Socialism Made Plain The Social And Political Manifesto Of The Democratic Federation

For historians of the international labour movement, the decades before 1914 were the golden age of Marxist thought. In this flowering of socialist thinking, Britain seemingly had no part, and the question has been asked instead: ‘Why was there was no Marxism in Britain?’ The selections in this volume confirm that Marxist ideas in Britain were not always pitched at the highest theoretical level. There are also examples of the reductionism to which leading exponents were sometimes prone. Nevertheless, there is also a richness and outspokenness across wide and varied themes that belies the caricature of arid economic determinism. Marxists believed they carried on the tradition of home-grown movements of struggle such as Chartism. They also identified with the new spirit of internationism whose ideas and personalities filled the pages of their periodicals. Behind such well-known names as William Morris, James Connolly and Tom Mann, a wider movement of contrarians remains to be discovered.

This first volume will showcase the richness and diversity of the Owenite movement, which spanned decades (from Owen’s first published books in 1813-16 to the late 1840s), political allegiances, genders and continents. This volume therefore calls for a variety of sources not easily available elsewhere - including books, pamphlets, correspondence and newspaper articles - and a variety of often overlapping voices - from Chartists to early co-operators, secularists, non-British Owenites and proponents of women’s rights. The sheer range of Owenite ventures (intentional communities, co-operatives, labour exchanges and experiments in popular education) will be covered, thus blending social and political history. The attempt to map the Owenite movement will eventually lead to the identification of its shared, core principles and values: internationalism, co-operation, concepts of political change, and above all, the ideal of community.

DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "The History of the Fabian Society" by Edward R. Pease. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.

It is commonly believed that James Connolly initiated modern Irish socialism when he founded the Irish Socialist Republican Party in May 1896. This book challenges that myth by making available for the first time a detailed history of the beginnings of modern Irish socialism. Based on original sources, this study traces the development of socialism in Ireland from the influence of William Thompson, Marx and the First International through to the arrival of Connolly and the struggle for independence. The author explores the radicalizing element of the land war, the impact of British socialism in Ireland, and the emergence of socialist organizations in Dublin. He also examines the leading role played by socialists in the politicization of the labour movement and charts their changing position in relation to Irish independence.