A century since the death of Todor Aleksandrov: some non-anniversary reflections

THE RESTORATION OF IMARO UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF TODOR ALEKSANDROV IN 1909 – 1911 

Slavi Slavov 

(Summary) 

In the summer of 1908, the so-called Young Turk revolution took place, which led to a temporary democratization of socio-political life. As a result of the changes, the Internal Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organization (IMARO) ceased armed activity and legalized its squad formations. After a two-year legal period, Young Turks intensified repression against the Bulgarian population and this led to a gradual resumption of the revolutionary struggle. The IMARO restoration was a long and difficult process. Todor Aleksandrov played the principal, though not the only, role in it. Thanks to his personal qualities, he established himself as the main and most influential leader in the Organization, although he was not provided with any additional or extraordinary powers, but was only a member, and at a later stage, of its collective governing body: the Central Committee. 

Keywords: Internal Macedonian-Adrianople revolutionary organization, IMARO, Central Committee, Todor Aleksandrov, Bulgarian revolutionary movement in Macedonia