370 2,000 Dates 12 Aug 1903 – 1 Aug 1903 | 40 killed Unknown Result Ottoman victory | |
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Location Kruševo, Macedonia (FYROM) Combatants Macedonians, Ottoman Empire Similar Ilinden–Preobrazhenie Uprising, Young Turk Revolution, Macedonian Struggle | ||
Battle of me kin kamen
The Battle of Mečkin Kamen occurred on the hill of Mečkin Kamen ("Bear Stone"), a few kilometres from the town of Kruševo in present-day Macedonia, on 2-3 August 1903. It was part of the Ilinden-Preobraženie uprising led by the Internal Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organisation (IMARO or VMARO) against the Ottoman empire. The leading revolutionary commanders of the local Kruševo Republic were Nikola Karev and Pitu Guli. A monument exists today on Mečkin Kamen where Pitu Guli was killed. There is a Second World war memorial by Dimo Todorovski at the same site.
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Legend
There is a legend behind the name of the hill. A long time ago in a small suburb besides the orchids lived a number of brothers. They occupied their time with agriculture and livestock. One day the brothers were returning from the hill when they were confronted by a big bear. The brave people of Kruševo were not frightened, instead they attacked the bear. The bear rolled a rock down the hill towards the brothers, but then they killed the bear with a couple of strikes from their axes. The rock which was rolled by the bear was known as Mečkin Kamen (Bear's Rock) by the people.