickly rethought its decision to abandon Alexander. Greece remained under Macedonian control.

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                            The Battles of Granicus and Issus
                            Alexander began his war against Persia in the spring of 334 BC by crossing the Hellespont(modern Dardanelles) with an army of 35,000 Macedonians and 7,600 Greeks. He threw his spear from his ship to the coast and it stuck in the ground. He stepped onto the shore, pulled his weapon from the soil, and declared that the whole of Asia would be won by the spear. His chief officers, all Macedonians, included Antigonus, Ptolemy, and Seleucus.

                            Battle Scene at GranicusThe Macedonian army soon encountered the Persian army under King Darius III at the crossing of the river Granicus, near the ancient city of Troy. Alexander attacked an army of Persians and Greek hoplites (a heavily armed foot soldiers of ancient Greece) who distinguished themselves on the side of the Persians against the Macedonians. Alexander's forces defeated the enemy (totaling 40,000 men) and, according to tradition, lost only 110 men.

                            Then he turned northward to Gordion, home of the famous Gordian Knot. The legend behind the ancient knot was that the man who could untie it was destined to rule the entire world. Alexander simply slashed the knot with his sword and unraveled it.

                            Continuing to advance southward, in November of 333 BC, Alexander met Darius in battle for the second time at a mountain pass at Issus, in northeastern Syria. The size of Darius's army is unknown but although the Persian army greatly outnumbered the Macedonians, the narrow field of battle allowed Alexander to defeat the Persians. The Battle of Issus ended in a great victory for Alexander. Cut off from his base, Darius fled northward, abandoning his mother, wife, and children to Alexander, who treated them with the respect due to royalty.

                            In the next year, he marched down the Phoenician coast and received the surrenders of all of the major cities there except for Tyre. A seven-month siege of the city followed, and the Tyrians eventually surrendered to Alexander. Then he continued south into Egypt after he had secured the entire Aegean coast.

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                            Alexander in Egypt
                            Statue of AlexanderAlexander entered Egypt in 331 BC. When he arrived, he was welcomed, and he ordered a city to be designed and founded in his name at the mouth of the river Nile. Alexandria would become one of the major cultural centers in the Mediterranean world in the following centuries.

                            In the spring of 331 Alexander made a pilgrimage to the great temple and oracle of Amon-Ra, Egyptian god of the sun, whom the Greeks identified with Zeus. The earlier Egyptian pharaohs were believed to be sons of Amon-Ra; and Alexander, the new ruler of Egypt, wanted the god to acknowledge him as his son. The pilgrimage apparently was successful, and it may have confirmed in him a belief in his own divine origin.

                            While in Egypt, Alexander spontaneously decided to make the dangerous trip across the desert to visit the oracle at the temple of Zeus Ammon. On the way, he was blessed with abundant rain, and he was guided across the desert by ravens. At the temple, Alexander spoke to the oracle about matters that are unclear to most historians. Many sources, however, speculated that the priest told Alexander that he was the son of Zeus Ammon and that he was destined to rule the world.

                            He was then made pharaoh voluntarily by the Egyptians, who despised living under Persian rule. He exchanged letters with Darius while he was in Egypt, and the Persian offered a truce with Alexander with a gift of several western provinces of the Persian Empire, but Alexander refused to make peace unless he could have the whole empire. In the middle of 331 BC Alexander marched back to Persia to find Darius.

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                            The End of the Persian Empire
                            Alexander reorganized his forces at Tyre and started for Babylon with an army of 40,000 infantry and 7000 cavalry. He conquered the lands between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates and found the Persian army which, according to the exaggerated accounts of antiquity, was said to number a million men at the plains of Gaugamela (near modern Irbil, Iraq). The Macedonians spotted the lights from Persian campfires one night, and they encouraged Alexander to lead his attack under cover of darkness. He refused to take advantage of their situation because he wanted to defeat Darius in an equally matched battle so that the Persian king would never again dare to raise an army against the Macedonians. The two armies met on the battlefield the next morning on October 1, 331 BC, and the Macedonian forces swept through the Persian army and slaughtered them. Darius fled as he had done at Issus to the mountain residence of Ecbatana, while Alexander occupied Babylon, the imperial capital Susa, and Persepolis. Henceforth, Alexander was proclaimed king of Persia, and to win the support of the Persian aristocracy he appointed mainly Persians as provincial governors. After four months, the Macedonians burned the royal palace to the ground thus completing the end of the ancient Persian Empire.

                            Yet a major uprising in Greece had Alexander so deeply worried, that after hearing that the rebellion had failed, he proclaimed the end of the Hellenic Crusade and discharged the all Greek forces.

                            Alexander continued his pursuit of Darius for hundreds of miles from Persepolis. When he finally caught up to him, he found the Persian king dead in his coach, assassinated by his own men. Alexander had the assassin executed and gave Darius a royal funeral.

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                            Macedonian Nobles Resistance and the Macedonian Language
                            Alexander the Great Statue in SolunDuring the reign of Alexander the Great, the Macedonians spoke their own native language. Though Alexander spoke also Greek, loved Homer, and respected his tutor Aristotle, there is much evidence that he hated the Greeks of his day. He thoroughly destroyed Thebes. His Asian empire is correctly called Macedonian, not Greek for he won it with an army of 35,000 Macedonians and only 7,600 Greeks.

                            Alexander's increasingly Oriental behavior led to trouble with Macedonian nobles and some Greeks. In 330 BC a series of allegations was brought against some of Alexander's officers concerning a plot to murder him. Alexander tortured and executed his friend, Philotas (commander of the cavalry) the accused leader of the conspiracy, and several other high-ranking officials in order to eliminate the possibility of an attempt on his life. The question of the use of the ancient Macedonian language was raised by Alexander himself during the trial of Philotas. Alexander has said to Philotas:

                            "The Macedonians are about to pass judgment upon you; I wish to know weather you will use their native tongue in addressing them." Philotas replied: "Besides the Macedonians there are many present who, I think, will more easily understand what I shell say if I use the same language which you have employed." Than said the king: "Do you not see how Philotas loathes even the language of his fatherland? For he alone disdains to learn it. But let him by all means speak in whatever way he desires, provided that you remember that he holds out customs in as much abhorrence as our language."

                            The trial of Philotas took place in Asia before a multiethnic public, which has accepted Greek as their common language. Alexander spoke Macedonian with his conationals, but used Greek in addressing West Asians. Like Illirian and Tracian, ancient Macedonian was not recorded in writing. However, on the bases of about a hundred glosses, Macedonian words noted and explained by Greek writers, some place names from Macedonia, and a few names of individuals, most scholars believe that ancient Macedonian was a separate Indo-European language. Evidence from phonology indicates that the ancient Macedonian language was distinct from ancient Greek and closer to the Tracian and Illirian languages.

                            Another old-fashioned noble, Cleitus, was killed by Alexander himself in a drunken brawl. Heavy drinking was a cherished tradition at the Macedonian court when Alexander ran him through with a spear. Although he mourned his friend excessively and nearly committed suicide when he realized what he had done, all of Alexander's associates thereafter feared his paranoia and dangerous temper. Alexander next demanded that Europeans follow the Oriental etiquette of prostrating themselves before the king - which he knew was regarded as an act of worship by Greeks. But resistance by Macedonian officers and by the Greek Callisthenes (a nephew of Aristotle who had joined the expedition as the official historian of the crusade) defeated the attempt. The Greek Callisthenes was soon executed on a charge of conspiracy.

                            As the Macedonians marched into Parthia, the tone of the journey changed. Alexander had adopted the Persian style of dress, rather than his traditional Macedonian clothing, and his troops were unhappy with him.

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                            Alexander in India
                            Alexander the Great's Macedonian Empire

                            Map of Alexander's Empire

                            In the spring of 327 BC, Alexander and his army marched into India invading Punjab as far as the river Hyphasis (modern Beas). At this point the Macedonians rebelled and refused to go farther.

                            The greatest of Alexander's battles in India was against Porus, one of the most powerful Indian leaders, at the river Hydaspes. On July 326 BC, Alexander's army crossed the heavily defended river in dramatic fashion during a violent thunderstorm to meet Porus' forces. The Indians were defeated in a fierce battle, even though they fought with elephants, which the Macedonians had never before seen. Alexander captured Porus and, like the other local rulers he had defeated, allowed him to continue to govern his territory. Alexander even subdued an independent province and granted it to Porus as a gift.

                            In this battle Alexander's horse, Bucephalus, was wounded and died. Alexander had ridden Bucephalus into every one of his battles in Greece and Asia, so when it died, he was grief-stricken and founded a city in his horse's name.

                            Alexander's next goal was to reach the to travel south down the rivers Hydaspes and Indus so that they might reach the Ocean on the southern edge of the world. The army rode down the rivers on the rivers on rafts and stopped to attack and subdue villages along the way. During this trip, Alexander sought out the Indian philosophers, the Brahmins, who were famous for their wisdom, and debated them on philosophical issues. He became legendary for centuries in India for being both a wise philosopher and a fearless conqueror.

                            One of the villages in which the army stopped belonged to the Malli, who were said to be one of the most warlike of the Indian tribes. Alexander was wounded several times in this attack, most seriously when an arrow pierced his breastplate and his ribcage. The Macedonian officers rescued him in a narrow escape from the village. Alexander and his army reached the mouth of the Indus in July 325 BC and turned westward for home.

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                            Alexander's Marriage
                            In the spring of 324, Alexander held a great victory celebration at Susa. He and 80 close associates married Iranian noblewomen. In addition, he legitimized previous so-called marriages between soldiers and native women and gave them rich wedding gifts, no doubt to encourage such unions. When he discharged the disabled Macedonian veterans a little later, after defeating a mutiny by the estranged and exasperated Macedonian army, they had to leave their wives and children with him. Because national prejudices had prevented the unification of his empire, his aim was apparently to prepare a long-term solution (he was only 32) by breeding a new body of high nobles of mixed blood and also creating the core of a royal army attached only to himself. After his death, nearly all the noble Susa marriages were dissolved. He established training programs to teach Persians about Greek and Macedonian culture, and he married Roxane, a Persian.

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                            Alexander's Death
                            We will probably never know the truth, of Alexander's mysterious death, even though new theories are still coming out. Alexander the Great, the Macedonian king and the great conqueror, died at the age of 33, on June 10, 323 BC. Three days earlier, on the 7th of June, 323 BC, the Macedonians were allowed to file past their leader for the last time before he finally succumbed to the illness. Alexander died without designating a successor. His death opened the anarchic age of the Diadochi and the Macedonian Empire will eventually cease to exist.

                            Reference

                            Obtained from the Macedonia FAQ website. A project of RMacedonia.org
                            URL: http://faq.RMacedonia.org/

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                            © Copyright Macedonia for the Macedonians
                            Created and maintained by Bill Nicholov
                            "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
                            GOTSE DELCEV

                            Comment

                            • George S.
                              Senior Member
                              • Aug 2009
                              • 10116

                              cedonia is one of the few countries that has existed for thousands of years. Greece is not listed, instead, it has been known as several different names such as Achaea, Thessaly, Epirus, etc. over the centuries. The Greek position is that their race is "continuous" and "pure" over 4000 years. This has been universally dismissed by scholars. The first reference to a territory known as "Greece" or "Hellas" occurs after the independence of Greece from the Ottoman Empire in 1832. It is also very dangerous to claim that any race is "pure". It exposes modern Greece for what it is - racist and intolerant. For more information, please visit:

                              Aegean Macedonia Since 1913
                              Human Rights Activists in Aegean Macedonia
                              The Rule of Greece in Aegean Macedonia
                              Greek Propaganda

                              Chronology

                              197BC

                              The King of Macedonia is Philip V.
                              His forces are defeated by the Romans at the battle of Cynoscephalae, and he is forced to accept all conditions insisted upon by the consul Plamininus in exchange for peace.
                              Macedonia is stripped of its possessions in European Greece and Asia Minor (Anatolia).
                              Ends three years of fighting between Rome and Macedonia in Illyria.

                              196BC "Roman Army Helps to Free Greeks From Rule by Macedonia"

                              "There are celebrations at the Isthmian Games as a decree is issued declaring freedom and autonomy for the Greeks after the defeat of the Macedonians by Rome." (p.143)

                              179BC

                              Perseus succeeds father, Philip V, as King of Macedonia.

                              168BC

                              "Macedonia surrenders to the Romans after its defeat at the battle of Pydna, which saw 20,000 Macedonians dead...The empire of Alexander has finally disintegrated." (p.144)

                              148BC

                              Macedonia becomes a Roman province.
                              Following the defeat of the Macedonians in 168BC, the Romans divided Macedonia into four closely supervised federations.

                              The previous quotations are from:
                              Mercer, Derrick, et al., Chronicle of the World, London, Dorling Kindersley Limited, 1996

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                              © Copyright Macedonia for the Macedonians
                              Created and maintained by Bill Nicholov
                              "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
                              GOTSE DELCEV

                              Comment

                              • George S.
                                Senior Member
                                • Aug 2009
                                • 10116

                                Oshchima, Aegean Macedonia


                                Greek propagandists are quick to note that the Balkans experienced a wave of migration from the Slavs in the 6th and 7th centuries. They insist that modern-day Macedonians are descendants of these Slavs and therefore, cannot claim Ancient Macedonia.

                                No nation is homogenous. Every part of the world experienced different migrations, settlements, etc. The Slavs integrated with the Ancient Macedonians resulting in today's Macedonian population.

                                "Over the past two thousand three hundred years or so, the Balkan peninsula has been invaded by hordes of newcomers, including Celts (third to first century B.C.), Germanic tribes ( third century A.D.), Slavs (fifth and sixth century A.D.), and Turks (fourteenth century A.D.). The original peoples were not wiped out, or pushed out of Macedonia or Greece by these new peoples. What happened for the most part was that after a time the new peoples merged with the existing peoples."

                                "However, there is no evidence to suggest that the people of Macedonia are any less ethnically 'pure' and representative of the ancient peoples, than the Greeks." 1

                                If the Greek argument were true, then modern-day Greeks cannot claim descent from the ancient Greeks for the following reasons:

                                The ancient Greek language and modern Greek are completely different languages and are mutually unintelligible.
                                Greek territory was subject to a countless number of migrations, attacks, and forced assimilation dating back to 2000 B.C. Example - The classical Mycenean culture (who lived on Greek territory and are claimed as a Greek tribe) were completely wiped out by the Dorian invasions of 1200 B.C.
                                Greece was never a unified country until 1832, nor did the ancient Greeks view themselves as being members of one nation. Ancient maps show Greek territory as divided in the following territories: Achaia, Epirus, Thessaly, Sparta, Athens, etc.

                                Yet modern-day Greeks continue to claim that their race is continuous dating back from 4000 B.C.

                                "Today's Macedonians know who they are. They trace their name to the empire of Alexander the Great in the fourth century B.C. They trace their ethnicity to the Slavs...and their faith to the Byzantine Empire that brought them into the Eastern Orthodox Church." 2

                                Greeks refuse to admit that the Slavs invasions had a profound effect on their ethnic makeup. They claim that the Slavs overran the Balkans (Macedonia, Serbia, Bulgaria, etc.) yet somehow managed to stay out of Greece. They make these claims despite the universal acceptance of scholars that the opposite indeed happened.

                                "The Slavs spread throughout Greece" 3

                                "...by about the eighth century A.D., Slavs were settled along the whole length of the Balkan peninsula right to the tip of the Peloponnese and were especially strong along the western coast. Pockets of Greek inhabitants remained along the east coast." 4

                                "The Byzantine emperor Constantine Porphyrgenitus openly says that the whole of Hellas had been Slavicized." 5

                                "Even today in the Peloponnese, one cannot go three miles in any direction without encountering a Slavonic place name" 6

                                Settlement of the Slavs - Summary

                                During the 6th and 7th centuries, a large number of Slavs moved from the area between the Baltic Sea, the Carpathians and the rivers Dnieper and Dniester to the left bank of the river Danube and into the Balkans. The Byzantine territories were attacked and eventually settled by Slavs, including Serbia, Croatia, Bulgaria, Macedonia, and even Greece. The original Bulgarians, who were an Asiatic people, were completely assimilated by the Slavic tribes and these Slavs became known as Bulgarians. Although today's Greeks will not admit it, their culture was heavily influenced by the Slavs. This is only logical as the entire region of the Balkans became the subject of a countless number of Slav attacks and settlement. Could Greece be the only country that was not affected? Unlikely.

                                In the case of the Macedonians, the Slavs integrated with the ancient Macedonians and their ethnicity became dominant. The existing Macedonians transmitted to them some of their own customs, including the Christian faith, culture, and name of their homeland, Macedonia.

                                An important event took place in 863 when the Macedonian missionaries, Sts. Cyril and Methody from Solun invented the first Slavonic alphabet (the Glagolitic). From this came the Cyrillic alphabet which today is used by virtually all Slavs.

                                The Macedonians made an incredible contribution to the cultural development of all Slavs, the creation of this alphabet. From this event came the transliteration of Church documents into Macedonian and other Slavic languages. The acceptance of the majority of Slavs into the Eastern Orthodox Church followed as the Macedonians spread Christianity. The achievements of all Slavs in literature, art, and culture began with the achievements of the Macedonians.

                                Reference

                                The Real Macedonians, Dr. John Shea, as quoted in Panorama - Vol.2 No.1, Macedonian Cultural Society "ISKRA", Adelaide, 1996; p.100
                                National Geographic, Volume 189, No. 3, March 1996; p.124
                                "Greeks and Romans" in Greece Old and New, ed. by Tom Winnifrith and Penelope Murray, Macmillan, London, 1983
                                Macedonia and Greece - The Struggle to Define a New Balkan Nation, John Shea, McFarland and Company Inc., North Carolina, 1997; p.86
                                Ibid; p.86
                                Macedonia and Its Relations With Greece, Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Skopje, 1993; p.14

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                                © Copyright Macedonia for the Macedonians
                                Created and maintained by Bill Nicholov
                                "Ido not want an uprising of people that would leave me at the first failure, I want revolution with citizens able to bear all the temptations to a prolonged struggle, what, because of the fierce political conditions, will be our guide or cattle to the slaughterhouse"
                                GOTSE DELCEV

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