MACEDONO-BULGARIAN
HEROES:
GOTZE
DELCHEV
(1872,
Kukush, Aegean Macedonia-1903, Banitsa-Aegean Macedonia)
Gotze Delchev's Early Years
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Gotse (Georghi) Nikolov Delchev was born on January 23, 1872, in the
town of Kukush, southeastern Macedonia. He received his elementary
education in the local Bulgarian school of Kukush, and later entered
the Gymnasium of Salonica. Here Delchev became one of the most
popular of the students, not only in point of scholarship, but also
as a youthful agitator and advocate of Macedonian independence.
Delchev, while in Salonica, familiarized himself with the various
revolutionary undercurrents in Europe, particularly that of
socialism.
Notwithstanding his social concepts, in 1891 he entered the military
school in Sofia. Here Delchev found himself in an entirely different
environment. His life as a cadet and confinement to the barracks was
monotonous. There was not the old variety of life and schoolmates
with its variant influx of ideas of social concept. While in
Military School he was not in a position to indulge in discussions
of, nor to participate in any movement pertaining to the destiny of
Macedonia. Notwithstanding the strict discipline, however, Delchev
managed to secretly procure and read socialistic literature. In
spite of his social philosophy of life, Delchev often expressed
himself that the undelivered Bulgarians and the other races in
Macedonia should be liberated from the unbearable yoke of Abdul
Hamid; and that liberty was always brought with blood-and that such
sacrifices must cheerfully be given for its attainment. "I conceive
the world," said Delchev, "only as a place for cultural rivalry of
the nations."
His activity while in the Military school had been severely
censored. He was on several occasions called before the superior
officer of the school for disciplinary insubordination. His early
dismissal from the school was averted only by the intervention of
influential individuals of Macedonian origin in the Principality.
But in 1894 an incident occurred in the school which also resulted
in Delchev’s expulsion. At that time the Bulgarian Ministry of War,
in order to cut down on the budget, delayed the appointment of of
the newly-graduated cadets. Some of the latter became angered with
the procrastination. An anonymous letter was sent to the Minister of
War, accusing him of the injustice done to the new officers.
Although dlechev had nothing to do with the writing of the letter,
he was, nevertheless, included among the guilty "ones." The
administration of the school, upon a strict investigation, revealed
the authors of the letter, and in order of dismissal found that
"together with the junkers x.y.z. as authors of the letter, Georghi
Delchev is also expelled."
While the Bulgarian intellectuals in the interior of Macedonia ,
under the leadership of Gruev, Toshev, Matov, Dr.Tatatrchev, and
others, were organizing secret revolutionary committees in Salonica,
Serres, Shtip, etc., Delchev, on the other hand, independenl and
without knowing what was going on in Macedonia in this respect,
undertook while in Sofia, to animate the spirit of organization
among the immigrants. He visited most of the Macedonian
intellectuals there and insisted upon the issuing of a newspaper in
order to preserve the esprit de corps of the Bulgarian beyond the
border. When he heard of the news that the first secret Central
Revolutionary Committee was organized in Salonica, Delchev’s
enthusiasm wa greatly animated. He immediately betook himself to the
south-into Macedonia!
Gotze Delchev's Joining the Revolutionary
Movement
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After his expulsion from the Military School in 1894, Delchev
returned to Macedonia, and his revolutionary activity in the
internal affairs of Macedonia began from the above date. It
continued for nine years. During all these years Delchev roamed
about, either alone or in a company of trusted comrades, throughout
Macedonia. He devoted his life to that legendary apostolic work
which made him the most beloved among the masses of the country.
Upon his arrival in Shtip, Delchev met Dame Gruev, the founder of
the local revolutionary committee. They met there for the first time
and became intimate friends and co-workers. Delchev and Gruev
undertook to bear the whole work of the conspiracy upon their
shoulders. In order to animate the spirit of revolt and to organize
and prepare the masses for this objective, they both decided to
teach in Macedonia. Through request and pressure on the Exarchy,
they were appointed teachers-Gruev, in the city of Shtip itself, and
Delchev, in the village of Novo-Selo, in the vicinity of Shtip.
These two apostles now became the supreme masters of the conspiracy
of the IMRO. Delchev, either as teacher or a disguised peddler, as a
merchant or an unsuspected villager, was spreading the gospel of
liberty. He was the first to propagate the idea of autonomy for
Macedonia. In order to have a wide-spread acceptance of this
principle-the autonomy of Macedonia-he undertook, with the
cooperation of others, to organize peasants as well as the city
dwellers of the districts of Shtip, Serres, Salonica, Monastir (Bitola),
Ochrid, Lerin, Kostur, etc. there was not a corner in the eastern,
northeastern, southern, and southwestern part of Macedonia which
Delchev failed to visit. He became a true apostle-he followed the
example of Levsky!
Gotze Delchev - Macedonia's Apostle of Freedom
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The organization of Delchev was so systematic, so cautious and
effective, that in a period of a few years he was able t create a
new invisible "state" within the decaying Turkish Empire in Europe.
Delchev became the new Levsky. He was everywhere and no wher. His
whereabouts in Macedonia were beyond the ability of the Turks to
detect. Delchev was acclaimed by the populace of the country as
their liberator. There has been no greater man in the whole internal
revolutionary movement than "Gotse." His gospel and achievement
deeply penetrated the masses of the Macedonian peasants. The
authorities certainly felt the effects of his work. His numerous
secret revolutionary committees became the terror of the Turks. The
latter, thoroughly convinced that Delchev was a great factor in the
IMRO movement, offered large prizes for his capture-either alive or
dead. Indisputably and beyond any doubt, Delchev was the greatest
motivating spirit of the IMRO from the time of its organization
until his death in 1903. There was hardly another person in the
movement who exerted such an influence over the masses-more
particularly over the peasants.
In his revolutionary activity Delchev was guided by one thought: the
Macedonian people must be organized and well armed, so that when the
deciding moment arrived they might rise in revolt as one man against
the tyranny of Abdul Hamid. "The liberation of Macedonia," wrote
Delchev, "is possible only by an internal insurrection. Whoever
thinks otherwise for the freedom of Macedonia, he fools himself and
fools the others." Throughout his revolutionary career Delchev was
guided solely by the interests of the Macedonian people as a whole
regardless of race or creed.
In spite of the fact that in the Bulgarian schools of Salonica and
Sofia he had been educated in the spirit of nationalism, Delchev
looked upon all races in Macedonia as his brothers and
fellow-countrymen. He was struggling for the freedom not only of the
Macedonian Bulgars, but also of all nationalities inhabiting
Macedonia (Bulgarians, Turks, Greeks, Roumanians, Albaninas,
Gypsies, Jews etc.). He accepted and preached the principle
pronounced by Gladstone "Macedonia for the Macedonians." Delchev was
against the annexation of Macedonia to Bulgaria. When in the early
period of the formation of the revolutionary movement, a current
developed with purely nationalistic tendencies, Delchev was the
first to oppose them. Energetically, with words and deeds, he
opposed any movement which did not profess the unity and
independence of Macedonia. "The purpose of the orgaization is,"said
Delchev,"not to make Bulgarians or Greeks, but to work for freedom
from the Turks and then let anybody become whatever he pleases."
Delchev was a revolutionist Pro-Macedonian par excellence. He was
not a hater of nationalities but despised those who oppress
peoples-the tyrants-regardless of their nationality.
Gotze Delchev's Heroic Death
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Unfortunately Delchev’s death was a tragic one-quite usual in the
annals of the Macedonian martyrology. While roaming through the
southern part of Macedonia, preparatory to the anticipated general
insurrection which was to take place on August 2, 1903, he arrived,
April 10, in the village of Banitza, in the district of Serres.
Simultaneously two other chetas (bands) arrived, one under the
leadership of the voyvoda Georghi Brodiliata and the other under the
voyvoda Dimitar Gushtanov. Altogether there were twenty men. They
settled in two houses for the evening. The next day, before
daybreak, the village was surrounded by Turkish soldiers, more than
a thousand of them. While they were searching for arms, the Turks
approached the two houses where Delchev and his comrades were
lodged. Escape was impossible-the battle was on! The ferocious
struggle went on while the village blazed. Delchev and his men burst
out toward evening, attempting by means of volleys and bayonets to
break the Turkish line. They were outnumbered 50 to 1! Not one of
the besieged comitajis was captured alive. They kept up the fight to
the last man! More than one hundred men of the enemy were slain. So
were Delchev and his comrades-in-arms-to the last man!
This tragic episode occurred on April 21, 1903, a little over three
months before the general insurrection was officially declared. Such
was the end of Delchev’s romantic career-the most venerated
Macedonian revolutionist
By:
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