There is a hidden chapter in the history of the British working class. You won’t learn about it at school or see it in the media, but it smashes the stereotype of conservative British workers who are averse to class struggle.
A century ago, in 1926, the British working class waged a general strike that reached revolutionary proportions, threatening the very foundations of capitalist society.
It was the product of British imperialism’s changing place in the world, and proved in practice the power of the working class.
It exposed the naked force of the ‘democratic’ British state, the relationship between British workers and their trade unions, and the treachery of the so-called leaders of the British working class, who drove the strike to failure.
The young Communist Party of Great Britain tried to connect with the strike, but was misdirected and disoriented by Zinoviev and Stalin in Moscow, whose bureaucratic methods would later destroy the Communist International.
The history of the British General Strike inspires us. But more than that it teaches us important lessons about the class struggle we are fighting today – this time to victory.
Reading list
Books
- Ben Gliniecki – “A Communist History of the British General Strike”
- Leon Trotsky – “Where Is Britain Going?”
- Rob Sewell – “In the Cause of Labour – A History of British Trade Unionism”
Articles
- James Kilby – “90 years since the General Strike: The lessons for today”
- Ben Gliniecki – “Britain: communists, trade unions, and the Anglo-Russian Committee”
- Leon Trotsky – “Writings on Britain” (Notes on the situation in Britain 1925-1926)