Ohrid–Debar uprising

Ohrid–Debar uprising
Part of the aftermath of the Second Balkan War
Date 23 September 1913–7 October 1913 Location Vardar Macedonia, Serbia (now North Macedonia) Result Suppression of uprising
Belligerents
IMRO Albanian Kachaks	Serbia  Greece
Commanders and leaders
Isa Boletini Petar Chaulev Pavel Hristov	Radomir Putnik
Units involved
IMRO Kachaks	Royal Serbian Army Royal Greek Army[1]
Strength
Unknown Bulgarians 6,000 Albanians	100,000 Serbs Unknown Greeks
Casualties and losses
Thousands killed Tens of thousands of Bulgarians fled to Bulgaria 25,000 Albanians fled to Albania

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The Ohrid–Debar uprising (Macedonian: Охридско-Дебaрско вoстание, romanized: Ohridsko-Debarsko vostanie; Bulgarian: Охридско-Дебърско въстание, romanized: Ohridsko-Debarsko vastanie) (Albanian: Kryengritja e Ohrit dhe Dibrës) was an uprising by Bulgarians and Albanians in Western Macedonia, then Kingdom of Serbia, in September 1913. It was organized by the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO) and Albania against the Serbian capture of the regions of Ohrid, Debar and Struga after the Balkan Wars (1912–13).

Background[]

The IMRO had discussions with the Albanian revolutionary committee of Sefedin Pustina at Elbasan, Albania, between 12 and 17 August 1913.^[2] It was agreed that an uprising would be started against Serbia.^[2] A directive dated 21 August planned for a new fighting against Serbia and Greece in Vardar Macedonia and Greek Macedonia.^[3] The IMRO leadership decided for a rebellion in Bitola, Ohrid and Debar, and rallied Petar Chaulev, Pavel Hristov, , Hristo Atanasov, , , and others in those regions.^[3]

Events[]

The rebellion started only two months after the end of the Second Balkan War. The insurgency sought to challenge Serb control of the region.^[4] The Albanian government organised armed resistance and 6,000 Albanians under the command of Isa Boletini, the Minister of War, crossed the frontier.^{[5][page needed]} After an engagement with Serbian forces the Albanian forces took Debar and then marched, together with a Bulgarian band led by Petar Chaoulev,^{[5][page needed]} and Pavel Hristov expelled the Serbian army and officials, creating a front line 15 km east of Ohrid. However, another band was checked with a loss at Mavrovo. Within a few days they captured the towns of Gostivar, Struga and Ohrid, temporarily expelling the Serbian troops. At Ohrid they set up a local government and held the hills towards Resen for four days.^{[5][page needed]} During the conflict, the Greek military assisted Serb troops to quash the uprising.^[1] The suppression of the uprising resulted in heavy use of violence by Serb forces.^[4] Scholar Edvin Pezo states that depictions of Albanians as 'uncultured' and ‘primitive’ by Serb nationalists of the time were a possible reason for the extensive violence perpetrated upon Albanians during the First Balkan War and subsequent Ohrid–Debar uprising.^[4] The defeat of the uprising by Serb forces resulted in tens of thousands of Albanian refugees arriving in Albania from Western Macedonia.^[6]

CEIP report[]

According to the International Commission of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace report, a Serbian army of 100,000 regulars suppressed the uprising. Thousands were killed, and tens of thousands fled to Bulgaria and Albania. Many Bulgarians were imprisoned or shot, a number of Albanian and Bulgarian villages were burned. The number of ethnic Albanian refugees from Macedonia was 25,000.^[7]

Legacy[]

After the 2001 insurgency in the Republic of Macedonia, Macedonian and Albanian historians discussed the historical cooperation of the two ethnic groups and their joint struggle against their perceived common enemies, including the Serbian government. The 1913 rebellion was the subject of a 2013 conference.^[8]

See also[]

• Tikvesh Uprising

References[]

Sources[]

• Pearson, Owen (2004). Albania in the Twentieth Century, A History: Volume I: Albania and King Zog, 1908-39. I.B.Tauris. ISBN 978-1-84511-013-0.
• Institut za nacionalna istorija (2000). Историја на македонскиот народ. Институт за национална историја. ISBN 978-9989-624-52-0.
• Rudić, Srđan; Milkić, Miljan, eds. (2013). Balkanski ratovi 1912-1913: Nova viđenja i tumačenja [The Balkan Wars 1912/1913: New Views and Interpretations]. Istorijski institut & Institut za strategijska istrazivanja. ISBN 978-86-7743-103-7.
  • Bjelajac, Mile (June 2013). ...1913. pp. 311–332. ISBN 9788677431037.

External links[]

• Yosif Razsukanov (16 September 1998). "85 години от Охриско-Дебърското въстание" [85 Years since the Ohrid-Debar Uprising]. Македония [Macedonia] (33).