Panko Brashnarov

Who was Panko Brashnarov?

Panko Brashnarov was a revolutionary and member of the left wing of the Internal Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organization and IMRO later. As with many other IMARO members of the time, historians from the Republic of Macedonia consider him an ethnic Macedonian, whereas historians in Bulgaria consider him a Bulgarian. However such Macedonian activists, who came from the IMARO and the IMRO never managed to get rid of their strong pro-Bulgarian bias.

He was born in Veles where he graduated from Bulgarian Exarchate's school. Brashnarov graduated from the Bulgarian pedagogical school in Skopje. In 1903 he took part in the Ilinden Uprising. In 1908 he joined the People's Federative Party. In 1903-1913 Brashnarov worked as Bulgarian teacher. In 1914-1915 he completed a two-year higher educational course in Plovdiv. He was mobilized in the Bulgarian army during the First World War and participated in the battles of Doiran. In 1919, he joined the Yugoslav Communist Party. In 1925 in Vienna, Brashnarov was elected as one of the leaders of Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization. Because of his political convictions, he was sentenced to seven years in prison in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. After his release he remained politically passive.