Labour and the caucus : working-class radicalism and organised Liberalism in England, 1868-88 / James Owen.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Owen, James, 1980-

Series:

Studies in labour history (Liverpool University Press) ; 3.

Studies in labour history ; 3

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Labour Party (Great Britain)--History.

Labour Party (Great Britain).

Radicalism--Great Britain--History--19th century.

Radicalism.

Working class--Political activity.

History.

Great Britain.

Liberalism--Great Britain--History--19th century.

Liberalism.

Working class--Political activity--Great Britain--History--19th century.

Working class.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

viii, 244 pages ; 25 cm.

Other Title:

Labor and the caucus

Place of Publication:

Liverpool [UK] : Liverpool University Press, 2014.

Summary:

Working-class radicalism and organised Liberalism in England, 1868-1888 Labour and the Caucus provides a new, innovative pre-history of the Labour party. In the two decades following the Second Reform Act there was a sustained and concerted campaign for working-class parliamentary representation from a range of labour organisations to an extent that was hitherto unseen in British political history The franchise revolution of 1867 and the controversial introduction of more sophisticated forms of electoral machinery, which became known as the 'caucus', raised serious questions not only for a labour movement seeking to secure political representation but also for a Liberal party that had to respond to the pressures of mass politics. Through a close examination of the interactions between labour and the 'caucus' from the 1868 general election to Keir Hardies independent labour candidature in 1888, this book provides a comprehensive and multi-layered picture of the troubled relationship between working-class radicals and organised Liberalism. The electoral strategy of labour candidates, the links between urban and rural radicalism, the impact of the National Liberal Federation, the influence of American and Irish politics on the labour movement, the revival of socialism, and the contested identity of a 'Labour party' are all examined from fresh perspectives. In doing so, this book challenges the existing teleological assumptions about the rise of independent labour, and explores the questions that remain about how working-class radicals and Liberals shared and negotiated power, and how this relationship changed over time. Book jacket.

Contents:

1 The Struggle for Political Representation: Labour Candidates and the Liberal Party, 1868-76 24

2 Activism, Identity and Networks: Urban and Rural Working-Class Radicalism, 1868-74 61

3 Labour's Response to the Caucus: Class, America and Language, 1877-85 91

4 Tensions and Fault Lines: The Lib-Lab MPs, the Wider Labour Movement and the Role of Irish Nationalism, 1885-8 121

5 Rethinking the 'Revival of Socialism': Socialists, Liberals and the Caucus, 1881-8 155.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 213-230) and index.

ISBN:

9781846319440

1846319447

OCLC:

880373460