Democratic Ideas and the British Labour Movement, 1880-1914

by Logie Barrow, Ian Bullock

Overview

Issues of democratic principle and form were of major importance in the pre-1914 socialist, trade union and labor movements. This is the first detailed study of that debate, which centered around socialists of the British Radical tradition, the Fabians, and the Independent Labour Party leadership, and which reflects on the current argument over democratic structures and electoral reform. Democratic Ideas and the British Labour Movement assesses attitudes to democracy at a formative period in the history of socialist ideas and the British Labour movement.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521560429
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	03/07/1996
Pages:	338
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.87(d)

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements; Introduction; Part I: 1. The survival of Chartist assumptions; 2. Democracy and socialism in the 1890s; 3. Democracy and the industrial struggle; Part II: 4. Conflicts in the ILP; 5. The pressure to federate: the industrial struggle in the late 1890s; 6. The rise and fall of the Clarion Federation; Part III: 7. The early 1900s: a hinge period; 8. Socialists and the state; 9. Parliamentary socialism? Labour in parliament; 10. Parliamentary democracy? 'Fred's obsession' and the path to the Bradford resolution; 11. Background to sydicalism: the legacy of the NIGFLTU's failure; 12. Avoiding the 'Servile State'. The impact of syndicalism and guild socialism; 13. 1914: an emerging consensus on the eve of Armageddon; 14. Conclusions; Appendix. Federation for local Labour historians - and for national; Index.

Editorial Reviews

"From undergraduate level and beyond, readers new to the history of British labor or 20th century politics generally should still be advised to consult this book in its new edition." Malcom Chase, Labor History

"Democratic Ideas and the British Labour Movement...is an orginal and suggestive work that anyone interested in the history of British labor will want to read." Peter Weiler, Albion

"Democratic Ideas and the British Labour Movement which is based on careful and extensive research, is an original and suggestive work that anyone interested in the history British labor will want to read." Peter Weiler, Albion

"...tour de force. Woodhouse's book is a model regional study in that it shows both the distinctiveness of the local labor movement and its relationship to national organizations and to historical developments of the period. It should inspire others of the same ilk." Pamela M. Graves, Victorian Studies

From the Publisher