June 14, 2015
Dear Hon. MacTiernan,
Subject: Your Statement on Greek and Balkan history
I am writing this letter in opposition to your views and comments you made regarding several aspects of Macedonian history.
Please be informed that the disagreement between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) is not an issue of history. It is an issue of irredentism and expansionism of Skopje at the expense of all its neighbors, but in particular Greece. Your constituents of Skopjan descent live in a euphoric recall and use distorted historical facts as the basis for an eventual claim on the Greek region of Macedonia and especially the city of Thessaloniki.
The ancient Macedonians were not Hellenized, as they were already of Greek origin. Since, you believe that the Macedonians were Hellenized, I think it is only fair for you to announce to historians of the world what the Macedonians were before they were “Hellenized”. As you apparently know what they changed their culture to, you must also acknowledge the origin of that culture.
In the Battle of Chaeronea, the Macedonians had not defeated “the Greeks”; they had defeated the Athenians, Thebans and their very few allies such as Achaeans, Corinthians, Chalcians, Epidaurians, Megarians and Troezenians. Eight tribes out of 204 are a little short of “the Greeks”.
Philip II did not occupy the area of the FYROM. Somehow, you have missed the fact that about one-quarter of the FYROM was part of the Dardanians, and that included the regions of Debar, Tetovo, Skopje and Kumanovo. It is the area that the Albanians call Ilirida, at present. Prof. Fanula Papazoglu a member of the Academy of Skopje wrote in one of her books, “It is often forgotten that ancient Macedonia occupied only a relatively small part of the Yugoslav Macedonia of today!”
It was not Basilios I, but Basilios II of the Macedonian dynasty. It is interesting that this Basilios II fought and eliminated the kingdom of another king, the Bulgarian Tsar Samuil, whom Skopje claims as Macedonian as well. Based on such a thought, should we assume that it was a “Macedonian” civil war that took place in 1014? Such claim would be news to all historians.
The Slavic awakening in the south Balkans did not include any Macedonians since at that time they identified themselves with Bulgarians living in Macedonia. All inhabitants of Macedonia used the term in a geographic context, Misirkov says so. People such as Monk Paisios, Rakovski, Kunchev aka Levski, Delchev (by his own admission) Gruev, Karev, Blagoev et.al were all Bulgarians. Blagoev was the founder of the Bulgarian Social Democratic Labour Party, i.e. Communist Party. He was the instigator of the establishment of the Balkan Federation under communist rule that was supported by Lenin and espoused by Stalin. On January 11, 1934, Stalin fabricated the “Macedonian” ethnicity, i.e. he gave a regional name to a group as its own ethnic. Tito gave land to the FYROM about 10 years later.
We do not deny that ethno genesis can occur, after all Australia and Canada are but a few such examples where nations and ethnicities can be born and multicultural societies can live harmoniously together. Such nations have been built on their own merits and not by usurping others history and culture. Australia and Canada for example have no need to re-label their English language in order to justify the creation of their nation Ma’am,
For the sake of argument, if we assume that the ancient Macedonians were not Greeks, it does not automatically mean that the Slav inhabitants of the country, which wants to be called Macedonia, have anything to do with the ancient Macedonians. Such a conclusion is a result of a fallacious syllogism and an argument from ignorance.
The FYROM since its independence never seized to provoke its neighbors, especially Greece. The dream of its Slav inhabitants is to use distorted historical facts in order to set claims on Greek lands for its own expansionist agenda, and you, Ma’am, are supporting such effort becoming part of a future problem – the regional instability in the Balkans.
Regardless of what your constituents say, Greece is right. Unless your Slav constituents stop branding the red flags with the golden Sun of Vergina and unless they stop brandishing maps of a “united” Macedonia, the FYROM is not going to become a member of the EU or NATO.
I am suggesting that you should ask your voters about the meaning of the map of a united Macedonia (see below) that circulates under your nose. By thoughtlessly supporting the views of the Skopje Slav diaspora, you sponsor regional instability in the Balkans and perhaps you foster the basis for a future war.
You have been caught in a web and now you are helping the Skopjan diaspora to use the harpoon with which they would impale the region of Macedonia from Greece.
I am attaching a more detailed response supported by references so that you learn a few things that your constituency obviously has not told you about.
Respectfully,
Marcus A. Templar
