| abstract
| - Britain in the early days of 1919 was a sullen, depressed and angry place. The end of the Great War the previous November had caused a momentary surge of national euphoria but the stark realisation of the horror of war and the deaths of nearly a million British soldiers, sailors and airmen as well as civilian losses in German air raids and naval attacks, had led many to question the reasons for the conflict. Unprecedented Government control over society and the economy and privation caused by German submarine activity in the Atlantic and the need to feed Britain’s vastly inflated armed forces had also caused tensions to develop. The news of the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia in November 1917 and the overthrow of the autarchic dynasties of Central and Eastern Europe in the last days of the war had further inflamed the desire for change especially among the large numbers of the working class. There had been isolated and sporadic periods of civil unrest during the conflict and nowhere more than Glasgow, which had seen a rent strike in 1915 and the growth of a strong and vociferous anti-war movement, which had violently opposed the introduction of conscription in 1916. For many in the vast working-class estates of Clydeside and the industrial central lowlands, the war was not fought for “their” benefit but for the preservation of the privilege of the rich. It had been the working class who had seen their sons shipped to Flanders and slaughtered. The hope was that peace would bring social and political change but it soon became clear that the returning army would not face a “land fit for heroes”. In early 1919, the shipbuilding unions agreed a reduction in the working week from 57 to 47 hours but this was angrily repudiated on Clydeside where unions called for a 40 hour working week and other improvements in pay and conditions. Unlike in other areas, the workers on Clydeside had organised themselves into the Clyde Workers Committee (CWC). The demand for a 40-hour week had distinct political overtones. A shorter working week would create jobs for discharged ex-servicemen as well as maintaining strong employment throughout the city and region, which would also strengthen union power against the employers. The CWC was able to mobilise support across Glasgow and places like Airdrie and Motherwell in support of the shipbuilding workers and was far more effective and powerful than the organised unions. On 26th January 1919, the Clydeside shipyard workers went on strike and within three days, 36,000 mineworkers joined the 40,000 in the shipyards, as did thousands in other industries, paralysing the city and much of the surrounding area. On January 29th, the Lord Provost agreed to meet a deputation from the CWC at Glasgow City Hall. At this meeting, the CWC leaders urged the Lord Provost to force the employers to concede the demand for a 40-hour week. The Lord Provost could not or would not give a definite answer and asked the CWC to return in forty-eight hours. On January 31st 1919, the CWC leaders were meeting the Lord Provost when the meeting was interrupted by an uproar from outside. The Police had launched an unprovoked attack on the demonstrating works and a full-scale riot erupted. The CWC leaders left the City Hall by a rear entrance just as the Police closed in. The centre of Glasgow became a battleground but while the Police had the initial advantage, the strikers fought back and by sheer weight of numbers drove the Police out of the centre of the city. Back in the City Hall, the CWC leaders led a deputation, which arrested the Lord Provost and his staff. In the hours that followed, the more moderate elements on the CWC lost power to revolutionary elements such as John MacLean, Peter Marshall and Arthur McManus. In the early hours of February 1st, the CWC formed a “Workers Council” to run the city. The Glasgow Soviet was born. Initially, the writ of the Workers Council ran little further than the City Hall but as the day moved on, more of the city pledged support for what was already becoming known as the Glasgow Soviet. A critical element of support came from a battalion of soldiers stationed at Maryhill, which executed its own officers and formed a “Red Guard” to defend the Soviet. In London, the news of the events in Glasgow had been received with fear and disbelief. The Prime Minister, David Lloyd George, contacted Home Secretary George Cave who immediately agreed that this “revolution”, as he called it, had to be suppressed “with the full ferocity of the law”. However, it soon became clear that the Glasgow Police force had either melted away or joined the Soviet along with a number of soldiers and sailors. Throughout the war, a force of some 10,000 soldiers had been retained in England specifically to deal with any internal civil unrest or disaster. This force was ordered to Glasgow along with tanks. The force was made up of wholly English troops, as Cave and Lloyd George believed that Scottish forces would not be reliable. Indeed, news of the Glasgow Soviet had led to sporadic mutinies and unrest in other Scottish regiments. The Army faced disruption as it approached Glasgow with roadblocks in place and the rail system disrupted. Soldiers were met with jeers and stones in Airdrie and Motherwell and, worryingly for the Government, some desertions were reported. On February 4th, the army moved into Glasgow and met heavy resistance from soldiers and workers. The fighting soon became disorganised as the outgunned strikers used their knowledge of the city and its streets to slow up the advance of the Army. Tanks were attacked and put out of action and casualties were high on both sides. The Army was forced to shell the centre of the city including the railway station, post office and city hall. Slowly, the Army fought its way into the city centre but had to contest every yard. For the Soviet leaders, the military response had come as no surprise and they had hurriedly planned a resistance based on the shipyards and the streets. They were outgunned despite the Scottish battalion of around 900 men, which fought bravely to slow up the advance of the Army. By the early hours of February 7th, the Army was in the City Centre. The fighting was ferocious in the ruins of the key buildings. Some of the Soviet leaders opted for flight but MacLean and McManus stayed in the City Hall until the end. Just after dawn, it was obvious English troops had failed to retake the city. The Communists soon re-occupied the City Hall after a fierce battle. The fighting continued in the shipyards for a further two days during which most of the dockyard installations were sabotaged or destroyed in the fighting. George Cave withdrew his troops . All over the Glasgow Soviet people partied in the streets. The Army withdrew to Edinburgh and occupied the city. Hundreds of captured troops were put on trial for treason. strikers still stands in the courtyard The army lost over 300 dead in the fight to recapture Glasgow; civilian losses were later estimated at over a thousand. The Soviet casualties were higher still with nearly 200 dead or injured. Much of the city centre was in ruins and it would take many months to repair the damage.
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