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Gotse Delchev

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For the town in Bulgaria, see Gotse Delchev (town).

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Georgi Nikolov Delchev (1872-1903), (Bulgarian and Macedonian: Георги Николов Делчев), was an important 19th century revolutionary figure in Ottoman Macedonia and Thrace. He was one of the leaders of what is nowadays commonly referred to as the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO). One of the first names of the organisation was "Internal Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Committees" (IMARC), which was later changed to Secret Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organisation (SMARO), while from 1905 it was first known as IMARO and then IMRO. This organization was active in Ottoman Macedonia and Thrace at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century.

Biography

Delchev(left) and his fellow Gotse Imov as officer cadets in Sofia

Born on January 23, 1872 in Kilkis (Кукуш; Kukush), present day Greece, Delchev finished the local Macedonian junior high school and the Macedonian high school "St Cyril and Methodius" in Thessalonika. He entered the Military academy in Sofia in 1891, but was expelled because he was a member of a socialist circle. Delchev became a Macedonian language teacher in a Macedonian school in Stip in 1894[1], where he met Dame Gruev, the leader of the local committee of BMARC/SMARO. As a result of the close friendship between the two, Delchev joined the organization in 1895 becoming before long one of its main leaders. The next school year (1895/1896) he was a teacher in the town of Bansko

Goce Delchev's involvement in IMARO was an important moment for the history of the Macedonia liberation movement. The years between 1894 and 1903 represented the final and most effective revolutionary phase of his short life. Delchev fought for Macedonian autonomy. As most of the other leaders of IMARO at the time, Delchev had a vision of an independent multiethnic Macedonia. The international, cosmopolitan views of Delchev that elevated him far ahead of his time, could be summarized in his proverbial sentence: "I understand the world solely as a field for cultural competition among peoples".[2]

An official telegram, written from the Ottoman authorities to the Turkish Embassy in Bulgaria, May 9, 1903. It contains the phrase: „On April, 22 (May, 5), in the village of Banitsa one of the leaders of the Bulgarian Committees, with name Delchev, was killed“.

His correspondence with the other IMАRO members covers extensive data on supplies, transport and storage of weapons and ammunition in Macedonia. Delchev envisioned independent production of weapons, which resulted in the establishment of a bomb manufacturing plant in the village of Sabler near Kyustendil in Bulgaria. The bombs were later smuggled across the Ottoman border into Macedonia.[3] The inclusion of the rural areas into the organizational districts contributed to the expansion of the organization and the increase in its membership, while providing the essential prerequisites for the formation of the military power of the organization, at the same time having Gotse Delchev as its military advisor (inspector) and chief of all internal revolutionary bands.[4]

The primary question regarding the timing of the uprising in Macedonia implicated an apparent discordance among the representatives, at the Sofia Conference in 1903 with Delchev opposing the uprising as premature.[5] Delchev died on May 4, 1903 in a skirmish with the Turkish police near the village of Banitza, located in the Serres region, present day Greece, probably after betrayal by local villagers as the rumours asserted, while preparing the Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising in Macedonia.[6] Delchev's remains were transferred to Sofia during World War I, when Bulgaria controlled part of Aegean Macedonia, where they rested until after the Second World War. After 1944 the Bulgarian policy was changed to serve the Communist regime's activity on the Macedonian Question. In 1946 the government in Bulgaria "recommended" the liquidation of the Macedonian Scientific Institute. The entire museum collection including the mortal remains of the revolutionary Gotse Delchev were transported in the newly established People's Republic of Macedonia on October 10, 1946.. The following day, they were enshrined in a marble sarcophagus which is until present displayed in the yard of the "Sv. Spas" ("Holy Savior") church in Skopje.

Delchev's legacy

The New York Times - May 1903.Article about the death of "sixty Bulgarians, including their leader, Deltzeff."
Diploma of a student from a Bulgarian school in Stip, signed by Gotse Delchev as teacher.

In Bulgaria Delchev is regarded as the most important revolutionary from the second generation of freedom fighters who continued the struggle for political autonomy or independence in the Bulgarian-populated parts of Macedonia and the Adrianople vilayet after the establishment of the autonomous Bulgarian principaility in 1878. His memory is honoured especially among the descendants of Bulgarian refugees from Aegean Macedonia, as well as in Blagoevgrad Province. Gotse Delchev's name appears in the national anthem of the Republic of Macedonia "Denes nad Makedonija". There are two towns named in his honour: Gotse Delchev in Bulgaria and Delčevo in the Republic of Macedonia. Delchev Peak and Delchev Ridge in Tangra Mountains on Livingston Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica are named for Gotse Delchev. A partisan attachment was named after him. The University of Štip in the Republic of Macedonia carries his name.

Ethnicity of Gotse Delchev

Letter from Gotse Delchev, where he describes himself and his fellows as Bulgarians.[7]

As most of the events and developments in late 19th century Macedonia, the national and ethnic affiliations of Gotse Delchev are a contentious issue. In some of his correspondence (all of his letters and papers are written without exception in literary Bulgarian language) he described himself as an ethnic Bulgarian[8]. In some documents, created by him, he defined Slav population in Macedonia as Bulgarian, for example in a circular letter written in March 1901[9]. According to the "Memoirs" of Gjorche Petrov Delchev was the co-author of the statute of the Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Committee in 1896[10], where Chapter II., Art. 3. determines: "A member of BMARC can be any Bulgarian, independent of gender, who isn't discredited with anything dishonestly...". He was unambiguously considered as ethnic Bulgarian from many of his closest friends like Peyo Yavorov, the author of his first biography[11], written shortly after Delchev's death. On the other hand, he also embraced the idea of a common Macedonian and Adrianople autonomous region, based on the 23th article of the Treaty of Berlin (1878), uniting Macedonians and Adrianopolitans regardless of ethnicity or creed, and also opposed to the direct involvement.[12] of the Bulgarian state authorities in the liberational struggle in Macedonia and Adrianople areas.

Greek newspaper, Empros - May 1903. Caption of picture reads: “Gotse Delchev, assassinated leader of the Bulgarian bands”

The heterogeneous elements in his statements and work have resulted in his treatment as an ethnic "Bulgarian" by "Bulgarian" historians and as an ethnic Macedonian by some historians from the Republic of Macedonia. The latter argue that the use of the word "Bulgarian" in the 19th century Macedonia does not refer to ethnicity, and that it was synonymous with "Christian" or "Slav".[13] Bulgarian historians argue that the Macedonian autonomy was never meant to have an "ethnic Macedonian" nature and note that no contradiction between a "Macedonian" (as a regional and supranational term) and "Bulgarian" (as an ethnic term) existed at that time, pointing to the use of "Adrianopolitan" alongside "Macedonian" in the documents of the BMARC/SMARO.[14] Nevertheless, some contemporary Macedonian historians like academician Ivan Katardzhiev[15] and Zoran Todorovski[16] agree with the thesis of Bulgarian ethnic consciousness of Gotse Delchev, while the vast majority disagrees.

Respect to Gotse Delchev

See also

Wikisource has original works by or about:
Gotse Delchev

Notes

  1. ^ MacDermott, Mercia. 1978. Freedom or Death: The Life of Gotse Delchev. Published by The Journeyman Press, London and West Nyack. 405 pp. ISBN 0-904526-32-1. Translated in Macedonian: Макдермот, Мерсиja. Слобода или смрт. Биографија на Гоце Делчев, Софија 1979, с. 86-94.
  2. ^ Пейо Яворов, "Събрани съчинения", Том втори, "Гоце Делчев", Издателство "Български писател", София, 1977, стр. 13. Template:Bg icon In English: Peyo Yavorov, "Complete Works", Volume 2, biography "Gotse Delchev", Publishing house "Bulgarian writer", Sofia, 1977, p. 13.
  3. ^ Пейо Яворов, "Събрани съчинения", Том втори, "Гоце Делчев", Издателство "Български писател", София, 1977, стр. 32-33. Template:Bg icon In English: Peyo Yavorov, "Complete Works", Volume 2, biography "Gotse Delchev", Publishing house "Bulgarian writer", Sofia, 1977, pp. 32-33.
  4. ^ Пейо Яворов, "Събрани съчинения", Том втори, "Гоце Делчев", Издателство "Български писател", София, 1977, стр. 39. Template:Bg icon In English: Peyo Yavorov, "Complete Works", Volume 2, biography "Gotse Delchev", Publishing house "Bulgarian writer", Sofia, 1977, p. 39.
  5. ^ Пейо Яворов, "Събрани съчинения", Том втори, "Гоце Делчев", Издателство "Български писател", София, 1977, стр. 62-66. Template:Bg icon In English: Peyo Yavorov, "Complete Works", Volume 2, biography "Gotse Delchev", Publishing house "Bulgarian writer", Sofia, 1977, pp. 62-66.
  6. ^ Пейо Яворов, "Събрани съчинения", Том втори, "Гоце Делчев", Издателство "Български писател", София, 1977, стр. 69. Template:Bg icon In English: Peyo Yavorov, "Complete Works", Volume 2, biography "Gotse Delchev", Publishing house "Bulgarian writer", Sofia, 1977, p. 69.
  7. ^ Letter from Gotse Delchev to Nikola Maleshevski (1899)
  8. ^ Gotse Delchev is identifying himself as Bulgarian in his letter to Nikola Maleshevski.
  9. ^ Окръжно послание, Дино Кьосев, "Гоце Делчев. Писма и други материали", Издание на Института за история при Българската академия на науките, София, 1967, №230, (in English: Circular letter, Dino Kyosev, "Gotse Delchev. Letters and other materials", published by the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Institute of History, Sofia, 1967, №230).
  10. ^ "Спомени на Гьорчо Петров", поредица Материяли за историята на македонското освободително движение, книга VIII, София, 1927, глава VII, (in English: "Memoirs of Gyorcho Petrov", series Materials about history of the Macedonian revolutionary movement, book VIII, Sofia, 1927, chapter VII).
  11. ^ In his biography Yavorov portrays Delchev as a prominent member of the Bulgarian national liberating movement, for example in its introduction, where he compares him with other iconic Bulgarian revolutionaries, Vasil Levski and Hristo Botev(here, in Bulgarian)
  12. ^ For example in a speech, addressed to the VIII extraordinary congress of the Bulgarian promilitary Supreme Macedono-Adrianopolitan Organisation in Sofia on April 7, 1901: "Само ако тукашната организация одобрява духът на вътр/ешната/ организация и не се стреми да й дава импулс, въздействие, т. е. не й се бърка в нейните работи, само в такъв случай може да съществува връзка между тия две организации.", НБКМ — БИА, ф. 224, а. е. 8, л. 602, in English: "Only if the local organization /the Supreme Macedono-Adrianopolitan Organisation, based in Sofia, editor's note/ approves the spirit of the inner organisation /IMRO, editor's note/ and doesn't aspire to give it impulse, influence, i.e. it doesn't meddle in its affairs, only in such case relation between these two organisations could exist."; the document is kept in the SS. Cyril and Methodius National Library, the Bulgarian Historical Archive department, fund 224, archive unit 8, page 602).
  13. ^ In the late 19th century, Bulgarian could be used as a general identifying term based on religion for any Christian belonging to the Bulgarian Exarchate within the Ottoman Empire. It could also mean a person who spoke Bulgarian, or identified as Bulgarian. Identifying as Bulgarian did not exclude additional ethnic identification as ethnic Macedonian (assuming such an ethnic orientation existed at that time), Vlach or Greek. (Friedman 1997)
  14. ^ It is claimed (mostly by Bulgarian scholars) that at the time, Macedonian was used as a regional identifier for a person living in the region of Macedonia, and the modern ethnic sense of the word was nonexistent or at its beginnings. In this context, identifying as Macedonian in a regional sense did not exclude identification as ethnic Bulgarian.
  15. ^ Академик Иван Катарџиев, "Верувам во националниот имунитет на македонецот", интервjу, "Форум": "ФОРУМ - Дали навистина Делчев се изјаснувал како Бугарин и зошто? КАТАРЏИЕВ - Ваквите прашања стојат. Сите наши луѓе се именувале како „Бугари“..."; also here (in Macedonian; in English: "Academician Ivan Katardzhiev. I believe in Macedonian national immunity", interview, "Forum" magazine: "FORUM - Whether Gotse Delchev really defined himself as Bulgarian and why? KATARDZHIEV - Such questions exist. All our people named themselves as "Bulgarians"...")
  16. ^ "Уште робуваме на старите поделби", Разговор со д-р Зоран Тодоровски, www.tribune.eu.com, 27. 06. 2005, also here (in Macedonian; in English: "We are still in servitude to the old divisions", interview with Ph. D. Zoran Todorovski, published on www.tribune.eu.com, 27. 06. 2005.

References

  • Пандев, К. "Устави и правилници на ВМОРО преди Илинденско-Преображенското въстание", Исторически преглед, 1969, кн. I, стр. 68—80. Template:Bg icon
  • Пандев, К. "Устави и правилници на ВМОРО преди Илинденско-Преображенското въстание", Извeстия на Института за история, т. 21, 1970, стр. 250-257. Template:Bg icon
  • Битоски, Крсте, сп. "Македонско Време", Скопје - март 1997, quoting: Quoting: Public Record Office - Foreign Office 78/4951 Turkey (Bulgaria), From Elliot, 1898, Устав на ТМОРО. S. 1. published in Документи за борбата на македонскиот народ за самостојност и за национална држава, Скопје, Универзитет "Кирил и Методиј": Факултет за филозофско-историски науки, 1981, pp 331 - 333. Template:Mk icon
  • Hugh Pouton Who Are the Macedonians? , C. Hurst & Co, 2000. p. 53. ISBN 1-85065-534-0
  • Fikret Adanir, Die Makedonische Frage: ihre entestehung und etwicklung bis 1908., Wiessbaden 1979, p. 112.
  • Duncan Perry The Politics of Terror: The Macedonian Liberation Movements, 1893-1903 , Durham, Duke University Press, 1988. pp. 40-41, 210 n. 10.
  • Friedman, V. (1997) "One Grammar, Three Lexicons: Ideological Overtones and Underpinnings of the Balkan Sprachbund" in CLS 33 Papers from the 33rd Regional Meeting of the Chicago Linguistic Society. (Chicago : Chicago Linguistic Society)
  • Димитър П. Евтимов, Делото на Гоце Делчев, Варна, изд. на варненското Македонско културно-просветно дружество "Гоце Делчев", 1937. Template:Bg icon
  • Пейо Яворов, "Събрани съчинения", Том втори, "Гоце Делчев", Издателство "Български писател", София, 1977. Template:Bg icon In English: Peyo Yavorov, "Complete Works", Volume 2, biography "Gotse Delchev", Publishing house "Bulgarian writer", Sofia, 1977.

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