Mihail Gerdzhikov: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|Bulgarian revolutionary and anarchist (1877–1947)}} |
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{{Infobox person |
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| name = Mihail Gerdzhikov |
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| name = Mihail Gerdzhikov |
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| other_names = Michel |
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| image = Mihail-Gerdzhikov.jpg |
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| image = Mihail-Gerdzhikov.jpg |
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| birth_date = {{birth date|1877|1|26}} |
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| birth_place = [[Plovdiv]], [[Ottoman Empire]] |
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| death_date = {{death date and age|1947|3|18|1877|1|26}} |
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| death_place = [[Sofia]], Bulgaria |
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| spouse = [[Yanka Kanevcheva]]. |
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| birth_date = {{birth date|1877|1|26}} |
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| birth_place = [[Plovdiv]], {{Flag|Ottoman Empire}} |
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| disappeared_date = <!-- {{Disappeared date and age|YYYY|MM|DD|YYYY|MM|DD}} (disappeared date then birth date) --> |
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| death_date = {{death date and age|1947|3|18|1877|1|26}} |
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| death_place = [[Sofia]], {{flag|People's Republic of Bulgaria}} |
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| death_cause = <!--should only be included when the cause of death has significance for the subject's notability--> |
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| resting_place = [[Central Sofia Cemetery]] |
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| nationality = [[Bulgarians|Bulgarian]] |
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| other_names = Michel |
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| siglum = |
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| citizenship = {{Flag|Ottoman Empire}} {{small|(1877–1878)}}<br>{{flag|Principality of Bulgaria}} {{small|(1878–1908)}}<br>{{flag|Kingdom of Bulgaria}} {{small|(1908–1946)}}<br>{{flag|People's Republic of Bulgaria}} {{small|(1946–1947)}} |
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| education = [[University of Geneva]] |
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| alma_mater = |
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| occupation = |
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| years_active = 1895–1946 |
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| era = |
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| employer = |
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| organization = {{flagicon image|Flag_of_the_IMRO.svg}} [[Macedonian Secret Revolutionary Committee|MSRC]] {{small|(1895–1899}}}<br>{{flagicon image|Flag_of_the_IMRO.svg}} [[Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization|IMRO]] {{small|(1899–1925)}}<br>{{flagicon image|Flag_of_the_IMRO.svg}} [[Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (United)|IMRO (U)]] {{small|(1925–1936}}) |
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| agent = <!-- Discouraged in most cases, specifically when promotional, and requiring a reliable source --> |
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| known_for = [[Preobrazhenie Uprising]], [[Strandzha Commune]] |
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| notable_works = <!-- produces label "Notable work"; may be overridden by |credits=, which produces label "Notable credit(s)"; or by |works=, which produces label "Works"; or by |label_name=, which produces label "Label(s)" --> |
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| party = |
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| movement = [[Anarchism in Bulgaria|Anarchism]] |
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| opponents = {{flag|Ottoman Empire}} |
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| criminal_charges = <!-- Criminality parameters should be supported with citations from reliable sources --> |
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| spouse = [[Yanka Kanevcheva]] |
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| partner = <!-- (unmarried long-term partner) --> |
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| parents = <!-- overrides mother and father parameters --> |
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| mother = <!-- may be used (optionally with father parameter) in place of parents parameter (displays "Parent(s)" as label) --> |
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| father = [[:bg:Иван Герджиков (политик)|Ivan Gerdzhikov]] |
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'''Mihail Gerdzhikov''' ({{lang-bg|Михаил Герджиков}}; 1877–1947) was a [[Bulgarians|Bulgarian]] revolutionary and [[Anarchy|anarchist]]. |
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'''Mihail Gerdzhikov''' ({{lang-bg|Михаил Герджиков}}) was a [[Bulgarians|Bulgarian]] revolutionary and [[Anarchy|anarchist]]. |
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He was born in Plovdiv, then in the Ottoman Empire, in 1877. He studied at the French College in Plovdiv, where he received the nickname ''Michel''. As a student in 1893 he started his revolutionary activities as the leader of a [[Macedonian Secret Revolutionary Committee]] (MSRC).<ref>Black flame: the revolutionary class politics of anarchism and syndicalism, Lucien van der Walt, Michael Schmidt, AK Press, 2009, {{ISBN|1-904859-16-X}}, p. 317.</ref> Later Gerdzhikov studied in Switzerland ([[Lausanne]] and [[Geneva]]), where he made close connections with the revolutionary immigration and established the so-called ''Geneva group'', an extension of MSRC. |
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Gerdzhikov was under strong [[anarchist]] influence and rejected the nationalism of the ethnic minorities in the [[Ottoman Empire]], favouring alliances with ordinary Muslim people against the [[Sultanate]] and the idea about a [[Balkan Federation]]. In 1899 he came back to the Balkans and worked as a teacher in [[Bitola]]. Gerdzhikov became a member of the [[Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization]] and a close friend of [[Gotse Delchev]]. He was the mastermind and leader of the peasant [[Preobrazhenie Uprising]] in July 1903, a revolt against the Ottoman authorities in [[Thrace]]. Gerdzhikov's forces, about 2,000 strong and poorly armed, managed to establish a “[[Strandzha commune]]”. In 1919 the Federation of Anarchist Communists of Bulgaria (FAKB) was founded at a congress opened by Gerdzhikov. In 1925 he was among the founders of [[IMRO (United)]] in Vienna. |
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Gerdzhikov had invested high hopes in the new Socialist system after 1944, but was soon disappointed by the newly established regime. He died in 1947 in [[Sofia]]. |
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==Biography== |
==Biography== |
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[[File:Mihail Gerdzhikov by Georgi Danchov, 1881.jpg |
[[File:Mihail Gerdzhikov by Georgi Danchov, 1881.jpg|thumb|250px|Portrait of the young Mihail Gerdzhikov from the photo gallery of [[Georgi Danchov]]]] |
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[[File: Mihail Gerdzhikov cheta IMARO.jpg|thumb|250px|Mikhail Gerdzhikov's troops during the Ilinden-Transfiguration Uprising]] |
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[[File: Mihail, Stefan and Nikolay Gerdzhikov by Andrey Andreev, 1904.jpg|thumb|250px|Brothers Michael, Stefan and Nikolay Gerdzhikov, photographer [[Andrey Andreev (photographer)|Andrey Andreev]], Plovdiv]] |
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Gerdzhikov was born in 1877 in [[Plovdiv]] as the first child in the family of Ivan Pavlov Gerdzhikov and Magdalen Ilyich. He spent his childhood in Plovdiv, where he discovered the ideas of [[anarchism]]. He was strongly influenced by [[Russel Sudzilovsky]], a personal friend of [[Hristo Botev]], who resided in his home for some time. As a student influenced by left-wing ideas, he created an anarchist group in the Plovdiv High School in 1895, for which he was expelled. At the end of the same year, he connected with Macedonian high school students in the city and, together with his other classmates, followed the revolutionary movement of the Pre-Liberation era, with a strongly anarchist focus. |
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[[File: Mihail Gerdzhikov cheta IMARO.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Mikhail Gerdzhikov's troops during the Ilinden-Transfiguration Uprising]] |
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[[File: Mihail, Stefan and Nikolay Gerdzhikov by Andrey Andreev, 1904.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Brothers Michael, Stefan and Nikolay Gerdzhikov, photographer [[Andrey Andreev (photographer) | Andrey Andreev]], Plovdiv]] |
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[[File: Mihail Gerdzhikov cheta IMARO2.jpg|thumb|250px|Mikhail Gerdzhikov's Cheta]] |
[[File: Mihail Gerdzhikov cheta IMARO2.jpg|thumb|250px|Mikhail Gerdzhikov's Cheta]] |
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He was born in Plovdiv, then in the Ottoman Empire, in 1877. He studied at the French College in Plovdiv, where he received the nickname ''Michel''. As a student in 1893 he started his revolutionary activities as the leader of a [[Macedonian Secret Revolutionary Committee]] (MSRC).<ref>{{cite book|title=[[Black Flame (book)|Black Flame: The Revolutionary Class Politics of Anarchism and Syndicalism]]|first1=Lucien|last1=van der Walt|authorlink=Lucien van der Walt|first2=Michael|last2=Schmidt|publisher=[[AK Press]]|year=2009|isbn=978-1-904859-16-1|page=317}}</ref> |
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Gerdzhikov then went straight to [[Lausanne]] and [[Geneva]], where he participated in the so-called ''Geneva Group''. In 1899 he returned to the Bulgarian lands and became a teacher at Bulgarian Classical High School in [[Bitola]] <ref name = "Bilyarski"> {{cite book | title = Dame Gruev. Life and business. Collection, Volume 2 | last = Billiard | first = Tsocho, editor | year = 2007 | publisher = Aniko | location = Sofia | pages = 527 - 528 | url = http://www.sitebulgarizaedno.com/index.php?Option=com_content&view=article&id=611:2014-01-27-15-29-58&catid=29:2010-04-24-09-14-13&Itemid=61 | accessdate = January 15, 2016}} </ref> and joined [[Inner Macedonian Revolutionary Organization|IMORO]], where Gerdzhikov approached [[Gotse Delchev]]. In 1900 he was a delegate to the Zlatitsa Society of the ''Seventh Macedonian Congress''. <ref> Biljarski, Tsocho. Principality of Bulgaria and the Macedonian Question, p.1. Supreme Macedonian-Edirne Committee 1895 - 1905 (Congressional Minutes), Bulgarian Historical Library, 5, Ivray, Sofia, 2002, p. 169. </ref> In 1900 he was sent to the [[Thessaloniki]] to assist the activities of the IMORO Central Committee for the establishment of the committee and network in Edirne. When it was discovered by the Ottoman authorities, Gerdzhikov joined [[Hristo Chernopeev]]'s company. Shortly thereafter, he formed a detachment in the [[Gevgelija]] region. |
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In |
In [[Lausanne]] and [[Geneva]] he participated in the so-called ''Geneva Group''. In 1899 he returned to the Bulgarian lands and became a teacher at Bulgarian Classical High School in [[Bitola]]<ref name = "Bilyarski">{{cite book | title = Dame Gruev. Life and business. Collection, Volume 2 | editor-last = Billiard | editor-first = Tsocho | year = 2007 | publisher = Aniko | location = Sofia | pages = 527–528 | url = http://www.sitebulgarizaedno.com/index.php?Option=com_content&view=article&id=611:2014-01-27-15-29-58&catid=29:2010-04-24-09-14-13&Itemid=61 | accessdate = January 15, 2016}}</ref> and joined [[Inner Macedonian Revolutionary Organization|IMORO]], where Gerdzhikov approached [[Gotse Delchev]]. In 1900 he was a delegate to the Zlatitsa Society of the ''Seventh Macedonian Congress''.<ref>Biljarski, Tsocho. Principality of Bulgaria and the Macedonian Question, p.1. Supreme Macedonian-Edirne Committee 1895 - 1905 (Congressional Minutes), Bulgarian Historical Library, 5, Ivray, Sofia, 2002, p. 169.</ref> |
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In April 1901 he was a delegate of the Borisov Society to the ''Eighth Macedonian-Edirne Congress''.<ref>Bilyarski, Tsocho. Principality of Bulgaria and the Macedonian Question, p.1. Supreme Macedonian-Edirne Committee 1895 - 1905 (Congressional Minutes), Bulgarian History Library, 5, Ivray, Sofia, 2002, p. 259.</ref> |
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In April 1902, at Gerdzhikov's House in Plovdiv, the ''Plovdiv Congress of the IMRO'' was held. Since the summer of 1902 he has been managing and organizing the organization in Edirne, assisted by the sub-divisions of [[Ivan Varnaliev]] and [[Hristo Silyanov]]. |
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After the defeat of the [[Strandzha commune]] he dealt with the accommodation of the rebels who withdrew to Bulgaria. He published articles in the Bulgarian and foreign press, appealing to the international community for intervention in the resolution of the [[Eastern question]] in the Balkans. Together with [[Varban Kilifarski]] he also published various newspapers of their own.<ref>Karchev, Peter. Through the Window of a Half-Century (1900 - 1950), East-West, Sofia, 2004, p. 203. {{ISBN|954321056X}}</ref> |
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At the ''Petrova Niva Congress'', he was elected a member of the district's leading military unit and was one of the leaders in the preparation and conduct of the [[Preobrazhenie Uprising]]. |
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At the outbreak of the [[Balkan War]] in 1912, Gerdzhikov headed the Lozengrad guerrilla unit of the [[Macedonian-Adrianopolitan Volunteer Corps]].<ref>Macedonian-Adrian Militia 1912 - 1913 Personnel, Main Archives Department, 2006, pp. 175, 892.</ref> |
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On 19 February 1903, Gerdzhikov led a 25-man squad to make an assassination attempt at the Constantinople-Edirne railway line outside the revolutionary Thracian territory at [[Küçüksinekli, Silivri]] Station |
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He participated in the uprising itself, leading a group of 80 people from [[Kitka Peak]] to [[Strandzha]] an establishing the so-called [[Strandzha commune]]. Within a short time, Turkish rule throughout the Strandzha region was abolished except for in [[Malko Turnovo]]. Turkish posts along the border were destroyed, and village garrisons were expelled and the entire organizational territory in the area was liberated. |
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After the [[World War I|War]], he renewed his contacts with the [[Inner Macedonian Revolutionary Organization]], but no longer played an active role in it.<ref>"National Liberation Struggle in Macedonia, 1919 - 1941", Collective, Knowledge IC, Sofia, 1998, p. .72</ref> Gerdzhikov participated in the ''Constantinople Conference of the IMRO'' in 1930 and was a member of the Central Committee as a member of the Foreign Office.<ref name = "Gerdjikov 14">Pandev, Konstantin. Foreword to: Gerdzhikov, Michael. Memories, Documents, Materials, Science and Art Publishing House, Sofia, 1984, p. 14.</ref> But after the conference he did not leave for Berlin, to participate in the Central Committee, but returned to Bulgaria in 1931.<ref name = "Gerdzhikov 15">Pandev, Konstantin. Foreword to: Gerdzhikov, Michael. Memories, Documents, Materials, Science and Art Publishing House, Sofia, 1984, p. 15.</ref> |
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After the defeat of the uprising he dealt with the accommodation of the rebels who withdrew to Bulgaria. He published articles in the Bulgarian and foreign press, appealing to the international community for intervention in the resolution of the [[Eastern question]] in the Balkans. Together with [[Varban Kilifarski]] he also published various newspapers of their own. <ref> Karchev, Peter. Through the Window of a Half-Century (1900 - 1950), East-West, Sofia, 2004, p. 203. {{ISBN|954321056X}} </ref> |
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He became a journalist and translator. On the eve and during the Second World War, 1939–1945, due to his advanced age, he was mainly engaged in journalism. He has collaborated on a number of periodicals. Although some of his associates were involved in the resistance movement, Gerdzhikov remained aloof, although he maintained ties with them. Following the [[1944 Bulgarian coup d'état|September 9 coup]], he signed in Sofia "[[Appeal to the Macedonians in Bulgaria]]".<ref>Цочо Билярски, Ива Бурилкова, БКП, Коминтернът и македонския въпрос (1917-1946), Том 2, Главно управление на архивите, София, 1999, ISBN 9549800040, стр. 1122.</ref> |
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[[File: Gotse Delchev Mihail Gerdzhikov Baba Dona 1902.jpg|thumb|250px|Kyustendil 1902, Baba [[Dona Kovacheva]], [[Marco Sekulichki]], [[Gotse Delchev]], Mikhail Gerdzhikov, [[Petko Penchev]]]] |
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In 1910, Gerdzhikov, together with [[Pavel Deliradev]], published the booklet ''War or Revolution'', in which he declared himself against war, standing in the positions of the European social democracies. |
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At the outbreak of the [[Balkan War]] in 1912, Gerdzhikov headed the Lozengrad guerrilla unit of the ''Macedonian-Adrian militia''. <ref> Macedonian-Adrian Militia 1912 - 1913 Personnel, Main Archives Department, 2006, pp. 175, 892. </ref> The unit was formed in [[Burgas]] at the end of September 1912 and returned to the Strandzha region on 5 October. Gerdzhikov's unit liberated [[Tsarevo | Vasiliko]], [[Ahtopol]], [[Rezovo]] and [[Samokov]] and established themselves in [[Midia]]. In early 1913 the squad was disbanded. |
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Following the outbreak of [[World War I]], Gerdzhikov served in the Forty-third Infantry Regiment. |
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===Social and political activity=== |
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[[File: Mihail Gerdzhikov grave Sofia.JPG|thumb|250px|The tomb of Mikhail Gerdzhikov in Sofia Central Cemetery]] |
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[[File: Mihail Gerdzhikov's and Hristo Tatarchev's Memoirs.jpg|thumb|250px|{{cite book | title = I. In Macedonia and Edirne: Memories of Mikhail Gerdjikov. II. The first IMRO Central Committee: Memories of Dr. Hristo Tatarchev. L. Miletic Announces | year = 1927 | publisher = Materials for the History of the Macedonian Liberation Movement, Published by the Macedonian Science Institute, Book IX, P. Glushkov Printing House | location = Sofia | url = http://www.strumski.com/books/Mention%20on%20Tatarchev.pdf}}]] |
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After the [[World War I | War]], he renewed his contacts with the [[Inner Macedonian Revolutionary Organization]], but no longer played an active role in it.<ref> "National Liberation Struggle in Macedonia, 1919 - 1941", Collective, Knowledge IC, Sofia, 1998, p. .72 </ref>. Mihail Gerdzhikov was one of the founders of the [[Federation of Anarcho-Communists in Bulgaria]] (FACB) on June 1919 in Sofia. When the Ninth Revolution was carried out in 1923, he left Bulgaria and lived in emigration - [[Constantinople]], [[Vienna]] and [[Berlin]] (1924 - 1931). He supported the idea of a split with IMRO, and in 1928 - 1929 together with [[Georgi Zankov]] and a group of adherents, they seceded as a national revolutionary wing and formed [[Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (United)]]. Gerdzhikov met in Berlin several times with [[Georgi Dimitrov]]. At that time he maintained close links with the Vienna Center of the Comintern and with the BCP's overseas office. |
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He participated in the ''Constantinople Conference of the IMRO'' in 1930 and was a member of the Central Committee as a member of the Foreign Office. <Ref name = "Gerdjikov 14"> Pandev, Konstantin. Foreword to: Gerdzhikov, Michael. Memories, Documents, Materials, Science and Art Publishing House, Sofia, 1984, p. 14. </ref> But after the conference he did not leave for Berlin, to participate in the Central Committee, but returned to Bulgaria in 1931. <Ref name = "Gerdzhikov 15"> Pandev, Konstantin. Foreword to: Gerdzhikov, Michael. Memories, Documents, Materials, Science and Art Publishing House, Sofia, 1984, p. 15. </ref> |
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He became a journalist and translator. On the eve and during the Second World War, 1939-1945, due to his advanced age, he was mainly engaged in journalism. He has collaborated on a number of periodicals. Although some of his associates were involved in the resistance movement, Gerdzhikov remained aloof, although he maintained ties with them. Following the [[1944 Bulgarian coup d'état|September 9 coup]], he signed in Sofia "[[Appeal to Macedonians in Bulgaria]]". <ref> [http://mk.wikibooks.org/wiki/Apel_to_Macedonians_to_Bugaritsa_-_1944 Apel to Macedonians in Bulgaria - 1944, mk.wikibooks.org] </ref> After September 9, 1944, he addressed his comrades from the Macedonian-Adrian movement in the Zarya newspaper with a call to support the struggle and to call for the celebration of the new socialist system. However, he soon retired from active public activity, frustrated by the new rulers of the [[Peoples Republic of Bulgaria]]. In 1946, he categorically refused to be included in the list of nominees for the award of the [[Preobrazhenie Uprising]]. He died on March 18, 1947 in Sofia |
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==Sources== |
==Sources== |
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Revision as of 10:15, 11 January 2024
Mihail Gerdzhikov | |
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Born | |
Died | March 18, 1947 | (aged 70)
Resting place | Central Sofia Cemetery |
Nationality | Bulgarian |
Other names | Michel |
Citizenship | |
Education | University of Geneva |
Years active | 1895–1946 |
Organization(s) | |
Known for | Preobrazhenie Uprising, Strandzha Commune |
Movement | Anarchism |
Opponent | |
Spouse | Yanka Kanevcheva |
Father | Ivan Gerdzhikov |
Mihail Gerdzhikov (Bulgarian: Михаил Герджиков; 1877–1947) was a Bulgarian revolutionary and anarchist.
Biography
He was born in Plovdiv, then in the Ottoman Empire, in 1877. He studied at the French College in Plovdiv, where he received the nickname Michel. As a student in 1893 he started his revolutionary activities as the leader of a Macedonian Secret Revolutionary Committee (MSRC).[1]
In Lausanne and Geneva he participated in the so-called Geneva Group. In 1899 he returned to the Bulgarian lands and became a teacher at Bulgarian Classical High School in Bitola[2] and joined IMORO, where Gerdzhikov approached Gotse Delchev. In 1900 he was a delegate to the Zlatitsa Society of the Seventh Macedonian Congress.[3]
In April 1901 he was a delegate of the Borisov Society to the Eighth Macedonian-Edirne Congress.[4]
After the defeat of the Strandzha commune he dealt with the accommodation of the rebels who withdrew to Bulgaria. He published articles in the Bulgarian and foreign press, appealing to the international community for intervention in the resolution of the Eastern question in the Balkans. Together with Varban Kilifarski he also published various newspapers of their own.[5]
At the outbreak of the Balkan War in 1912, Gerdzhikov headed the Lozengrad guerrilla unit of the Macedonian-Adrianopolitan Volunteer Corps.[6]
After the War, he renewed his contacts with the Inner Macedonian Revolutionary Organization, but no longer played an active role in it.[7] Gerdzhikov participated in the Constantinople Conference of the IMRO in 1930 and was a member of the Central Committee as a member of the Foreign Office.[8] But after the conference he did not leave for Berlin, to participate in the Central Committee, but returned to Bulgaria in 1931.[9]
He became a journalist and translator. On the eve and during the Second World War, 1939–1945, due to his advanced age, he was mainly engaged in journalism. He has collaborated on a number of periodicals. Although some of his associates were involved in the resistance movement, Gerdzhikov remained aloof, although he maintained ties with them. Following the September 9 coup, he signed in Sofia "Appeal to the Macedonians in Bulgaria".[10]
Sources
- ^ van der Walt, Lucien; Schmidt, Michael (2009). Black Flame: The Revolutionary Class Politics of Anarchism and Syndicalism. AK Press. p. 317. ISBN 978-1-904859-16-1.
- ^ Billiard, Tsocho, ed. (2007). Dame Gruev. Life and business. Collection, Volume 2. Sofia: Aniko. pp. 527–528. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
- ^ Biljarski, Tsocho. Principality of Bulgaria and the Macedonian Question, p.1. Supreme Macedonian-Edirne Committee 1895 - 1905 (Congressional Minutes), Bulgarian Historical Library, 5, Ivray, Sofia, 2002, p. 169.
- ^ Bilyarski, Tsocho. Principality of Bulgaria and the Macedonian Question, p.1. Supreme Macedonian-Edirne Committee 1895 - 1905 (Congressional Minutes), Bulgarian History Library, 5, Ivray, Sofia, 2002, p. 259.
- ^ Karchev, Peter. Through the Window of a Half-Century (1900 - 1950), East-West, Sofia, 2004, p. 203. ISBN 954321056X
- ^ Macedonian-Adrian Militia 1912 - 1913 Personnel, Main Archives Department, 2006, pp. 175, 892.
- ^ "National Liberation Struggle in Macedonia, 1919 - 1941", Collective, Knowledge IC, Sofia, 1998, p. .72
- ^ Pandev, Konstantin. Foreword to: Gerdzhikov, Michael. Memories, Documents, Materials, Science and Art Publishing House, Sofia, 1984, p. 14.
- ^ Pandev, Konstantin. Foreword to: Gerdzhikov, Michael. Memories, Documents, Materials, Science and Art Publishing House, Sofia, 1984, p. 15.
- ^ Цочо Билярски, Ива Бурилкова, БКП, Коминтернът и македонския въпрос (1917-1946), Том 2, Главно управление на архивите, София, 1999, ISBN 9549800040, стр. 1122.
- 1877 births
- 1947 deaths
- Anarcho-communists
- Bulgarian anarchists
- Bulgarian educators
- Bulgarian military personnel of the Balkan Wars
- Bulgarian military personnel of World War I
- Bulgarian revolutionaries
- Burials at Central Sofia Cemetery
- Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (United) members
- Members of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization
- Politicians from Plovdiv
- Thracian Bulgarians