References - Part 04

Unfortunately, what was viewed as fair by Athens was obviously viewed as unfair by Thebes and problems began to arise. To get himself out of this, Philip turned to the Amphictyonic Council and asked the council members to disbar the rebel group by vote and replace it with the Macedonian king. In a stroke of genius Philip evaded an impending war with Athens, ended the rebellion at Delphi, saved the Amphictyony, averted a war with Thebes, made an alliance with Athens and made himself a voting member of the Amphictyonic League. This indeed was a diplomatic victory, worthy of the Macedonian king himself.

Peace held, at least for now, and having an equal seat in the council of power, Philip was free to return to Macedonia. Most of 345 BC, Philip spent leading his army against the Illyrians, Dardanians and the Thracians and generally quelling rebellions. In 344 BC the Thessalians rebelled but were put down swiftly. In 342 BC, Philip marched into Epirus and replaced King Arybbas with his young protégé and brother-in-law Alexander (Amaxis).

Sensing growing discontentment in the Athenians, Philip estimated that it would be a matter of time before war would break out between Macedonia and Athens, especially since Athens amended the Macedonian-Athenian peace agreement hoping it would be unacceptable to Philip.

Determined to attract as many City States as possible to his side, Philip continued to make alliances with the smaller cities. He was determined to attract the cities that were hostile to the more powerful states in hopes of dividing and weakening them.

By 340 BC, a point of no return was reached with Athens when Philip could no longer accommodate Athenian demands to sustain the peace treaty, especially after Athens sponsored anti-Macedonian uprisings in the northern Aegean. In retaliation for this latest Athenian treachery, in 340 BC while campaigning against internal rebellions in the east, Philip captured the Athenian grain fleet. This was the last straw for Athens and under the personal leadership of

Demosthenes, the Athenians persuaded the Thebans to jointly declare war on Macedonia. The weaker states, having little choice in the matter, also joined the declaration. What Philip tried to avoid at all costs was now unavoidable.

Before Philip could accommodate his neighbours to the south, he had some unfinished business to take care of in the north. He quickly assembled a large army and marched deep into Thracian territory and by 339 BC conquered most of Thrace. Unfortunately, he was unable to subdue the eastern coastal cities of Byzantium and Perinthus, which withstood even his most severe sieges. It was certain that neither city would have survived had it not been for the assistance received from the southern City States and the Persians. Ironically, even though Persia, for more than a century, had been the most hated nation, still the City States sided with the Persians against the Macedonians.

Responding to a Scythian challenge Philip abandoned the eastern city sieges and, in the spring of 339 BC, led his Macedonians beyond Thrace. There, near the Danube River, he clashed with the Scythians and won a stunning victory crowned only by the death of Areas, the Scythian king. Unfortunately, on his return trip home Philip’s convoy was attacked and his booty was lost to Thracian Triballians. During the skirmish, Philip suffered a severe leg injury, which left him lame for life. After returning home he spent several months recovering.

While Philip was recovering, the City States to the south were making alliances and amassing a great army to invade Macedonia. On hearing this, Philip decided it was time to meet this aggression head on and end the treachery once and for all. On August 2nd, 338 BC, in the shallow Cephisus River valley near the village of Chaeronea on the road to Thebes, the two opposing armies met face to face. On the north side stood Philip’s Macedonians with 30,000 infantry and 2,000 cavalry, the largest Macedonian army ever assembled. Among Philip’s commanding generals was his 18 year-old son, Alexander, in charge of the cavalry. On the south side, stood the allied Athenians, Thebans and Achaeans who assembled 35,000 infantry and 2,000 cavalry, the largest army ever assembled since the Persian invasion.

Closely matched, the armies clashed and while the battle ensued the Macedonian right flank fell back and began to retreat. Seeing the Macedonians weakening, the allied general gave orders to push on and drive the Macedonians back to Macedonia. As the Macedonians retreated, the allied flanks broke rank and began the pursuit. Not realizing it was a trick, the allies found themselves surrounded and slaughtered by Alexander’s cavalry. When it was over, the majority of the allied army, including the elite Theban Sacred Band lay dead in the fields of Chaeronea. Philip erected a statue of a lion to commemorate the sacrifice of the Theban Sacred Band which upheld their tradition and fought to the last man.

Ancient City State and Roman historians consider the battle of Chaeronea as the end of City State liberty, history and civilization.

Victorious, soon after the battle, Philip proceeded to secure his newest conquests by strategically placing Macedonian garrisons in Thebes, Chalcis, Ambracia, Corinth and the Peloponnesus. He then summoned the representatives of all City States to a grand peace conference at Corinth where he made peace with each one. Sparta was the only one that abstained. Being no threat to him, Philip decided to leave Sparta alone.

Philip organized the City States into an alliance known as the “League of Corinth”. It was an alliance among the City States and an alliance between the City States and the king of Macedonia. The league formed a separate alliance with Macedonia, but Macedonia itself was not a member of the City State league. This was an alliance that treated all nations, great and small, as equals. Conversely, the lesser states looked up to Macedonia, as a great power, to guarantee their rights and existence among the greater states.

Having secured peace with the City States, Philip was now looking at neutralizing the next major threat, Persia

It has been said that if Philip ever made a mistake, it was in “marrying for love”, a rare luxury for any monarch let alone one that had been married not once but six times before. The woman of his

desire was Cleopatra, a Macedonian girl of nobility. Blinded by his love for young Cleopatra, Philip neglected to see that his marriage to her would lead to his break-up with Olympias and the estrangement of his son Alexander. Olympias was a proud woman and very protective of her son. Philip’s marriage to a younger woman and a Macedonian at that, made her feel both unwanted and an outsider in her own home. To her, Philip’s latest marriage was a dishonour to her reputation as a wife and a threat to her son’s legitimacy as heir to the Macedonian throne.

Not knowing what else to do, Olympias and Alexander left for Epirus. Immediately after taking his mother home, Alexander left Epirus and went to the Illyrians. From there he negotiated his way back to Pella where his father forgave him for his misdeeds. Unfortunately for Olympias, Philip’s marriage to Cleopatra lasted longer than expected and she bore him a child.

During the following spring (336 BC), in preparation for the Persian offensive, Philip decided to send ahead an advance force. Commanded by generals Attalus and Parmenio, 10,000 Macedonian soldiers were prepared and sent across to Asia Minor to pave the way for the next spring’s offensive. While the soldiers were making their way across the Hellespont, the Macedonians in Aegae were preparing for a grand celebration. Philip's daughter Cleopatra was about to be wed to Prince Alexander (Amaxis) of Epirus. It was indeed going to be a lavish festival with much entertainment and games. Philip had invited various guests from all over his kingdom to partake in the festivities and witness the marriage of his daughter. Among the invited was Olympias. Being the sister of the groom, Olympias was obliged to attend. At first, she was apprehensive, but after being assured that Philip would welcome her, she accepted the invitation. True to his word, Philip was courteous and made up with her the same day she arrived.

It has been said that after the first day’s festivities, Philip visited with Olympias and among other things discussed Olympias’s concern about Alexander’s chances for the throne. Philip promised her that she had nothing to fear and reassured her that Alexander was his first choice to replace him, when the time came. The first day’s festivities concluded without incident but disaster struck on

the second day. During a procession in the theater at Aegae, while standing between his son Alexander and his new son-in-law Alexander, a member of the royal guard named Pausanias, stabbed Philip with a dagger and killed him. Pausanias then ran to escape, towards some waiting horses, but tripped and fell down. His pursuers caught up to him and speared him to death.

The “Greatest of the Kings of Europe” who liberated Macedonia from foreign occupation, brought it back from the edge of extinction and made it into a world power, now lay dead in his own palace, killed by his own body guard. Philip II king of Macedonia from 360 BC to 336 BC died a senseless death and was succeeded by his son Alexander.

Philip’s plans for Persia now lay in the hands of his successor. He did whatever he could to make Macedonia great but even he couldn’t have imagined how great it would become.

Philip V (221–179)

About one hundred years later in Macedonia young Philip V, anxious to prove himself, became entangled in all kinds of Balkan intrigues. He was involved with an Illyrian pirate called Demetrius of Pharos who, at the moment, was seeking refuge in his court. Demetrius was expelled from Sicily by the Romans in 219 BC for raiding and being a nuisance to the Rhodians and Romans in both the Aegean and Adriatic Seas. Demetrius, however, was welcomed in Philip’s court because he contributed troops to Antigonus Doson’s Sellasian campaign. Philip also valued his so-called “sound advice”.

When Rome was defeated by Hannibal in 217 BC, at Lake Trisamene, Demetrius convinced Philip to reinstall him on the Adriatic coast. Philip took his advice, moved into southern Illyria, drove out Scerdilaidas, his rival pirate, and enabled Demetrius to recover his former place. Unfortunately, Scerdilaidas was not happy about being pushed out and quickly appealed to Rome for help. Rome lost no time in sending a patrol to investigate. Anxious to avoid a showdown Philip retreated at once. He burned 120 of his own ships to avoid capture and fled with his army over the

mountains. Although nothing came of this, suspicions were raised in Rome about Philip’s real motives. After reaching its destination, the Roman patrol remained in Illyria to safeguard against any future raids.

Another mistake young Philip made, again acting on the advice of Demetrius, was to sign a treaty with Hannibal the Carthaginian. Drafted by the Carthaginians, this treaty required Philip to become an ally of Carthage in the event of a war with Rome. In return, should Carthage win the war, it would ensure that the Romans would be forced to abandon their sphere of influence in Illyria. The only reason I believe Philip agreed to this was to humour his confidant, Demetrius. Philip at the time did not believe that Rome would risk going to war with a powerful Macedonia over a trivial document. Rome also, at the time, had no plans for any serious eastward interventions. What Philip failed to realize, however, is that his trivial actions would have serious consequences for Macedonia in the future. For the moment, however, Rome remained content and Philip continued to look for ways to gain influence in Illyria.

Still under Demetrius’s influence, Philip began to look southward for adventure, always keeping one eye open for conquest. Unfortunately he continued to make mistakes. By inciting various factions in the Peloponnesus to fight against one another he caused torment and senseless bloodshed. His bad influence came to an abrupt end when Demetrius of Pharos was killed in 215 BC during an unsuccessful assault on Ithome. Unfortunately, by now Philip’s conquered subjects didn’t see him as a reasonable ruler but as a somewhat wild, cruel and politically motivated adventurer. His ravaging of Messenia ended with Demetrius’s death.

For the next two years, 213 to 212 BC, Philip turned his attention to Illyria. He replaced the ships he lost during his last contact with the Romans and, being careful not to be detected, marched his army north into Scerdilaidas’s territory. When the time was right he descended upon Lissos on the Adriatic and established his western base of power.

It is not known why Philip turned his attention westward at this time. His rationale may have been to put a barrier between himself and Rome or perhaps, as some believe, to gain control of the lucrative western maritime markets and trade routes in the Adriatic. In any event, his appearance in the Adriatic caused panic and hysteria in Rome. Fearing an invasion of Italy, Rome was determined to stop him and quickly sought allies among his enemies. As it turned out, the Aetolians were having problems with Philip and were also looking for allies among Philip’s enemies. A Roman-Aetolian coalition not only distracted Philip from his western campaigns but also caused him to strengthen his alliance with the Achaean League. The Aetolians and Romans proved to be brutal in their habits and wreaked havoc in Illyria, Thrace, Thessaly and Acarnania. To make matters worse, Attalus of Pergamon joined the Roman-Aetolian coalition and in 209 BC was appointed general of the Aetolians.

Philip, with his disciplined Macedonian army, quickly retaliated and did well against the Aetolians on land but hesitated to challenge the Romans at sea. The Achaeans also had some success and were able to crush the Spartans at Mantinea. Before things could be settled, however, both Philip and Attalus were recalled to their homeland to deal with yet another large Dardanian invasion.

After Philip left for home and was no longer a threat, the Romans lost interest in the Aetolians and abandoned them altogether. Without Rome’s support, the Aetolians were no match for Philip and they quickly capitulated after his return. In 206 BC they broke their treaty with Rome and made peace with Philip, giving him back all that they had previously taken. The Romans unfortunately did not take this breakup well and were anxious for a renewed alliance.

Their chance came when Rhodes and Chios started accusing the locals of disrupting international commerce with their petty wars. In the spring of 205 BC the Romans came back with thirty-five ships and eleven thousand troops. They landed in Epidamnus where Philip met them and offered them battle but the Romans refused to fight. Their real objective was to break up the Macedonian-Aetolian treaty. They figured that with their massive support they could spur the Aetolians back into action, break off relations with Macedonia and

wage war on Philip. When the Aetolians refused, the Romans reconsidered and negotiated separate peace agreements with the various parties involved. The result was the treaty of Phoenice which was concluded in the summer of 205 BC, thus ending the First Macedonian War.

On the surface it appeared that Macedonia was the biggest winner. Philip was allowed to keep his gains in inland Illyria. Even though the status of Lissos remained uncertain, Lissos was still under Macedonian control. Rome, on the other hand, appeared to be the loser because all it received were words of assurance that Macedonia would not interfere in Adriatic affairs. Beneath the surface, however, Rome was the real winner because it managed to prevent an active alliance between Macedonia and Carthage.

The conclusion of the First Macedonian War was a crossroad for both Macedonia and Rome. Philip was content with his treaty with Rome, reassured that his problems with the Romans were over. He no longer had reason to fear the west. Similarly, Philip’s word of non-interference in Roman affairs was good enough for the hysterical Roman Senators who now felt they could freely devote their full attention to dealing with Carthage. Had Philip paid heed to the growing menace west of him, he would have sided with Carthage just to maintain a balance of power. Unfortunately he allowed Rome to grow powerful. Instead of striking a crippling blow, while he still could, Philip closed his eyes and for the next five years left Rome to ravage Carthage unabated.

After the treaty of Phoenice, Philip decided it was time to strengthen his navy and went to work building a powerful fleet. By 201 BC his fleet was ready and operational. After his secret pact with Antiochus, Philip captured the island of Thasos, a strategic post for keeping an eye on the Bosporus and Black Sea trade routes. In 201 BC he captured Ptolemy’s naval base at Samos and added the large number of ships there to his own fleet. He later attacked and defeated the Rhodian fleet and invaded Ionia and Pergamon.

Unfortunately, the Macedonians were never good at fighting at sea but still it took the combination of Rhodes, Chios, Pergamon and Byzantium to stop the Macedonian navy. At a naval engagement

near Chios, the Macedonian fleet suffered a crippling defeat, losing almost half the ships in the navy. What was most alarming about this battle was that more Macedonians were lost here than in any previous engagement on land or at sea.

Philip’s troubles started with the arrival of the young Roman consul, Flamininus, who was sent by the Roman Senate to meet with him and deliver Rome’s conditions for peace. Philip agreed to a meeting, which took place at the Aoos River in Illyria, but disagreed with the Roman terms. According to Roman demands, Macedonia was to evacuate and remove all its garrisons from the cities in Thessaly, Euboea and Corinth and give the cities autonomy. In other words, Macedonia was expected to surrender its most important defensive positions and for what? Philip was insulted by the offer and quickly stormed out of the meeting. Flamininus wasted no time and immediately ordered his forces to invade the City States and start driving the Macedonians out.

By late summer 198 BC, the Roman legions had reached the Gulf of Corinth and a battle with Philip seemed imminent. Roman presence in the region convinced all but a few Achaean League members to abandon Macedonia and ally themselves with Rome. Philip weighed the situation carefully and, in November of 198 BC, returned to the negotiating table with a counter offer. He was willing to evacuate the City States voluntarily provided that he retain control of a few defensive positions and if the Romans guaranteed him that they would not invade Macedonia. The offer was neither accepted nor rejected as the Romans kept stalling for time. It was an election year and Flamininus had to leave for Rome. Philip was told that if he wanted to continue the negotiations he would have to send an embassy to Rome.

While in Rome, negotiations went from bad to worse. The main points of contention were Philip’s insistence on retaining control of Demetrias, Chalcis and Corinth, better known as the shackles of the City States. When Flamininus was re-elected the negotiations came to an abrupt end and the legions were ordered to resume their campaign.

Philip was now desperate and turned to the Spartans for help. He offered them Argos, one of the Achaean allies who remained loyal to Macedonia, and the marriage of Philip’s daughter to the Spartan king’s son. The treasonous Spartans unfortunately were not trustworthy. They took Philip’s offer and then stabbed him in the back by making a separate deal with Flamininus. What was worse, there was now an armistice between Sparta and the Achaean league and the Spartans were obliged to provide Flamininus with troops to fight against Macedonia.

While the Romans and their allies were gaining strength, fighting had reduced Macedonia’s army to about twenty-five thousand troops. Philip realized that his strength was slowly eroding and action was needed now. Like many of his predecessors he decided to stake everything on a single battle.

In June 197 BC, at Cynoscephalae in Thessaly, the unbeaten Macedonian army came face to face with the Roman legions. With a massed charge the Macedonian phalanx gave the Romans a terrifying battle which they would never forget. During the first charge the Macedonians were successful and won. It was a horrific spectacle for the battle hardened Romans who for the first time had made serious contact with the Macedonian phalanx. During the second charge, unfortunately, the phalanx overreached the Roman battle line and lost formation. The Romans quickly took advantage by outflanking the phalanx and cutting it to pieces. Each individual Roman soldier was equipped with tools to fight in formation and in single-handed combat, something the Macedonians had never experienced before. Unable to regroup, the phalanx fell back and was destroyed. Without the phalanx, the Romans made short work of the rest of the Macedonian army. The Romans were not only more disciplined than Philip had anticipated, but they were also fast learners and able to quickly adapt to their opponent’s fighting techniques. Even though the armies were equally disciplined, the Romans proved to be more flexible, giving them the advantage they needed to win.

Victorious, Rome took control of the region, restricting Philip to Macedonia. The terms of the agreement were far stiffer than those proposed earlier. Now Philip was required to evacuate all previously

held regions in Asia and Europe, with the exception of Macedonia. In addition, Macedonia was required to pay Rome a one thousand talent war indemnity. It was a hard pill to swallow for Philip but what other choice did he have?

In the spring of 183 BC, another Senatorial commission was sent and Philip was evicted from the neutral towns. But Roman treachery did not end there. Soon afterwards, Demetrius was sent home decorated with diplomatic laurels and promises to the Macedonian throne. It was a ploy to create trouble for Philip and it worked like a charm sending Perseus, Demetrius’s half brother and heir to the Macedonian throne, into a jealous fit. Rivalry between the two brothers continued for some time until Perseus produced a Roman letter, perhaps a forgery, proving that Demetrius had treasonable aspirations to the throne. Having no other choice, Philip was forced to exercise judgment against his own son and enforce the full extent of the law. Demetrius was executed in 180 BC. No sooner had the deed been done than Philip discovered that Perseus’s testimony was a fabrication. Being unable to accept the tragedy, Philip died of remorse. Philip V died in 179 BC and was succeeded by his eldest son Perseus.

Perseus was not a popular king, especially with the Romans, who had discovered that he was responsible for Demetrius’s execution. Perseus, well aware of his weak popularity outside Macedonia, tried to improve his position by making alliances with his neighbours. He first tried to convince the Roman Senate to ratify him as king with all the privileges granted to his father. He then married Seleucus IV’s sister Laodice while he married off his own half-sister to Prusias II of Bithynia.

His attempt at forming mass alliances with his neighbours, unfortunately, did not bolster his popularity as expected. In fact it did the opposite, raising the suspicions of his enemy Eumenes who kept a vigilant eye on him, reporting his every move to the Romans, interpreting it as an anti Roman act.

After the catastrophic battle at Cynoscephalae, Philip had rebuilt his military and replenished his losses but Perseus was still unwilling to go to war. From 171 to 168 BC he remained on the defensive and

committed only to minor engagements, all the while hoping that a peaceful settlement could be reached.

The four year war (Third Macedonian War) came to a climax on June 22nd, 168 BC when the Romans marched en masse northward and met the Macedonian army at Pydna in southern Macedonia.

In the style of his predecessors, Perseus struck first by unleashing the full might of the Macedonian phalanx. This was not the usual phalanx. It was reinforced with spears all round like a hedgehog, especially at the flanks. “Aemilius Paullus, a veteran commander, declared afterwards that this advance was the most terrifying thing he had ever witnessed.” (Page 430, Peter Green, Alexander to Actium The Historical Evolution of the Hellenistic Age)

The Macedonians did their best and fought bravely to the last soldier but the disciplined Roman military machine and its fighting style, once again, proved to be superior and the battle was lost. It was the end of Macedonia and Macedonian independence. Perseus was taken to Rome as a prisoner of war, or as Peter Green puts it, “to adorn Paullus’s treasure rich triumph”. The Macedonian monarchy was abolished and Macedonia was demilitarized and partitioned into cantons so that it would never again be able to fight back. As further insurance of its passivity, Macedonian leaders were rounded up and taken to Rome.

The real horror of the Macedonian defeat was not Pydna but what the Roman army did afterwards. Before leaving Macedonia, the Roman army was unleashed on the civilian population and allowed to loot, pillage and rape uncontrollably. It has been said that an unimaginable amount of treasure, including gold, jewels and art, was carried off to Rome. A large segment of the population was taken into slavery. Severe restrictions were placed on trading commodities including lumber, and most of the state taxes were now diverted to Rome. According to Livy, Macedonia was divided into four regions, each with its own Roman council, and was forced to pay half the tribute to Rome. This would have otherwise been paid to the Macedonian king. If that was not enough, Paullus lent the Aetolians five hundred soldiers so that they too could exact their own brand of revenge on the Macedonians. What happened next is a

tragedy of great proportion that not even the old authors dare describe. The Romans indeed proved themselves to be ruthless, the “true barbarians” that they were, but this was only the beginning.

Athens participated in the anti-Macedonian campaign by supplying the Romans with grain and by fighting side by side with the Romans at Pydna. To the end the Athenians remained anti-Macedonian

Roman rule was harsh and much tension developed between the Macedonians and their new masters. The economic situation was particularly distressful and at times unbearable. Relief, however, did arrive in the form of a pretender named Andriscus. Andriscus claimed to be Philip VI, son of Perseus by Laodice, Seleucus IV’s daughter who was also Demetrius I’s sister. In 153 BC, with Demetrius I’s help, Andriscus went to Rome to plead his case for the Macedonians but the Senate was not interested in a hearing. Frustrated, Andriscus returned and sought help from the Macedonian people who gave him what he needed including royal robes, a diadem, recognition and troops. He received recognition from Byzantium and troops from various Thracian chieftains.

Given the circumstances in Macedonia, rule by a pretender was preferable to being divided and ruled by Romans. When he was ready Andriscus advanced on Macedonia from Thrace and, after two battles in 149 BC, took control of Macedonia. Unfortunately, Macedonia’s freedom was short lived. Two Roman legions, under the leadership of Quintus Macedonicus, were dispatched and ironically ended Andriscus’s career at Pydna in 148 BC.

After this unsuccessful revolt, Macedonia lost its independence entirely and became a Roman province. Macedonia’s total demise and the witness of Roman brutality brought fear into the hearts of the leaders of the Achaean League. Roman atrocities in Macedonia turned the Achaeans from Roman allies to Roman enemies. In 146 BC, in a desperate last ditch effort, the Achaeans engaged the Romans and lost. Roman reprisal was decisive and brutal, involving looting, burning, raping and taking civilians into slavery. Corinth was reduced to rubble and remained a heap of ruins until 44 BC when it was again rebuilt by Caesar.

Pindzhur - Strasho Pindzhur (1915-1943)

Strasho Pindzhur was born in 1915 in the village Vatasha, Kavadar Region. He became orphaned, a casualty of war, and was taken to the government operated boarding school in Kraguevets. While in the Gymasium he came into contact with the progressive workers movement.

He studied at the faculty of Law in Belgrade and became secretary of the underground Students’ Organization “Vardar”. He was a close associate and friend of the peoples’ hero Ivo Lola Ribar and participated in Party demonstrations. He tried to volunteer in the Spanish Civil War but was unsuccessful. He was jailed several times for his revolutionary activities, and during the WW II occupation he ran into the then secretary of the Regional Committee of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia for Macedonia, Metodi Shatorov Sharlo. He became a member of the first headquarters of the newly formed regional committee in Macedonia.

In December 1942 he was captured by the Bulgarian police and was executed in January 1943.

Reference: Page 25, Macedonian Almanac, 1984.

Piperkata - Jordan Piperkata (1870-1903)

Jordan Silianov-Piperkata was born on June 23rd, 1860 in the village Kozitsa, Kichevo Region. Piperkata was born into a very poor family which could not afford to give him even the most basic education. On top of its impoverished condition, the Turkish tyrants constantly harassed the family. No wonder Piperkata became disillusioned with normal life and turned to outlawry at such an early age.

When the Macedonian revolutionary network expanded to the Kichevo District, Piperkata became one of its most ardent and active supporters. He immediately became a member of the Kichevo revolutionary district and vojvoda (leader) in the Krushevo and Bitola Districts. Piperkata was described as a “people person” who was in constant contact with the Macedonian communities which he

frequented. He was well liked by the common folk who, through their songs and poetry, made him into a legendary hero.

During his short life Piperkata experienced much action and distinguished himself as a fighter and a leader.

He participated in the Smilevo Congress and fought in the August 2nd, 1903 Ilinden uprising.

Piperkata was killed on August 10th, 1903 on his way to the burning village Tser. Piperkata’s Cheta was ambushed by Bahtiar-Pasha’s numerically superior Turkish army.

Reference: Pages 38-39, Macedonian Magazine, # 518, June 1996.

Pop Trajkov - Lazar Pop Trajkov (1878 – 1903)

Lazar Pop Trajkov was born in 1878 in the village D'mbeni, in Kostur Region. As a young man Lazar was always interested in joining the revolutionary movement but his real break came in 1895 when he went to Solun to further his education. While in Solun he met Damian Gruev and through him was able to join the Movement. Since then Lazar was dedicated to the Macedonian cause and fought for freedom and human rights for all Macedonians.

During the Smilevo Congress in 1903 Lazar was appointed chairman of the Kostur District Revolutionary Committee and during the Ilinden Uprising he was part of the General Staff.

In mid-May 1903, Lazar, with only ninety-seven rebels, fought a sixteen-hour battle against more than one thousand Turkish soldiers on Mounts Lokvata and Vinjari.

During the Uprising, Lazar Pop Trajkov, Manol Rozov, Mihail Nikolov and six hundred and fifty insurgents from Kostur went to General Headquarters in central Macedonia to fight against the Turks. During a fierce battle in the village Chanishte, Mariovo Region, on October 15th, 1903 Pop Trajkov received a serious wound to the head. The battle continued until sunset when the Turkish soldiers withdrew.

When the soldiers withdrew the rebels left for Kostur. On their way they met Sarafov and his band in the Nidzhe Mountains. It was a cold day and snow had blanketed the terrain. The men were tired and hungry but in good spirits.

At the sight of Pop Trajkov’s condition, Sarafov ordered the men to go to Kostur headquarters, surrender their arms and go home. He ordered Pop Trajkov to go to Bulgaria and have his wound treated. Being wounded near the mouth, Pop Trajkov could not speak so he wrote and told Sarafov that he did not want to abandon his men. He preferred to go home and share his pain and suffering with his own people. Sarafov was pro-Bulgarian, a Vrhovist and Pop Trajkov did not want anything to do with him.

As the rebels continued on their way, Pop Trajkov took a detour near Oshchima and ran into his former comrade in arms and friend, Kote Hristov from Rula. He asked Kote to treat his wound and give him temporary shelter. Kote did what he was asked and left for Zhelevo.

Lazar Pop Trajkov trusted Kote. He was an usher at Kote's wedding and had twice saved his life. Unfortunately, Kote worked for the notorious Karavangelis and Pop Trajkov was on Karavangelis’s hit list.

When he arrived in Zhelevo, Kote informed on Pop Trajkov and sent Pavle Kirov and another man to track him down. When they did catch up to him, they cut off his head and took it to Karavangelis to collect the reward of 50 Turkish liras. Pop Trajkov’s headless body was found by Oshchimians and was buried behind the altar of Sveti Nikola Church in Oshchima.

Without wasting time Karavangelis took Pop Trajkov’s head to the Turkish vice vizier, who in turn exhibited it at the Kostur center square for everyone to see.

After this repugnant episode the head was delivered to the Aposkep village council, who had it buried in the local cemetery.

Lazar Pop Trajkov, a Macedonian poet, strategist and revolutionary tragically lost his life at age 26. He died when his Macedonians of Kostur needed him the most.

He will be remembered for his dedication to the Macedonian cause and for his fight to free the oppressed and tormented Macedonian people.

Reference: Page 24, Macedonian Magazine, number 416, December 1987.

Prlichev - Grigor Prlichev (1830-1893)

Grigor Prlichev was born in Ohrid on January 30th, 1830 to a very poor family. Grigor’s father died when Grigor was only six months old, leaving him and his three siblings in the care of their grandfather.

Grigor’s first education came from his grandfather who taught him how to read. He later went to Ohrid and became a student of Dimitar Miladinov, who at the time was well known and gave Grigor a solid education.

After finishing school Grigor became a teacher and taught for a while before going to Athens to study medicine.

Grigor had a passion for writing and soon abandoned medicine for writing.

He wrote the poem "O Armatolos" in Greek with which he entered a literary competition for the best poem in the Greek language and won. He was awarded the highest award “The Lovorov Wreath” in Athens, which earned him the nickname “second Homer”. "O Armatolos", or the “The Bandit” in English or “Serdarot” in Macedonian, was based on a folk poem which dealt with the exploits and heroic death of Kuzman Kapitan, a famous hero and protector of his people in their struggle against marauding Gegs. He later translated the poem in Macedonian.

When Greek officials offered him a scholarship to study in western Europe he turned it down. He realized that even though he loved to write in Greek, he was not Greek.

When Grigor found out that the Greeks were responsible for the tragic deaths of the Miladinov brothers he quickly disassociated himself with the Greeks and went back to Macedonia. He took part in the Macedonian cultural revival and fought against Greek influence in the schools and church. He never wrote in Greek again. After spending five months in Tsari Grad, brushing up on his skills in the Slav language, Grigor returned to Ohrid and resumed his teaching job. Unfortunately he found himself unwelcome and the Greek bishop had him arrested and sent to prison in Debar for opposing the use of the Greek language in the schools and churches in Macedonia.

Later in life Grigor continued to work as a teacher in Bitola, Ohrid and Solun. When he went teaching in Tirana he wrote the poem "Skenderbeg", the exploits of the rebellious Macedonian Georgi Kastriot.

In 1871 Grigor translated Homer’s Iliad into Macedonian and was heavily criticized by the Bulgarian writer Hristo Botev for refusing to translate it into Bulgarian.

Before his death Grigor spent his last years in Solun where, among other things, he wrote his own biography. He died in his native city Ohrid in 1893.

References: Page 7, Macedonian Almanac, 1971. Page 29, Macedonian Magazine, # 420, April 1988.

Puleski - Giorgi Puleski (1818-1894)

Giorgi Puleski was born in 1818 in the village Galichnik. Since a young age he believed in the idea of Christian brotherhood among the various Christian Balkan nations. That is why in 1862, while on pechalba (migrant work) as a bricklayer in Belgrade, Giorgi volunteered in the Serbian army and fought the Turks for two years. During the Russian-Turkish war of 1877 to 1878, while he was in

pechalba in Vlashko (Romania), again determined to help out his Christian brothers he voluntarily took up arms and helped the Bulgarian people, all the while hoping that the Russian army would help liberate the Macedonian people. Puleski along with about four hundred Macedonian volunteers enlisted in the Russian army and fought the Turks, distinguishing themselves in the battles of Sheepka and Stara Zagora.

Sometime later Puleski formed his own cheta and fought in the Raslog and Krushevo uprisings. Because of his personal beliefs and sacrifices, for the betterment of all Balkan peoples, he was joined by Serbian, Greek, Vlah and Albanian volunteers.

Even though Puleski believed in the idea of Christian brotherhood among the Balkan nations, he distinctly believed that the Macedonian people were a unique nation who ought to have their own literary language, which was distinctly different from the other south-Slavic languages. He believed that the Macedonian literary language ought to be created from Macedonian words by the Macedonian people.

Puleski was self taught and while still in Belgrade he published two books, both written in Macedonian dialects.

In one of his books Pulevski wrote: “The Macedonians are people and their place is Macedonia and we call ourselves Macedonians”. Regarding the Macedonian language he wrote: “It is related to the Church-Slavonic”.

In 1888, while in Sofia, Puleski started the Macedonian Literary Group, "to revive the popular Macedonian literature". Unfortunately his movement was inhibited by the Bulgarian authorities.

Giorgi Puleski, the well-known Macedonian educator, poet, historian, linguist and revolutionary, died in Bulgaria in 1894.

Reference: Page 13, Macedonian Almanac, 1972.

Samoil - Tsar Samoil ( - 1014)

In the meantime a new force of power was emerging in Macedonia. In 976 AD, the year emperor John (Tsimisces) died, the four brothers, David, Moses, Aaron and Samoil raised a rebellion. With the collapse of Bulgar rule and in the absence of Pravoslav forces, the rebellion was successful and the brothers decided to rule their newly established state jointly. Unfortunately, the joint rule did not last too long. Vlach shepherds killed David, somewhere between Castra and Prespa, and Moses died during a siege in Serres.

In the absence of David and Moses a struggle for the throne ensued between Aaron and Samoil. Samoil, being a much more talented leader and statesman, was victorious. To prevent further problems Samoil had Aaron and his family executed, with the exception of Aaron’s son Ivan.

After consolidating his power Samoil started a westerly campaign penetrating Thrace, Macedonia and Thessaly right down to the Peloponnesus. Just recovering from its last sacking, Solun was about to be sacked again but Samoil decided to continue south and in so doing he took a large number of towns, including Larissa. Samoil resettled the inhabitants of Larissa in the interior of his state and incorporated the Larissan soldiers into his own army.

From Larissa he removed the remains of St. Achilles and brought them to Prespa, to the island of Ail. Protected by the waters of Lake Mala Prespa, Samoil made Ail his capital and built a magnificent palace on it.

It was no accident that Samoil received his strongest support from the territory defined by the triangle of the Vardar River, Ohrid and Mt. Shar. Samoil’s success was fueled by the Bogomil movement and its distaste for foreign rule. In Macedonia the Bogomil movement was particularly influential in the creation of favourable conditions for a liberation uprising and the formation of an independent state. Samoil took full advantage of the situation and established a Macedonian state.

Although Samoil may not have been a Bogomil himself, he accepted Bogomilism and its right to exist in his new kingdom. In turn, the Bogomils ceased to verbally attack Samoil, his upper classes, royal

officials and high ranking clergy. If anyone was not pleased with Samoil’s successes it was the Pravoslavs. Samoil, in combination with the Bogomil movement, was perceived as a powerful force and the Pravoslavs wanted it checked.

For the last ten years or so Basil II was attempting to put down insurrections in Asia, ignoring what was happening in his own backyard. But when the threat became too great to ignore, he gathered an army together and crossed over the frontier regions of the Rhodopes and the River Maritsa. There in August 986 AD, at the hands of Samoil, Basil suffered a crushing defeat. Basil lost nearly his entire cavalry, a large section of his infantry and narrowly escaped death himself. A peace treaty was concluded giving Samoil free control of his new territory.

Basil’s defeat caused even more internal strife among the Pravoslavs, especially in Asia. The Pravoslav quarrels took attention away from Samoil and opened opportunities to extend his rule to new territories.

In the summer of 989 AD Samoil resumed his campaign and took Berroea (Ber). After that he invaded Dalmatia and declared war on young king Vladimir. When Samoil reached Diocleia, Vladimir fled to the mountains but was persuaded by one of his tribal chieftains to surrender. Samoil took him prisoner and banished him to Prespa. In much need of resources, Samoil plundered the whole of Dalmatia and took whatever he could find. He then burned the cities of Kotor and Dubrovnik and razed many villages as far away as Zadar. Samoil had no navy and was not able to take any of the coastal towns.

Back in Prespa meanwhile, Samoil’s daughter Kossara fell in love with the young captive king Vladimir and wanted to marry him. Not to disappoint her, Samoil gave in and gave her his blessings. Now that he was his son-in-law he gave Vladimir his former kingdom back. As a wedding gift he also gave the newlyweds Dyrrachium and all its territories. He even returned Trebinye to Vladimir's uncle, Dragomir. Samoil’s good deeds not only earned him the respect of his son-in-law but Vladimir also became his ally and loyal vassal.