Strandzha Commune
The Strandzha Commune or Strandzha Republic[1] was a short-lived anarchist commune.[2] It was proclaimed during the Preobrazhenie Uprising in 1903 by Internal Macedonian Adrianople Revolutionary Organization rebels in Strandzha, in the Adrianople Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire.[3]
Strandzha Commune Странджанска комуна Странджанска република Малкотърновска република | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1903–1903 | |||||||||
 | |||||||||
| Status | Socialist Republic | ||||||||
| Capital | Centered around Malko Tarnovo | ||||||||
| Government | Anarcho-communism | ||||||||
| Historical era | Ilinden–Preobrazhenie Uprising | ||||||||
• Established | 18 August 1903 | ||||||||
• Disestablished | 8 September 1903 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Today part of |  Bulgaria  Turkey | ||||||||
.svg.png.webp){kind=small}
History
By 1903, the anarchist Mihail Gerdzhikov was elected as a commander of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organisation's armed guerrilla wing in Thrace, the so-called Mortal Combat Body which helped stage a revolt against the Ottomans in Adrianople Vilayet. In the Ilinden–Preobrazhenie Uprising Gerdzhikov's forces about 2,000 strong, facing a Turkish garrison of 10,000 well-armed troops, managed to establish a liberated zone in the Strandzha Mountains, centered in Vasiliko. This successful mass uprising, supported by militia, allowed the rebels to capture most of East Thrace, settling in Malko Tarnovo. The population of the region celebrated victory for three weeks.[4] In the region, under the influence of the anarcho-communist views of Gerdzhikov and the leadership of the Odrinsk revolutionary district, a new communal management system was established where all issues were resolved by mutual agreements between the Bulgarians and Greeks.
The economy of the Strandzha Commune was based on anarcho-communist principles. Most of the labor force was composed of women, who worked in the farms as men became guerilla fighters. The Turkish government was surprised by the uprising, taking extraordinary military measures to suppress it. The Ottomans managed to destroy the Strandzha Republic, committing atrocities against the rebel forces and the local population.[4] As a result of the suppression, about 30,000 refugees took refuge in Bulgaria.
See also
References
- Khadzhiev 1992.
- Vasséva, Sonia (August 2, 2013). "2 août : Insurrection de la Saint Elie et de la Transfiguration" [August 2: Insurrection of Saint Elijah and the Transfiguration] (in French). Radio Bulgaria. Retrieved 12 December 2016.
- Todorov, Nikolaĭ (1978). Освободителната борба на българите в Македония и Одринско, 1902-1904 [The liberation struggle of the Bulgarians from Macedonia and the Adrianople region, 1902-1904] (in Bulgarian). Nauka i izkustvo. p. 10. Retrieved July 7, 2006.
- Balkanski 1982.
Bibliography
- Khadzhiev, Georgi (1992). "The Transfiguration Uprising and the 'Strandzha Commune': The First Libertarian Commune in Bulgaria". Nat︠s︡ionalnoto osvobozhdenie i bezvlastnii︠a︡t federalizŭm [National Liberation and Libertarian Federalism] (in Bulgarian). Translated by Firth, Will. Sofia: Artizdat-5. pp. 99–148. OCLC 27030696. Archived from the original on May 7, 2020.
- Balkanski, George (1982). "L'insurrection de Préobrajénié – La commune de Strandja – Première commune libertaire en Bulgarie" [The uprising of Preobrajénié - The commune of Strandja - First libertarian commune in Bulgaria]. Libération nationale et révolution sociale : à l'exemple de la Révolution macédonienne [National Liberation and Social Revolution: Following the Macedonian Revolution]. Volonté Anarchiste (in French). 3. Edition du groupe Fresnes Antony de la Fédération Anarchiste. pp. 121–162. ISSN 0181-4389. Archived from the original on April 13, 2016..
- Balkanski, George (1982). "Histoire du mouvement libertaire en Bulgarie : esquisse" [History of the libertarian movement in Bulgaria: sketch]. Anarchist Will (16–17). Edition du groupe Fresnes Antony de la Fédération Anarchiste. ISSN 0181-4389. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016. .