Macedonia and Macedonians in WWI

[Selanec]

Here is the next installment where there is a connection of the Balkans mentioned - starting at the 7:30 minute mark:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GT14RRahIWw&

Mentions Florina and how that is currently held by the Serbs and the Bulgarians are going to attack

Following on from that video they do an episode on Greece with Macedonia mentioned as constituting as being part of Greece (annoying considering it is more complex than that):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaeTv0GzjIc&

Then the next video shows Bulgaria attacking the allies in the balkan region (around 5:50 point):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppoSpRK5nXY&

Next video that mentions Macedonia - specifically Florina and Bitola (Monastir):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLvZ...6VS6w3KxuKsMvT

[Stojacanec]

When you get a person by the name of Valantes Athenasiou providing the research, you are going to get a Greek slant on everything.

[Selanec]

Originally Posted by Stojacanec

When you get a person by the name of Valantes Athenasiou providing the research, you are going to get a Greek slant on everything.

Couldn't agree more Stojanec!

In the next video of the series the mention Prespa, Struma river, Crna, Monastir (Bitola) and the Irish fighting the Bulgarians (at the 3 minute mark):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYDackwE1zg&

Following on from that, here is one dedicated to Albania - Only a mention of "Western Macedonia" in passing. I did a search of their channel and there appears to be no video of a "Macedonia" only video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yoVLQiU12s

Next video mentions Monastir and Lake Ohrid:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ylXexW3mKo&

Mention of Crna River and I am guessing Veles (Velesevo?):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irT6JOkSzwk&

Another video briefly mentioning a few Macedonian regions - notably Monastir:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLBO7L5G2DQ&

[Selanec]

The next video to feature mention of Macedonia (notably Bitola):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGwnlgdE-F8&l

Starting in the 5 minute mark till 6ish

An interesting comment below the video:

Hey Indy and The Great War crew ! I love the channel and have been following it a since the beginning of this epic journey. I would like to add something of trivia to this, in the hopes of it reaching a mention in any context in future episodes perhaps. During the Balkan Wars and into the First World War specifically the Macedonian Front, the armies that fought against each other : Serbs, Greeks and Bulgarians had for the most part, Macedonian conscripts or rather, forced the people to fight against each other, resulting in a lot of tales of brothers fighting brothers for different countries because their villages or towns had been occupied and exchanged in between.

The Great War
4 years ago
+Michael Davchev are there some written sources about this or a particular story worth telling?

Michael Davchev
4 years ago
Apologies for replying so late, but I could try to find some written sources about this claim. The best I can find is the gravestones of people around the villages and cities that the front raged on like this one :https://i.imgur.com/uCwymar.jpg . It reads :''Liskovski Petro b.1882-d.1970'' ''Ottoman soldier from 1910-1912'' ''Serbian soldier from 1914-1915'' ''Bulgarian soldier from 1916-1918'' .Summarizes the history of my people to its full extent thought the ages

Michael Davchev
4 years ago
I was told by my father that one of my great-grandfathers served in the Ottoman army, or rather was forced into by the blood tax, whose brother served in the Serbian army, who was then captured and forced to fight in the Bulgarian army. Both of whom died mere minutes from one another, fighting against each other on the raid and defense of the village they were born in.

Michael Davchev
4 years ago
As I said I can try to find written sources on the claims or perhaps find more gravestones stating the multiple servitude in various armies that warred against each other on the Macedonian territory, but as far as I know they are scarce because well, the people living here were either illiterate or simply didn't record stuff like this, which ended up in a lot of ''Unknown soldier'' graves. Or like the case of my family, changed a lot of surnames based on the patronymic naming system(ex:Ragnarrson like the Scandinavians use) to avoid the blood tax during Ottoman reign, or to avoid conscription by sounding like the occupant forces' typical surnames.

Michael Davchev
4 years ago
Not sure about the neutrality that this site in reference to the Macedonian question, but it does tell the sources below about each claim, most of these are during the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the Balkan Wars and during World War One http://www.themacedonianquestion.com/?d=10



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Edit: In the next video they mention how they kicked out the Germans and Bulgarians out of Bitola: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3yQjHeT-34&

[Selanec]

Shelling of Bitola by Bulgarians (early in the video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLj2s0mbkVk&

[Liberator of Makedonija]

Originally Posted by Selanec

Shelling of Bitola by Bulgarians (early in the video):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLj2s0mbkVk&

Our great liberators! I wonder how Macedonians serving in commanding roles in the Bulgarian Army felt when the bugari used our towns and villages as cannon fodder?

[Selanec]

First 2 minutes summing up casualties in the Macedonian Front up to Dec 16 1916:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYY8cNXQbFg&

[Liberator of Makedonija]

Summary of an autobiography of a Macedonian priest, much of it covering his experiences during the Balkan Wars and subsequent First World War:

https://www.leontiusproject.com/post...emvypA7sleOJ14