August 2 is an official holiday in Macedonia commemorating the nation’s first modern statehood. In 1903, Macedonian Christian nationalists led a rebellion against the Turkish Ottoman Empire. The rebels staged an uprising on August 2 of that year, a date that also marked the Christian feast day of Ilinden, or the prophet Elijah‘s ascension into heaven. The Ilinden uprising has become a cultural cornerstone in the mythology of modern Macedonia and is acknowledged as an important precursor to the establishment of the present-day Republic of Macedonia. Discuss
Source: The Free Dictionary