Propaganda of Fyrom’s site HistoryofMacedonia.Org Exposed – Part V

http://www.historyofmacedonia.org/Co…ulgarians.html

FYROM Claim:

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1. The roots of the Macedonians are in ancient Macedonia in Europe since 8th century BC, while the roots of the Bulgarians are in the Turko-Morgilic Bulgars who came to Europe from Asia in the 7th century AD. While the Bulgars are intruders in the Balkans, the Macedonians had preserved their name through the centuries and evidence shows that they have always associated themselves with the ancient Macedonians.

The writer forgets conveniently to add that the roots of the Slavic inhabitants of FYROM (at least those who arent from Bulgarian stock) are among the Slavic tribes who came to Balkans in the sixth century, thus they are also intruders who have nothing to do with ancient Macedonians.

Even the former President of FYROM, Kiro Gligorov said: “We are Slavs who came to this area in the sixth century … we are not descendants of the ancient Macedonians” (Foreign Information Service Daily Report, Eastern Europe, February 26, 1992, p. 35).

and again Mr Gligorov declared: “We are Macedonians but we are Slav Macedonians. That’s who we are! We have no connection to Alexander the Greek and his Macedonia… Our ancestors came here in the 5th and 6th century” (Toronto Star, March 15, 1992).

Fact is that the current Slavic inhabitants of FYROM identified themselves as Bulgarians in the past as their heroes of Ilinden did.

The second irony derives from the fact that the Slavic intruders according to Constantine Poryphorgenitus in “De Administrando Imperio” were also called Avars, a nomadic people of Eurasia, supposedly of proto-Mongolian Turkic stock, who migrated from eastern Asia into central and eastern Europe in the 6th century. As much as the propagandists dislike to admit their Turko-Mongolic roots, Byzantine sources remind it to them.

“The territory possessed by these Romani used to extend as far as the river Danube, and once on a time, being minded to cross the river and discover who dwelt beyond the river, they crossed it and came upon unarmed Slavonic nations, who were also called Avars…
…and the Slavs on the far side of the river, who were also called Avars,…”

FYROM Claim:

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2. When the Macedonian king Alexander the Great (336-323 BC) conquered Asia, he too conquered ancient Bulgaria. In the writings of the ancient historian Pseudo-Calisthenes there is a list of the nations that the Macedonians conquered and the Bulgars are on that list along with the Greeks, Egyptians, Persians, and the other conquered nations.

It is amazing that the propagandists of FYROM uses as source Pseudo-Calisthenes when he is the one who has repeatedly mentioned Alexander the Great and Macedonians were Greeks.

“Even though Xerxes had a huge host with him, he was a barbarian and was defeated by the prudence of the Hellenes; whereas Alexander the Hellene has already engaged in 13 battles and has not been defeated once.”

<`Pseudo-Kallisthenes’ 2.3.4.-5; Oration of Demosthenes>

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“And, now, is justly the barbarian <Xerxes> praised by the Athenians for capturing Hellenes? As for Alexander who is a Hellene and captured Hellenes, not only did he not imprison his opponents, but enlisted them and made them his allies instead of enemies… ”

<`Pseudo-Kallisthenes’ 2.4.5; Oration of Demosthenes>

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“No king of the Hellenes had ever conquered Egypt with the exception only of Alexander, and that he did without war…”

<`Pseudo-Kallisthenes’ 2.4.7-8; Oration of Demosthenes>

FYROM Claims:

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3. When Rome conquered the Balkans, Macedonia and its eastern neighbor Thrace became part of the Roman Empire. In the late 4th century AD with the split of the Roman Empire, Macedonia and Thrace became part of the East Roman (or Byzantine) Empire.

The writer neglects to mention that the inhabitants of Macedonia were Greeks as it is shown from the following quote where Pompey calls a draft of all Romans and Greeks in the Roman province of Macedonia, that is the native Greek Macedonians and any potential Roman soldiers.

“Caesar judged that he must drop everything else and pursue Pompey where he had betaken himself after his flight, so that he should not be able to gather more forces and renew the war; and he advanced daily as far as he could go with the cavalry and ordered a legion to follow by shorter stages. An edict had been published in Pompey’s name that all the younger men in the province (Macedonia), both Greeks and Roman citizens, should assemble to take an oath. But whether Pompey had published this to divert suspicion, so as to keep his intention of further flight secret as long as possible, or whether he was attempting to hold Macedonia with fresh levies, if no one stopped him, could not be gauged.”

The Civil War, 111.102.3

FYROM Claim:

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4. In the 6th century the Slavs invaded the Balkans including Macedonia and Thrace and settled among the ancient Macedonians and Thracians.

Finally the propagandists of FYROM couldnt avoid not to mention the invasion of their Slavic ancestors in Balkans but they again failed to address the obvious. Ancient Macedonians had been assimilated into the rest of greek population centuries before the invasion of Slavs.

FYROM Claim:

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5. In the 7th century the Turko-Mongolic Bulgars for a very first time entered Europe from their original Asian home, invaded Thrace, and subdued the Thracians and Slavs. Since this moment the mix between the Bulgar intruders, Thracians, and Slavs will result in the formation of the modern Bulgarian nation.

The mix between the Bulgar intruders and Slavic intruders had as result not only the formation of the modern Bulgarian nation as the propagandists of FYROM wish but also the formation of the modern FYROM since the slavic inhabitants of FYROM are also a mix of Bulgars and Slavs.

FYROM Claim:

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The Bulgars also attacked Macedonia, Epirus, Serbia, conquered parts of these lands, and held them for some time but never permanently. Modern Bulgarian historiography claims that the Bulgar conquest of parts of Macedonia transformed the Macedonians and the Slavs in Macedonia into Bulgarians. The claim is quite ridiculous and easily dismissed for the following main reasons: a) There is NO recorded settlement of Bulgars in Macedonia as there is recorded the settlement of the Slavs among the Macedonians, or as is recorded the settlement of Bulgars among the Thracians and Slavs in Thrace.

On the contrary it is recorded that the territories of modern day FYROM was incorporated into the Bulgarian state of Samoil and of course the Serb state of Dusan Nemanja who had as his capital…Skopje.

FYROM Claim

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b) The Bulgar intrusion into Macedonia was nothing but a temporary conquest by foreign armies. Because it was a temporary conquest it is impossible to imagine that the Macedonians suddenly “evolved” into Bulgarians. The case is identical with Serbia since the Bulgarian armies also conquered that country. The Serbians as we know did not turn into Bulgarians either. Likewise the conquest of Russia of the Caucasus countries did not turn these people into Russians despite both of centuries of occupation and Russian settlements among the natives.

It is again amazing that the propagandists of FYROM here self-refute their own claim onto the population of Macedonia. It is impossible also to imagine that the real heirs of ancient Macedonians, the greek populations of Macedonian suddenly “evolved” into Slavs. At last they must decide which argument applies to them and not only to use them when it suits them with result to refute themselves and noone to take them seriously.

FYROM Claim:

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c) The Romans held Macedonia for more then 12 centuries and yet the Macedonians continued to be mentioned as nation in Byzantine sources, both before and after the Bulgarian conquest. Thus, since the Romans did not turn the Macedonians into Romans after 12 centuries it is more then impossible that the Bulgarians could have turned them into Bulgarians after holding parts of that land over a miniscule period of time.

Once more the propagandists refute themselves. Sources mentioned the inhabitants of Macedonia as greek populations. For example the 14th Century Names of Lay Proprietors in the Themes of Thessaloniki and Strymon which are all…Greek.

http://www.maridonna.com/onomastics/lay.htm

FYROM Claim:

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7. Modern Bulgarian historiography also claims that the apostle brothers St. Cyril and Methodius from the 10th century, who came from the largest Macedonian city Salonica were Bulgarians. However such claim is also impossible since Salonica was never taken by the Bulgarians. The city obviously kept its original Macedonian population since Byzantine records of those times call it “the largest city of the Macedonians”. Thus, Cyril and Methodius could not be anything else but Macedonians. Cyril and Methodius’ father was an important Macedonian in Salonica. It is simply impossible that he or his sons even looked like the typical Turko-Mongolic Bulgarians from the 11th century.

The city of Salonica indeed kept its original population who were greeks of course. The propagandists of FYROM forgot again to write that Salonica was never taken by their ancestors Slavs either so by their logic, Salonica were always Greek. For example in the book “The Papacy and the Levant, 1204-1571” by Kenneth Meyer Setton , P. 28, we read that:

“On 14 July, 1429, the Senate gave formal replies to a detailed petition presented by an embassy representing the Greek population of Thessalonica, showing that the inhabitants had become disenchanted with Venetian rule as the years had passed.”

or in the same book in page 21 we read again:

“In Thessalonica the churches of S. Demetrius and the holy wisdom were bestowed upon the latin clergy. Boniface is declared to have been severe in his exactions of money from the greek natives of Thessalonica and in his commandeering of the best houses in the city as quarters for his men. He wanted to create a strong, compact state comprising Macedonia, central Greece, and the northeastern Peloponnesus. He set up a regency in his new capital under his wife Margaret of Hungary, the widow of Isaac Angelus, whom he had married but shortly before, as we have seen, to establish a connection with the dynasty of Angeli, and to win such support among the Greeks as this association might bring him

it is interesting the book mentions that Thessalonica had only greek natives. Same with the two brothers Cyril and Methodius who were greeks despite the unsuccessful attempts of FYROM historiography to claim them as Slavs.

FYROM Claim:

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Modern Bulgarian historiography denies that the modern Macedonians are descendents of the ancient Macedonians, but ironically it recognizes that the modern Bulgarians are descendents of the ancient Thracians. Right away they contradict themselves since it is impossible to imagine that the Thracians existed in the 7th century when the Bulgars settled among them, while the ancient Macedonians somehow disappeared a century earlier when the Slavs settled Macedonia. The fact that the Macedonians are mentioned as nation and Slavs are mentioned as living side by side by them in Macedonia in the following centuries by the Byzantine historians is proof that the Macedonians did not mysteriously cease to exist. It also proves that the modern Bulgarian historians are attempting to falsify the history of the Macedonian nation to their likes, although unsuccessfully

The real irony comes from the side of modern FYROM historiography that cant see the obvious. Lets for the sake of the argument take for one moment FYROM’s historiography thesis as it had a dose of reality even if it is refuted, and make the hypothesis that ancient macedonians were distinct from greeks. Shouldnt the first rational thought to come up to any logical person, wouldnt be that ancient Macedonians had been fully assimilated during the 9 centuries before the arrival of the Slavic intruders??? Not to add that Macedonians and the rest of Greeks spoke the same language, shared the same hellenic culture – the same culture which Macedonians spread everywhere – which would make this hypothesis certain, on contrast with the Slavic intruders who had nothing in common – neither language nor culture – with the population of Macedonia. It is easily demonstratable the propagandists of FYROM cant stop refuting themselves with their own arguments and “are attempting to falsify the history of the Macedonian nation to their likes, although unsuccessfully.

 By Ptolemy