Where is Britain Going (1925)

7/21/2019 Where is Britain Going (1925)

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Leon Trotsky

Where is Britain Going?

(1925)

Originally published: Leon Trotsky, Where Is Britain Going? , 1925.New Translation: Trotskys Writings on Britain , Vol.2, London 1975.Translator: Allan Clinton.Transcribed: Ted Crawford for the Trotsky Internet Archive in 1999.

Kindle version of Where is Britain Going?

o Preface to the American edition

o Preface

1 The Decline of Britain

! Mr. Baldwin and ... Gradualness

" One or Two Peculiarities of Labour Leaders

# The Fabian Theory of !ocialism

$ The "uestion of #e$olutionary Force

% Two Traditions% The !e$enteenth&'entury #e$olution and 'hartism

& Trade (nions and Bolshe$ism


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' Pros)ects

Preface to the

American Edition

The present work is devoted to the future destiny of ritain. ut it !ay also interestthe A!eri"an reader # firstly, $e"ause ritain o""upies all too %reat a pla"e in the world., and se"ondly, $e"ause the &nited 'tates and (reat ritain are twin stars,and the faster the one dies out, the !ore $ri%htly the other flares up.

The "on"lusion whi"h ) rea"h in !y study is that ritain is approa"hin%, at fullspeed, an era of %reat revolutionary upheavals. *f "ourse, ritish se"ret poli"e!en

and their A!eri"an dis"iples will say that ) a! en%a%in% in propa%anda for aproletarian revolution # as if one "ould alter the dire"tion of develop!ent of a %reatnation fro! outside, $y !eans of a pa!phlet+ )n fa"t, however, ) a! !erely atte!ptin%, $y analy in% the leadin% fa"tors in ritain-s histori"al develop!ent, toelu"idate the histori"al path down whi"h she has $een thrust $y e ternal andinternal "onditions. )n this respe"t, to !ake a""usations of revolutionary interferen"e in other people-s $usiness is like a""usin% an astrono!er of "ausin%the solar e"lipse that he had fore"ast.

/aturally ) do not !ean $y this that astrono!i"al events "an $e identified withso"ial pheno!ena. The for!er o""ur outside of us and the latter throu%h us. utthis does not !ean that histori"al events take pla"e solely at our volition and "an $esteered $y !eans of pa!phlets. ooks and newspapers whi"h have as their task thedefen"e and prote"tion of "apitalis!, ritish "apitalis! in"luded, have $een andare $ein% pu$lished on a far %reater s"ale than ones dire"ted a%ainst it. The !atteris not, however, de"ided this way. This or that idea "an e ert an effe"t only in so faras it is rooted in the !aterial "onditions of so"ial develop!ent. ritain is !ovin%towards revolution $e"ause the epo"h of "apitalist de"line has set in. And if "ulpritsare to $e sou%ht, then in answer to the 0uestion who and what are propellin%

ritain alon% the road to revolution we !ust say not os"ow $ut /ew 3ork.

'u"h a reply !i%ht see! parado i"al. /evertheless it "orresponds wholly toreality. The powerful and ever4%rowin% world pressure of the &nited 'tates !akesthe predi"a!ent of ritish industry, ritish trade, ritish finan"e and ritishdiplo!a"y in"reasin%ly insolu$le and desperate.

The &nited 'tates "annot help strivin% towards e pansion on the world !arket,otherwise e "ess will threaten its own industry with a -stroke . The &nited 'tates"an only e pand at the e pense of ritain. 'pee"hes on the revolutionary i!port of this or that 6 os"ow pa!phlet "an only produ"e an ironi" s!ile when thee"ono!i" life of a %reat nation is $ein% "hoked in the steel vi"e of A!eri"an


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do!inan"e $y r. awes-s 81 patented syste!. &nder the "loak of today-s6pa"ifi"ation and 6re"overy of :urope, hu%e revolutionary and !ilitary upheavalsand "onfli"ts are $ein% prepared for the future. r. ;ulius arnes 82 , who stands"lose to the today is ... al!ost a "onservative institution $y "o!parison withthe /ew 3ork 'to"k : "han%e. r. or%an 8? , r. awes and r. ;ulius arnesare the $usy artifi"ers of the approa"hin% :uropean revolutions.

To a "onsidera$le de%ree the &nited 'tates is "arryin% out its work, in :uropeand throu%hout the world, with ritain-s "olla$oration and throu%h her a%en"y. utfor ritain this 6"olla$oration is only the for! of a %rowin% dependen"e. ritain is,as it were, usherin% the &nited 'tates in only for her to take possession.


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Where is Britain Going? | Preface

Notes1. rawn up in April 192? $y a "o!!ittee headed $y the A!eri"an finan"ier and%eneral, Charles (. awes, later &' Vi"e resident in 1925429. The plan providedfor a s"ale of annual pay!ents of (er!an war reparations and reor%ani ation of the Bei"hs$ank, and re"o!!ended a lar%e forei%n loan for (er!any.

2. A !a or A!eri"an finan"ier, "hair!an of !any "o!panies and &' H. Dead of the A!eri"an international $ankin%fir! founded $y his %randfather, "ontrollin% lar%e se"tions of shippin%, railwaysand steel. layed a leadin% part in raisin% loans for the ritish war effort fro! 191?to 1919.

Preface

Britain today stands, at a point of "risis # perhaps !ore so than any other "apitalist"ountry. ut ritain-s "risis is to a lar%e e tent also a "risis for four of the world-s"ontinents, and at least the $e%innin% of a shift for the fifth # and today the !ostpowerful # A!eri"a. At the sa!e ti!e the politi"al develop!ent of ritain e hi$its%reat pe"uliarities, flowin% fro! the whole of her past, and in lar%e !easure $lo"kin% the path $efore her.


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their own line of develop!ent whi"h in"reasin%ly diver%es fro! that followed $y the !etropolis.

*ur a""ount will $e lar%ely "riti"al and pole!i"al. Distory is !ade throu%h !en. An assess!ent of the vital for"es !akin% today-s history "annot $ut $e an a"tive

one. )n order to understand what the "lasses, the parties, and their leaders arestru%%lin% for, and what awaits the! to!orrow, we !ust "ut throu%h the dense!ass of politi"al "onventions, lies and hypo"risy, the all4pervadin% parlia!entary 6"ant 81 . &nder these "ir"u!stan"es pole!i" $e"o!es an indispensa$le !ethod of politi"al analysis. /onetheless the 0uestion we have set ourselves, and to whi"h weshall try to find the answer, has an o$ e"tive "hara"ter 6


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of "apitalist states $e%an to reveal its perni"ious, "onservative aspe"ts. The do"trineof free trade was dealt a heavy $low $y (er!an "o!petition.

)t $e"a!e "lear durin% the final 0uarter of the last "entury that ritain was $ein%el$owed out of her position of world do!ination and $y the $e%innin% of the

present "entury this had produ"ed an internal un"ertainty and fer!ent a!on% theupper "lasses, and a deep !ole"ular pro"ess of an essentially revolutionary "hara"ter in the workin% "lass. At the "entre of these pro"esses were !i%hty "onfli"ts $etween la$our and "apital. )t was not only the aristo"rati" status of

ritish industry in the world, $ut also the privile%ed position of the 6aristo"ra"y of la$our within ritain that was shaken. 1911 to 191> were years of unparalleled"lass $attles $y !iners, railway!en and other transport workers. )n Au%ust 1911 anational, in other words a %eneral strike developed on the railways. urin% thosedays a di! spe"tre of revolution hun% over ritain. The leaders !ade every effort toparaly e the !ove!ent. Their !otive was 6patriotis! the strike was on at theti!e of the A%adir in"ident 8> whi"h threatened to lead to war with (er!any.Today it is well known that the ri!e inister invited the workers- leaders to ase"ret !eetin%, and "alled on the! to 6save the nation . And the leaders did all they "ould to stren%then the $our%eoisie, and there$y to prepare for the i!perialistslau%hter.

The 191?4191F war see!ed to "ut the revolutionary pro"ess short. )t put a stop tothe develop!ent of the strike !ove!ents. y $rin%in% a$out the $reak4up of (er!any it had apparently restored ritain to her role of world he%e!ony. ut it was soon to $e revealed that ritain-s de"line, while te!porarily "he"ked, had inreality only $een deepened $y the war.

)n the years of 1917 to 192J the ritish la$our !ove!ent a%ain passed throu%han e tre!ely stor!y period. 'trikes took pla"e on a $road s"ale. a" onald si%ned!anifestoes fro! whi"h, today, he would re"oil in horror. *nly after 192J did the!ove!ent return within $ounds= after 6 la"k @riday , when the Triple Allian"e of !iners-, railway!en-s and transport workers- leaders $etrayed the %eneral strike.

araly ed in the sphere of e"ono!i" a"tion, the ener%y of the !asses was dire"tedon to the politi"al plane. The La$our arty %rew as if out of the earth itself.

)n what does the "han%e in the e ternal and internal situation of ritain "onsistI

urin% the war the %i%anti" e"ono!i" do!ination of the &nited 'tates hadde!onstrated itself wholly and "o!pletely. The &nited 'tates- e!er%en"e fro!overseas provin"ialis! at on"e shifted ritain into a se"ondary position.

The 6"o4operation $etween A!eri"a and ritain is the !o!entarily pea"efulfor! within whi"h ritain-s "ontinuin% retreat will pro"eed.

This 6"o4operation !ay at this or that !o!ent $e dire"ted a%ainst a thirdpower= nonetheless, the funda!ental anta%onis! in the world is that $etween

ritain and A!eri"a, and all the other anta%onis!s whi"h see! !ore a"ute and


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!ore i!!ediately threatenin% at a %iven !o!ent "an $e understood and assessedonly on the $asis of this "onfli"t of ritain with A!eri"a.

An%lo4A!eri"an "o4operation is preparin% the way for a war ust as a period of refor!s prepares a revolution. The very fa"t that, $y takin% the path of 6refor!s

Ei.e., "o!pulsory 6deals with A!eri"aH ritain will a$andon one position afteranother, !ust for"e her in the end to resist (reat ritain-s produ"tive for"es, and!ost of all her livin% produ"tive for"es, the proletariat, no lon%er "orrespond to herpla"e in the world !arket. Den"e the "hroni" une!ploy!ent. The "o!!er"ial andindustrial Eand the !ilitary and navalH pre4e!inen"e of ritain has, in the past,al!ost safe%uarded the links $etween the parts of the e!pire As early as the end of the last "entury Beeves, the ri!e inister of /ew Kealand, wrote 6Two thin%s!aintain the present relations $etween the "olonies and ritain 1H their $elief that

ritain-s poli"y is in the !ain a poli"y of pea"e, and 2H their $elief that ritain rulesthe waves. The se"ond "ondition was, of "ourse, the !ain one. This loss of the6rule of the waves %oes hand4in4hand with the $uild4up of "entrifu%al for"es withinthe e!pire. )!perial unity is in"reasin%ly threatened $y the diver%in% interests of the do!inions and the stru%%les of the "olonies.

The develop!ent of !ilitary te"hni0ue !ilitates a%ainst (reat ritain-s se"urity. Aviation and "he!i"al warfare is redu"in% the tre!endous histori"al advanta%es of an island position to ero. A!eri"a, that %i%anti" 6island walled off on $oth sides $y o"eans, re!ains invulnera$le. ut ritain-s %reatest "entres of population, andLondon a$ove all, "an fa"e a !urderous air atta"k fro! the "ontinent of :urope inthe "ourse of a few hours.

Davin% lost the advanta%es of ina""essi$ility, the ritish %overn!ent is"o!pelled to take an in"reasin%ly dire"t part in purely :uropean !atters and in:uropean !ilitary pa"ts. ritain-s overseas possessions, her do!inions, have nointerest in this poli"y. They are interested in the a"ifi" *"ean, the )ndian *"eanand to so!e e tent in the Atlanti" $ut not in the sli%htest in the :n%lish Channel. At the first world "lash this diver%en"e of interests will turn into a %apin% a$yss in whi"h i!perial links will $e $uried. The politi"al life of (reat ritain is, inanti"ipation of this, paraly ed $y internal fri"tions and is doo!ed to $e essentially apoli"y of passivity, with a "onse0uent worsenin% of the e!pire-s world position.

eanti!e, !ilitary spendin% !ust for! an ever4%rowin% share of (reat ritain-sshrinkin% national in"o!e.

*ne of the "onditions of ritain-s 6"o4operation with A!eri"a is the repay!entof the %i%anti" ritish de$t to A!eri"a, without any hope of ever re"eivin%repay!ent of the de$t owed her $y the "ontinental states. The $alan"e of e"ono!i"power will there$y swin% still further in A!eri"a-s favour.

*n 5th ar"h this year the ank of :n%land raised the ank Bate fro! ? to 5 per"ent followin% the e a!ple of the /ew 3ork @ederal Beserve ank, whi"h hadraised its rate fro! > to > per "ent. )n the City of London this sharp re!inder of


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finan"ial dependen"e on their "ousins fro! a"ross the Atlanti" was felt very painfully. ut what were they to doI The A!eri"an %old reserve is appro i!ately M?,5JJ !illion, while the ritish is appro i!ately M75J !illion, si ti!es less. A!eri"a has a %old "urren"y, while (reat ritain "an only !ake desperate efforts tore4esta$lish one. )t is natural that, when the rate is raised fro! > to > per "ent in A!eri"a ritain is "o!pelled to reply $y raisin% her rate fro! ? to 5 per "ent. 'u"ha !easure strikes at ritish industry and "o!!er"e $y raisin% the "ost of essential!aterials. )n this way A!eri"a at every step shows ritain her pla"e in one "ase $y the !ethods of diplo!ati" pressure, in another $y a $ankin% de"ision, and alwaysand everywhere $y the pressure of her "olossal e"ono!i" do!ination. 81N

At the sa!e ti!e the ritish press notes with alar! the 6strikin% pro%ress of various $ran"hes of (er!an industry, and of (er!an ship$uildin% in parti"ular. Arisin% fro! the latter, The Ti es of 1Jth ar"h wrote

)t is pro$a$le that one of the fa"tors whi"h !akes for the a$ility of the (er!an yards to "o!pete is the "o!plete 6trustifi"ation of the !aterial, fro! the !ine tothe fitted plate, fro! the finan"in% $ank to the sale of ti"kets. This syste! is not without its effe"ts on wa%es and the "ost of livin%. 5,JJJ= it has flu"tuated $etween 1 and 1O !illion. This

"hroni" une!ploy!ent is the sharpest revelation of the syste!-s insolven"y= it isalso its A"hilles- heel. The &ne!ployed )nsuran"e A"t introdu"ed in 192J wasdesi%ned to !eet e "eptional "ir"u!stan"es whi"h, supposedly, would 0ui"kly pass.

ut !eanwhile une!ploy!ent was $e"o!in% per!anent, insuran"e "eased to $einsuran"e, sin"e spendin% on the une!ployed was not "overed $y the pay!ents of "ontri$utors. The ritish une!ployed "an no lon%er $e re%arded as a 6nor!alreserve ar!y, "ontra"tin% and e pandin% and "onstantly "han%in% its "o!position, $ut !ust $e seen as a per!anent so"ial layer "reated $y industry durin% the periodof %rowth and dis"har%ed in a period of re"ession. )t is a %outy %rowth on the so"ialor%anis!, ste!!in% fro! a weak !eta$olis!.

The resident of the @ederation of ritish )ndustries, Colonel


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durin% the last two years that it "ould not sti!ulate $usiness!en to developindustry usiness enterprises do not yield any hi%her return than fi ed4interestpaper values E%ilt4ed%ed se"urities and so onH. 6*ur national pro$le! is not apro$le! of produ"tion $ut a !arket pro$le!. ut how do you resolve a !arketpro$le!I )t is ne"essary to produ"e !ore "heaply than others. 3et to do this it isne"essary either radi"ally to re4or%ani e industry, to redu"e ta es, to "ut workers- wa%es or to "o!$ine all three !ethods. Cuttin% wa%es, whi"h "an %ive only aninsi%nifi"ant result in ter!s of redu"in% produ"tion "osts, will produ"e fir!opposition sin"e the workers are today fi%htin% for wa%e rises. )t is i!possi$le toredu"e ta es sin"e it is ne"essary to pay off de$ts, to esta$lish a %old4$ased"urren"y, and to !aintain the apparatus of e!pire and 1 !illion une!ployed to $oot.

All these ite!s enter into the "ost of produ"tion. )ndustry "ould only $ereor%ani ed $y investin% new "apital= !eanwhile low profits drive free "apitaltowards state and other loans.

'tanley a"hin, the resident of the Asso"iation of ritish Cha!$ers of Co!!er"e, re"ently de"lared that the solution to une!ploy!ent was e!i%rationThe $enevolent fatherland tells a !illion or so workers who, to%ether with theirfa!ilies, !ake up several !illion "iti ens 6'tuff yourselves in the hold and "lear off so!ewhere overseas+ The utter $ankrupt"y of the "apitalist re%i!e is stated here without the least e0uivo"ation.


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stru%%le $etween Li$eralis! and so"ialis!. This perspe"tive presupposed a rapidrevolutionary develop!ent in ritain and in :urope. ;ust as, for e a!ple, our ownCadet arty EConstitutional4 e!o"ratsH $e"a!e, under the pressure of therevolution, the sole party of the landowners and the $our%eoisie, so ritishLi$eralis! would have a$sor$ed the Conservative arty and $e"o!e the sole party of property, if a revolutionary onslau%ht $y the proletariat had developed in the"ourse of the latter half of the nineteenth "entury. ut ar -s prophe"y was !adeon the very eve of a new period of rapid "apitalist develop!ent E1F5141F7>H.Chartis! finally disappeared. 8? The workers- !ove!ent took the path of tradeunionis!. The inner "ontradi"tions of the rulin% "lass took on the appearan"e of astru%%le $etween the Li$eral and the Conservative arties. y ro"kin% theparlia!entary swin% fro! ri%ht to left and fro! left to ri%ht, the $our%eoisie founda vent for the opposition feelin%s of the workin% !asses.

(er!an "o!petition was the first serious threat to ritish world he%e!ony, anddealt it the first serious $low. @ree Trade ran up a%ainst the superiority of (er!anprodu"tive te"hni0ue and or%ani ation. ritish Li$eralis! was only the politi"al%enerali ation of @ree Trade. The an"hester '"hool had o""upied a do!inantposition 85 fro! the ti!e of the $our%eois, property40ualified, ele"toral refor!s of 1F>2 8G and the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1F?G. *ver the "ourse of the ne t half4"entury the do"trine of @ree Trade see!ed to $e an i!!uta$le pro%ra!!e. A""ordin%ly the leadin% role $elon%ed to the Li$erals. The workers tailed $ehindthe!. @ro! the $e%innin% of the 1F7Js the pattern was upset @ree Trade wasdis"redited= a prote"tionist !ove!ent set in= the $our%eoisie was in"reasin%ly sei ed $y i!perialist tenden"ies. 'y!pto!s of the Li$eral arty-s de"ay appearedas early as (ladstone-s ti!e, when a %roup of Li$erals and Badi"als led $y Cha!$erlain raised the $anner of prote"tionis! and oined with the Conservatives.811 @ro! the !iddle of the 1F9Js trade took a turn for the $etter. This delayed

ritain-s politi"al transfor!ation. ut $y the $e%innin% of the twentieth "entury Li$eralis!, as the party of the !iddle "lasses, had "ra"ked. )ts leader, LordBose$ery, pla"ed hi!self openly $ehind the $anner of i!perialis!. Dowever, theLi$eral arty was destined for one !ore upsur%e $efore leavin% the s"ene. &nderthe influen"e of the evident de"line of ritish "apital on the one hand, and of the!i%hty revolutionary !ove!ent in Bussia on the other, there developed a politi"alre4awakenin% of the workin% "lass whi"h, in applyin% itself to the "reation of aparlia!entary La$our arty, also poured flood4water into the !ill of the Li$eralopposition Li$eralis! "a!e to power a%ain in 19JG. ut this upsur%e "ould not, $y its very nature, last for lon%. The politi"al !ove!ent of the proletariat led to thefurther %rowth of the La$our arty. efore 19JG the La$our arty-s representation

had %rown !ore or less in step with the Li$erals-= after 19JG the La$our arty was"learly %rowin% at the e pense of the Li$erals.

)t was for!ally the Li$eral arty whi"h, throu%h Lloyd (eor%e, led the war. )nfa"t, the i!perialist war, fro! whi"h even the sa"red re%i!e of @ree Trade "ouldnot save ritain, inevita$ly stren%thened the Conservatives as the !ost "onsistentparty of i!perialis!. Thus the "onditions were finally prepared for the La$our

arty-s entran"e onto the s"ene.


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to thaw out at the ri%ht !o!ent all the ne"essary pra"ti"al "on"lusions fro! thesharpenin% "risisI )t is in this 0uestion that (reat ritain-s fate is today "ontained.

Footnote

1N. 'in"e this was written the ritish %overn!ent has taken a series of le%islative!easures in the fields of $ankin% and finan"e to %uarantee the "han%e to the (old'tandard. Dere we see! to have a 6%reat vi"tory for ritish "apitalis! a"tual fa"t

ritain-s de"line is nowhere e pressed !ore "learly than in this finan"iala"hieve!ent. ritain was "o!pelled to "arry out this e pensive operation throu%hthe pressure of the %old4$a"ked A!eri"an dollar, and the finan"ial poli"y of herown do!inions whi"h were orientatin% the!selves in"reasin%ly towards the dollarand turnin% their $a"ks on the pound sterlin%. ritain "ould not have a""o!plishedthis re"ent step towards %old "urren"y without e tensive finan"ial 6aid fro! the&nited 'tates. ur that !eans that the fate of the pound sterlin% is $e"o!in%dire"tly dependent on /ew 3ork The &nited 'tates is takin% into its own hands a!i%hty weapon of finan"ial i!pression. ritain is $ein% "o!pelled to pay a hi%hinterest rate for this dependen"e. The dividends will $e "har%ed a%ainst an already ailin% industry. )n order to hinder the e port of her own %old she is for"ed to "ut $a"k the e port of her own %oods At the sa!e ti!e she "annot refuse to transfer to%old "urren"y without hastenin% her own de"line in the world "apital !arket Thisfatal "o!$ination of "ir"u!stan"es $rin%s on a feelin% of severe !alaise a!on% the

ritish rulin% "lasses and %ives rise to !alevolent $ut i!potent %ru!$lin% in theConservative press itself. The !ai"y %ai" writes 6 y a""eptin% the (old 'tandardthe ritish %overn!ent is %ivin% the @ederal Beserve ank Ewhi"h is in pra"ti"e inthe power of the &nited 'tates %overn!entH the possibility of creating a monetarycrisis in Britain at any moment it chooses . The ritish %overn!ent is $rin%in% the whole finan"ial poli"y of its own "ountry into su$!ission to a forei%n nation ... The

ritish :!pire is $ein% !ort%a%ed to the &nited 'tates . 6Thanks to Chur"hill , writes the Conservative newspaper, the !ai"y &' ress , 6 ritain is fallin% underthe heel of the A!eri"an $ankers . The !ai"y Chronic"e e presses itself !orede"idedly 6 ritain is in fa"t de!oted to the position of $ein% the forty4ninth stateof A!eri"a . )t "ould not $e put !ore "learly or vividly+ To all these reproa"hes

Ewhi"h la"k "on"lusions or perspe"tivesH Chur"hill, the Chan"ellor of the: "he0uer, replies to the effe"t that there is nothin% else for ritain to do $ut to $rin% her finan"ial syste! into "onfor!ity 6with reality-. Chur"hill-s words si%nify we have $e"o!e i!!easura$ly poorer, the &nited 'tates i!!easura$ly ri"her= we!ust either fi%ht A!eri"a or su$!it to her= in !akin% the pound sterlin%dependent on A!eri"an $anks we si!ply translate our %eneral e"ono!i" de"line


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into the lan%ua%e of "urren"y= we "annot leap over our own heads= we !ust"onfor! 6with reality . # L.D.T.

Preface |Where is Britain Going?

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Notes

1. The uritans were those se"tions of :n%lish rotestants in the 1Gth and 17th"enturies who "onsidered that the rotestant refor!ation had not %one far enou%h.They wanted less ritual and !ore de!o"rati" for!s of "hur"h or%ani ation. Theiropposition to $ishops was of a pie"e with their politi"al opposition to the rule of !onar"hy, an intelle"tual opposition to relian"e on tradition and superstition, and

a so"ial ethi" whi"h "o!$ined a $elief in the virtues of work and individual s!all4ownership. They were in effe"t the :n%lish $our%eoisie and provided the ideolo%y of the various opposition %roups in the 1G?J Bevolution.

2. Puoted in . eer, A #istory o British *ocia"is E1919H, Vol.1, p.2F>, fro!+,arter"y -evie. , ;une4Au%ust 1F2G, pp.9249

>. *n ;uly 1 1911 a (er!an warship visited the oro""an port of A%adir alle%edly toprote"t (er!an interests a%ainst @ren"h e pansion. The ritish %overn!entthreatened a"tion a%ainst a (er!an presen"e so "lose to (i$raltar, and the threat of

i!perialist war was averted $y a deal under whi"h (er!any was "on"eded part of @ren"h Con%o to "o!pensate for her withdrawal fro! oro""o.

?. The first politi"al !ove!ent of the ritish workin% "lass. Chartis! took up thetraditional de!ands of universal !anhood suffra%e and other arlia!entary refor!s, and tried to a"hieve the! $y !ethods in"ludin% petitions, strikes andar!ed insurre"tion durin% the period fro! 1F>7 to 1F?F. The strikers were $eaten $a"k to work and the insurre"tionists were transported to Australia. The threepetitions presented to arlia!ent in the period had enor!ous workin% "lasssupport, $ut were "onte!ptuously re e"ted with lar%e displays of for"e and

ar%u!ents a$out the san"tity of property and the "onstitution.

5. The an"hester s"hool of e"ono!i"s represented the interests of the industrial $our%eoisie at the hei%ht of ritish e"ono!i" supre!a"y in the !id419th "entury. )t"o!prised an e tre!e for! of laisse 4faire, "onsiderin% that prosperity wouldfollow the liftin% of all $arriers to "apitalist enterprise. )ts !ost fa!ous e ponents were the Li$eral politi"ians Bi"hard Co$den, a "ali"o printer, and ;ohn ri%ht,


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partner in a fir! of "otton spinners. )ts poli"ies triu!phed with the liftin% of virtually all ritish tariff $arriers in the 1F?Js, "ul!inatin% in the repeal of theCorn Laws in 1F?G.

G. The de!and to put an end to the syste! where$y seats in arlia!ent "ould $e

$ou%ht and tiny %roups "ould ele"t s "a!e to a head with the ele"tion of arefor!in% J. &nder intense popular pressure, and thethreat to flood the Douse of Lords with new peers, a !easure was passed a$olishin%the worst of the 6rotten $orou%hs and e tendin% the fran"hise to so!e of the!iddle "lass.

7. The issue of )rish Do!e Bule and the support for it $y the Li$eral arty leadership, espe"ially (ladstone, resulted in this $reak4away $y the !ore pro4i!perialist Li$erals led $y ;oseph Cha!$erlain, who set up the &nionist arty andulti!ately united with the Conservatives.

CHAPTER IIMr Bald!inand "rad#alness

/ n 12th ar"h of this year 81925 r. aldwin, the ritish pri!e !inister andleader of the Conservative arty, delivered a lon% spee"h on ritain-s future to aConservative audien"e at Leeds. This spee"h, like !any other of r. aldwin-spu$li" utteran"es, was pervaded with an iety.


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audien"e that "hildren are $orn neither free, nor e0ual nor as $rothers. Deaddresses this 0uestion to ea"h !other at the !eetin% were her "hildren $orne0ualI The self4satisfied lau%hter of his audien"e was his answer. To $e sure, the!ass of the ritish people had heard the sa!e answer fro! the spiritual %reat4%reat4%randfathers of aldwin, in reply to their de!and for the ri%ht to freedo! of $elief and to $e allowed to set up their "hur"h as they wished. The sa!e ar%u!ents were later $rou%ht a%ainst e0uality $efore a "ourt, and later, not at all so lon% a%o,a%ainst universal suffra%e.

eople are not $orn e0ual, r. aldwin= why then do they have to answer $eforeone and the sa!e "ourt, a""ordin% to the sa!e lawI *ne "ould have o$ e"ted to r.

aldwin that althou%h "hildren are not $orn e a"tly alike a !other nor!ally feedsher dissi!ilar "hildren alike at the ta$le, and !akes sure, if she "an, that they allhave a pair of shoes on their feet. A $ad step!other, of "ourse, !i%ht well a"tdifferently.

*ne "ould have e plained to r. aldwin that so"ialis! is "on"erned not withthe "reation of anato!i"al. physiolo%i"al and psy"hi"al e0uality, $ut tries only to%uarantee all people si!ilar !aterial "onditions of e isten"e. ut we shall not weary our readers with further e position of these ele!entary ideas r. aldwin"an hi!self, if he is interested, turn to the relevant sour"es= and as his world4outlook in"lines hi! towards an"ient and purely ritish authors we "ouldre"o!!end to hi! old Bo$ert *wen who, it is true, had no understandin% whatsoever of the "lass dyna!i"s of "apitalist so"iety, $ut in whose works one !ay find !ost valua$le o$servations re%ardin% the advanta%es of so"ialis!.

ut the so"ialist ai!, thou%h reprehensi$le enou%h in itself, does not of "oursefri%hten r. aldwin so !u"h as a violent road towards it. r. aldwin per"eivestwo tenden"ies in the La$our arty. *ne of the! is, in his words, represented $y

r. 'idney


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$ook 6)n Bussia $efore and after the revolution, there e isted and e istsun"han%ed Bussian hu!an nature EI+H. Trotsky, the !an of a"tion, studiedrealities. De had slowly and relu"tantly dis"overed what r.


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workers were $orn and died and where, in "onse0uen"e, the prin"iple of patriar"hal6%radualness held "o!plete sway.

ut a !iners- strike $roke out, the fa"tory "ould not operate owin% to theshorta%e of "oal and r. aldwin found hi!self for"ed to "lose it down and release

6his thousand workers to the four "orners of the world. Certainly aldwin "anplead the ill4will of the !iners who "o!pelled hi! to infrin%e a sa"red Conservativeprin"iple. The !iners "ould pro$a$ly have "ited in their defen"e the ill4will of theire!ployers, who had "o!pelled the! to "all a "olossal strike that $rou%ht a $reak inthe !onotonous pro"ess of e ploitation.

ut su$ e"tive pro!ptin%s are in the last resort i!!aterial for us it is enou%h toknow that %radualness in various spheres of life %oes hand in hand with"atastrophes, $reaks and upward and downward leaps. The lon% pro"ess of "o!petition $etween the two states gradually prepares the war, the dis"ontent of e ploited workers gradually prepares a strike, the $ad !ana%e!ent of a $ank gradually prepares $ankrupt"y.

The honoura$le Conservative leader !ay reply, it is true, that su"h $reaks in%radualness like war and $ankrupt"y, the i!poverish!ent of :urope and theenri"h!ent of A!eri"a at her e pense, are all !ost re%retta$le and that in %eneralit would $e $etter to avoid the!. The only o$ e"tion to this is that the history of nations is in "onsidera$le part a history of wars and the history of e"ono!i"develop!ent is e!$ellished with $ankrupt"y statisti"s. r. aldwin wouldpro$a$ly say that these are properties of hu!an nature.


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revolution whi"h "o!pleted the work of the !ilitary defeat was also a %ood thin%=that is to say, that a "atastrophi" overthrow of what had taken shape %radually, wasa %ood thin%.

r. aldwin !ay, it is true, o$ e"t that all this has no dire"t $earin% on ritain

and that only in that "hosen "ountry has the prin"iple of %radualness found itsle%iti!ate e pression. ut if this is so then it was pointless for r. aldwin to referto !y words, whi"h referred to Bussia, and thus to i!part a universal, %eneral,a$solute "hara"ter to the prin"iple of %radualness. y politi"al e perien"e, at least,does not "onfir! this. )f !y !e!ory serves !e ri%ht three revolutions have takenpla"e in Bussia= in 19J5, in @e$ruary 1917 and in *"to$er 1917. As re%ards the@e$ruary revolution a "ertain !odest assistan"e was provided $y u"hanan Ea !annot unknown to r. aldwinH who evidently "al"ulated then Ewith the knowled%e of his %overn!entH that a little revolutionary "atastrophe in etro%rad would $e !oreuseful to (reat ritain than all Basputin-s 81 %radualness.

ut is it in the end true that 6the "hara"ter and history of the ritish people is sode"isively and un"onditionally per!eated with the Conservative traditions of %radualnessI )s it true that the ritish people is so hostile to 6violent "han%es I The whole history of ritain is a$ove all a history of violent "han%es that the ritishrulin% "lasses have wrou%ht in the lives of other peoples. @or e a!ple, it would $einterestin% to know whether the sei ures of )ndia or :%ypt "an $e interpreted inter!s of the prin"iple of %radualnessI The poli"y of the ritish propertied "lasses inrelation to )ndia is !ost "andidly e pressed in Lord 'alis$ury-s words 6)ndia !ust $e $led+ )t is not out of pla"e to re"all that 'alis$ury was the leader of the sa!eparty that is today led $y r. aldwin. To this one !ust add in parenthesis that, asa result of the e "ellently or%ani ed "onspira"y of the $our%eois press, the ritishpeople do not in fa"t know what is $ein% done in )ndia Eand we are in what is "alleda de!o"ra"y. erhaps we !ay re"all the history of ill4fated )reland, whi"h isparti"ularly ri"h in e a!ples of the peaceful, evolutionary methods of operation of the British ruling classes I As far as we re!e!$er the su$ u%ation of 'outh Afri"adid not evoke protests fro! r. aldwin, and when (eneral Bo$erts- for"es $rokethe defensive front of the oer settlers, the latter "ould s"ar"ely have found a very "onvin"in% de!onstration of %radualness in that.

All this, to $e sure, relates to ritain-s e te!al history. ut it is neverthelessstran%e that the prin"iple of evolutionary %radualness, whi"h is re"o!!ended to usas a universal pre"ept, "eases to operate $eyond the "onfines of (reat ritain # onthe frontiers of China when she had to $e for"ed $y war to $uy opiu!, on thefrontiers of Turkey when osul had to $e taken fro! her, and on the frontiers of

ersia and Af%hanistan when su$!ission to ritain had to $e i!posed on the!.

)s it not possi$le to draw fro! all this the "on"lusion that the %reater the su""ess with whi"h ritain applied for"e to other peoples, the %reater the de%ree of 6%radualness she !ana%ed to reali e within her own frontiersI )ndeed it is+

ritain, over three "enturies, "ondu"ted an uninterrupted su""ession of warsdire"ted at an e tendin% her arena of e ploitation, re!ovin% forei%n ri"hes, killin%


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forei%n "o!!er"ial "o!petition and annihilatin% forei%n naval for"es, all $y !eansof pira"y and violen"e a%ainst other nations, and there$y enri"hin% the ritish%overnin% "lasses. A dili%ent investi%ation of the fa"ts and their inner linka%es leadsto the ines"apa$le "on"lusion that the ritish %overnin% "lasses !ana%ed to avoidrevolutionary sho"ks within their "ountry in so far as they were su""essful atin"reasin% their own !aterial power $y !eans of wars and sho"ks of all sorts inother "ountries. )n this way did they %ain the possi$ility of restrainin% therevolutionary indi%nation of the !asses throu%h ti!ely, and always very ni%%ardly,"on"essions. ut su"h a "on"lusion, whi"h is "o!pletely irrefuta$le in itself, provesthe e a"t opposite of what aldwin wanted to prove, for the very history of ritaintestifies in pra"ti"e that 6pea"eful develop!ent "an only $e ensured $y !eans of asu""ession of wars, "olonial a"ts of violen"e and $loody sho"ks. This is a stran%efor! of 6%radualness +

A fairly well4known populariser of ritish history, (i$$ins, writes in his outlineof !odern ritish history 6)n %eneral # thou%h, of "ourse, there are exceptions tothis # the %uidin% prin"iple of ritish forei%n poli"y has $een the support forpoliti"al freedo! and "onstitutional %overn!ent. This senten"e is truly re!arka$le= at the sa!e ti!e as $ein% deeply offi"ial, 6national and traditional4soundin%, it leaves no roo! for the hypo"riti"al do"trine of non4interferen"e in theaffairs of other nations= at the sa!e ti!e it testifies to the fa"t that ritainsupported "onstitutional !ove!ents in other "ountries only in so far as they wereadvanta%eous to her "o!!er"ial and other interests. ut on the other hand, as theini!ita$le (i$$ins says, 6there are e "eptions to this rule . The entire history of

ritain is depi"ted for the edifi"ation of her people Ethe do"trine of non4intervention notwithstandin%H as a %lorious stru%%le of the ritish %overn!ent forfreedo! throu%hout the world. :very sin%le new a"t of perfidy and violen"e # the*piu!


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seals alternately on ritain-s history for over three "enturies.

@ro! the standpoint of the uritans to $reak up all se"tions of the old %overn!ent!a"hine, the fa"t that Charles 'tuart was an e trava%ant, lyin% and "owardly s"oundrel is "o!pletely se"ondary. /ot only Charles ), $ut royal a$solutis! itself


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was dealt a !ortal $low $y the uritans, the fruits of whi"h are en oyed to this day $y the prea"hers of parlia!entary %radualness.

The role of revolution in the politi"al and so"ial develop!ent in %eneral of ritain is not however li!ited to the seventeenth "entury. )t "ould $e said #

althou%h this !i%ht see! parado i"al # that all Britains subsequent development has taken place in the train of uropean revolutions . 741F>F. 8G

The revolutionary !ove!ent of Chartis! led in 1F??41F?7 to the introdu"tion of the ten4hour workin% day, and in 1F?G to the repeal of the Corn Laws. The defeat of the revolutionary !ove!ent on the "ontinent in 1F?F not only !eant the de"line of the Chartist !ove!ent $ut put a $rake on the de!o"ratisation of the ritishparlia!ent for a lon% ti!e afterwards.

The ele"toral refor! of 1FG7 87 was pre"eded $y the Civil


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The defeat of the 1F?F revolution had weakened the ritish workers $ut theBussian Bevolution of 19J5 i!!ediately stren%thened the!. As a result of the 19JG(eneral :le"tion the La$our arty for!ed for the first ti!e a stron% parlia!entary %roup of ?2 !e!$ers. )n this the influen"e of the 19J5 revolution was "lear+

)n 191F, even $efore the end of the war, a new ele"toral refor! was passed inritain whi"h "onsidera$ly enlar%ed the ranks of workin% "lass voters, and allowed wo!en to parti"ipate in ele"tions for the first ti!e. :ven r. aldwin wouldpro$a$ly not $e%in to deny that the Bussian Bevolution of 1917 was an i!portantsti!ulus to this refor!. The ritish $our%eois "onsidered that a revolution "ould $eavoided in this way. )t follows that even for passin% refor!s, the prin"iple of %radualness is insuffi"ient and a real threat of revolution is ne"essary.

)f we look $a"k in this way over the history of ritain for the last "entury and ahalf in the "onte t of the %eneral :uropean and world develop!ent it transpiresthat ritain e ploited other "ountries not only e"ono!i"ally $ut also politi"ally, $y "uttin% its own politi"al "osts at the "ost of the "ivil wars of the nations of :uropeand A!eri"a.

'o what was the !eanin% of those two phrases that r. aldwin e tra"ted fro!!y $ook in order to "ounterpose the! to the poli"y of the revolutionary representatives of the ritish proletariatI )t is not hard to show that the "lear andsi!ple !eanin% of !y words was the e a"t opposite of what r. aldwin waslookin% for. The !ore easily the Bussian proletariat took power the %reater werethe o$sta"les it !ef on the path of so"ialist "onstru"tion. 3es, ) said this and )repeat it.

*ur old %overnin% "lasses were e"ono!i"ally and politi"ally insi%nifi"ant. *urparlia!entary and de!o"rati" traditions hardly e isted. )t was easier for us to tearthe !asses away fro! the $our%eoisie-s influen"e and overturn their rule. utpre"isely $e"ause our $our%eoisie had appeared later and had done little, were"eived a s!all inheritan"e.


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and at a !u"h 0ui"ker pa"e. 'u"h is the "onverse theore!, whi"h ) have !ore thanon"e had o""asion to set out and prove, and whi"h has the !ost dire"t $earin% onthe 0uestion whi"h "on"erns r. aldwin.

That, however, is not all.


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should $y now undou$tedly have surpassed the pre4war level, paid hi%h interestrates to ritish "apital and, what is !ost i!portant, we would have provided a wideand ever e pandin% !arket for it. )t is not our fault that r. aldwin has violatedthe prin"iple of %radualness pre"isely where he should not have done so. ut even%iven the present, still very low level of our industry the workers- position has"onsidera$ly i!proved in "o!parison with re"ent years.


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for"es let loose $y the industrial revolution of the ei%hteenth "entury, whi"h"han%ed the fa"e of the "ountry and all the features of our national life .


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"ulture # those wret"hed and sha!eful 0ualities re"eived a !ortal $low in *"to$er1917. This does not of "ourse !ean that we no lon%er "arry the herita%e of the past with us.


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was passed in 1799 in the wake of other restri"tions on the press and de!o"rati"ri%hts, $annin% all trade unions and i!posin% fines and i!prison!ent. A further!easure in 1FJJ sli%htly redu"ed the penalties. These laws were not repealed until1F2? and althou%h trade unions were for!ed in this period and $ar%ains even!ade with e!ployers, workers- or%ani ations "ould $e "rushed at the will of the"apitalists.

5. *n 2Gth ;uly 1F>J @ren"h Qin% Charles dissolved the parlia!ent # do!inated $y the li$eral $our%eoisie # in order to re!ove opposition to his !easures a%ainstde!o"ra"y and in favour of the old aristo"ra"y. @or three days the workers of arisfou%ht on the $arri"ades while !any soldiers refused to fire. The li$erals led $y Thiers took fri%ht and proposed handin% the throne to a no!inee of the @ren"hpeople Ei.e., $our%eoisieH. Louis4 hilippe *rleans was installed, representin% theinterests of the finan"ial $our%eoisie as opposed to the aristo"ra"y.

G. )n 1791 Canada had $een partitioned at the *ttawa Biver into Lower Canada,"hiefly @ren"h, and the ritish area of &pper Canada, whi"h in"luded 6loyalists who had fled fro! the A!eri"an Bevolution. )n 1F>7 there was a revolt of @ren"hCanadians in Lower Canada led $y Louis apineau to esta$lish an independent@ren"h state and another revolt in &pper Canada a%ainst rulin% offi"ialdo!. Afterthese revolts were put down the :arl of urha! was sent to Canada and thou%h he was dis!issed for showin% too !u"h lenien"y to the re$els his report was the $asisof the 1F?J A"t of &nion whi"h unified the two parts of Canada under !oreri%orous ritish i!perial rule.

7. Carried out $y the Tories under the leadership of Lord er$y and en a!inisraeli in an unsu""essful $id to 6dish the


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)nternational, to the ritish party "ontainin% instru"tions a$out the !ilitary se"tionof the ritish C . )n fa"t it was a "rude for%ery, "on"o"ted $y


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6unintelli%ent advisers = too !u"h attention to horse4ra"in%, with the inevita$letotalisator= and what is !ore in :ast Afri"a the uke and u"hess of 3ork have $een huntin% rhino"eroses and other "reatures who really deserve a $etter fate. *f "ourse, the paper ar%ues, one "annot $la!e the Boyal @a!ily on its own= traditionties the! too ti%htly to the ha$its and !e!$ers of a parti"ular "lass. ut an effortshould $e !ade to $reak with this tradition. )n our opinion this is not only desira$le $ut ne"essary. A post !ust $e found for the heir to the throne that will!ake hi! a part of the %overn!ent !a"hine, and so on and so forth, all in the sa!esin%ularly vul%ar, stupid and la"keyish vein. 'o in our "ountry in the past # around19J5 and 19JG # !i%ht the or%an of the 'a!ara advo"ates of pea"eful re%enerationhave written. 81

The u$i0uitous rs. 'nowden intervened in the Boyal @a!ily affair, and statedin a $rief letter that only loud!outhed soap4$o orators "ould fail to understandthat royal fa!ilies $elon% to the !ost hard4workin% ele!ents of :urope. And sin"ethe i$le itself says 6Thou shalt not !u le the !outh of the o that treadeth outthe "orn , then rs. 'nowden is, naturally enou%h, in favour of votin% funds for the

rin"e of


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(eor%e Lans$ury, a left pa"ifist, relates in a leadin% arti"le in the La$our arty-sdaily or%an how workin% !en and wo!en at a !eetin% in on!outhshire san% areli%ious hy!n with %reat enthusias!, and how this hy!n 6helped hi!, Lans$ury.)ndividual people !ay re e"t reli%ion, he says, $ut the la$our !ove!ent as a!ove!ent "annot re"on"ile itself to this. *ur stru%%le needs enthusias!, piety andfaith, and this "annot $e a"hieved only $y an appeal to personal interests. Thusalthou%h our !ove!ent needs enthusias!, it has a""ordin% to Lans$ury, no powerto arouse it, $ut is "o!pelled to $orrow it fro! the priests.

;ohn


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The nu!$er of su"h e a!ples "ould $e !ultiplied indefinitely. Al!ost all thepoliti"al a"tivity of the top layers of the La$our arty "ould $e resolved intoepisodes of this sort, whi"h at first si%ht see! to $e a!usin% and inde"ent"uriosities, $ut on whi"h the pe"uliarities of past history have $een depositedrather as, for e a!ple, the "o!ple !eta$oli" pro"esses of an or%anis! arepre"ipitated out as $ladder stones. ut we wish it to $e re!e!$ered that the6or%ani" nature of this or that pe"uliarity in no way pre"ludes sur%ery to re!ove it.

The outlook of the leaders of the ritish La$our arty is a sort of a!al%a! of Conservatis! and Li$eralis!, partly adapted to the re0uire!ents of the tradeunions, or rather their top layers. All of the! are ridden with the reli%ion of 6%radualness . )n addition they a"knowled%e the reli%ion of the *ld and /ew Testa!ents. They all "onsider the!selves to $e hi%hly "ivili ed people, yet they $elieve that the Deavenly @ather "reated !ankind only then, in his a$undant love,to "urse it, and su$se0uently to try, throu%h the "ru"ifi ion his own son tostrai%hten out this hi%hly knotty affair a little. *ut of the spirit of Christianity therehave %rown su"h national institutions as the trade union $ureau"ra"y, a" onald-sfirst !inistry and rs. 'nowden.

Closely tied to the reli%ion of %radualness and the Calvinist $elief inpredestination 8> is the reli%ion of national arro%an"e. a" onald is "onvin"edthat sin"e his $our%eoisie was on"e the fore!ost $our%eoisie in the world then he,

a" onald, has nothin% whatsoever to learn fro! the $ar$arians and se!i4 $ar$arians on the "ontinent of :urope. )n this re%ard, as in all others, " onald is!erely apein% $our%eois leaders like Cannin% who pro"lai!ed # al$eit with far%reater ustifi"ation # that it did not $e"o!e parlia!entary ritain to learn politi"sfro! the nations of :urope.

aldwin, in !onotonously appealin% to the "onservative traditions of ritain-spoliti"al develop!ent, is dou$tless hopin% for support fro! the !i%hty $uttress of $our%eois rule in the past. The $our%eoisie knew how to feed the top layers of the workin% "lass with "onservatis!. )t was no a""ident that the !ost resolute fi%htersfor Chartis! "a!e out of the artisan layers that had $een proletariani ed $y theonslau%ht of "apitalis! within two %enerations.

:0ually si%nifi"ant is the fa"t that the !ost radi"al ele!ents in the !odernritish la$our !ove!ent are !ost often natives of )reland or '"otland Ethis rule

does not of "ourse e tend to the '"ots!an, a" onaldH. The "o!$ination of so"ialand national oppression in )reland, %iven the sharp "onfli"t $etween a%ri"ultural)reland and "apitalist :n%land, fa"ilitated a$rupt leaps in "ons"iousness. '"otlandentered on the "apitalist path later than :n%land a sharper turn in the life of the!asses of the people %ave rise to a sharper politi"al rea"tion. )f essrs. ritish6so"ialists were "apa$le of thinkin% over their own history, and the role of )relandand '"otland in parti"ular, they would possi$ly !ana%e to understand how and why $a"kward Bussia, with its a$rupt transition to "apitalis!, $rou%ht forward the!ost deter!ined revolutionary party and was the first to take the path of a so"ialistoverturn.


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The $asis of the "onservatis! of ritish life is however $ein% irreversi$ly under!ined today. The 6leaders of the ritish workin% "lass i!a%ined for de"adesthat an independent workers party was the %loo!y privile%e of "ontinental:urope. /owadays nothin% is left of that naive and i%norant "on"eit. The proletariatfor"ed the trade unions to "reate an independent party. )t will not stop at thishowever.

The Li$eral and se!i4Li$eral leaders of the La$our arty still think that a so"ialrevolution is the %loo!y prero%ative of "ontinental :urope. ut here a%ain events will e pose their $a"kwardness. u"h less ti!e will $e needed to turn the La$our

arty into a revolutionary one than was ne"essary to "reate it.

The prin"ipal ele!ent in the "onservatis! of politi"al develop!ent has $een, andto so!e e tent still is the rotestant4$ased reli%ious nature of the ritish people.

uritanis! was a harsh s"hool, the so"ial dis"iplinin% of the !iddle "lasses. The!asses of the people however always resisted it. The proletarian did not feelhi!self to $e 6"hosen # Calvinist predestination was plainly not for hi!. @ro! outof the )ndependents !ove!ent there took shape :n%lish Li$eralis!, whose "hief !ission was to 6edu"ate the workin% !asses, that is to su$ordinate the! to $our%eois so"iety.


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The ritish proletariat re"eived rotestantis! as a tradition already for!ed, thatis to say, ust as the $our%eoisie prior to the seventeenth "entury had re"eivedCatholi"is! and An%li"anis!. As the awakened $our%eoisie "ounterposed

rotestantis! to Catholi"is!, the revolutionary proletariat will "ounterpose!aterialis! and atheis! to rotestantis!.


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$a"kwardness to advanta%e and "reated an industry far !ore s"ientifi"ally or%ani ed and adapted to the stru%%le on the world !arket. The ritish so"ialistphilistines took over fro! their $our%eoisie an arro%ant attitude towards the"ontinent in a period when ritain-s earlier advanta%es were turnin% into theiropposite.

a" onald, in esta$lishin% the 6"on%enital pe"uliarities of ritish so"ialis!,states that to seek its ideolo%i"al roots we 6will have to pass $y ar to (odwin .(odwin was a !a or fi%ure for his ti!e. ut for a ritish person to %o $a"k to hi! isthe sa!e as for a (er!an to seek roots in


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pur%in% it of all ele!ents of oppression. 'u"h a task, $oth politi"ally andpsy"holo%i"ally, e "ludes any "on"iliation with the !onar"hy.

essrs. a" onald, Tho!as and the rest are indi%nant with the workers whoprotested when their !inisters arrayed the!selves in "lownish "ourt dress. *f

"ourse this is not a" onald-s !ain "ri!e $ut it does perfe"tly sy!$oli e all therest.


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&nder this pressure fro! $elow the top layers of the La$our arty will 0ui"kly shed their skins.


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?. The @a$ian 'o"iety was set up in 1FF? $y a %roup of !ysti"s who had for!erly "onstituted the @ellowship of the /ew Life. )t soon se"ured the support of aColonial *ffi"e "lerk "alled 'idney


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The word 6reli%ion !ust $e understood here not !erely in an e!otive sense. 7 per "ent of !ankind. Dow a$out the non4Christian worldI

'e"ondly atheis! is havin% no s!all su""ess even a!on% the Christian peoplesand espe"ially a!on% the proletariat. This is so far less noti"ea$le in the An%lo4'a on "ountries. ut !ankind, even Christian !ankind, is not e "lusively "o!posed of An%lo4'a ons. )n the 'oviet &nion whi"h has a population of 1>J!illion, atheis! is the offi"ially pro"lai!ed state do"trine.

Thirdly (reat ritain has held sway over )ndia for "enturies now. :uropeannations with this sa!e ritain at their head lon% a%o "leared a path to China./evertheless the nu!$er of atheists in :urope is %rowin% faster than the nu!$er of Christians in )ndia and China.


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a sin%le one that took pla"e 1,925 years a%o at that ti!e a wed%e was driven intoor%ani" evolution $y none other than the 'on of (od and De put into "ir"ulation a"ertain 0uantity of heavenly truths fro! whi"h the "ler%y "olle"t a su$stantialterrestrial in"o!e.

The Christian $asis of so"ialis! is %iven in two "ru"ial senten"es in his arti"le6


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re"o%nition of the truth that 6so"ialis! is a state of !ental health and not !entalsi"kness in no way prevents a" onald fro! struttin% round )ndia and :%ypt inthe sa"red footsteps of the %reat Christian, Cur on. a" onald as a Christianre"oils fro! violen"e 6with horror = as pri!e !inister he applies all the !ethods of "apitalist oppression, and hands over the instru!ents of for"e to his Conservativesu""essor inta"t.

'o what does the renun"iation of for"e in the final resort si%nifyI *nly that theoppressed !ust not adopt for"e a%ainst a "apitalist state neither workers a%ainstthe $our%eoisie, nor far!ers a%ainst landlords, nor )ndians a%ainst the ritishad!inistration and ritish "apital. The state. "onstru"ted $y the violen"e of the!onar"hy a%ainst the people, the $our%eoisie a%ainst the workers, the landlordsa%ainst the far!ers, $y offi"ers a%ainst soldiers, An%lo'a on slave4owners a%ainst"olonial peoples, 6Christians a%ainst heathens # this $loodstained apparatus of "enturies4lon% violen"e inspires a" onald with pious reveren"e. De rea"ts 6withhorror only to the for"e of li$eration. And in this lies the sa"red essen"e of his6reli%ion of servi"e to the people .

6There is an old and a new s"hool of so"ialis! , a" onald says. 6


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workin% "lass is the e pression of its internal unity in the stru%%le a%ainst the $our%eoisie. The so"ial solidarity that a" onald prea"hes is the solidarity of thee ploited with the e ploiters, that is, the !aintenan"e of e ploitation. a" onald $oasts !oreover that his ideas differ fro! the ideas of our %randfathers $y whi"hhe !eans Qarl ar . )n fa"t a" onald differs fro! this 6%randfather in the sensethat he !ore "losely rese!$les our %reat4%randfathers. The ideolo%i"al hash that

a" onald puts forward as a 6new s"hool !arks # on an entirely new histori"al $ase # a return to the petty $our%eois, senti!ental so"ialis! that ar su$ e"ted toa devastatin% "riti"is! as early as 1F?7, and even $efore.

a" onald "ounterposes to the "lass stru%%le the idea of the solidarity of allthose "harita$le "iti ens who are tryin% to re4$uild so"iety $y de!o"rati" refor!s.)n this "on"eption, the stru%%le of the "lass is repla"ed $y the 6"onstru"tive a"tivity of a politi"al party whi"h is $uilt, not on a "lass $ase, $ut on the $asis of so"ialsolidarity. The e "ellent ideas of our %reat4%randfathers # Bo$ert *wen,


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one, of "ourse, is de!andin% that the party-s doors $e "losed to tested entrantsfro! other "lasses. Dowever their nu!$er is already insi%nifi"ant, if one does notlook only at statisti"s of the leadership $ut takes the party as a whole= and in thefuture, when the party enters on the revolutionary road, it will $e even less. ut the)L ers need their for!ula a$out G people of all "lasses to de"eive the workersthe!selves as to the real, "lass sour"e of their stren%th, $y su$stitutin% for it thefi"tion of a supra4"lass solidarity.


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people a$out it. La$ourin% people are $orn and $rou%ht up in "onditions not"reated $y the!selves. The state s"hool and the state "hur"h in"ul"ate the! with"on"epts that are dire"ted e "lusively at !aintainin% the e istin% order.

arlia!entary de!o"ra"y is nothin% $ut a resu!U of this state of affairs.a" onald-s party enters into this syste! as an essential "o!ponent.


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And even "hildren-s pi"ture4$ooks tea"h us that if you want to have a"orns you!ust not di% up the oak tree. esides, how ridi"ulous is this @a$ian "on"eit sin"ethe Bussian Bevolution has tau%ht 6us EwhoIH a lesson, then 6we EwhoIH shallsettle thin%s without revolution. ut why then did the lessons of all previous warsnot per!it 6you to !ana%e without the i!perialist warI )n the sa!e way that the $our%eoisie "alls every su""essive war the last war. so a" onald wants to "all theBussian Bevolution the last revolution. ut why e a"tly should the ritish $our%eoisie !ake "on"essions to the ritish proletariat and pea"efully, without afi%ht, renoun"e its property # !erely $e"ause it has re"eived in advan"e fro!

a" onald a fir! assuran"e that, followin% the e perien"e of the Bussianrevolution, ritish so"ialists shall never take the path of violen"eI


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the short4$eaked variety "o!es to a halt. )f our !e!ory serves us ri%ht, a" onald"an read a$out this in arwin.

'till pursuin% these analo%ies with the or%ani" world so $eloved of a" onald, we "an say that the politi"al art of the ritish $our%eoisie "onsists of shortenin% the

proletariat-s revolutionary $eak, there$y preventin% it fro! perforatin% the shell of the "apitalist state. The $eak of the proletariat is its party. )f you take a %lan"e ata" onald, Tho!as and r. and rs. 'nowden then it !ust $e ad!itted that the

$our%eoisie-s work of rearin% the short$eaked and soft4$eaked varieties has $een"rowned with strikin% su""ess # for not only are these worthies unfit to $reak throu%h the "apitalist shell, they are really unfit to do anythin% at all.

Dere, however, the analo%y ends, revealin% all the li!itations of su"h "ursory data fro! $iolo%y te t$ooks in pla"e of a study of the "onditions and routes of histori"al develop!ent. Du!an so"iety, althou%h %rowin% out of the or%ani" andinor%ani" world, represents su"h a "o!ple and "on"entrated "o!$ination of the!that it re0uires an independent study. A so"ial or%anis! is distin%uished fro! a $iolo%i"al one $y, a!on%st other thin%s, a far %reater fle i$ility and "apa"ity forre%roupin% its ele!ents, $y a "ertain de%ree of "ons"ious "hoi"e of its tools anddevi"es, and $y the "ons"ious appli"ation Ewithin "ertain li!itsH of the e perien"eof the past, and so on. The pi%eon "hi"k in the e%% "annot "han%e its over4short $eak and so it perishes. The workin% "lass when fa"ed with the 0uestion of whetherto $e or not to $e "an sa"k a" onald and rs. 'nowden and ar! itself with the6$eak of a revolutionary party for the destru"tion of the "apitalist syste!.

:spe"ially "urious in a" onald is the "ouplin% of a "rudely $iolo%i"al theory of so"iety with an idealist Christian a$horren"e of !aterialis!. 63ou talk a$outrevolution and a "atastrophi" leap $ut take a look at nature and see how intelli%ently a "aterpillar $ehaves when it is due to turn into a "hrysalis, take a look at the worthy tortoise in its !otion, you will find the natural rhyth! of thetransfor!ation of so"iety. Learn fro! nature+ And in this sa!e vein a" onald $rands !aterialis! 6a $anality, a nonsensi"al assertion, there is no spiritual orintelle"tual refine!ent in it ... a" onald and refine!ent+ )sn-t this indeed anastoundin% 6refine!ent seekin% the !odel for !an-s "olle"tive so"ial a"tivity in a"aterpillar, while at the sa!e ti!e de!andin% for his private use an i!!ortal soul with a "o!forta$le e isten"e in the hereafterI

6'o"ialists are a""used of $ein% poets. That is "orre"t, e plains a" onald, 6weare poets. There "annot $e %ood politi"s without poetry. And in %eneral withoutpoetry there "an $e nothin% %ood. And so on and so forth in the sa!e style. And in"on"lusion 6The world needs !ore than anythin% so!e politi"al and so"ial'hakespeare. This drivel a$out poetry !ay not $e so o$no ious politi"ally asle"tures on the i!per!issi$ility of violen"e. ut a" onald-s utter la"k of intelle"tual talent is here e pressed even !ore "onvin"in%ly, if that is possi$le. A sole!n, "owardly pedant, in who! there is as !u"h poetry as in a s0uare in"h of "arpet atte!pts to i!press the world with 'hakespearian %ri!a"es. Dere is wherethe 6!onkey4tri"ks that a" onald as"ri$es to the olsheviks really $e%in.


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a" onald, as the 6poet of @a$ianis!+ The politi"s of 'idney


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As is well known the histori"al pro"ess, even in ritain, does not !ove as


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e istin% syste! should $e "han%ed for the $etter= however there was not "o!pletea%ree!ent on the nature of the "han%e the "apitalists stood for private property,the workers a%ainst it= after the war the o$ e"tive situation worsened and thepoliti"al differen"es sharpened yet !ore therefore the


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$urst the da! they for!. ut the proletariat itself is restrained $y pre"isely its owntop leadin% layer, i.e. the @a$ian politi"ians and their yes4!en.

These po!pous authorities, pedants and hau%hty, hi%h4falutin- "owards aresyste!ati"ally poisonin% the la$our !ove!ent, "loudin% the "ons"iousness of the

proletariat and paralysin% its will. )t is only thanks to the! that Toryis!,Li$eralis!, the Chur"h, the !onar"hy, the aristo"ra"y and the $our%eoisie "ontinueto survive and even suppose the!selves to $e fir!ly in the saddle. The @a$ians, the)L ers and the "onservative trade union $ureau"rats today represent the !ost"ounter4revolutionary for"e in (reat ritain, and possi$ly in the present sta%e of develop!ent, in the whole world. *verthrowin% the @a$ians !eans li$eratin% therevolutionary ener%y of the ritish proletariat, winnin% the ritish stron%hold of rea"tion for so"ialis!, li$eratin% )ndia and :%ypt, and %ivin% a powerful i!petus tothe !ove!ent and develop!ent of the peoples of the :ast.

Benoun"in% violen"e, the @a$ians $elieve only in the power of the 6idea . )f a wholeso!e %rain "an $e sifted out of this trivial and hypo"riti"al philosophy then itlies in the fa"t that no re%i!e "an !aintain itself $y violen"e alone. This appliese0ually to the re%i!e of ritish i!perialis!. )n a "ountry where the overwhel!in%!a ority of the population "onsists of proletarians the %overnin% Conservative4Li$eral i!perialist "li0ue would not $e a$le to last a sin%le day if it were not for thefa"t that the !eans of violen"e in its hands are reinfor"ed, supple!ented anddis%uised $y pseudo4so"ialist ideas that ensnare and $reak up the proletariat.

The @ren"h 6enli%hteners of the 1Fth "entury 87 saw their !ain ene!y asCatholi"is!, "leri"alis! and the priesthood, and "onsidered that they had tostran%le this reptile $efore they "ould !ove forward. They were ri%ht in the sensethat it was this very priesthood, an or%ani ed re%i!e of superstition, the Catholi"spiritual poli"e apparatus, that stood in the way of $our%eois so"iety, retardin% thedevelop!ent of s"ien"e, art, politi"al ideas and e"ono!i"s. @a$ianis!,

a" onaldis! and pa"ifis! today play the sa!e role in relation to the histori"al!ove!ent of the proletariat. They are the !ain prop of ritish i!perialis! and of the :uropean, if not the world $our%eoisie.


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1 . ) !ust "onfess that until ernard 'haw-s letter ) had not even known of thee isten"e of this $ook. Afterwards ) a"0uainted !yself with it # ) "annot in %ood"ons"ien"e say read it $e"ause an a"0uaintan"e with two or three "hapters was0uite enou%h to stop !e wastin% any !ore ti!e. )!a%ine a "o!plete a$sen"e of !ethod, of histori"al perspe"tive, of understandin% of the interdependen"e of thedifferent fa"ets of so"ial life, and of s"ientifi" dis"ipline in %eneral and then i!a%inea 6historian $urdened with these 0ualities roa!in% far and wide over the history of a few !illenia with the "arefree air of a !an takin% his 'unday stroll. Then you willhave . The allian"e of @ran"e, Bussia and ritain that fou%ht the Central owers of (er!any and Austria4Dun%ary in the @irst


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the e propriation of the !onasteries in the followin% period and the esta$lish!entof a new, national An%li"an Chur"h.

5. Qarl Qautsky E1F5?419>FH was one of the leadin% theoreti"ians of the (er!an'o"ial e!o"rati" arty and the 'e"ond )nternational. y the out$reak of the @irst


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their day adopted the use of for"e a%ainst Christ there would have $een neither"rown of thorns, nor resurre"tion nor as"ension, and r. Lans$ury hi!self wouldnot have had the opportunity of $ein% $orn a devout Christian and $e"o!in% aninferior so"ialist.

/ot $elievin% in for"e is the sa!e as not $elievin% in %ravity. All of life is $uiltupon different for!s of for"e, and the opposition of one for"e to another.H so that torenoun"e li$eratin% for"e a!ounts to supportin% the oppressors- for"e, whi"h today %overns the world.


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or%ani ation of for"e whi"h in the !a ority of "ases relieves hi! of the need to use arevolver, or even to ponder its pra"ti"al purpose.

ut, let us ask, what happens when ar!ed strike4$reakers $eat up and killstrikersI 'u"h in"idents are 0uite usual in A!eri"a, and not e "eptional in other

"ountries.


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would not have le%ali ed the! in 1F2?. ut if one allows the appli"ation of for"e or violen"e in the for! of a strike then one has to a""ept all the "onse0uen"es,in"ludin% the defen"e of strikes fro! strike4$reakers $y !eans of appropriate!easures of "ounter4for"e.

oreover, if strikes $y workers a%ainst the "apitalists, or parti"ular %roups of "apitalists are per!issi$le then would Lans$ury venture to say that it wasi!per!issi$le for workers to or%ani e a %eneral strike a%ainst a fas"ist %overn!entthat was suppressin% the workers- unions, s!ashin% the workers- press andfloodin% the workers- ranks with provo"ateurs and !urderersI

*n"e a%ain a %eneral strike "an $e adopted not at any hour on any day $ut only under spe"ifi" "on"rete "onditions. ut this is a !atter of strate%i" e pedien"y notof a %eneral ,!oral- assess!ent. As for the %eneral strike, as one of the !ostde"isive !eans of stru%%le, Lans$ury and all his fellow4thinkers taken to%etherhave hardly devised any other !eans that the proletariat "ould adopt for a"hievin%a de"isive end. Lans$ury would surely not fall so low as to re"o!!end workers to wait until the spirit of $rotherly love takes "o!!and of the hearts of let us say, the)talian fas"ists who are, $y the way, to a lar%e e tent e tre!ely devout Catholi"s.

ut if you re"o%ni e that the proletariat not only has the ri%ht, $ut is duty4$ound toprepare for a %eneral strike a%ainst a fas"ist re%i!e you !ust draw all the"on"lusions that follow fro! su"h a re"o%nition.

A %eneral strike, if it is not to $e a !ere protest, si%nifies an e tre!e upheaval of so"iety and in any event pla"es at stake the fate of the politi"al re%i!e and thereputation of the stren%th of the revolutionary "lass.A %eneral strike "an only $eundertaken when the workin% "lass, and a$ove all its van%uard, is ready to "arry the stru%%le throu%h to the end. ut fas"is! will not of "ourse $e%in to surrender.to a pea"eful protest strike. )n the event of a real and i!!ediate dan%er the fas"ists will set all their for"es in !otion, they will laun"h provo"ations, assassinations, andarson on an unpre"edented s"ale. *ne !ay ask is it per!issi$le for the leaders of a%eneral strike to for! their own !ilitias for the defen"e of the strikers a%ainst a"tsof for"e and for disar!in% and dispersin% the fas"ist $andsI And as no one hassu""eeded, at least in our !e!ory, in disar!in% furious ene!ies $y !eans of reli%ious hy!ns then the revolutionary deta"h!ents !ust o$viously $e ar!ed withrevolvers and hand %renades until su"h ti!e as they "an lay hold of rifles, !a"hine4%uns and "annon. *r is it perhaps only at this point that the do!ain of i!per!issi$le for"e $e%insI

ut then we should $e"o!e "o!pletely entan%led in a$surd and sha!eful"ontradi"tions. A %eneral strike that does not safe%uard itself fro! a"ts of for"e androut is a de!onstration of "owardi"e and doo!ed to defeat. *nly a lunati" or atraitor "ould "all for a stru%%le under su"h "onditions. y the lo%i" of relations thatdo not depend on Lans$ury, an 6unar!ed strike stru%%le produ"es ar!ed "lashes.This happens 0uite often in e"ono!i" strikes and in a revolutionary politi"al strikeit is a$solutely unavoida$le, for the strike has the task of topplin% the e istin% state


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power.


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ut this is what is re!arka$le rather as idealist philosophers in their pra"ti"allife feed on $read, !eat and "onte!pti$le !atter in %eneral and try to avoid $ein%run down $y "ars instead of relyin% on the i!!ortality of the soul, so also essrs.

a"ifists, the i!potent opponents of for"e, !oral 6idealists on all those o""asions where it "o!es within the a!$it of their i!!ediate interests, appeal to politi"alfor"e and !ake use of it dire"tly or o$li0uely. Thus as r. Lans$ury is evidently notdevoid of so!ethin% akin to te!pera!ent, su"h adventures happen to hi! !orethan others. )n the parlia!entary de$ates in "onne"tion with the une!ployed EtheDouse of Co!!ons sittin% of 9th ar"h 1925H Lans$ury re"alled that the&ne!ployed )nsuran"e A"t was passed in its present for! in 192J 6not so !u"h tosafe%uard the lives of !en and their fa!ilies $ut, as Lord er$y had re"ently toldthe!, to forestall a revolution . )n 192J, Lans$ury "ontinued, all the workers who were servin% in the ar!y were in"luded a!on% those insured $e"ause the%overn!ent was at the ti!e not 0uite sure whether they would turn their rifles inthe dire"tion desira$le to the %overn!ent E The Ti es , 1Jth ar"h 1925H. Afterthese words the parlia!entary report re"ords 6"heers fro! *pposition $en"hesthat is fro! the La$our arty, and "ries of 6*h+ on the %overn!ent $en"hes.

Lans$ury does not $elieve in revolutionary for"e. ut he nevertheless re"o%ni esfollowin% Lord er$y, that a fear of revolutionary for"e $rou%ht a$out a law onstate insuran"e for the une!ployed. Lans$ury is "ondu"tin% a stru%%le a%ainstatte!pts to repeal this law= "onse0uently $e $elieves that a law $rou%ht a$outthrou%h fear of revolutionary for"e is $rin%in% a "ertain $enefit to the workin%"lass. 'o the $enefit of revolutionary for"e is here$y proved virtually !athe!ati"ally. @or, with respe"t to r. Lans$ury, if there were not a"ts of for"ethere would $e no fear of it. )f there were not a real possi$ility Eand ne"essityH of turnin% rifles a%ainst the %overn!ent in "ertain "ir"u!stan"es then the%overn!ent would have no %rounds to fear it. Conse0uently Lans$ury-s so4"alleddis$elief in for"e is the purest delusion. )n pra"ti"e he !akes use of this for"e, inthe for! of an ar%u!ent, at least every day. :ven !ore does he en oy in pra"ti"ethe "on0uests of the revolutionary for"e of past de"ades and "enturies. De !erely refuses to draw the threads of his ideas to%ether. De re e"ts revolutionary for"e forthe sei ure of power, that is to say for the "o!plete li$eration of the proletariat. utin stru%%les that do not trans"end the $ounds of $our%eois so"iety he is perfe"tly a!ena$le to for"e and !akes use of it. r. Lans$ury is for retail $ut a%ainst wholesale for"e. De rese!$les the ve%etarian who a""epts du"k or ra$$it !eat withe0uani!ity $ut re e"ts the slau%hter of lar%er ani!als with ri%hteous indi%nation.


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/ot in the sli%htest. Considera$le %roups of the population are deprived of thefran"hise. J and !en only fro! 21. 8GThe lowerin% of the a%e 0ualifi"ation is fro! the standpoint of the workin% "lass, where workin% life starts early, an ele!entary de!and of de!o"ra"y. esides,parlia!entary "onstituen"ies are divided up in su"h a perfidious fashion that oneLa$our !e!$er !ust win twi"e as !any votes as one Conservative. 87

y keepin% the a%e 0ualifi"ation up the ritish parlia!ent e iles a"tive youth of $oth se es and "har%es the destiny of the "ountry to pri!arily the older %enerations whi"h, wearyin% of life, look !ore under their feet than out in front. Dere lies thepoint of the hi%h a%e 0ualifi"ation. The "yni"al %eo!etry of the "onstituen"ies %ivesa Conservative vote as !u"h wei%ht as two La$our votes. Thus the present4day

ritish arlia!ent represents the !ost fla%rant !o"kery of the will of the peopleeven taken in the $our%eois4de!o"rati" sense.

Das the workin% "lass the ri%ht, even while re!ainin% on the %round of theprin"iples of de!o"ra"y, to de!and that the present privile%ed. and $asi"ally usurpin% Douse of Co!!ons introdu"e a really de!o"rati" fran"hiseI ut if parlia!ent answers that with a refusal # whi"h., we "ontend, would $e inevita$le,for only the other day aldwin-s %overn!ent refused to !ake wo!en the e0ual of !en in respe"t of the a%e 0ualifi"ation # would the proletariat in su"h an eventhave the 6ri%ht to win fro! the usurper parlia!ent the introdu"tion of ade!o"rati" fran"hise $y !eans of, let-s say, a %eneral strikeI

)f we further suppose that either the present, usurpin% Douse of Co!!ons, or a!ore de!o"rati" one, resolved to a$olish royalty and the Douse of Lords # of whi"h there is not a hope # this would still not !ean that the rea"tionary "lasses whi"h had proved to $e in the !inority in parlia!ent would su$!it unreservedly tosu"h a de"ision. /ot so very lon% a%o we saw the &lster rea"tionaries under theleadership of Lord Carson takin% the path of open "ivil war when they had adifferen"e of opinion with the ritish parlia!ent over the 0uestion of the syste! of ad!inistration for )reland, in whi"h the ritish Conservatives openly supported the&lster re$els. ut, we shall $e told, su"h a "ase a!ounts to an open risin% on thepart of the privile%ed "lasses a%ainst a de!o"rati" parlia!ent and o$viously su"h are$ellion would have to $e 0uelled with the aid of state for"e. Let us re"ord thisad!ission $ut de!and here that one or two pra"ti"al "on"lusions $e drawn fro! it.

Let us allow for the !inute that a La$our !a ority in parlia!ent results fro! thene t ele"tions and that as a start it resolves in the !ost le%al fashion to hand overthe landlords- land to the far!ers and the "hroni"ally une!ployed without"o!pensation, to introdu"e a hi%h ta on "apital and to a$olish the !onar"hy, theDouse of Lords and a few other o$s"ene institutions. There "annot $e the leastdou$t that the possessin% "lasses would not %ive in without a fi%ht, and all the lessso sin"e the entire poli"e, udi"ial and !ilitary apparatus is wholly in their hands.)n the history of ritain there has already $een one instan"e of "ivil war when theQin% rested upon a !inority in the Co!!ons and a !a ority in the Lords a%ainstthe !a ority of the Co!!ons and a !inority in the Lords. That affair was in the


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1G?Js. *nly an idiot, let us repeat, only a wret"hed idiot, "an seriously i!a%ine thata repetition of a "ivil war of that kind Eal$eit on new "lass $asesH "an $e preventedin the twentieth "entury $y the evident su""ess of the last three "enturies of aChristian world4outlook, hu!anitarian feelin%s, de!o"rati" tenden"ies and all theother e "ellent thin%s. The sa!e e a!ple of &lster shows that the possessin%"lasses do not play around when parlia!ent, their own institution, finds itself "o!pelled to s0uee e their privile%ed position.

)n preparin% to take state power it is thus ne"essary to prepare for all the"onse0uen"es that flow fro! the inevita$le resistan"e of the possessin% "lasses. )t!ust $e fir!ly understood if a truly workers- %overn!ent "a!e to power in ritaineven in an ultra4de!o"rati" way, "ivil war would $e"o!e unavoida$le. The workers- %overn!ent would $e for"ed to suppress the resistan"e of the privile%ed"lasses. To do this $y !eans of the old state apparatus, the old poli"e, the old"ourts, the old ar!y would $e i!possi$le. A workers- %overn!ent "reated $y parlia!entary !eans would $e for"ed to "onstru"t new revolutionary or%ans foritself, restin% upon the trade unions and workin%4"lass or%ani ations in %eneral.This would lead to an e "eptional %rowth in the a"tivity and initiative of the workin% !asses. *n the $asis of a dire"t stru%%le a%ainst the e ploitin% "lasses thetrade unions would a"tively draw "loser to%ether not only in their top layers $ut atthe $otto! levels as well, and would arrive at the ne"essity of "reatin% lo"aldele%ate !eetin%s, i.e. "oun"ils E'ovietsH of workers- deputies. A truly La$our%overn!ent, that is to say, a %overn!ent dedi"ated to the end to the interests of theproletariat would find itself in this way "o!pelled to s!ash the old state apparatusas the instru!ent of the possessin% "lasses and oppose it with workers- "oun"ils.That !eans that the de!o"rati" ori%in of the La$our %overn!ent # even had thisproved possi$le # would lead to the ne"essity of "ounterposin% revolutionary "lassfor"e to the rea"tionary opposition.


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$e e tended to the peoples of )ndia who are risin% up not a%ainst de!o"ra"y $uta%ainst the despotis! that oppresses the!. ut in this event even a ritish personif he is really a de!o"rat "annot re"o%ni e a $indin% de!o"rati" for"e for ritishlaws passed for )ndia, :%ypt and elsewhere. And as the whole so"ial life of ritainherself as the "olonial power, rests upon these laws then it is o$vious that all thea"tivity of the


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revolutionary van%uard and leadin% $ehind it all the toilin% and oppressed !assesof the !etropolitan "ountry and the "olonies.

)n all our work and all our politi"al de"isions our hi%hest "riterion is the interestsof the revolutionary stru%%le of the proletariat to take power and to re4"onstru"t

so"iety.


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To answer this 0uestion an atte!pt has to $e !ade to i!a%ine with a "ertainde%ree of "on"reteness what path the future politi"al develop!ent of ritain willtake. Clearly, any atte!pted fore"ast of this sort "an only $e of a "onditional,tentative nature. ut without su"h atte!pts we would $e doo!ed to wander in thedark.

The present %overn!ent has a fir! !a ority in parlia!ent. Conse0uently it is note "luded that it will survive in power for another three or four years althou%h itster! of offi"e "ould prove shorter. )n the "ourse of this period the Conservative%overn!ent whi"h $e%an with 6"on"iliatory spee"hes $y aldwin will reveal that ithas $een in the last resort su!!oned to "onserve all the "ontradi"tions and ul"ersof post4war ritain.


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The ele"tion, always assu!in% that it does not develop dire"tly into a "ivil warEand %enerally speakin% that is not e "ludedH, will have three possi$le out"o!eseither the Conservatives will return to power $ut with a sharply redu"ed !a ority=or else none of the parties will have a "lear !a ority and the parlia!entary positionof last year will $e reverted to, only in politi"al "onditions far less favoura$le to"o!pro!ise= or finally an a$solute !a ority will pass to the La$our arty.

)n the event of a new vi"tory for the Conservatives the indi%nation andi!patien"e of the workers will inevita$ly sharpen. The 0uestion of the ele"toral!e"hanis! and its swindlin% of "onstituen"ies will inevita$ly "o!e to the fore withall its sharpness. The de!and for a new, !ore de!o"rati" parlia!ent will resound with %reater for"e. This !ay for a while hold $a"k the internal stru%%le inside theLa$our arty to a "ertain e tent $ut it will however "reate !ore favoura$le"onditions for the revolutionary ele!ents.


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without a se"ure !a ority would "reate a favoura$le "ir"u!stan"e for su"h apressure. ut this on"e a%ain opens up a revolutionary perspe"tive.

Dowever, this inter!ediate variant does not have for us an intrinsi" i!portan"eas it is o$vious that an unsta$le parlia!entary position !ust $e resolved in one

dire"tion or the other, that is to say leadin% either to a Conservative or to a La$our%overn!ent.


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a so"ialist revolution $y parlia!entary !eans. The resour"es of fili$usterin%,le%islative and ad!inistrative sa$ota%e that the possessin% "lasses have in theirhands are very %reat for, whatever the parlia!entary !a ority, the whole stateapparatus is fro! top to $otto! ine tri"a$ly tied to the $our%eoisie. elon%in% to itare the whole of the press, the prin"ipal or%ans of lo"al %overn!ent, theuniversities, s"hools, the "hur"hes and innu!era$le "lu$s and voluntary asso"iations in %eneral. )n its hands are the $anks, the whole syste! of pu$li""redit, and finally, the transport and tradin% apparatus, so that the day4to4day foodsupply of London, in"ludin% that of its La$our %overn!ent, depends upon the $i%"apitalist "orporations. )t is a$solutely self4evident that all these %i%anti" !eans will $e $rou%ht into !otion with furious violen"e in order to put a $rake on thea"tivity of the La$our %overn!ent, paraly e its efforts, inti!idate it, introdu"e asplit in its parlia!entary !a ority and finally to "reate a finan"ial pani", dislo"ationof the food supply, lo"k4outs, to terrori e the top layers of the la$our or%ani ationsand render the proletariat powerless. *nly an utter fool "an fail to understand thatthe $our%eoisie will !ove heaven, earth and the nether re%ions in the event of thea"tual "o!in% to power of a La$our %overn!ent.

Today-s so4"alled ritish fas"is! is for the ti!e $ein% !ore of a "uriosity thananythin% else, $ut this "uriosity is nonetheless sy!pto!ati". The Conservatives aretoday still sittin% too fir!ly in the saddle to need the aid of the fas"ists. ut asharpenin% of inter4party relations, the %rowth of the persisten"e and !ilitan"y of the workin% !asses and the perspe"tive of a La$our arty vi"tory will inevita$ly "ause the develop!ent of fas"ist tenden"ies on the ri%ht win% of the Conservatives.)n a "ountry that has $e"o!e poorer in re"ent years. where the position of the s!alland !iddle $our%eois has worsened in the e tre!e and there is "hroni"une!ploy!ent, there will $e no shorta%e of ele!ents for the for!ation of fas"istdeta"h!ents.

There "an therefore $e no dou$t that at the !o!ent of an ele"tion vi"tory for theLa$our arty the Conservatives will have $ehind the! not only the offi"ial stateapparatus $ut also the unoffi"ial %an%s of fas"is!. They will $e%in the $loody work of the provo"ateur $efore the parlia!ent has even had ti!e to pro"eed to the firstreadin% of a $ill for the nationali ation of the "oal !ines.


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ut "an the La$our arty when on"e in power, %o a$out the $usiness so"autiously, so ta"tfully and so skilfully that the $our%eoisie will, how shall we putitI # not feel the need for a"tive resistan"eI 'u"h an assu!ption is in itself of "ourse lau%ha$le. )t !ust nevertheless $e re"o%ni ed that ust su"h is the $asi"hope of a" onald and Co.


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A!on% a" onald-s 6left self4supporters and half4opponents who like hi!assu!e a de!o"rati" stan"e, there are so!e who will pro$a$ly say o$viously if the $our%eois "lasses atte!pt to put up resistan"e to a de!o"rati"ally4ele"ted La$our%overn!ent, the latter will not $alk at !ethods of the !ost severe "oer"ion # $utthis will $e not a "lass di"tatorship, rather the power of a de!o"rati" state, ... andso on and so forth.

)t is 0uite futile to put the ar%u!ent on this plane. To think in fa"t that the fate of so"iety "an $e deter!ined $y whether there are ele"ted to parlia!ent >J7 La$our

s i.e. a !inority, or >JF, i.e. a !a ority, and not $y the effe"tive $alan"e of "lassfor"es at the !o!ent of the sharp "lash of "lasses over the $asi" 0uestions of theire isten"e # to think in that way would !ean to $e "o!pletely "aptive to the fetishof parlia!entary arith!eti".

And let us ask, what happens if the Conservatives, fa"ed with a !ountin%revolutionary flood and the dan%er of a La$our %overn!ent, not only refuse tode!o"rati e the ele"toral syste! $ut on the "ontrary introdu"e new restri"tionsI&nlikely+ so!e ninny will o$ e"t who does not understand that where it is a !atterof the life and death of "lasses anythin% is likely.

ut already in top "ir"les in ritain a %reat deal of preparatory to4in% and fro4in%is %oin% on over the reor%ani ation and stren%thenin% of the Douse of Lords.

a" onald re"ently stated in "onne"tion with this that he "ould understand the"on"ern of so!e Conservative lords $ut 6why Li$erals should !ake endeavours inthe sa!e dire"tion ) "annot understand . The sa%e "annot understand why theLi$erals are reinfor"in% a se"ond line of tren"hes a%ainst the offensive of the workin% "lass. De does not understand this $e"ause he hi!self is a li$eral, and aprofoundly provin"ial, petty and li!ited one at that. De does not understand thatthe $our%eoisie has serious intentions, that it is preparin% for a !ortal stru%%le andthat the "rown and the Douse of Lords will o""upy a pro!inent pla"e in thatstru%%le. Davin% "urtailed the ri%hts of the Douse of Co!!ons, that is to say,"arryin% out a le%al coup d-tat , the Conservatives will, despite all the diffi"ulties of su"h an undertakin%, still e!er%e in a !ore advanta%eous situation than if they hadhad to or%ani e opposition to a La$our %overn!ent that had su""essfully reinfor"editself.

ut o$viously in su"h an event, so!e 6left- phrase!on%er will e "lai!, we should"all upon the !asses to resist. To use revolutionary for"e, does he !eanI 'o does itturn out that revolutionary for"e is not only per!issi$le $ut in fa"t inevita$le in a"ase where the Conservatives "arry out a pree!ptive coup d-tat , $y the !ost le%alparlia!entary !eansI ut in that "ase is it not si!pler to say that revolutionary for"e is e pedient when and where it stren%thens the position of the proletariat, weakens or repulses the ene!y and a""elerates the so"ialist develop!ent of so"ietyI

ut heroi" pro!ises to put up li%htnin% resistan"e in the event the Conservativesshould 6dare and so forth are not worth a rotten e%%. *ne "annot lull the !asses


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day in and day out with "laptrap a$out a pea"eful, painless transition to so"ialis!and then at the first solid pun"h on the nose su!!on the !asses to an ar!edresponse. This is the surest way of assistin% rea"tion in the rout of the proletariat.To prove e0ual to a revolutionary repulse, the !asses !ust $e ideolo%i"ally,or%ani ationally and !aterially prepared for it. They !ust understand theinevita$ility of a sharpenin% of the "lass stru%%le and of its turnin% at a "ertain sta%einto a "ivil war. The politi"al edu"ation of the workin% "lass and the sele"tion of itsleadin% personnel !ust $e ad usted to su"h a perspe"tive. The illusions of "o!pro!ise !ust $e fou%ht day in and day out, that is to say, war to the death!ust $e de"lared on a" onaldis!. Thus and only thus does the 0uestion standtoday.

Leavin% aside the "on"rete "onditions, what "an now $e said is that a" onalddid have a "han"e in the past of %reatly easin% the transition to so"ialis! andredu"in% the upheavals of "ivil war to a !ini!u!. That was durin% the first "o!in%to power of the La$our arty. )f a" onald had i!!ediately pla"ed parlia!entfa"e to fa"e with a de"isive pro%ra!!e Ethe li0uidation of the !onar"hy and theDouse of Lords, a heavy ta on "apital, the nationali ation of the prin"ipal !eans of produ"tion and so forthH and had, ha

Documents

Where is Britain Going (1925)