The North East Labour History Society has launched an essay competition for research into labour history in the North East of England. The Sir Chaplin Labour History Award is awarded to the best essay submitted on any aspect of the history of labour in the North East. The competition, which includes a £100 book token and publication of the winning essay in the journal North … Continue reading North East Labour History Society Award
In 1896, the veteran German socialist and labour movement activist returned to Britain to lecture and serve as a delegate to the Congress of the Second International. Historian Valentin J. Hemberger retraces his steps. On 29 March 1896, Wilhelm Liebknecht (1826–1900), socialist and political activist in the German labour movement, celebrated his seventieth birthday. Numerous congratulations reached the ‘Old Man,’ as he was respectfully nicknamed: … Continue reading A British Episode – Wilhelm Liebknecht in Britain, 1896
The Society for the Study of Labour History is sorry to hear of the death of Iorwerth (Iori) Prothero, the distinguished historian of artisan radicalism, who has died at the age of 87. Born in London in 1939, Iori, as he preferred to be known, was the child of Welsh parents and intensely proud of his Welsh heritage. It was formative for his interest in … Continue reading Iorwerth Prothero (1939 – 2026)
Manipur was a princely state under British India from 1891 to 1947. Currently, it is a federal state of India located in the far eastern corner, sharing a border with Burma. My research examines the central role of Manipuri women in ensuring economic survival through their work in the market, and how British colonial economic policies and the Second World War in Manipur transformed and … Continue reading Zuzubee Huidrom (University of Edinburgh) on Manipuri women and British colonialism.
Academics, independent historians, heritage professionals, trade unionists, activists, and many more gathered in Manchester at the People’s History Museum for a one-day conference marking the centenary of the 1926 General Strike. May 2026 marks the centenary of the 1926 General Strike when, for nine days – from 3 to 12 May 1926 – industrial production across Britain ground to a halt as trade unionists and … Continue reading 1926 General Strike centenary open day report
The University of Warwick’s Modern Records Centre is hosting a free one day conference on 18 June (9:15am – 5:30pm) to explore the history of health and welfare in Britain’s coal mining industry. Held jointly by the University of Warwick’s Centre for the History of Medicine, Science and Technology, and Modern Records Centre, the conference aims to bring together researchers from higher education, libraries, archives, museums, and … Continue reading Event: Blood is the price of coal: coal communities, health and welfare in Britain and beyond
On 6 May, acclaimed performer, balladeer, and SSLH EC member Jennifer Reid will be performing a unique set of historic broadside ballads at the John Rylands Library, University of Manchester. This unique event offers the chance to hear selections from the library’s broadside ballad collections brought vividly to life. Broadside ballads were short narrative verses or songs, printed on a single sheet of inexpensive paper … Continue reading Event: Spineless Wonders: songs and street literature
Earlier this week, Dr Vic Clarke delivered a lively talk on Joshua Hobson, his radical publishing, and his work on the Northern Star at the University of Huddersfield for the annual Luddite Memorial Lecture. Vic Clarke focused on Hobson’s life as a publisher and politician, charting his journey from teenage handloom weaver to a radical publisher of the unstamped press, through to his entry into … Continue reading Joshua Hobson: His radical publishing and work on the Northern Star
The Fig Tree online webzine and Crooked Spire Press of Chesterfield have announced a new special issue to commemorate the centenary of the 1926 General Strike. Submissions are sought for poems covering the following topics: Poems written specifically for this project, and not previously published elsewhere, will be selected for inclusion in a special issue of The Fig Tree. If there is sufficient interest, Crooked … Continue reading Call for poems for the 1926 General Strike Centenary
A century on, the strike that shook Britain comes to life on stage – and it’s now just weeks away. May 1926. Millions of workers across the country walked out, standing shoulder to shoulder for a fairer world. To mark the one hundredth anniversary of the 1926 General Strike, ‘Centenary’ celebrates the event at the Glasshouse International Centre for Music in Gateshead. Created by Wisecrack … Continue reading Centenary: The 1926 General Strike on Stage
Society for the Study of Labour History 