Part 14 - The Kumanovo-Kriva Palanka, Pijanets and Kreshna Uprisings

Part 14 - The Kumanovo-Kriva Palanka, Pijanets and Kreshna Uprisings

Even though unsuccessful in meeting its immediate objectives, the Razlovtsi Uprising in May 1876 served as a stimulus in promoting the idea of a wider uprising against the Ottomans. Such a notion was not only supported by the oppressed people inside the Ottoman Empire but also by outsiders all throughout Europe. With time Macedonian revolutionaries began to participate more and more in other peoples' uprisings and in conflicts against the Ottoman Empire including the Serbian-Ottoman War of 1876 and Russian-Ottoman War of 1877-1878. All this in hopes that someday those who received help would in turn return it when the time came. The first Macedonians to join the Serbian-Ottoman War were Macedonian immigrants who because of Ottoman oppression at home had moved to Serbia. After the war started (June 30th, 1876) more Macedonians joined in including Iljo Maleshevski, Risto Makedonski, Petar Nikolov Mishajkov, Kosta Shumenkov, S. Badzhov and others along with their Chetas (revolutionary bands). It is estimated that about 600 Macedonian volunteers had joined the Serbian War against the Ottomans in 1876 among whom many were distinguished in battle. The most famous among those distinguished were Iljo Maleshevski, Gjorgji Pulevski, Grigor Ognenov, Gjorgji Andonov and Dimitar Trifunov. This round of the Serbian-Ottoman War ended in a truce in December 1876 but it did not end well. In spite of their great losses the Macedonians fought bravely and fiercely following in the long Macedonian fighting tradition. When the war was over most war survivors were transported to Russia where they were drafted into the Russian army. As relations between Russia and the Ottomans began to deteriorate, more Macedonians began to join the Russian army including Macedonians who had emigrated to Russia from other wars. A Russian-Macedonian battalion was formed under the command of Russian Major Shinkovski with Macedonian officers appointed to carry out leading duties. The battalion, in addition to flying a Russian flag, also flew a Macedonian flag and all of its volunteers were recognized as Macedonians. This and other battalions which many Macedonians had joined participated in the 1877 to 1878 Russian-Ottoman War. Unfortunately in the beginning of 1877 another war between Serbia and the Ottomans broke out and lasted until the winter of 1878. Those Macedonians who did not go to Russia after the Russian-Ottoman War ended up being drafted into the Serbian army. No sooner had this war started when new Macedonian volunteers arrived from Macedonia. Among them were Jakim Chelopechki, Nikola Algunjski, and Bogdan Ristich. Unfortunately because of intrigues between Russia and Austro-Hungary this war ended in Serbia's defeat. Despite their defeat the Macedonians in the Serbian army fought bravely and won many battles. Among the most distinguished of the Macedonian leaders who fought in this war were Kosta Shumenkov, Jakim Chelopechki, Nikola Dimitriev, and Bogdan Ristich. By January 19th, 1878 units of the Serbian army had penetrated Macedonia as far south as the north borders of Kumanovo and Kriva Palanka. At the sight of the arriving Serbian army the Ottomans withdrew their forces to Komanovo. They also evacuated the Muslim civilian population and its armed wing the Bashibazuks. During their withdrawal the Bashibazuks wreaked havoc on the Macedonian villages; robbing and killing people. Having being assaulted yet again and in view of the impending arrival of the Serbian army, the villagers began to fight back. They soon were met by the Macedonian volunteer fighters in the Serbian army. Combined the locals and the new arrivals joined forces, elected new leaders and began a new uprising termed "the Kumanovo-kriva Palanka Uprising". The leaders selected to lead this uprising were Jakim Chelopechki, Nikola Algunjski, and Bogdan Ristich who along with 500 well-armed fighters organized themselves for an uprising on German and Kozhjak Mountains. When the insurgents were ready to fight they came down to the valley along the Pchinja River approaching Kumanovo.

As the insurgents approached the villages in the region they were greeted with great enthusiasm by the local population. Here too more Macedonians joined the insurgency including Dimitrija Pop Paunov and Veljan Tsvetkov. In no time at all the insurgent force had swollen to more than a thousand. Unfortunately as usual most of the men joining the insurgency were without arms or ammunition and the entire world's training could not help them if they had no weapons to fight with. For that reason a delegation was sent to the Serbian command in Vranje to discuss the issue of arms and from what we know from alternate sources the Serbians did give the Macedonians 3,000 rifles with 2,000 more to be delivered later to Prohor Pchinski Monastery. The well-armed Macedonian force soon swelled to 4,000 insurgents who fought gallantly and liberated a large Macedonian territory south of the Serbian border. Unfortunately with the signing of the San Stefano agreement by Russia and the Ottomans all insurgencies ceased. Then after the Berlin Congress all Macedonian territories were given back to the Ottomans. Not wanting to use violence, considering that the Western Powers were about to honour the Ottomans by giving them Macedonia back, the insurgents were offered complete amnesty in return for their weapons. An Ottoman delegation arrived in Zabel on April 12, 1878 to negotiate the disarming but the insurgents refused to disarm. Furious, the Ottomans dispatched a large Bashibazuk force to attack them but failed to destroy them. Realizing that the Western Powers were now on their side, the Ottomans mustered a larger force and in May 1878 attacked the insurgents. Great battles ensued and much of the rebel force was destroyed. Some of the more stubborn villages however refused to surrender and remained active and fought fiercely but by September of the same year that uprising too ended in failure. As for the Macedonians who joined the Russian army they too became involved in the conflict as Russia declared war on the Ottomans on April 24, 1877. At the start of the mobilization all Balkan armies, including the Macedonian volunteers, were organized and trained as part of the permanent state armies. But later the Macedonian units were given special duties which included intelligence, reconnaissance, combat and surveillance in the front lines. The initial numbers that joined were in the 800's but soon increased to over a 1,000 as the war intensified. When the Russian army penetrated into Macedonia, the Macedonian volunteers became its guide helping the Russians infiltrate remote enemy positions, navigate through unknown territories and act as interpreters. All Macedonian Chetas showed great courage but that of Iljo Maleshevski, Gjorgi Pulevski and Gjorgi Antonov showed exceptional courage. In addition to the Macedonian volunteers fighting in the front lines, Dimitar Berovski and his Cheta fought behind enemy lines carrying out hit and run and terrorist actions. Consisting mainly of veterans from the Razlovtsi Uprising, Berovki's Cheta operated in the Osogovski Mountain region and during the summer of 1877 expanded its control to the Pijanets, Maleshevo, Kjustendil and surrounding regions. By December 1877 the number of insurgents had tripled and the area of operation was expanded to include the entire Tsarevo Selo territory and the Bregalnitsa and Strumitsa valleys encompassing 47 villages. As the Russian army penetrated further south into the Balkans, Iljo Maleshevski and his Cheta broke off from the Russian army and in December 1877 descended to Kjustendil and Tsarevo Selo with aims of liberating his native Maleshevo and Pijanets. By January 17, 1878 Kjustendil was liberated with help from the Macedonians and occupied by the Russian army. Unfortunately the Russian-Ottoman War ended abruptly with a signing of a truce on January 31st, 1878 leaving Maleshevo and Pijanets outside the demarcation line and still in the hands of the Ottomans. Being so close to liberating his native territory Maleshevski, without Russian approval, broke the truce and on January 20th, 1878 launched an attack on Pijanets.

Upon receiving news of the attack more Macedonians joined in and began what became known as the Pijanets Uprising. Unfortunately all that effort went for nothing because after the Ottoman-Serbian-Russian protocol of February 13th, 1878 was signed, the currently liberated territories including Pijanets were given back to the Ottomans. I just want to mention here that besides participating in the Serbian and Russian war against the Ottomans there were also preparations for liberating Macedonia made by the Macedonian émigrés in Athens, Greece. It is estimated that about 10,000 Macedonian immigrants lived in Athens at the time; many eager to get back to Macedonia and fight for its liberation. For that purpose a revolutionary committee was created in Athens and lead by Leonidas Vulgaris originally from Pijanets. The Russian-Ottoman War was an absolute disaster for the Macedonian people especially for those who sacrificed their lives and died helping Russia. Instead of being grateful for the help they received and allowing the Macedonians to create a Macedonian state, the Russians sold them out to the Bulgarians. By signing the San Stefano treaty Russia agreed to the creation of a large Bulgarian State which was to include Macedonian lands and people. Then as the Western Power intervened in the Berlin Congress instead of sorting things out and giving Macedonia autonomy as they did to Bulgaria, they gave Macedonia back to the Ottomans. Instead of granting Macedonia real autonomy like they did for Bulgaria, the Great Powers offered empty words that lead nowhere. According to articles 23 and 62 of the Berlin Congress the Macedonian people were to receive political and religious autonomy within the Ottoman Empire. They were also promised political, religious and educational reforms which never materialized. Given that Macedonia was handed back to the Ottomans to do as they pleased, the situation was further aggravated by the Ottoman decision to bring Muslim settlers into Macedonia. Macedonia in fact became the dumping ground for renegades from the Ottoman army and for Muslims who escaped from Bulgaria, Bosnia, Serbia, Herzegovina and other regions of lost Ottoman territories. More than 60,000 Muslim families were dumped and disbursed in Macedonia to be accommodated in Christian homes. Many were armed and drafted into Bashibazuk units. After the Berlin Congress those Macedonians who stubbornly fought against the Ottomans fearing for their lives fled to Serbia and Bulgaria. More than 200 Macedonian villages were emptied of their inhabitants. The ones who remained unfortunately faired the worst as the Ottomans hit them with new taxes to pay for the war damages and to supply the fast growing Ottoman military machine which by now numbered 80 battalions. The devastation in Macedonia was further exacerbated by the arming of Albanian Militias and allowing them to settle in Skopje and establish their own rule in Macedonia. There was also a matter of the huge debt for money borrowed that the Ottomans now had to pay back to the Great Powers which again became a burden on the Macedonian people. By now Macedonian villages were paying over thirty different taxes which became a struggle for survival. It was during these times that Macedonians found themselves wishing to be liberated or dead because life the way it was, was not worth living. Even before the Berlin Congress and before their fate was sealed by the Western Great Powers, leading Macedonians could not accept the idea of a Macedonia unified with Bulgaria so the decisions of the San Stefano Treaty were opposed. But after the Berlin Congress Macedonians were in disbelief and horrified by the actions of the Western Great Powers especially when they gave Macedonia back to the Ottomans without any guarantees that the population would be protected from retaliation and harm. In the eyes of the Macedonian people the Great Powers committed a cardinal sin. They sold out Macedonia and their Christian brothers for profit.

No wonder some European Union states today are intolerant of the Macedonians. How could they recognize Macedonia and Macedonian people today when they were guilty of selling them out in 1878? To recognize the Macedonians today would mean that they would have to admit that they made a grave error in 1878. An error on the side of the Western Great Powers however was no small disaster for the Macedonian people who a century and a quarter later are still fighting for their rights and freedoms. Betrayed by both Russia and the Western Great Powers and unable to see any other way out of these circumstances Macedonians had but one choice; liberate themselves! Unfortunately at this time there was no central revolutionary organization and the Great Powers refused to restore the Ohrid Archbishopric so there was also no Macedonian central governing body and with Ottoman vigilance on the rise it became increasingly more difficult to organize a general uprising. Dissatisfied with the Berlin Congress decision Russia too was unhappy with the turn of events but refused to give up on the idea of gaining access to Mediterranean waters. So given that it had contacts with Macedonians inside and outside of Macedonia, Russia began to agitate for a renewed struggle. The revolutionaries inside Macedonia wanted an independent Macedonia while those organizing outside were mostly leaning to a unified Macedonia with Bulgaria. But to clarify the situation and what this struggle would be about, the Macedonians inside drafted a strategy which spelled out their aims. According to the constitution drafted this uprising was to "liberate Macedonia with full autonomy for all the Macedonian people" as opposed to other people like the Bulgarians. The entire internal force which was to fight for the renewed uprising would consist of Macedonian veterans from the wars and previous uprisings, new recruits arriving from eastern Macedonia and numerous detachments and individual fighters from all over Macedonia. The idea of this uprising was simple; start a conflict somewhere in the north eastern part of Macedonia and spread it south westwards until it enveloped all of Macedonia. The external force consisted mainly of Bulgarians and other foreigners to whom Russia promised that if Macedonia was liberated Russia would ensure that a greater Bulgarian state would be created. While the internal force was engaged in combat, the external forces were expected to amass in Kjustandil and wait outside the Macedonian border. They would be there not to engage the enemy but to provide the insurgents with material support and enable them to fight without fear of being attacked from the rear. Based on a decision made during a conference held in the Rila Monastery in the fall of 1878, the internal force was to amass in Gorna Dzhumaja in the territory liberated by Russia and wait for further orders. Among the individuals and their Chetas who responded to this call were Dimitar Berovski, Ijo Maleshevski, Stojan Karastailov, Todor Palaskar, Kosta Kukoto, Kocho Ljutata, and Stojo Tsapari. Stojan Karastailov was appointed to lead the insurrection. A headquarters for the Macedonian Uprising was established on October 7th, 1878 with a mission to form, arm and equip Chetas for combat, procure food and medical supplies, maintain discipline, deal with prisoners, negotiate with the enemy and provide the Uprising with a central leadership and command base. Like the Razlovtsi Uprising this Uprising too had its own unique Macedonian flag. The uprising, later termed the "Kreshna Uprising", began almost be accident when an Ottoman force was intercepted by the insurgents in Kreshna. Shots were fired on both sides and the skirmish turned into a full blown battle lasting about 18 hours. Hearing the gunfire hundreds of villagers from Kreshna, Vlah, Oshtava and other surrounding villages arrived at the scene and surrounded the Ottomans demanding their surrender. When it was over one Macedonian and nine Ottomans were killed, eleven Ottomans were wounded and one hundred Ottoman soldiers and two Ottoman officers were captured.

The sight of the captured Ottomans was enough to spark enthusiasm in the Macedonian people lifting their spirits and beckoning them to join the rebellion. A few days later one by one the surrounding villages began to rebel and fall as the Macedonian Chetas fought fierce battles putting down Ottoman garrison after garrison. As the rebellion escalated it began to move southwest and not towards Kjustandil as the Bulgarians and Russians of external command had expected. Even though the Uprising was centered in Kreshna near the Bulgarian-Ottoman border and was expected to expand north, it quickly spread into four different directions. The first direction was to the east covering most of Maleshevo and Melnik Regions. The second direction was to the northwest covering Skopje, Kozjak Mountain, Varnje and Kjustandil. The third direction was to the west covering the Karadag and Verechka Mountains spanning over Bitola, Korcha, Kostur and Lerin Regions. The fourth direction was to the southwest spanning over Mount Olympus, Kozheni, Ber, Katerini and Voden. Fearing that they might lose control, especially since the rebellion was headed towards the Aegean Sea, the Bulgarian-Russian led external command put together a detachment of 300 soldiers led by Major Louis Voitkevich, a Polish officer, and sent it to Kresna to liberate the village Breznitsa. Voitkevich was sent to Macedonia not to become involved in the struggle but to take over command of the uprising and if that was not possible to cause discord between the Macedonian leaders. Voitkevich however was unable to take full command and failed in his mission to cause discord so when he returned he blamed his failure on Dimitar Berovski who at the time was Chief of Staff. Berovski was immediately summoned to external command headquarters to explain himself but his officers advised him not to go. Unable to assert its influence, external command threatened to cut off support and supplies but Berovski still refused to comply. External command then dispatched Major Kalmikov to arrest him. As soon as Berovski was captured and put in jail, Kalmikov took over command of the forces and began to lead the Kreshna Uprising. This did not go well with the Macedonian leaders who immediately pulled their support. That unfortunately worked out to Kalmikov's advantage as he appointed his own people to replace them and later to assassinate them. With Berovski in jail and with the Macedonian leaders dead, the Kreshna Uprising was in trouble and began to stagnate. When the Macedonian people found out that the Macedonian leaders were murdered they too pulled their support and so did the remaining Macedonian active Chetas. The external forces soon found themselves isolated and abandoned without food and supplies. Those involved in the murder of Macedonian leaders unfortunately escaped before they could be pursued and the external attempt to gain a foothold in Macedonia failed. Natanail, a Macedonian with pro-Bulgarian leanings however refused to give up on the uprising and after it was over tried to restart it again but without success. Failing that Natanail used his influence to get Berovski out of jail in hopes that he may restart it again. Berovski was let out of jail December 1st, 1878 and upon his arrival at Sushitsa in Karshiak Region he began to organize again. Upon his return he quickly established a provisional military office and a military council with its headquarters located in the village Tsapareno. This time the uprising was to take place in the Lebnitsa River Region, east to the Struma River and west to the Maleshevo Mountains. Preparations and training for this uprising were made during the winter of 1878-79 and the offensive began in the spring and spread as far south as the village Gjurgjovo in Petrich Region and Gradeshnitsa in Melnik Region. Unfortunately outsiders again began to interfere, bringing discord among the Macedonian leadership. And as Berovski was again forcibly removed and imprisoned on January 14th, 1878 the uprising began to lose ground.

The local Ottomans too became involved in a plot to suppress it by offering the villagers lower taxes and other incentives if they did not support the uprising. The greatest devastation however came from the Ottoman Central Government which ordered a massive offensive. By the end of November 1878, the Ottomans reinforced their military units in Macedonia to a total of 73 battalions and 15 batteries. Knowing too well how this uprising was going to end, to prevent further bloodshed, on May 25th, 1879 most active Macedonian Chetas disbanded. Those which wished to remain active retreated to the mountains and continued their fight from there. The damaged cause by this rebellion was devastating. More than 73 villages were burned down, 4,000 died in combat and another 4,000 mostly women, children and old people died from starvation and from abuse. It is estimated that 30,000 Macedonians fled Macedonia as refugees and went to the liberated zones in Kjustandil and Dzumaja. If there is anything to be learned from the Kreshna Uprising it is that the Macedonians were starting to cooperate more and were slowly centralizing their struggle and effort to liberate themselves. This is the first time in recent history that Macedonians not only from inside but also from outside of Macedonia came together to fight for a common cause. Another thing Macedonians learned from this experience was that in addition to the Ottomans, they now had new enemies; Russia, Bulgaria and the Western Great Powers. This was the first time that the Macedonian people began to realize that they were on their own and their struggle for freedom would be long and hard.