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Leicester Special Collections

The 1926 General Strike

Introduction

The 1926 General Strike was a landmark moment in British labour history. It began on May 4th, 1926, after miners went on strike and were supported by other key industries. The bulk of the strike only lasted for ten days with no concessions made to workers. Miners, on the other hand, stayed on strike for eight months but were forced back to work with the onset of winter at conditions worse than those they started with. For this reason, the strike is considered to have failed.

1926 GS Demonstration.jpg

Leicester workers out on demonstration during the strike (Leicester Chronicle)

In Leicester

Ned Newett writes that the strike is scarcely mentioned in formal record of the city’s history, giving the impression that the strike was not important. However, he argues that the strike played an important role in the city’s history even if it is not remembered very well. Audio recordings made in the 1980s appear to support both of these claims as the testimony is varied. Edwin Peacock, for example, suggests that the city was fully behind the strike, whereas Charles Monk offers a testimony of an unenthusiastic official organiser and his own efforts to get his workplace out on strike.

1926 GS Tram Pic.jpg

Trams stopped during the general strike, conflicting with the memory of Edwin Peacock (Leicester Chronicle).

1926 GS Railway Guard.jpg

Volunteers and soldiers were brought in to try and break the railway strike (Leicester Chronicle).

1926 GS Railway Derailment.jpg

The use of volunteer strikebreakers led to this train derailment at Loughborough station, north of Leicester (Leicester Chronicle).

Legacy and Conclusion

The legacy of the 1926 General Strike is that the strike failed. However, it is remembered by labour and leftist groups as a landmark event in their history. In 2023, the event has re-entered public conscience with the onset of rail strikes, with many publications speculating on the possibility of a general strike in the 21st century. In Leicester, Charles Monk reflected on what the legacy meant to him.

This page was created by Carter Buckingham.

Sources:

Encyclopedia Britannica.

Leicester's Radical History, The General Strike in Leicester, 1926. Ned Newitt.

Leicester Chronicle, 15th May, 1926.

Interviews from the Leicester Oral History Archive Collection at EMOHA:

Edwin Peacock

Charles Monk

Kathleen McDonagh

John Webb