Description

An authoritative and original history of the working classes and the British Left

The political Left in Britain rose out of the Industrial Revolution, as the working classes emerged as the leading force in the call for social change. Their contributions extended widely to political representation, the birth of the Labour Party and women’s suffrage, the autodidact tradition in adult education, and Britain’s literary culture. Throughout subsequent decades, the working classes remained central to the British radical tradition.

Geoff Andrews traces the history of the Left and the Labour Party through the ideas of leading thinkers, writers, educationalists, trade unionists, and politicians. Ranging from the Workers Educational Association to the General Strike and the Women’s Liberation Movement, Andrews uncovers the voices of key figures. The first account of the Labour Party to put the working classes at the heart of its history, this fascinating book tells a wider story of their progressive contribution to British culture, politics, and the movements which have driven social change.

Publisher Review

“Wide-ranging, lucid and very readable, the book is a fresh account of the political left over two centuries.”-Chris Wrigley, author of British Trade Unions since 1933

“A brilliant, erudite and engaged history of the intersection of Britain’s working classes and its radical traditions in all their depth and many-sidedness. Whether or not you agree with all of Andrews’s conclusions, Radicals should be required reading for everyone interested in the past, present and the future of the British left.”-John Merrick, editor of Raphael Samuel’s Workshop of the World

“Geoff Andrews’ succinct retelling of the story of the British Left focuses on radical ideas and cultures rather than party politics. He shows how the working class, its emerging ethos and its struggle for self-education, helped to shape British society across more than a century.”-Tom Buchanan, University of Oxford

“Geoff Andrews tells two centuries of working-class history in an informed, lucid style that is always engaging and often poignant. Radicals reminds us that the British working-classes were never dogmatic about socialist doctrine. British socialism developed out of working-class cultures that valued loyalty, mutualism, co-operation, fraternity, self-reliance, and self-improvement.”-Richard Johnson, Queen Mary University of London

“Radicals is a marvellous and timely affirmation of the ideas and intellects which made, maintained, and sustained the British labour movement. Andrews makes a powerful, essential case for why historians and today’s progressive voices-indeed all of us-should pay far greater attention to adult educators, autodidacts, creatives, feminists, and working people. This is an outstanding contribution to the history of our times.”-Daryl Leeworthy, author of Labour Country