Kmflett's Blog

The Spectator on the Chartists rally for the vote 10^th April 1848

The future of the Spectator continues to be a matter of speculation. It has been continuously published since 1828, which is a significant achievement. It has also managed to keep a reactionary political stance throughout as the extract from its comment on the Chartist demonstration for the vote on Kennington Common on 10^th April 1848 shows. It goes on to argue that education is required so that the working classes can learn their position in society but also complains that the physical condition of the demonstrators reflects a workforce weakened by poverty…

The deliberate under estimate of the size of the protest and the demeaning commentary on those attending has remained a feature of right-wing commentary on demonstrations ever since, as those attending protests on Gaza since October 2023 will have noted.

The Spectator 15^th April 1848

Topics of the Day

Monday-Its Lessons

The adventures of Monday were a great lesson to the Chartists and their more turbulent allies among the working classes. They had challenged the Government and the friends of order to a trial of strength; and their own display was a pitiable exposure of weakness. They threatened to come in hundreds of thousands; and they could not with all the appendages of a London crowd, must more than a tithe of the threatened numbers. To swell the show, they were content to assort with Irish Repealers, mere anarchists, and ragamuffins of various kinds, towards whom they have no sympathy. As they marched along in their separate contingents, the aspect of physical weakness in the greater part was painful. No settled councils guided them: violence was compensated by wavering; the delegates quarrelled amongst themselves on the very platform; the leaders were distrusted by the body of the meeting…..

On World Book Night I’m dipping into E P Thompson’s 1963 classic The Making of the English Working Class.

A long book,full of stories of struggle, the development of a radical working class culture, battles with the Government, not always successful.

In times like these I find myself turning to the book itself full of accounts but historically referenced ones,and often researched around WEA classes he taught in Yorkshire in the 1950s.

For example he references the example of the Sheffield radical Wolstenholme,jailed without charge for months in 1817, who wrote to his wife with some difficulty because ‘have broke my specttacles’. Such instances of persistence and resilience speak across the centuries

How the Hornsey Journal reported the Battle of Wood Green 23^rd April 1977

The Hornsey Journal a local paper covering the Hornsey, Crouch End and Muswell Hill areas of Haringey closed in 2012.  Its history is here:

https://www.britishpapers.co.uk/england-london/hornsey-journal/

The local press is under pressure as never before currently and far from all of it is progressively inclined.

However the front page of the Journal the week after the fascist National Front tried and largely failed to march down Wood Green High Rd in North London on Saturday 23^rd 1977 in what became known as the ‘Battle of Wood Green’ was exemplary.

It underlined local disgust both from many who had fought in World War Two, then only just over 30 years distant that Hitler lovers could be allowed to march but also concern from younger residents that the fascists were aiming to intimidate them and, if they got a chance, worse than that.

As it happened the march was mainly stopped by protesters as it entered Wood Green High Rd. The story of that is here:

https://kmflett.wordpress.com/2017/08/13/the-battle-of-wood-green-23rd-april-1977/

Why St George’s Day should be a Public Holiday

Unlike Billy Bragg I’ve never felt particularly tempted to try and wrestle St George, what is known of his actual existence or his myth, from the political right in the UK.

Why the right want St George, who wherever he was born, was certainly not English, is perhaps less obvious. He was a military saint and he was a Christian. Plus he has been around as an icon for a long time in English history.

Shakespeare’s Henry V contains the still oft repeated phrase ‘Cry God for Harry, England and St George. As a military and a religious man St George fitted the ideology of the Crusades well

We can agree then that if the reasons for George becoming an English saint, along with being the saint of numbers of other countries, are a little obscure, given the length of time he has been at it he at least has squatting rights to the title.

St George was a soldier in the Roman Army of Emperor Diocletian and was persecuted and killed for refusing to give up his Christian faith.

Given that the Romans had occupied Britain, and that there was some Christianity in the country some kind of connection can be seen.

That said the slaying of the dragon was not a reflection of some ancient English rivalry against Wales but mythic.

Leaving aside an argument about whether the left have not, in the main, been as patriotically English as the right [whether they should have been is another matter] and hence have equal claims to St George, it is also possible to see him as a symbol of the oppressed and poor- which was certainly what the majority of Christians were during the time of the Roman Empire.

I think however that in pursuing that argument the left has the weight of some centuries against it.

In the 1890 preface to the German edition of Marx’s Capital, Engels dealt with the case of Professor Brentano, who had accused Marx of making up a quotation from Gladstone in the book. Engels refers to the Professor as the ‘St George of the German Manufacturers Association’ engaged in slaying the ‘infernal dragon’ of Marx.

In 1941 in the Journal of the History of Ideas we find Goldwin Smith writing an article on Marx and St George. On the face of it the piece is a puzzle as it contains no actual reference to the Saint. The point is of course that St George stands for England, and Smith while finding Marx’s ideas interesting concludes that they weren’t really the thing for the English.

I wish those still trying to reclaim St George from the traditions of the right good luck but I think there is another way in which we could usefully proceed.

There is some evidence that going back to medieval times 23rd April was a feast day as people celebrated St George. Of course this year the pubs won’t be full of people toasting the dragon slayer with beers of that name or similar.

Why not however make St George’s Day a national holiday as Labour has proposed?

As the TUC regularly reminds us Britain has far fewer holidays than elsewhere in Europe and while the rest of the UK wouldn’t want a holiday to mark St George they could have one for David, Patrick and Andrew at the appropriate time.

That way the right can celebrate their version of St George, while the left and everyone else can reflect on the great British traditions of Saints Days, feasts and holidays.

London Socialist Historians Group

23rd April

Contact Dr Keith Flett 07803 167266

Historians underline importance of ‘Battle of Wood Green’ on 23^rd April 1977

The London Socialist Historians Group, which organises the socialist history seminar at the Institute of Historical Research in central London, has underlined the importance of marking the 43^rd anniversary of the Battle of Wood Green on 23^rd April.

On Saturday 23^rd April 1977 well over a thousand supporters of the fascist National Front gathered at Ducketts Common in North London with the aim of marching down one of the busiest and most multi-cultural High Streets in the Capital chanting racist slogans.

There was a united opposition to the fascist march from the local Labour and trade union movement and all Haringey Councillors. The spokesperson for those opposing the march was Jeremy Corbyn, then a Labour Councillor in the Borough.

When the fascist march entered Wood Green High Rd protesters joined with shoppers to break it and stop the majority of the National Front march from proceeding.

LSHG Convenor Keith Flett said, a 43^rd anniversary is, historically speaking not a ‘significant’ one. But it is important to remember the united effort to stop fascists from stirring division and hate on that Saturday afternoon 43 years ago now, given that when one looks around not just Britain but the world its clear that the far right and fascism are still very much with us and the work of opposing them is as important as ever.

It is the 150th anniversary of the birth of Lenin.

He was one of the founding influences of the Beard Liberation Front, the politics perhaps, but the beard definitely. Marx, Engels, Lenin and Trotsky had beards while Stalin could only manage a moustache.

Lenin’s image with the goatee beard became a sort of cult in Russia, only after his death. This to the extent that the razor which he allegedly used to shave his beard on one occasion remains preserved in a museum.

The reality of course was different. For Lenin the beard was a revolutionary tactic. He usually wore one but he also often worked in conditions either of political illegality or, before the revolution in 1917, where he risked arrest or possible serious personal injury from opponents.

On such occasions Lenin shaved his beard off and disguised himself. The beard was characteristic of Lenin’s image but a workers revolution even more so and he knew, when it came to it, which was the more important.

Beard Liberation Front

Media Release 22^nd April

Contact Keith Flett 07803 167266

BEARD LIBERATION FRONT SAYS BRANSON’S BEARD MUST GO

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has said that Richard Branson’s beard must go before he brings the hirsute into disrepute any further

In his latest public appearance Branson has, via a video, complained that the Australian Government will not bail out Virgin Australia which is now in Administration, putting the jobs of thousands of employees at risk

Yet Branson himself is a man of significant wealth including the ownership of a private island who could in fact get a loan himself to allow the business to continue

The campaigners say that his actions are bringing the hirsute into disrepute, and this is just the latest time this has occurred. They say however that terms like ‘Beardy Branson’ should still be avoided.

BLF Organiser Keith Flett said, we note that Branson has now dyed his beard black. Frankly it needs to go before he does any further damage to the public image of the hirsute

The BLF only rarely calls for beard wearers to shave but when the impact is significantly negative it sometimes feels there is little choice. Previous calls to shave have been made to Sir Alan Sugar and Antony Worrall Thompson

Beard Liberation Front

21^st April

Contact Keith Flett 07803 167266

Virat Kohli sets Beardmark for lockdown beard trimming

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has said that Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli has set the Beardmark for lockdown beard trimming.

Kohli posted on his Instagram account last weekend details of how he trimmed his trademark beard into a new stylish ‘French beard’ style.

By contrast famously beard Kiwi cricketer Kane Williamson is reported to have shaved his trademark beard off entirely

BLF Organiser Keith Flett said, Virat has set the Beardmark for lockdown beard trimming. I’m afraid Kane Williamson has made a serious error by contrast. Trimming is fine, shaving is not.

Beard Liberation Front

Media Release 21^st April

Contact Keith Flett 07803 167266

BEARD LIBERATION FRONT CALLS FOR RICHARD BRANSON TO SHAVE HIS BEARD OFF

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has again slammed Virgin boss Richard Branson for bringing the hirsute into disrepute.

Branson has claimed that without a Government bail-out, Taxpayers money, or Virgin Airlines may cease to operate.

Branson himself is a man of significant wealth including the ownership of a private island and not known for an enthusiasm for paying taxes in the UK.

The campaigners say that his actions are bringing the hirsute into disrepute, and this is just the latest time this has occurred. They say however that terms like ‘Beardy Branson’ should be avoided.

BLF Organiser Keith Flett said, we say to Richard Branson, shave off your beard and pay your taxes

The BLF only rarely calls for beard wearers to shave but when the reputational impact is significantly negative it sometimes feels there is little choice.

Beard Liberation Front

Media Release 21^st April

Contact Keith Flett 07803 167266

RICHARD BRANSON SLAMMED FOR BRINGING THE HIRSUTE INTO DISREPUTE

The Beard Liberation Front, the informal network of beard wearers, has again slammed Virgin boss Richard Branson for bringing the hirsute into disrepute.

Branson has claimed that without a Government bail-out, Taxpayers money, or Virgin Airlines may cease to operate.

Branson himself is a man of significant wealth including the ownership of a private island and not known for an enthusiasm for paying taxes in the UK.

The campaigners say that his actions are bringing the hirsute into disrepute, and this is just the latest time this has occurred. They say however that terms like ‘Beardy Branson’ should be avoided.

BLF Organiser Keith Flett said, we say to Richard Branson, shave off your beard and pay your taxes

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52354865