We must break the rule of the rich and take our destinies into our own hands. Let charity begin with our children.
Workers, who respect their wives, who love their children, and who long for a fuller life for all. A vote for the landowner or the capitalist is treachery to your class. To give your child a better chance than you have had, think carefully ere you make your cross.
The other classes have had their day. It is our turn now. At least forty clergymen worked on Grayson's behalf. Graham, the giant curate of Thongsbridge. The left-wing journalist, Robert Blatchford , described him as "six foot a socialist and five inches a parson". Graham's mission was the "Christianizing of Christianity". Grayson also campaigned for votes for women. Hannah Mitchell joined his campaign and later recalled: "I must have worked the Colne Valley from end to end, often under the auspices of the Colne Valley Labour League.
Sometimes we just went In one of his speeches Grayson outlined his view on women's suffrage: "The placing of women in the same category, constitutionally, as infants, idiots and Peers, does not impress me as either manly or just. While thousands of women are compelled to slave in factories, etc. Should I be honoured with your support, I am prepared to give the most immediate and enthusiastic support to a measure giving women the vote on the same terms as men. This is as a step to the larger measure of complete Adult Suffrage.
The election took place on 18th July, Almost every eligible registered elector cast his vote and a turn-out of eighty-eight per cent was recorded. Grayson received 3, votes and this gave him a majority over his two opponents: Philip Bright - Liberal 3, and Grenville Wheeler - Conservative 3, In his victory speech Grayson pointed out: "The very first joy that comes to my mind is this, that this epoch-making victory has been won for pure revolutionary socialism You have voted, you have worked for socialism: you have voted, you have worked for the means of life to be the property of the whole class instead of a few small classes.
We stand for equality, human equality, sexual equality It is a splendid victory comrades. Wilfred Whiteley was a local member of the ILP: "The winning of Colne Valley was largely due to his vivacity and his enthusiasm, and his youth; and it just carried the day. I would say that it was almost entirely the platform work of Grayson that gave him his appeal, and that led people to follow him, and of course his great capacity for telling stories really attracted the listeners to a tremendous degree.
The Independent Labour Party and the Social Democratic Federation welcomed Grayson's victory as it showed that a revolutionary socialist could be elected to Parliament. The Labour Party was unhappy with Grayson's victory as it posed a threat to their relationship with the Liberal Party. In the House of Commons he attacked the gradualism of the Labour Party: "We are advised to advance imperceptibly - to go at a snail's pace - to take one step at a time.
Surely there are some young enough to take two steps or more at a time. If you are enjoying this article, please feel free to share. He attacked the government for rewarding a man for "consolidating Imperialism". Grayson added that Cromer had already been well-paid "while outside the four walls of this House people are dying of starvation". Pointing to the government front-bench he said he was looking forward to the day when those seats "will be occupied by socialists, sent there by an indignant people".
On Tuesday, 31st October, , Grayson stood up in the House of Commons and shouted out: "I wish to move the adjournment of the House so that it can deal with the unemployment question As he left he turned to Labour members and shouted: "You are traitors! Traitors to your class. Grayson was now suspended from the House of Commons. Grayson's actions gained the approval of people like George Bernard Shaw , but provoked predictable hostility from Labour members.
Keir Hardie , the leader of the ILP, was quick to make it clear that he completely rejected the tactics of Victor Grayson: "Grayson came to the House of Commons, consulted no one and did not even intimate that he meant to make a scene.
This may be his idea of comradeship; it is not mine. Clynes added: "I do not believe causes are served by violent language and violent action. Fred Jowett also attacked Grayson for his behaviour. We must recognise that the man who can make a crowd shout is not necessarily an organizer of men.
The gift of platform oratory, skill in making striking phrases, is a dangerous one. It is the man behind that matters.
If his skill is employed in setting, not class against class, but men of the same class against their kith and kin, sewing seeds of distrust and hatred where the love of a common cause should produce the fellowship of kindred spirits, it were better if he had no such skill. At first Keir Hardie was chairman of the party in the House of Commons , but was not very good with dealing with internal rivalries within the party, and in resigned from the post and Arthur Henderson became leader.
However, it was Ramsay MacDonald who held the most power. He was the only person in the entire LRC whose responsibility was to the whole rather than to any of the constituent parts. He had no salary, little formal power, and few resources.
But on the strategic questions that determined its fate, his was the decisive voice. During this period the Labour MPs gave its support to the Liberal government. The chief whip reported in Throughout this period I was always able to count on the support of the Labour Party. John Bruce Glasier argued that Ramsay MacDonald gave him the impression that he had lost faith in socialism and wanted to move the Labour Party to the right: "I noticed that Ramsay MacDonald in speaking of the appeal we should send out for capital used the word 'Democratic' rather than 'Labour' or 'Socialist' as describing the character of the newspaper.
I rebulked him flatly and said we would have no 'democratic' paper but a Socialist and Labour one - boldly proclaimed. Why does MacDonald always seem to try and shirk the word Socialism except when he is writing critical books about the subject. This included increases in taxation.
Whereas people on lower incomes were to pay 9d. Lloyd George also introduced a new supertax of 6d. Other measures included an increase in death duties on the estates of the rich and heavy taxes on profits gained from the ownership and sale of property. Other innovations in Lloyd George's budget included labour exchanges and a children's allowance on income tax.
Ramsay MacDonald argued that the Labour Party should fully support the budget. Lloyd George's Budget, classified property into individual and social, incomes into earned and unearned, and followers more closely the theorical contentions of Socialism and sound economics than any previous Budget has done. Arthur Henderson did not have the full-support of the party and in he decided to retire as chairman.
Ramsay MacDonald was expected to become the new leader but recently his youngest son had died of diphtheria. Eight days later his mother also died. It was therefore decided that George Barnes should become chairman. A few months later Barnes wrote to MacDonald saying he did not want to become chairman and was "only holding the fort". He continued, "I should say it is yours anytime". Two months later, on 6th February, , George Barnes sent a letter to the Labour Party announcing that he intended to resign as chairman.
Arthur Henderson now became secretary. According to Philip Snowden , a bargain had been struck at the party conference the previous month, whereby MacDonald was to resign the secretaryship in Henderson's favour, in return for becoming chairman. MacDonald's chairmanship was soon blighted by personal tragedy.
On 8th September , his wife, Margaret MacDonald , died of blood poisoning due to an internal ulcer. Her body was cremated at Golders Green on 12th September. Her son, Malcolm MacDonald , later recalled: "At the time of my mother's death Her illness and her death had a terrible effect on him of grief; he was distracted; he was in tears a lot of time when he spoke to us The Liberal government's next major reform was the National Insurance Act. This gave the British working classes the first contributory system of insurance against illness and unemployment.
All wage-earners between sixteen and seventy had to join the health scheme. Each worker paid 4d a week and the employer added 3d. In return for these payments, free medical attention, including medicine was given. Those workers who contributed were also guaranteed 7s. MacDonald declared in the House of Commons that the premiums were too high and the balance between state, employer and employee was unfair. However, he believed that the Labour Party should try to get the measure modified. Some leading figures in the movement, including Keir Hardie , Philip Snowden , Will Thorne and George Lansbury , disagreed and called for the bill to be rejected.
MacDonald was furious about this rebellious behaviour. He continued to negotiate with David Lloyd George and managed to get important concessions including low-paid workers exempted from contributions. Ramsay MacDonald also clashed with some members of the party over votes for women.
He had argued for many years that women's suffrage that was a necessary part of a socialist programme. In October, , Lansbury decided to draw attention to the plight of WSPU prisoners by resigning his seat in Parliament and fighting a by-election in favour of votes for women.
Lansbury was defeated by votes. MacDonald rejected their use of violence: "I have no objection to revolution, if it is necessary but I have the very strongest objection to childishness masquerading as revolution, and all that one can say of these window-breaking expeditions is that they are simply silly and provocative. I wish the working women of the country who really care for the vote MacDonald also pointed out, the WSPU wanted votes for women on the same terms as men, and specifically not votes for all women.
He considered this unfair as at this time only a third of men had the vote in parliamentary elections at this time. MacDonald's friend, John Bruce Glasier , recorded in his diary after a meeting with Emmeline Pankhurst and Christabel Pankhurst , that they were guilty of "miserable individualist sexism" and that he was strongly against supporting the organisation.
Ada Nield Chew attacked the policy of the WSPU: "The entire class of wealthy women would be enfranchised, that the great body of working women, married or single, would be voteless still, and that to give wealthy women a vote would mean that they, voting naturally in their own interests, would help to swamp the vote of the enlightened working man, who is trying to get Labour men into Parliament.
However, although most Labour MPs supported the principle of women's suffrage they refused to treat it as a priority. Clynes , William Adamson , Will Thorne and Ben Tillett believed that the movement should give total support to the war effort. Keir Hardie made a speech on 2nd August, , where he called on "the governing class Down with class rule!
Down with the rule of brute force! Down with war! Up with the peaceful rule of the people! Ramsay MacDonald agreed and stated that he would not encourage his members to take part in the war.
Across the roar of guns, we send sympathy and greeting to the German Socialists. They have laboured increasingly to promote good relations with Britain, as we with Germany. They are no enemies of ours but faithful friends. Ramsay MacDonald immediately resigned the chairmanship and the pro-war Arthur Henderson was elected in his place. The Chairmanship was impossible.
The men were not working, were not pulling together, there was enough jealously to spoil good feeling. The Party was no party in reality. It was sad, but glad to get out of harness. Almost alone amongst left-wing political figures, Victor Grayson gave recruiting speeches and wrote articles urging young men to join the armed forces. Some socialists accused him of being paid by the government to make these speeches.
He attempted to explain why he changed his views on war: "This war has made havoc of many ready-made theories and doctrines, and some of my most cherished antipathies have succumbed to its effects. I am facing the fact that some Peers of the Realm are now in khaki fighting an enemy country. In an interview Grayson gave to a newspaper he argued that the working-class would be rewarded if the Allied forces won the war: "The war has cast everything into the crucible. So far as Socialism can be defined intelligently, I still believe that the products of the workers belong to the workers The war has wrought a marvellous change in the division of classes and masses.
The working man has changed his attitude towards the worker, hence new political, industrial and ethical conditions will be the result of our inevitable triumph.
Members of the UDC agreed that one of the main reasons for the conflict was the secret diplomacy of people like Britain's foreign secretary, Sir Edward Grey. They decided that the Union of Democratic Control should have three main objectives: i that in future to prevent secret diplomacy there should be parliamentary control over foreign policy; ii there should be negotiations after the war with other democratic European countries in an attempt to form an organization to help prevent future conflicts; iii that at the end of the war the peace terms should neither humiliate the defeated nation nor artificially rearrange frontiers as this might provide a cause for future wars.
See all related overviews in Oxford Reference ». Labour has been the principal progressive alternative to the Conservative Party since the s, forming governments in , —31, —51, —70, —9, and The Labour Representation Committee was established in by a conference of trade unionists and socialists orchestrated by Keir Hardie. Arthur Henderson parliamentary chairman after MacDonald's resignation on the outbreak of war entered the cabinet on the formation of the wartime coalition in and from August worked with Sidney Webb in devising a new constitution.
In Labour gained seats to become the official opposition. Following the inconclusive election, it briefly formed the government with MPs between January and October , which demonstrated Labour's competence. However the second MacDonald government exposed the financial orthodoxy of ministers in the face of mounting unemployment and the financial crisis of The resignation of the Labour cabinet in August and the subsequent formation of the National coalition Government by MacDonald with the support of only a handful of Labour figures such as Snowden and J.
Thomas caused lasting bitterness within the Labour Party. After the disastrous election which reduced Labour from to 52 seats , Labour began a gradual recovery and won seats in on 38 per cent of the vote. The unassuming Clement Attlee was elected leader before this election. The year heralded an unexpected landslide victory for Labour, which won seats with 48 per cent of the vote. Despite achieving its highest ever poll in , Labour began thirteen years of opposition.
Admittedly, economic growth rates were less spectacular than hoped for under the eventually abandoned National Plan. In so doing, Blair enabled Labour, for the first time, to govern over a sustained period 13 years , and facilitated a long-term reinvestment in the public services, notably education and health. There were also significant constitutional reforms, like devolution in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland; and a large reduction in the number of hereditary peers in the House of Lords.
In this podcast, Kanishk Tharoor and Maryam Maruf highlight some of the antiquities that have been destroyed during recent conflicts in Iraq and Syria:. Dr Jeremy Nuttall is senior lecturer in modern British history at Kingston University London and author of Psychological socialism: the Labour Party and qualities of mind and character, to the present Manchester University, He also co-edited with Hans Schattle Making social democrats: citizens, mindsets, realities: essays for David Marquand Manchester University, Sign in.
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