Historical Facts: What is Macedonia/North Macedonia?

     If you're like me and know history from the ancient world to the present, the term "Macedonia" might sound confusing to you. That's because Macedonia is a region once contested by foreign powers, yet is now also a country. If you don't know what Macedonia (or now, North Macedonia) even is, don't worry. Today, we'll talk about what it is. 

    If you studied history chronologically, you probably first heard the term "Macedonia" when you studied Alexander the Great. His empire controlled a significant part of Europe and Asia, with its capital at the ancient city of Babylon. However, in 323 BCE, Alexander died, and his empire was split. The Balkan part of the empire became known as the Macedonian dynasty. 

    Starting in around 170 BCE, the Roman Empire conquered Macedonia. For several years, it was under Roman rule. However, the Ottoman Empire conquered Macedonia towards the end of the Middle Ages. 

    Macedonia would remain under Ottoman rule all the way until 1912, when the First Balkan War erupted, and Macedonia was partitioned among Serbia, Bulgaria, and Greece. (However, most of modern-day North Macedonia was under Serbia at that time.) But Bulgaria and the Ottomans did actually have disputes over Macedonia prior to that, as Bulgaria considered Macedonia as part of "Greater Bulgaria."

    Macedonia became Bulgarian-occupied territory from 1915 to 1918, when Bulgaria surrendered to the Entente in World War I. In 1918, Macedonians found themselves in the newly formed Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Bulgaria did regain Macedonia during World War II, but lost it afterwards. It remained as a Yugoslav republic for a while until the 1990s, when after centuries of domination, it gained independence. (It did not have to fight with the Yugoslav government, because they were also Eastern Orthodox.)

    You would think that with a Macedonian state finally gaining independence, this messy history would finally be over. But no, not just yet. You see, Greece still has a region called Central Macedonia. Greece believed that a state called Macedonia would seek to retake that region. So, they blocked Macedonia's admission into NATO until 2018. In that year, they signed an agreement. Macedonia changed its name to North Macedonia, and it's still called that today. North Macedonia joined NATO the following year. 

    Okay, now it's done. For real. The history of North Macedonia stops here. For now, at least. See you next time! I hope to post about my Visita Iglesia in the Philippines soon. Until then, bye!

The Library of Enotita

Historical Facts: The 1867 Compromise and the Austro-Hungarian Empire

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     Okay. I think I gave you the end before the beginning, because this is about the rise of Austria-Hungary. If you didn't read the last article , that's on the fall of Austria-Hungary. But, I didn't know I would post on this. So, let's go!     Let's look at Austria in 1867. The previous year, they lost a war to Prussia and Italy. After Prussia defeated Austria, the other German states dependent on Austria had an uncertain future. (This would be resolved after the Franco-Prussian War.) But Austria also had an uncertain future. After losing wars, you would generally have a bad economy. Austria was no exception. And Austria already had many ethnicities in their empire. As I said in the last article, Austria had many minorities. In fact, I'll list just some of the most significant minorities in the Austrian Empire: Czechs Slovaks Poles Ukrainians Romanians Hungarians Serbs Croats Slovenes Italians     If this doesn't sound too complicated to you, think ...
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The Ager Centralis Enotitae and Pecunia - Enotitan Finance Guide

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The first ever bill issued by the Ager Centralis. This bill is for one Pecunia.      Almost every country has a currency. You have the dollar, peso, euro, pound, and much more. However, we did not have a currency. This is bad, because the economy is very vital to every country. That's why we established the Ager Centralis Enotitae (Latin for Enotitan Central Bank). From now on, Enotitans can use the Pecunia, our new currency.      To start, open an account at any branch of the Ager Centralis. (Currently, there are only branches in Olsen, the main state.) Present the teller any valid Enotitan government ID. Following that, give the teller any bill from any currency. After around 10 minutes, it will be converted and transformed into a Pecunia for the initial deposit.      You can use the card in Enotitan shops. You can buy souvenirs, food, or even use it to receive salary. (Enotitan companies besides government agencies do not exist at the mome...
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Historical Facts: American and Japanese Rule in the Philippines

     This was based on Reader's Digest: The Story of the Filipino People - Parts 6 and 7 ( Under the Stars and Stripes  and The Japanese Occupation ) by Milagros C. Guerrero and Ricardo T. Jose.      Now that I think about it, I would call the Spanish occupation "the first storm," the American occupation "the second storm," and the Japanese occupation "the third storm." The "between the storm" parts would be 1898 - 1901 and 1935 - 1941.  Part 1 - The Second Storm (1901 - 1935)     After the Philippine-American War, the United States turned the Philippines into a colony. They gained it in the Treaty of Paris along with Puerto Rico, Cuba, and some other islands. The Americans needed to keep it away from Spain, France, and Germany.      Under Spanish rule, the Filipinos were taught Catholicism. But the Americans were mainly Methodist (a sect of Protestantism). American missionaries were sent to the Philippines, although most ...
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