Part 22 - The Demit Hisar, Prilep and Margara Uprisings

Part 22 - The Demit Hisar, Prilep and Margara Uprisings

The Demir Hisar Revolutionary District encompassed the region covered by Ilinka Mountain, Velmeshka Mountain, Sprostranska Mountain, Baba Mountain, Ljuben Mountain and part of the Krushevo valley. The population in this district consisted of about 12,800 people, predominantly Macedonian with only a few Albanian villages. It was estimated that about 10% of the population actively participated in the Uprising. Taking part in the Uprising in top leadership roles as vojvodas in this District included were Jodan Silijanov – Piperkata from the village Koritsa, Dimitar Dechev, Priest Kuzman from Babino and Hristo Pashov. Preparations for the Uprising in this District began immediately after the Smilevo Congress and by the time the Uprising began the people were ready to fight. While the larger Chetas, including that of Jordan Piperkata, were tasked with attacking the Ottoman garrisons during the Uprising, the smaller Chetas were dispatched to incapacitate roads, cut telegraph wires and destroy bridges and other facilities between Kichevo and Bitola. Jordan Piperkata and his 150 insurgents took on and destroyed the Ottoman strongholds in Ukjumat, Murdirluk and Pribiltsi. After burning down the Ottoman strongholds and liberating the local villages, Jordan Piperkata and his fighters left for Kichevo Region. After the liberation of Krushevo and the establishment of the Krushevo Republic, Macedonian authority was extended to Kichevo and parts of Demir Hisar Region. Jordan Piperkata was tasked with providing security for the region but as soon as Bahtiar Pasha advanced towards Kichevo Jordan Piperkata’s insurgents were instructed to open fire. However, being vastly outnumbered, Piperkata wisely withdrew to save his forces and retreated to the hills. Being unopposed the Ottomans entered Tser, killed all its inhabitants, including women and children and burned down 200 houses. The next day Piperkata and his insurgents returned to investigate and help those in need but the Ottomans were waiting for them and they fell into an ambush. The Ottomans quickly encircled the area and began to tighten the ring. Fortunately reinforcements from Svinishta arrived just in time and succeeded in breaching the encirclement allowing Piperkata’s Cheta to escape to Sprostani. When the Cheta arrived at its destination the villagers poured in to jubilantly greet it but when they found out Jordan Piperkata was not among his insurgents the crowds went silent. Jordan Piperkata was killed in battle during the escape. Upon finding this out, some of the villagers traveled to the scene of the battle, retrieved the bodies of their fallen heroes and returned them to the village Velmentsi where they gave them a proper burial. Many attended the funerals and the entire district was in mourning for days, mourning their favourite vojvoda who for years had defended them from the Ottomans. But even the dead were not allowed to rest as the funeral was interrupted by the arrival of a large Ottoman force. They disrupted the insurgents from saying their final words to their leader and forced them to take refuge in Sprstranska Mountain where they remained for a while. On August 15th, 1903, as part of the Ottoman general offensive, a column of 2,000 Ottoman soldiers were spotted approaching Strugovska Mountain on its way to Slepche. The local Cheta did its best to intercept the Ottomans but was quickly put down by the numerically superior Ottoman force which then burned down the village Slepche, including its old monastery. Following the first column of Ottoman soldiers, another column of 1,000 was spotted coming from Gjatovo. So as not to provoke a firefight, the local Chetas, including that of Boris Sarafov, withdrew their force and allowed the Ottomans to enter the village Babino unobstructed, in hopes that it would not be harmed. Unfortunately the Ottomans did not feel sympathetic that day and robbed the village and burned it down anyway. While the people tried to recuperate from the shock a third column of 1,000 Ottoman soldiers was spotted marching on the Bitola-Kichevo road.

Unprovoked they attacked and burned down several villages including Sopotnitsa and Rakinitsa. A fourth column of another 1,000 Ottoman soldiers was spotted marching on the Kichevo to Belitsa road and as the days passed they pillaged and burned villages indiscriminately. The columns eventually came together on August 21, 1903 at the village Slp. Convinced that they had destroyed the Uprising the soldiers retreated to Kichevo and Bitola from whence they came. Unbeknownst to the Ottomans most Chetas were not completely destroyed and as the insurgents fled to the Demir Hisar mountainside to hide they formed a sizable force, numbering over one thousand. Unfortunately as the number of insurgents increased so did the chances of them being discovered and as they waited for further orders from the General Headquarters an Ottoman force numbering over 10,000 infantry soldiers and Bashi Bazuks, lead by Bahtiar Pasha, was dispatched in pursuit. Equipped with 14 mountain cannons and 4 cavalry squadrons the Ottoman force was divided into 4 columns and on September 17th, 1903 began its second offensive against the Macedonian insurgents. As all columns headed for the Demir Hisar mountainside, the first column started out from Smilevo and moved towards Slepche, the second column left from Strugovska Mountain and headed towards Laskovo, Tserovo, and Virono, the third column started out from Resen and headed towards Tsrn Vrv and the fourth column began its campaign in Ohrid Region and moved towards Gol Vrv and Plake. As this massive Ottoman force began to tighten its noose on the Bitola Revolutionary District, General Headquarters quickly scrambled to assemble its forces and take the defensive. A force was 300 insurgents was ordered to defend the General Headquarters, which at that time was located on Mount Bigla, right in the middle of the Ottoman encirclement. Sugarev’s Cheta, consisting of about 250 insurgents, was dispatched to the southern side of Bigla Mountain to head off the Ottoman advance. A third Cheta consisting of local Demir Hisar insurgents was positioned to defend Vorovsko and Sloeshtitsa. The Chetas stayed in constant contact with each other and with General Headquarters through couriers who reported the enemy’s activities and movements. Just as the 19 kilometer Ottoman encirclement, stretching from the village Boishta to the village Sloeshtitsa began to close in, command of all the 970 or so insurgent forces was taken over by the District leadership and orders were given to open fire on the enemy. Outnumbered 12 to 1, the insurgents initiated the attack and a severe battle broke out all throughout Bigla Mountain, lasting several hours. Unable to stand the pounding of the enemy artillery the insurgents in the lower half of the mountain left their positions and retreated into the forest, regrouping at the rear of the General headquarters. Resistance free, one of the columns from the Ottoman force continued to advance up the mountain until it was again attacked by insurgents at the Sloeshtitsa Slope. The loud roar and sudden appearance of the insurgents stopped the Ottoman advance forcing the soldiers to take defensive positions. A firefight broke out and a stalemate was quickly reached. To break the stalemate the Ottomans brought their artillery and again began to pound the insurgents. Unable to withstand the pressure the insurgents abandoned their positions and retreated back into the woods splitting their forces into several columns. One column of about 200 insurgents went directly to Tserovo Mountain and took a defensive position in the rocky terrain. The other columns that had retreated to Virovo and Boishka Mountains later joined the Tserovo force just as the Ottomans began to concentrate their attacks. A stalemate was reached before the day was over, which would have prompted the Ottomans to order artillery attacks the next day. Instead of waiting it out, the insurgents took the offensive and attacked the Ottomans in the dark of night punching a hole in their defenses.

After breaching the Ottoman encirclement the insurgents organized themselves into three groups and escaped. One group consisting of the General Headquarters escaped to Boishta and Smilevo, another group escaped to Tserovo Mountain and the third escaped to Virovo. During the battle, which lasted all day and through the evening, 78 Ottomans soldiers and 17 Macedonian insurgents were killed and 11 Macedonian insurgents were wounded. When it was over the Ottomans returned to their garrisons and the insurgents returned to Demir Hisar to regroup. Unfortunately with the Uprising in decline the insurgent force in Demic Hisar was disbanded and by the end of 1903 everyone was sent home. The Prilep Region, at the start of the 1903 Uprising, supported 38,000 residents of whom 35,000 were Macedonians and the rest were Ottomans, Albanians, Vlachs and Roma. Of the 38,000, 17,000 lived in the city of Prilep. During the preparations for the Uprising the Prilep District was divided into three Regions and further subdivided into thirteen centers each equipped with a small Cheta of 10 to 15 insurgents. Since the region was not prepared for the Uprising, the first priority of the Chetas was to help mobilize the villagers, recruit new insurgents, acquire medical supplies, form intelligence networks, carry out training and procure weapons, food, clothing and other supplies. As a result of their activities, the Chetas managed to recruit 600 more insurgents but unfortunately there were only 500 rifles in reserve and not sufficient ammunition to properly arm all the men. The Bitola Revolutionary District did help out but not sufficiently to develop a force strong enough to tackle the Headquarters of the Ottoman 7th Cavalry brigade located in Prilep, consisting of four squadrons, a battalion of reservists and four other battalions numbering 4,500 Ottoman soldiers and officers in total. Since a direct attack on the Prilep Ottoman strongholds was out of the question, the regional and village Chetas were ordered to initiate the Uprising using diversionary actions which included destroying bridges, cutting telegraph wires, attacking the Bey’s estates, etc. During their operations the Chetas not only avoided direct confrontation with the Ottoman army but between August 2nd and 8th carried out missions in Skochivir, Grbalovo, Brod, Ribartsi, Novatsi and other villages. They managed to damage the roads to Bitola, Krushevo and Veles and to destroy the railway station in Gradsko. After all these successes the leadership decided to take its chances and attack the 300 soldier strong Ottoman garrisons in Vitolishte. For that purpose smaller but well armed and trained Chetas were ordered to gather together in the neighbouring village Zhiovo and combine forces. The combined Chetas lead by Tole Pasha and Dimitar Andonov were split into several columns. The first column was to attack from the east and the second from the south while the others acted as reserves. The date of the attack was chosen to be August 12th, 1903 and was kept a secret until the final minutes when a rebel accidentally fired a shot as the Chetas were approaching the Ottoman barracks. A firefight broke out and the insurgents continued their pressure, with Andonov’s Cheta taking positions on the hill above the village forcing the Ottomans to retreat into the barracks while Tole Pasha’s insurgents kept up the pressure on the buildings where the gendarmerie was housed. Unable to take the garrison the insurgents retreated to the Kuchkin Kamen Peak on Nidzhe Mountain leaving 16 Ottoman soldiers dead without any losses to themselves. Discouraged by their failed attempt the Prilep Leadership decided to disband the new Chetas and sent the insurgents back to their old Chetas and continued their partisan style operations mainly in the mountains. Prilep Region is the crossroad connecting Western Macedonia with Skopje and Solun. The railway connecting Gradsko and Veles to Krushevo, Brod and Kichevo also passed through Prilep which for the most part carried thousands of Ottoman soldiers from Uroshevats to Vels, Gradsko and Prilep.

Unfortunately, perhaps as an oversight by the Macedonian leadership at General Headquarters, this strategically important part of the country was never secured and was allowed to operate uninterrupted. The small Chetas continued to concentrate their operations in the mountains until August 19th, 1903 when an Ottoman force attacked and encircled the village Paralovo on Mount Selechka trapping Petso Zhelezarov’s Cheta inside. The attack however was slowed long enough by the local Cheta for Todor Zlatkov and Kole Mariovets’s Cheti to arrive with reinforcements and punch a hole in the encirclement. This too was an unequal battle bidding 250 insurgents against 400 Ottoman soldiers but the insurgents fought hard and saved the day. Two insurgents and twenty-six Ottomans were killed in this battle. Aching from the sting, a few days later the Ottomans sent a larger force numbering 7,000 soldiers and again clashed with the insurgents, this time in the village Dunje. Vojvodi Peshkov, Zlatkov and Zhelezarov with a combined force of 350 insurgents were surrounded but still managed to punch a hole through the Ottoman encirclement and escaped with only 20 dead. The Ottomans lost 160 during this battle. Unfortunately as the number of Macedonian fighters dwindled the Ottoman forces continued to grow making battles more and more difficult to win. One of the last major battles to be fought in Prilep Region was on September 16th, 1903 when Nikola Peshkov fought an unequal battle with the Ottomans on the slopes of Dren Mountain near the village Belovoditsa and lost 35 insurgents and his own life. One of the most brutal and significant battles ever fought by the Prilep Revolutionary District during the Ilinden Uprising was the battle of Margara, fought near the village Chanishte, Moriovo Region. As the Uprising was winding down in the southern parts of Macedonia the insurgents were being pushed northward and were concentrated in certain regions creating serious opposition to the Ottoman offensive. As it happened, in the beginning of October, there was a concentration of insurgents on the move in the Moriovo Region. Among the Cheta leaders present there were Lazar Pop Trajkov and Ivan Popov with 116 insurgents, Gjorche Petrov with 14 insurgents and 10 insurgents from the remnants of Tole Pasha’s Cheta lead by Milan Zvezdov. The insurgents numbered 140 in total and were pitted against a force of 5,500 well armed Ottoman soldiers. The battle began at seven in the morning just after sunrise on October 2nd, 1903 when an Ottoman force was spotted just above Margara attempting to surprise the rebel camp near the village Chanishte. The moment the Ottomans were spotted a security unit of 20 insurgents, lead by Iovan Ivanovich (a Montenegrin) was dispatched and set up positions to intercept. Vasil Kotev’s Cheta meanwhile took up position at a nearby hill. Luka Ivanov took charge of the operation and ordered the insurgents not to fire until the enemy was within 200 paces. Surprised by the sudden burst of fire the Ottoman force quickly retreated and took up a defensive position. A stalemate was reached as the two sides continued to fire at each other. Many Ottomans were killed during the initial attack. About an hour later the Ottomans received reinforcements and again began the offensive, this time in a much denser line. When the insurgents stopped firing it was a sure sign that they had fled. Confident that the insurgents were gone the dense Ottoman line continued its advance only to find out it was a trick. This time the Ottomans received even heavier losses. About six hours later the Ottoman force was again reinforced and ordered to encircle the entire battle ground. Through the call of trumpets all Ottoman units were ordered to attack simultaneously from all sides but to their surprise the insurgents kept fighting with renewed vigor. In their arsenal the insurgents also employed grenades, dynamite, boulders and even javelins, swords and knives. It was going to be a fight to the end.

By the evening the Ottomans realized that it was not going to be an easy victory so they retreated for the night. The next day a bigger Ottoman force arrived fully equipped with artillery only to find the insurgents had left. The battle of Margara, the greatest and last of the Ilinden Uprising great battles, pitted an insurgent force of 140 Macedonians for 12 hours against a superior force of 5,500 Ottoman soldiers and proved that under the right conditions, with good discipline and a willingness to fight, the scales against the Ottomans could have been tipped.