Tony Judge

Tory Socialist: Robert Blatchford and Merrie England Tony Judge 1st edition

This book looks at the life and work of Robert Blatchford, a pioneer of the British labour movement in the late nineteenth century. A highly talented journalist he was an originator of the didactic political column, and inspired a grassroots socialist movement. In 'Merrie England' he outlined his vision of a communal, cooperative and ethical society as an alternative to competitive capitalist individualism. It eventually sold in millions around the world, and help inspire new generations of socialist activists everywhere. As Blatchford's disillusion with the British Labour Party grew after 1900, he developed a form of 'Tory Socialism'. This combined patriotism and welfarism within 'one nation', in which the wealthy accepted the responsibilities of the state for the poor, and the working classes abstained from revolutionary violence and social class hatred. The book looks at Blatchford's early life and the experiences that influenced him, his relations with the press 'barons' of the time, and his dealings with many of the leading figures of the labour movement, such as Keir Hardie, Victor Grayson and Ramsay MacDonald.