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Reasons for preparing
another uprising of the Macedonians were many. Not satisfied from the decision
of the Berlin congress, by which Macedonia still stayed, territorially in the
Ottoman (Turkish) empire. The people were poor because the Ottoman empire was in
economic and financial depth, raised the taxes they were paying. Some of the
taxes they were taking three before it should. From another side the population
was robbed by thief's, albanian gangs, who murdered a lot of people. But in this
period in eastern Macedonia there was activity of uprising movements. Then the
local dukes Dimitrija Pop Georgiev Berovski, Gorgija Pulevski, Dedo Iljo
Maleševski, and others, were establishing small detachments (cheta). Beside this
inside-political reasons to prepare an uprising in eastern Macedonia, there is
another outside factor. That's the fact that Russian troops stayed in Kustendil
and Gorna Dzumaja (Blagoevgrad) and the Serbian troops in Vranje. The
Macedonians thought that if they start an uprising they would take part and help
them.
 The
Kresna uprising started in October 1878. In the early morning hours the little
troops leaded by Dimitrija Pop Georgiev Berovski, Stojan Karastoilov and others
attacked the Ottoman property in the village of Kresna, Pirin Macedonia. Because
the first attack was in Kresna, the uprising got called Kresna uprising, beside
in the documents was mentioned as Macedonian uprising. Then the uprisers, who
were at least 400 took to prison the a lot of Turks. Soon they liberated many
villages, around 35, from the both sides of the river Struma. The region of
which the uprising was active got bigger. With the success at first the uprisers
took the city of Banjsko and the village of Razlovci.
After the excellent success
of the uprising the uprisers in the free territory started to organize uprising
authority in the free tons and villages. Parallel with all this they started to
create new military troops. For duke of the uprising was chosen Stojan
Karastoilov. The people did chose the Russian Adam Kamilkov for leader of one
troop. Dimitar Pop Georgiev Berovski was chosen for major. Even a Macedonian
cavalry was formed and lead by Nikulica Makedonski. Military buildings were
built during this period. In the free territory they started to establish local,
village police, then local communities...
The Kresna Uprising had one target, to liberate Macedonia. It was helped by
Sofian Committee "Edinstvo". But the target of the Bulgarians were to get the
uprising for them and to conquer Macedonia. Normally the Macedonian leaders
Dimitrija Pop Georgiev Berovski and Stojan Karastoilov didn't agree wit that. So
they threw out the Russians. But that wasn't good for the Bulgarian targets.
Because of this Stojan Karastoilov was killed by the Tatars (Bulgarians) and
Dimitrija Pop Georiev Berovski was taken to prison. And with no leaders here is
the end of the uprising. The metropolitan Natanail Kučevšiki, on June 6th
1879 ordered the troops to stop with uprising activity and the weapons to be put
in warehouses. Important is to know that this uprising wasn't stopped by the
Ottoman Turks. |
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