Part 16 – Birth of the Macedonian Revolutionary Organization

Part 16 – Birth of the Macedonian Revolutionary Organization

By the early 1890’s there was but one thing on the mind of every Macedonian and that was what to do about the situation in which they found themselves. Feeling abandoned and betrayed by the Great Powers, stifled by their neighbours, subdued by their occupiers, the Macedonian people were left with a single choice, fight for their own survival. Macedonians by now were well experienced in the art of organizing insurrections as demonstrated by the various rebellions they undertook in the past including the latest Kreshna Uprising. It was now a matter of organizing and executing a national uprising that would free all of Macedonia once and for all. One of the first methods of spreading the idea of organizing an all Macedonian national uprising was through the “Loza” magazine published by a teacher and student group in Bulgaria. Even though this publication earned the group their banishment and prosecution, they were at least successful in starting the idea which then spread inside Macedonia. The next group to devote time to the idea was another teacher and student group in Prilep inside Macedonia. Here Macedonian teachers Dame Gruev and Pere Toshev devoted much of their time during the 1892-1893 school year in creating a revolutionary organization inside Macedonia. About the same time another group of like minded individuals, Petar Pop Arsov, Ivan Hadzhi Nikolov, and Dr. Hristo Tatarchev, got together in Solun and developed the idea that “only a secret revolutionary organization can protect Macedonia from foreign propaganda”. Goce Delchev too, even before he was recruited in the Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (MRO), had developed the idea that a revolutionary organization of secret nature needed to be established that would operate inside Macedonia. This type of organization would therefore be immune to foreign influence and propaganda. Its founders would be local Macedonians who would fight for a free and independent Macedonia with no connections to foreign governments; particularly to Greece, Serbia and Bulgaria. In fact Delchev was so convinced to stay as far away as possible from foreign governments that he made it his mission not to accept aid from the neighbouring Balkan states. Delchev who spent time in Sofia serving as a chairperson in various organizations was well aware of the possible consequences if Macedonians were to accept aid from Bulgaria. At one point he publicly declared that the Macedonians would pay dearly for such aid, the price would be the loss of freedom and independence for Macedonia. The kind of Macedonian Revolutionary Organization every Macedonian sought after came into existence on October 23rd, 1893 in Solun, in Hristo Batandzhev’s house when a group of Macedonian revolutionaries got together for a historic meeting. Among those present included Dame Gruev a school teacher from the village Smilevo near Bitola, Hristo Batandzhiev a school teacher from the village Gumentdzhe near Voden, Hristo Tatarchev a doctor from Resen, Petar Pop Arsov a school teacher from the village Bogomila near Veles, Anton Dimitrov from the village Ajvatovtsi near Solun, and Ivan Hadzhi Nikolov a book shop owner from Solun. Among other things, they decided that the Macedonian Revolutionary Organization would operate in accordance with the following principles:

1. the Organization will be revolutionary in nature; 2. revolutionary activities will be conducted under ultimate secrecy; 3. the Organization will operate only within Macedonia’s geographic and historic borders; 4. the Organization will be open to all those born in Macedonia regardless of ethnicity or religion; 5. the Organization will strive for the political autonomy of Macedonia.

As soon as the Organization was created, a constitution was drafted consisting of four parts and fourteen articles which among other things spelled out the Organization’s mission, emphasizing the need for the Macedonian people to spread the spirit of liberation among the Macedonian population and to fight for their own liberty. Chapter two was dedicated to the Organization’s structure and recruitment policies highlighting the fact that the Macedonian Revolutionary Organization was open to all people regardless of ethnicity, culture, religion or sex, as long as they respected the Organization’s goals and objectives. Chapter three of the constitution covered items such as sources of financing and the Organization’s assets while chapter four outlined the rules of conduct and punishments for individuals violating the Organization’s principles. By the summer of 1894, the MRO had created branches in Bitola, Kavadartsi, Negotino, Struga, Resen, Ohrid and Prilep and as the number of people joining increased, a conference was held in Resen in Dr. Hristo Tatarchev’e house, which lasted from August 27 to 29, 1894. The purpose of the conference was to discuss the activities of MRO and to obtain consensus on the Organization’s future direction. It was also during this conference that the proposals of the Berlin Congress (articles 23 and 62) were rejected and it was decided to pursue autonomy for Macedonia only, leaving Odrin out. I just want to mention at this point that when the Macedonians requested autonomy from the Berlin Congress they had also included the Odrin (Dardanelles) Region as part of that package. Now, however, it was decided to leave Odrin out but the Organization still retained its old name “TMORO” (Tina Makedonska, Odrin Revolutsionerna Oranizatsija, Secret Macedonian, Odrin Revolutionary Organization). In order to avoid confusion I will be using the term “MRO” (Macedonian Revolutionary Organization) as an inclusive term that encompasses the TMORO and the IMRO (Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization) since all these references refer to a single Macedonian Revolutionary Organization. Even though no serious discussions on how to arm and train the people for combat had ever taken place in the Solun meeting of October 23rd, 1893 or in the Resen meeting of August 29, 1894 the various revolutionary branches continued to recruit revolutionaries with much enthusiasm. Then as the situation became a pressing issue, a second conference was held in Solun in 1896 where it was decided to start arming the fighters. Initially these fighters were called to temporary duty and were disbanded after each mission, but after 1899 permanent Chetas (units) began to appear. These Cheti were small in numbers and used mainly for defensive purposes. But as the number of recruits began to increase during the year 1900, military training centers were opened where untrained civilians could be armed and trained in preparation for combat. By the year 1900 all fighting personnel fell under the command of Commander in Chief Gotse Delchev, responsible for all assignments and military preparation in all of Macedonia. In the early days most of the military training was done by ex-Bulgarian officers like Marko Lerinski, Mihail Apostolov and Hristo Chernopeev who had been dismissed from the Bulgarian military not because they were Macedonians but because they harboured Macedonian revolutionary ideas. Their job was to train the future Macedonian officers who would lead the Macedonian Chetas. Soon after the military training camps were opened the Commander in Chief ordered the drafting of a Rulebook for the Chetas to follow. Unfortunately after the Rulebook was approved and sent for duplication the printing house was destroyed and the distribution to the various districts was delayed. A new Rulebook was again drafted containing five chapters and forty-seven articles. This book was a bit more comprehensive and included more details which Gotse Delchev the Commander in Chief had gained from his field experience.

According to the Rulebook, the Chetas directly associated with the MRO were to be given two basic tasks, one, to agitate the Macedonian population regardless of ethnicity or religion and, two, to arm the population for the national uprising. Outside the MRO Chetas, the Rulebook called for the formation of permanent village Chetas whose primary objective was to defend the villages from the Bashibazuks (armed Muslim civilians) and other irregular military forces. The village Chetas were also expected to carry out rear attacks and breach sieges when the main MRO Chetas were surrounded by enemy forces and needed help. Even though the village Chetas were permanent, their fighters were to participate in everyday civilian life and assemble only when required. Since they were required to operate clandestinely in order to protect the villages from punishment from the authorities in case they were discovered, the fighters kept their arms and ammunition hidden away somewhere outside the village. Besides the Chetas, the Rulebook specified the creation of secret police forces, courier services and terrorist groups. The job of the courier could only be entrusted to loyal, brave and capable people who were familiar with the terrain, especially with back roads and secret paths and were capable of delivering secret mail, providing arms and ammunition and smuggling people. When the terrorist groups were first created their task was to seek out and punish enemy informants. The first terrorist group created in 1895 consisted of four people and began its operation by monitoring Ottoman activities in Prilep. In 1896 another terrorist group was created in Krushevo whose task was to follow certain suspects and to collect money and other needed items for the Organization. In time every revolutionary district created its own terrorist group who were assigned various tasks to suit its needs. All in all, these terrorist groups were very effective in demonstrating the Organization’s strength and authority. By October 1898 twelve terrorist groups were operating in Macedonia including Prilep, Bitola, Solun and Kukush. One of the more significant deeds performed by a terrorist group was the execution of Dimitar Grdanov, a key Ottoman spy. Gedanov was executed by Metodi Pachev on August 5th, 1898 in Ohrid. The terrorist groups were also known to have participated in battles alongside the Macedonian Chetas as well as provide secret security services for MRO revolutionaries. As the number and needs of terrorist groups increased, it was decided to reorganize them into a Secret Police. The decision to form secret police units was made during the 1896 Solun Congress and was enshrined in the MRO Constitution and spelled out in the Rulebook. According to article ten of the MRO Constitution, each committee of the Organization had the right to form its own Secret Police unit for the purpose of taking actions against internal and external enemies. After the formation of the Secret Police units however, most regional Organizations used their services to investigate various matters, perform intelligence functions, follow the movements of official Ottoman authorities, identify and investigate newly arrived personnel and track the movements of the Ottoman secret militia. Each committee was responsible for appointing a chief who in turn appointed three personally selected assistants who did not know each other. Lacking skill and experience, most of these “secret agents” made mistakes and did not measure up to Gotse Delchev’s, the Commander in Chief’s, expectations so the Organization made sure to recruit from the more experienced haiduk (outlaw) groups. In fact the Organization took a step further and made contact with the various haiduk leaders throughout Macedonia asking them to join the MRO and fight for a free and independent Macedonia. In time the majority did and those who did not and continued their illegal activities were eventually destroyed by the MRO. At Delchev’s call to meet with them many experienced haiduks responded including the battle seasoned Kocho Mustrukov, Ivancho Karasulijata, Apostol Petkov and Ilija Krchovalijata.

After his initial success, Delchev called for more such meetings in the Drama, Seres, Demir Hisar and Solun Districts. The experienced haiduks soon became the teachers and leaders of the uprising who not only taught the new recruits how to fight but also taught them how to survive under bad conditions. The Macedonian Chetas unfortunately were not the only units operating in Macedonia. At about the same time organized armed groups from Greece and Bulgaria were also operating, agitating the Macedonian people and spreading foreign propaganda. One such group from Bulgaria operating in the Vinitsa vicinity on November 14th, 1897 robbed and killed Kazim Aga, a prominent Ottoman beg. This sparked an immediate investigation during which a weapons search was conducted. In spite of the care taken not to keep weapons in the village, some weapons were found in the various houses in Vinitsa. Upon finding these weapons, the Ottomans concluded that a revolutionary network was operating in Vinitsa and there may also be others. Being very suspicious of yet another uprising occurring in Macedonia, the Ottomans quickly expanded their search into neighbouring districts. Afraid of being found, many revolutionaries fled their homes and turned to underground activities. As a result and being pressured by the people to maintain higher security, the MRO changed some of its tactics and in 1898 began creating permanent Chetas which worked strictly underground. Although their main activities were to agitate for the Macedonian cause, protect the villages and recruit and train new recruits, sometimes the Chetas had to face off with the Ottoman army. The first recorded armed conflict between the MRO and the Ottoman army took place in April 1899 in the village Gavaljantsi in Kukush Region. Another battle took place on September 16th, 1899 when Mirche Atsev’s Cheta clashed with the Ottoman army in Papazchair and again on October 18th at the village Tsrven Grad in Prilep Region. By 1899 more than twenty Chetas were operating in Macedonia each consisting of about half to a dozen fighters. Even though these Chetas with their abilities to agitate and provide security for MRO were exceeding the Commander in Chief’s expectation, Gotse Delchev was well aware that a well trained army would be needed to free Macedonia. To achieve that the MRO needed Cheta institutes with special assignments to train and prepare the necessary leadership for the long fight ahead. To do this Gotse Delchev selected a number of people who strongly believed in the MRO principles and appointed them to the duty of teachers to train future Cheta leaders. Among those appointed included Marko Lerinski, Mihail Apostolov and Hristo Chernopeev, mentioned earlier. The Rulebook was updated to reflect the new changes. In 1902 the Chetas were restructured and new Chetas were created consisting of an average of twenty to thirty fighters each, some numbered as high as seventy. Being successful in training the leadership for the central Chetas, the schools were then decentralized and assigned to the various regional districts to perform similar functions. In addition to employing fighters into the all volunteer service, the MRO also recruited priests, tradesmen and other workers to carry out various covert activities. The Organization also recruited the services of brave women who were prepared to carry out various activities which included smuggling weapons and ammunition, nursing the wounded, burying the dead, cooking food and mending clothing. Some women even served as agitators and as Cheta leaders. Arming the Chetas with weapons and ammunition however was a more difficult task than initially anticipated. In the past small numbers of weapons were easy to come by through purchase, capture during battle, manufacturing personal weapons and confiscation from armed individuals. As the demand to arm the growing Chetas increased so did the difficulty of obtaining weapons. Macedonians did not have the necessary funds nor did they trust their neighbours to supply them with large numbers of weapons from the outside.

They were constantly watched by the Ottoman authorities inside so large numbers of weapons were difficult to come by. To solve the problem, the MRO created difficult to find secret workshops at various secluded villages and began manufacturing its own weapons. Weapons manufactured included knives, rifles, bombs and wooden cannons. The knife making factories were most common and prevalent and produced a variety of daggers, yataghans and swords. The rifle workshops usually included repair of rifles and manufacturing of bullets and gunpowder. The manufacture of wooden cannons or improvised artillery was based on a long Macedonian tradition where the barrel was made of hard wood usually of cherry, elm, walnut, or wild almond, and chained with iron rings to give it strength. The wooden cannons were usually made by wagon makers, coopers or blacksmiths and outside of boosting the moral of the insurgents, were basically ineffective as weapons against the enemy. In fact because their barrels exploded more often than they fired, they were more dangerous to those firing them than the enemy. By far most of the weapons needed were rifles, much of which were initially supplied by the haiduks who were issued weapons in the past by the various armies like the Austrians and Russians. Unfortunately these were not enough to fulfill the new demands and by 1898 new sources were sought out. Revolvers were purchased from Montenegro to arm the revolutionaries in the cities who needed to have their weapons concealed. Revolutionaries in the villages and village militias used mostly rifles which were purchased from private sources in Serbia and Bulgaria. Some weapons were also purchased from Greece. The large immigrant population living in Bulgaria, especially along the long border, was instrumental in supplying a large number of weapons. Despite Delchev’s objections, requests for purchasing arms were even made to the Bulgarian government but without much success. The Bulgarian army at the time had modernized its weapons and decided to sell over four-thousand of its old rifles to the MRO but then refused to supply it with ammunition. Unable to meet its demands from external sources, the MRO then established its own secret manufacturing workshops. Although these sources were widespread, safe and expedient the quality of the weapons was not very good. Before the Ilinden Uprising the gunsmith profession in Western Macedonia, with secret workshops in Tetovo, Gostivar, Debar, Bitola and Skopje, employed more than one-hundred gunsmiths in Tetovo alone producing about fifty copies a week of the famous “Martini” rifle. Unfortunately this still was not enough to supply the growing demand for weapons so the MRO in the beginning of 1902 adopted a new policy to only arm those who could not afford to purchase their own weapons. Those revolutionaries who were financially more secure were expected to purchase and take care of their own weapons. After the Ottoman-Greek war of 1897 the Ottoman army retreated and abandoned large caches of weapons and ammunition in warehouses in Thessaly which fell into the hands of the locals who later sold some to the MRO. Vasil Chakalarov, the Cheta chief of the Kostur district, was responsible for organizing these and other weapons purchases from Greece. Albania too was a source of military weapons. After the Solun Congress of January 1903 and the Smilevo Congress of May 1903 the need for armaments increased dramatically; this preoccupied the MRO leadership considerably and they took it upon themselves to furnish as many weapons as possible. Immediately after the Smilevo Congress, after a definite date was decided for the Uprising, the MRO leadership ordered the make-shift factories to increase production. In Krushevo, Stavre Borjar and his sons Todor and Sotir produced a large number of various rifle spare parts. The Krushevo foundry was also responsible for casting bullets and procuring fine gunpowder. Unfortunately fine gunpowder was illegal to sell and had to be acquired by illegal means.

But thanks to the Ottoman gunpowder manufacturing workers in Bitola who made fine gunpowder available on the black market, the MRO was able to fulfill those needs. Readily and legally available coarse gunpowder was also purchased but because of its impurities was unreliable for bullets and was strictly used for emergencies and for stoking the cannons. All in all the MRO did its best to obtain as much armament as possible under the given conditions but when the crunch came, it was not enough to arm and properly equip all available volunteers. In solving its strategic problems the Organization made every effort possible to ensure it had the material and financial aid it needed to support the Uprising. Initially it tried to win support from the wealthy but without much success. Failing that, the Organization then turned to blackmail by kidnapping wealthy people and foreigners but that too not only failed to produce the necessary funds but caused negative publicity for the Organization. Delchev was well aware that outside of the Bitola District no other district was equipped to start a general uprising and as such was opposed to the idea and was more in favour of partisan type actions, raids, acts of sabotage, gradually increasing in numbers and intensity until the process eventually would lead to a general uprising. Unfortunately the MRO did not follow that course of action, especially after Delchev’s untimely death.