Background Information
The General Strike was the most large scale industrial dispute to take place in Britain in the 20th century. Its origins lay in the disputes between bosses and trade unions which had been growing in the years leading up the Great War. These disputes were trials of strength. One the one hand was the power and influence of the wealthy owners of mines, factories, railway companies etc. On the other was the ability of the unions to mobilise mass workforces and maintain unity though drawn out disputes long enough to cause financial hardship to these employers. Until the war, the employers generally had the best of these disputes. However, the war brought in government control of the coal mines and other essential industries. Wages and safety improved under government control, and the miners wanted coal to remain a nationalised industry. The war had brought prosperity to many working people, but the years afterwards saw falling wages and rising unemployment.
The miners were the key group in the strike. In 1921, the government returned the coal mines to private ownership, which was soon followed by an attempt to lengthen hours and cut wages. Disputes between the miners and owners continued from 1921 to 1925. When a new crisis developed in June 1925 it looked as though the miners would strike. However, this strike would involve the Triple Alliance of Miners, Railways and Transport Workers. Faced with this threat, the government intervened in the dispute. They subsidised miners’ wages and hours, but only until the following year. The government hoped that sense and compromise would prevail, but it was not optimistic:
Government minister Lord Birkenhead
It would be possible to say without exaggeration then the miners’ leaders were the stupidest men in England, if we had not frequent occasion to meet the mine owners.
As 1926 dawned the tensions rose. By May the Trades Union Congress (TUC) was making it clear that if the miners were again forced to take a pay cut then all trade unionists would support them by coming out in a general strike. The employers would not budge, and certain figures within the government saw the opportunity for a trial of strength with the TUC. There had been concern in government circles for some time that the TUC was a potential threat to the Constitution. One of the more extreme figures in this party was Winston Churchill, but he had plenty of allies in the newspapers. The TUC protested that this was a strike about miners’ wages, but its opponents continued to paint it as a revolution. In the event the strike went ahead, lasting for 9 days.
Day 1: Tuesday May 4th
There was almost complete good humour and good order. London’s transport system was almost at a complete standstill. Thousands of commuters walked. The only news service available to the public was on BBC radio, as the printers were all on strike.
Day 2: Wednesday May 5th
Both sides managed to publish their first newspaper. The strikers published The British Worker. It pointed strongly to the strength and solidarity of the strike. It also went to enormous lengths to stress that the strike was an industrial dispute. It was in no way an attack on the Constitution.
The government published the British Gazette, edited by Winston Churchill. It ridiculed the strikers and stated strongly that their aim was to overturn the Constitution. It seems that the general public found this publication distasteful. Because it was so extreme they treated anything it said with great suspicion.
Day 3: Thursday May 6th
A skeleton service began to run on the London Underground, manned by volunteers. Eighty buses also ran but nearly fifty of them were damaged. The government took stronger measures to protect the buses and also any workers who had refused to strike.
There were disturbances in Edinburgh, Leeds, Aberdeen and various parts of London.
Day 4: Friday May 7th
A government statement announced that the situation was becoming more intense and that the strikers planned to disrupt the temporary transport networks. It also admitted that there had been no trouble up to this point. The statement also claimed that the TUC was attempting to starve the country. It also claimed that there had been widespread intimidation and that 50 000 special constables were to be taken on in London.
Day 5: Saturday May 8th
Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin spoke on the BBC. He accused the unions again of attacking the constitution. He also said that the government was not attacking the living standards of workers. The TUC replied that while the PM appealed for the strike to end he did not appeal for the mine owners to end their lock outs.
Day 6: Sunday May 9th
It was a quiet day across the country. Many strikers marched to church. Churchmen appealed for an end to the strike. The Government announced that there was a small but steady stream of strikers going back to work. There was little sign of the solidarity and the strike appeared to be weakening.
Day 7: Monday May 10th
The government was becoming increasingly confident in the success of its emergency supply services. The government claimed that the flow of returners was increasing. This was denied by the TUC.
Day 8: Tuesday May 11th
The general atmosphere was filled with rumours of an imminent peace. The TUC called a special meeting. However, it also called out the engineering and shipbuilding workers. It refused a request from the print unions to allow some papers to be printed.
A court action was brought by the National Sailors’ Union and the Firemens’ Union to restrain officials from calling members of these unions out on strike. This led to a judgement by Justice Astbury that the General Strike was illegal.
Day 9: Wednesday May 12th
At midday the TUC representative went to Downing Street and announced that the strike was being called off. The reasons given for the end of the strike by the TUC were not clear.
Rumours floated around that the government was planning drastic action. Labour journals suggested that there were plans to arrest the leaders of the TUC and to confiscate union funds. The TUC simply said that it accepted Sir Herbert Samuel’s proposals for a settlement. The miners refused to accept the call to peace. Prime Minister Baldwin called the end of the strike a victory for common sense.
