Battle of George Square
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The 1919 Battle of George Square, also known as Bloody Friday and Black Friday, was one of the worst riots on the streets of Glasgow, Scotland, which took place on Friday, 31 January 1919 [1]. The dispute revolved around a campaign for shorter working hours, backed by widespread strike action. Clashes between police and protesters broke out, and led to the British Government sending soldiers to the city to prevent any further gatherings due to their fear of a workers revolution, described as a 'Bolshevist uprising' by the then Secretary of State for Scotland [2], as had happened the previous year in the 1917 Russian Revolution and was occurring in Germany whilst the 'Forty Hours' strike unfolded .
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[edit] The Forty Hours Strike
The Scottish TUC and Clyde Workers' Committee called the 'Forty Hours Strike' in January 1919 [3] to demand a reduction in working hours. The immediate objective was to alleviate unemployment by sharing out available work more widely. Unemployment was expected to be a major problem at the end of the war, as large numbers of soldiers were suddenly reintroduced to the labour force. In fact, a short post-war economic boom delayed the onset of mass unemployment for several years. However, some areas with much war-related industry, such as Glasgow, with its munitions factories and shipbuilding, suffered greatly from the ending of wartime employment.
Before the First World War, the standard working week was 54 hours but Scottish workers wanted it cut to 30. Emmanuel Shinwell, the Glasgow Trades Council president, persuaded them to go for 40 hours a week.
A strikers' meeting was called for Monday, 27 January, and more than 3000 workers gathered at St Andrew's Halls. By Friday 31 January, this number had swollen to 'upwards of 60,000' [1]. It was Scotland's first mass picket.
[edit] The riot
The exact cause of the riot has been disputed - some sources indicate it was caused by an unprovoked baton charge by the City of Glasgow Police, whilst others indicate that strikers attempted to stop trams trying to run in the square [2]. Fighting broke out between workers and police with the fighting spreading as far as Glasgow Green. Many people, women and children among them, were injured. More than a dozen strikers were taken to Duke Street Prison and later tried at the High Court of Justiciary in Edinburgh.
[edit] Soldiers in the streets
The government reacted quickly, after Scottish Secretary Robert Munro described the riot as a 'Bolshevist uprising'. Soon, soldiers with machine guns, tanks and a howitzer arrived to occupy Glasgow's streets. They stayed there for a week to deter any more gatherings. No Glaswegian troops were deployed, with the British government fearing that fellow Glaswegians, soldiers or otherwise, would go over to the workers' side if a revolutionary situation developed in Glasgow. Troops were transported from England and other parts of Scotland and stationed in Glasgow specifically to combat this possible scenario.
[edit] Consequences
Manny Shinwell, William Gallacher and David Kirkwood were jailed for several months.
A 47-hour week was eventually agreed with trade unions.
[edit] See also
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[edit] References
- ^ a b "Glasgow Digital Library - The battle of George Square (Bloody Friday) 1919". Strathclyde University. http://gdl.cdlr.strath.ac.uk/redclyde/redclyeve14.htm. Retrieved on 2006-07-24.
- ^ a b "Red Clydeside". International Socialist Archives. http://www.redflag.org.uk/articles/art005.html. Retrieved on 2006-07-24.
- ^ "Glasgow Digital Library - The 40-hours strike 1919". Strathclyde University. http://gdl.cdlr.strath.ac.uk/redclyde/redclyeve13.htm. Retrieved on 2006-07-24.
- Magnus Magnusson. Scotland: The Story of a Nation.
