John Maclean

Henry Bell

Description

'I am not here, then, as the accused; I am here as the accuser of capitalism dripping with blood from head to foot' – John Maclean, Speech from the Dock, 1918.



Feared by the government, adored by workers, celebrated by Lenin and Trotsky; the head of British Military Intelligence called John Maclean 'the most dangerous man in Britain'.



This new biography explores the events that shaped the life of a momentous man – from the Great War and the Great Unrest, to the Rent Strike and the Russian Revolution. It examines his work as an organiser and educator, his imprisonment and hunger strike, and how he became the early hero of radical Scottish Independence.
Acknowledgements

List of Abbreviations

1. Out for Life and All That Life Can Give Us

2. Dispeller of Ignorance

3. The Revolutionary Gospel

4. The Rapids of Revolution

5. Internationalists First, Last, and All the Time

6. The War Within a War

7. Convict 2652

8. We are Going to Live to See the Day

9. Scotland's Bolshevik

10. The Accuser of Capitalism

11. Let's Kill Capitalism this Year

12. One Big Union

13. An Open Letter to Lenin

14. All Hail the Scottish Workers' Republic

15. The John Maclean March

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Sujets

• Political Ideologies
• Political
• Historical
• HISTORY
• POLITICAL SCIENCE
• Lettres et linguistique
• Revolutions
• Universidad de Glasgow
• Escocia
• Communism
• Revolutionary
• Biography
• Communist Labour Party (Scotland)
• Marxism
• Material culture
• British Socialist Party
• Red Clydeside
• Scottish Workers Republican Party
• General officer
• Ireland
• Military
• University of Glasgow
• 20th century
• Revolution
• Politics
• History of Europe
• Stephen Ireland
• Great Britain
• General
• Autobiography
• Université de Glasgow
• Communisme
• Scotland
• Glasgow
• Europe

Informations

• Publié par: Pluto Press
• Date de parution: 20 octobre 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781786803542
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 4 Mo

Extrait

John Maclean

Revolutionary Lives

Series Editors: Sarah Irving, University of Edinburgh; Professor Paul Le Blanc, La Roche College, Pittsburgh

Revolutionary Livesis a series of short, critical biographies of radical figures from throughout history. The books are sympathetic but not sycophantic, and the intention is to present a balanced and, where necessary, critical evaluation of the individual’s place in their political field, putting their actions and achievements in context and exploring issues raised by their lives, such as the use or rejection of violence, nationalism, or gender in political activism. While individuals are the subject of the books, their personal lives are dealt with lightly except insofar as they mesh with political concerns. The focus is on the contribution these revolutionaries made to history, an examination of how far they achieved their aims in improving the lives of the oppressed and exploited, and how they can continue to be an inspiration for many today.

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Leila Khaled: Icon of Palestinian Liberation Sarah Irving

Jean Paul Marat: Tribune of the French Revolution Clifford D. Conner

Sylvia Pankhurst: Suffragette, Socialist and Scourge of Empire Katherine Connelly

Paul Robeson: A Revolutionary Life Gerald Horne

Percy Bysshe Shelley: Poet and Revolutionary Jacqueline Mulhallen

Toussaint Louverture: A Black Jacobin in the Age of Revolutions Charles Forsdick and Christian Høgsbjerg

Ellen Wilkinson: From Red Suffragist to Government Minister Paula Bartley

Gerrard Winstanley: The Digger’s Life and Legacy John Gurney

John Maclean Hero of Red Clydeside

Henry Bell

First published 2018 by Pluto Press 345 Archway Road, London N6 5AA

www.plutobooks.com

Copyright © Henry Bell 2018

Images courtesy of National Records of Scotland, National Library of Scotland, Glasgow Caledonian University Archive Centre, Glasgow Museums, Ellice Milton and Frances Wilson. Every effort has been made to trace copyright holders and to obtain their permission for the use of copyright material in this book. The publisher apologises for any errors or omissions in this respect and would be grateful if notified of any corrections that should be incorporated in future reprints or editions.

The right of Henry Bell to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN ISBN ISBN ISBN ISBN

978 0 7453 3839 2 978 0 7453 3838 5 978 1 7868 0354 2 978 1 7868 0356 6 978 1 7868 0355 9

Hardback Paperback PDF eBook Kindle eBook EPUB eBook

This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. Logging, pulping and manufacturing processes are expected to conform to the environmental standards of the country of origin.

Typeset by Stanford DTP Services, Northampton, England

Simultaneously printed in the United Kingdom and United States of America

For Livi, my favourite socialist schoolteacher

Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations

Contents

 1. Out for Life and All That Life Can Give Us  2. Dispeller of Ignorance  3. The Revolutionary Gospel  4. The Rapids of Revolution  5. Internationalists First, Last, and All the Time  6. The War Within a War  7. Convict 2652  8. We are Going to Live to See the Day  9. Scotland’s Bolshevik 10. The Accuser of Capitalism 11. Let’s Kill Capitalism This Year 12. One Big Union 13. An Open Letter to Lenin 14. All Hail the Scottish Workers’ Republic 15. The John Maclean March

Notes Bibliography Index

viii ix

1 7 16 28 41 58 69 83 95 105 118 139 165 183 193

202 229 236

Acknowledgements

I am extremely grateful to Katie Reid at Glasgow Women’s Library, Barbara Neilson at the Mitchell Library, Carole McCallum at Glasgow Caledonian University Library, Thijs van Leeuwen at the International Institute of Social History, Fiona Hayes at the Glasgow Museums Resource Centre, Audrey Canning at the Willie Gallacher Memorial Library, and a great many people at the Scottish National Library, The National Archives, The National Records of Scotland, the Irish Military Archives, the Russian Embassy, Glasgow University Library, Stirling University Library, Strathclyde University Library, University of Warwick Archive, The People’s Palace, The Marx Memorial Library, The Working Class Movement Library, and the Marxist Internet Archive, as well as for notes and support from Ewan Gibbs, Christopher Silver, Nick Bell, Fiona Brook, Robbie Guillory, Livi Crook, Jonathon Shafi, Tessa Cook, Kate Tough, Joey Simon, Dominic O’Hara, Harry Josephine Giles, Julia Taudevin, Rory Scothorne, Katy Hastie, Willy Maley, Sarah Irving, David Castle, Sara Shaarawi, Heather Mclean, Tom Coles, Jim Monaghan, John Foster, Alec Finlay, Dot Reid, John Couzin, Liz Lochhead, Hassan Abdulraz zak, Kevin Morgan, Scott Reeves, Donald Anderson, Gerry Cairns, Poppy Kohner, Fiona Jack, Rebecca Dewald, Svenja Meyerricks, Eddi Reader, Stephen Coyle, Josie Long, Christian Hogsbjerg, Kate Macleary, Sean Anderson, Craig Smillie, James Crisp, Mark Hesling, and John Maclean’s grandchildren; Ellice Milton, Denis Maclean Wilson and Frances Maclean Wilson. An excerpt from ‘Freedom Come All Ye’ by Hamish Henderson appears courtesy of the Henderson family, excerpts from ‘Don’t Sign Up for War’ and ‘Mrs Barbour’s Army’ by Alistair Hulett appear courtesy of the Alistair Hulett Memorial Trust, excerpts of poems by Sorley Maclean, Edwin Morgan and Hugh MacDiarmid appear courtesy of Carcanet Press.

viii

List of Abbreviations

BSP – British Socialist Party CLP – Communist Labour Party Comintern – The Third Communist International, founded by Lenin in 1919 CP (BSTI) – Communist Party (British Section of the Third International) CPGB – Communist Party of Great Britain CWC – Clyde Workers’ Committee EIS – Educational Institute of Scotland ILP – Independent Labour Party IWW – Industrial Workers of the World SDF – Social Democratic Federation SLP – Socialist Labour Party SNP – Scottish National Party STUC – Scottish Trade Union Congress SWRP – Scotish Workers’ Republican Party

ix