During World War Two the Nazis dropped bombs on two of the battlegrounds of working-class Bristolian resistance to Oswald Mosley and his notorious fascist paramilitaries, the ‘Blackshirts’. From the Ropewalk to Melvin Square this project investigates the heroes and villains of inter-war class conflict and reveals the proud history of Bristolian anti-fascism from the very beginnings of the British Union of Fascists (BUF). This project aims to answer some important questions:
- Why did significant parts of the police and the establishment support fascism in the 1930s when workers clearly recognised them as the enemy long before the outbreak of war?
- Who were the leaders and members of the BUF in Bristol and what were their objectives?
- How did the anti-fascists in Bristol organise, what were their tactics and how successful were they?
If you have any information, family history or sources that could help with this project then please contact BRHG at brh@brh.org.uk.
Stuff linked to this project...
Articles
They shall not pass: a century of anti-fascist and anti-racist action
‘The enemies of the working-class will arrive in yachts and limousines, not in small boats’ [banner seen in Bristol on Wednesday 7 August 2024] ‘If ever I lie dying on a Nazi street, there’ll be ten dead fascists at my feet’ [anti-fascist trad.] […] Read More =>
WWII: Upper class protected British fascist leader Mosley, whilst supposedly fighting fascism
The Second World War in Europe is often presented as a war against fascism though this is conflated with a war against the nations of Germany and Italy and by default with Germans and Italians. The VE day celebrations today will be presented as those […] Read More =>
Publications
Lady Blackshirts
During the 1930s a small group of ultra-nationalistic women, who considered themselves feminists, joined Oswald Mosley’s British Union of Fascists. Surprisingly some of these women were former high ranking members of the suffragette movement. Over 50 […] Read More =>
Bread Or Batons?
The banking crisis of 2008 and the following deep recession experienced by the world economy have led to mass unemployment and poverty in the U.K. Massive public sector cuts along with huge financial bonuses for the wealthy have exacerbated the […] Read More =>
Event Series
South Bristol History Festival 2024
In collaboration with performers, writers and historians from south of the river, Bristol Radical History Group (BRHG) are putting on a series of events over the autumn of 2024 uncovering hidden histories of south Bristol. The Bedminster-Southville […] Read More =>
South Bristol History Festival 2023
In collaboration with performers and historians from south of the river, Bristol Radical History Group (BRHG) are putting on a series of events over the autumn of 2023 uncovering hidden histories of south Bristol. The Bedminster-Southville history […] Read More =>
Events
Not A BRHG Event
Challenging Oppression: Case Studies in Bristol’s History
The reaction to the anti-migrant protests in August 2024 and solidarity that regular Bristolians showed to the refugees was not a one-off. The aim of this session is to understand how regular Bristolians have challenged oppression throughout the […] Read More =>
Ireland – A history of fascism and the far-right in Ireland
Ireland is one of the few countries in Europe that escaped fascist rule in World War Two and where neo-Nazi parties have never enjoyed success. Yet over the last decade Ireland, north and south, has seen a new wave of far-right street demonstrations, […] Read More =>
Beating the Blackshirts: Militant anti-fascism in south Bristol in the 1930s
Beating the Blackshirts: Militant anti-fascism in south Bristol in the 1930s
During the 1930’s militant anti-fascist responses to Oswald Mosley’s Blackshirts were established amongst the Bristolian working-class. Discouraged by their defeats in the inner-city districts of Bristol, the British Union of Fascists (BUF) turned […] Read More =>
Beating the Blackshirts
Beating the Blackshirts
During the 1930’s militant antifascist responses to Oswald Mosley’s Blackshirts were established amongst the Bristolian working-class. Discouraged by their defeats in the inner-city districts of Bristol, the British Union of Fascists (BUF) turned […] Read More =>
Bristol Heroes – Volunteer Fighters in the Spanish Civil War 1936-39
Bristol Heroes – Volunteer Fighters in the Spanish Civil War 1936-39
The Spanish Civil War was an important pre-cursor to the Second World War, pitting republicans and revolutionaries against an emerging military dictatorship in Spain and their fascist allies in Mussolini's Italy and Hitler's Germany. After a fascist […] Read More =>
Bristolians vs Blackshirts: militant anti-fascism in the 1930s
Bristolians vs Blackshirts: militant anti-fascism in the 1930s
During the 1930s in Bristol and nationally much of the working-class identified Oswald Mosley and his British Union of Fascists (BUF) as a major threat to their freedom, their organisations and to ethnic and religious groups within their number. This […] Read More =>
Facing up to the Fascists: Confronting the National Front in Bristol in the 1970s
Bristol Radical History Group presents an innovative exhibition of resistance to fascism in the city in the 1970s, through a collection of rare contemporary posters, badges, pamphlets, photographs and film. This visually powerful exhibition […] Read More =>
The battle of Melvin Square – Knowle West and anti-fascism in the 1930s
The battle of Melvin Square – Knowle West and anti-fascism in the 1930s
7.00pm, Tuesday 29th November, Filwood Library, Filwood Broadway, Bristol BS4 1JN During the 1930’s militant antifascism against Oswald Mosley’s Blackshirts was ingrained and established amongst the Bristolian working-class. Discontented by their […] Read More =>
Exhibition: Facing up to the Fascists
Exhibition: Facing up to the Fascists
1st October to 17th November 2022: 1st Floor, Bristol Central Reference Library, College Green, Bristol, BS1 5TL (now extended to 17th November). Launch event: 4.00pm, Monday 3rd October, Bristol Room, Bristol Central Reference Library Bristol […] Read More =>
Book Reviews
Hitler’s British Traitors
Regardless of the 2015 publishing date given, this book is currently (last checked December 2018) just available in hardback, and must have been withheld due to the ongoing release of new official documents, as these terminated only in 2017. […] Read More =>