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The history of socialism, sometimes termed 'modern socialism',[1] finds its origins in the French Revolution of 1789 and the changes brought about by the Industrial Revolution, although it has precedents in earlier movements and ideas. Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution African socialism is a belief in sharing economic resources in a "traditional" African way as distinct from classical Socialism. Arab Socialism (الاشتراكية العربية al-ishtirākīya al-‘arabīya) is a political ideology based on an amalgamation of Pan-Arabism and Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based De Leonism, occasionally known as Marxism-Deleonism, is a form of Marxism developed by Daniel De Leon. Democratic socialism is a description used by various socialist movements tendencies and organizations to emphasize the democratic character of their political orientation Eco-socialism, Green socialism or Socialist ecology is an Ideology merging aspects of Marxism, Socialism, Green politics Guild socialism is a political movement advocating workers' control of industry through the medium of trade-related Guilds. Libertarian socialism is a group of political philosophies that aim to create a society without political economic or social hierarchies – a society in which all violent Market socialism is a term used to denote two different Economic system (s based in Socialism which operate according to Market principles The term revolutionary socialism refers to Socialist tendencies that advocate the need for fundamental social change through Revolution, as a strategy to achieve a Social anarchism, socialist anarchism, anarcho-socialism, anarchist socialism or Communitarian anarchism,(sometimes used interchangeably with Social democracy is a Political ideology of the left and centre-left A socialist market economy is an economic form that is practiced in the People's Republic of China, where it is called Socialism with Chinese characteristics Utopian socialism is a term used to define the first currents of modern socialist thought Religious socialism is a Term used to describe forms of Socialism that are based on Religious values. Buddhist socialism is a Political ideology which advocates Socialism based on the principles of Buddhism. Christian socialism generally refers to those on the Christian left whose politics are both Christian and Socialist and who see these two philosophies as Islamic socialism is a term coined by various Muslim leaders to meet the demand for a more spiritual form of Socialism. Criticisms of Socialism range from disagreements over the efficiency of socialist economic and political models to condemnation of states described by themselves Socialist economics is a broad and sometimes controversial term The term socialist state (or socialist republic, or workers' state) can carry one of several different (but related meanings In strictly speaking any Since the 18th century Socialist ideas have developed and separated into many different types of socialism. The following is a list of self-identified Socialists divided by geographical location The International Workingmen's Association (IWA, sometimes called the First International, was an international socialist organization which aimed at uniting a variety The Second International (1889-1916 was an organization of socialist and labour parties formed in Paris on July 14, 1889. The Comintern ( Com munist Intern ational also known as the Third International) was an international Communist organisation founded in Moscow The Fourth International ( FI) is a communist international organisation working in opposition to both Capitalism and Stalinism. Socialist International is a worldwide organization of socialist ( social democratic and labour) political parties The World Federation of Democratic Youth (WFDY is a left-wing youth organization recognized by the United Nations as an international youth Non-governmental organization The International Union of Socialist Youth (IUSY encompasses socialist, Social democratic and Labour Party youth organizations from more than 100 states Anarchism is a Political philosophy encompassing theories and attitudes which support the elimination of all compulsory Government, i Worker self-management (or autogestion) is a form of workplace decision-making in which the workers themselves agree on choices (for issues like customer care general production Class struggle is the active expression of Class conflict looked at from any kind of socialist perspective Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system The " dictatorship of the proletariat " or workers' state is a term employed by Marxists that refers to what they see as a temporary state between the Egalitarianism (derived from the French word égal, meaning equal) is a political doctrine that holds that all people should be treated as equals and have Equality of outcome or equality of condition is a form of Egalitarianism which seeks to reduce or eliminate differences in material condition between individuals or Impossibilism is an interpretation of Marxism. It emphasizes the limited value of reforms in overturning capitalism and insists on revolutionary political action as the only For the Marxist concept of internationalism see Proletarian internationalism. Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A proletarian revolution is a social and/or political Revolution in which the Working class attempts to overthrow the Bourgeoisie. Socialism in One Country was a thesis developed by Nikolai Bukharin in 1925 and adopted as state policy by Joseph Stalin. A trade union or labour union is an organization of workers who have banded together to achieve common goals in key areas such as wages hours and working conditions forming Utilitarianism is the idea that the moral worth of an action is solely determined by its contribution to overall Utility, that is its contribution to happiness The French Revolution (1789–1799 was a period of political and social upheaval in the History of France, during which the French governmental structure previously an The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when major changes in agriculture manufacturing and transportation had a profound effect on the Like the concept of capitalism, it embraces a wide range of views. Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where [2]
The term 'socialism' is variously attributed to Pierre Leroux in 1834, who called socialism "the doctrine which would not give up any of the principles of Liberty, Equality, Fraternity" of the French Revolution of 1789 [3] or to Marie Roch Louis Reybaud in France, or else in England to Robert Owen, who is considered the father of the cooperative movement. Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution Pierre Leroux ( April 7, 1797 - April 1871 French Philosopher and political economist, was born at Bercy near Paris The French Revolution (1789–1799 was a period of political and social upheaval in the History of France, during which the French governmental structure previously an Marie Roch Louis Reybaud ( August 15, 1799 - October 28, 1879) French Writer, political economist and Politician Robert Owen (14 May 1771 – 17 Nov 1858 born in Newtown, Montgomeryshire, Wales was a social reformer and one of the founders of Socialism The history of the cooperative movement concerns the origins and history of Cooperatives Although cooperative arrangements such as Mutual insurance, and principles [4]
Most socialists of that period opposed the dislocations brought by the Industrial Revolution. They criticized what they conceived to be the injustice, inequalities and suffering which the Industrial Revolution brought into being and the laissez faire free market on which it rested. [5]
Summary
Saint Simon, who is called the founder of French socialism, argued that a brotherhood of man that must accompany the scientific organization of industry and society. Claude Henri de Rouvroy comte de Saint-Simon, often referred to as Henri de Saint-Simon ( October 17, 1760 &ndash May 19, 1825) was [6] Proudhon pronounced that "Property is theft" and that socialism was "every aspiration towards the amelioration of society". Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (ˈpruːd ɒn in British English, dɔ̃ in French) ( 15 January 1809 – 19 January 1865) was Proudhon termed himself an anarchist, as did Bakunin, the father of modern anarchism, who is also termed a libertarian socialist, a theory by which the workers would directly manage the means of production through their own productive associations. Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin ( - July 1 1876) was a well-known Russian Revolutionary and theorist of Collectivist anarchism. Libertarian socialism is a group of political philosophies that aim to create a society without political economic or social hierarchies – a society in which all violent [7]
The Communist Manifesto, was written by Karl Marx and Frederick Engels in 1848 just before the Revolutions of 1848 swept Europe, expressing what they termed 'scientific socialism'. Manifesto of the Communist Party ( often referred to as The Communist Manifesto, was first published on February 21, 1848, and is Friedrich Engels (28 November 1820 – 5 August 1895 was a German social scientist and philosopher, who The European Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Spring of Nations or the Year of Revolution, were a series of political upheavals throughout the European In the last third of the 19th century in Europe social democratic parties arose in Europe drawing mainly from Marxism.
In first half of the twentieth century the Soviet Union and the Communist parties of the Third International around the world mainly came to represent socialism in terms of the Soviet model of economic development, the creation of centrally planned economies directed by a state that owns all the means of production, although other trends condemned what they saw as the lack of democracy. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 A Political party described as a communist party includes those that advocate the application of the social principles of Communism through a communist form of The Comintern ( Com munist Intern ational also known as the Third International) was an international Communist organisation founded in Moscow The economy of the Soviet Union was based on a system of State ownership, administrative planning Socialist competition and free labour A planned economy or directed economy is an Economic system in which the Government or Workers' councils manages the Economy.
Communists in Yugoslavia in the 1960s and Hungary in the 1970s and 1980s, Chinese Communists since the reform era, and some Western economists, have proposed various forms of market socialism, reconciling the cooperative or state ownership of the means of production with market forces, letting the market guide production and exchange rather than central planners. The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia ( Serbo-Croatian, Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian, Slovene, Macedonian: The People's Republic of Hungary or Hungarian People's Republic (Magyar Népköztársaság was the official state name of Hungary from 1949 to 1989 during its The Communist Party of China ( CPC) ( also known as the Chinese Communist Party ( CCP) is the founding and ruling political party of the The Chinese economic reform ( refers to the program of economic reforms called " Socialism with Chinese characteristics " in the People's Republic of Market socialism is a term used to denote two different Economic system (s based in Socialism which operate according to Market principles Sao Paulo Stock Exchangejpg|thumb| Virtual market arena where buyer and seller are not present and trade via intemediates and electronical information In Microeconomics, Production is simply the conversion of Inputs into Outputs It is an economic process that uses Resources to create a Trade is the willing exchange of goods, services, or both Trade is also called Commerce. [8]
In 1945 European Socialist Parties in power were considered socialist administrations by some. In the UK Herbert Morrison said "Socialism is what the Labour government does", whereas Aneurin Bevan argued that socialism requires that the "main streams of economic activity are brought under public direction", with an economic plan and workers' democracy. Herbert Stanley Morrison Baron Morrison of Lambeth, CH PC ( 3 January 1888 &ndash 6 March 1965) was a British Aneurin Bevan, usually known as Nye Bevan ( 15 November 1897 &ndash 6 July 1960) was a Welsh Labour [9] Some argued that capitalism had been abolished. [10] Socialist governments established the 'mixed economy' with partial nationalisations and social welfare.
By 1968 the prolonged Vietnam war (1959-1975), gave rise to the New Left, socialists who tended to be critical of the Soviet Union and social democracy. The New Left were the Left-wing movements in different countries in the 1960s and 1970s that unlike the earlier leftist focus on union activism instead adopted a Anarcho-syndicalists and some elements of the New Left and others favored decentralized collective ownership in the form of cooperatives or workers' councils. Anarcho-syndicalism is a branch of Anarchism which focuses on the labour movement. A workers' council is a Deliberative assembly, composed of Working class members intended to institute Workers' self-management or Workers' control
In recent decades Socialist Parties in Europe have redefined their aims. [11] and reversed their policy on nationalisations.
At the turn of the 21st century, in Latin America Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez championed what he termed 'Socialism of the 21st Century', which included a policy of nationalisation of national assets such as Oil, anti-imperialism, and termed himself a Trotskyist supporting 'permanent revolution'. Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (ˈuɰo rafaˈel ˈtʃaβ̞es ˈfɾias (born July 28 1954 is the current President of Venezuela. This article is about the theory See Permanent Revolution (group for the group of the same name and Permanent Revolution (album for the Catch 22 [12]
Origins of socialism
The appearance of the term "socialism" is variously attributed to Pierre Leroux in 1834,[13] or to Marie Roch Louis Reybaud in France, or else in England to Robert Owen, who is considered the father of the cooperative movement. Pierre Leroux ( April 7, 1797 - April 1871 French Philosopher and political economist, was born at Bercy near Paris Marie Roch Louis Reybaud ( August 15, 1799 - October 28, 1879) French Writer, political economist and Politician Robert Owen (14 May 1771 – 17 Nov 1858 born in Newtown, Montgomeryshire, Wales was a social reformer and one of the founders of Socialism The history of the cooperative movement concerns the origins and history of Cooperatives Although cooperative arrangements such as Mutual insurance, and principles [14]
The first modern socialists were early 19th century Western European social critics. In this period, socialism emerged from a diverse array of doctrines and social experiments associated primarily with British and French thinkers—especially Robert Owen, Charles Fourier, Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, Louis Blanc, and Saint-Simon. Robert Owen (14 May 1771 – 17 Nov 1858 born in Newtown, Montgomeryshire, Wales was a social reformer and one of the founders of Socialism François Marie Charles Fourier ( April 7, 1772 - October 10, 1837) was a French Utopian Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (ˈpruːd ɒn in British English, dɔ̃ in French) ( 15 January 1809 – 19 January 1865) was Louis Jean Joseph Charles Blanc ( October 29, 1811 &ndash December 6, 1882) was a French Politician and Historian Claude Henri de Rouvroy comte de Saint-Simon, often referred to as Henri de Saint-Simon ( October 17, 1760 &ndash May 19, 1825) was These social critics criticised the excesses of poverty and inequality of the Industrial Revolution, and advocated reforms such as the egalitarian distribution of wealth and the transformation of society into small communities in which private property was to be abolished. The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when major changes in agriculture manufacturing and transportation had a profound effect on the Outlining principles for the reorganization of society along collectivist lines, Saint-Simon and Owen sought to build socialism on the foundations of planned, utopian communities. Utopia is a name for an ideal community taken from the title of a book written in 1516 by Sir Thomas More describing a fictional Island in the
According to some accounts, the use of the words "socialism" or "communism" was related to the perceived attitude toward religion in a given culture. In Europe, "communism" was considered to be the more atheistic of the two. In England, however, that sounded too close to communion with Catholic overtones; hence atheists preferred to call themselves socialists. The Mass is the Eucharistic celebration in the Latin liturgical rites of the Roman Catholic Church. [15]
By 1847, according to Frederick Engels, "Socialism" was "respectable" on the continent of Europe, while "Communism" was the opposite; the Owenites in England and the Fourierists in France were considered Socialists, while working class movements which "proclaimed the necessity of total social change" termed themselves "Communists". Claude Henri de Rouvroy comte de Saint-Simon, often referred to as Henri de Saint-Simon ( October 17, 1760 &ndash May 19, 1825) was This latter was "powerful enough" to produce the communism of Étienne Cabet in France and Wilhelm Weitling in Germany. Étienne Cabet ( January 1, 1788 &ndash November 9, 1856) was a French philosopher and Utopian socialist. Wilhelm Weitling ( October 5, 1808 – January 24 1871) was important early German anarchist, communist or [16]
Henri de Saint-Simon
Henri de Saint-Simon, who is called the founder of French socialism, argued that a brotherhood of man must accompany the scientific organization of industry and society. Claude Henri de Rouvroy comte de Saint-Simon, often referred to as Henri de Saint-Simon ( October 17, 1760 &ndash May 19, 1825) was He proposed that production and distribution be carried out by the state, and that allowing everyone to have equal opportunity to develop their talents would lead to social harmony, and the state could be virtually eliminated. "Rule over men would be replaced by the administration of things. "[17]
Robert Owen
Robert Owen advocated the transformation of society into small, local collectives without such elaborate systems of social organization. Robert Owen (14 May 1771 – 17 Nov 1858 born in Newtown, Montgomeryshire, Wales was a social reformer and one of the founders of Socialism Owen was a mill manager from 1800-1825. He transformed life in the village of New Lanark with ideas and opportunities which were at least a hundred years ahead of their time. Child labor and corporal punishment were abolished, and villagers were provided with decent homes, schools and evening classes, free health care, and affordable food. [18]
The UK government's Factory Act of 1833 attempted to reduce the hours adults and children worked in the textile industry. A fifteen hour working day was to start at 5. 30 a. m. and cease at 8. 30 p. m. Children of nine to thirteen years could be worked no more than 9 hours, and those of a younger age were prohibited. There were, however, only four factory inspectors, and this law was broken by the factory owners. [19] In the same year Owen stated:
| “ | Eight hours' daily labor is enough for any [adult] human being, and under proper arrangements sufficient to afford an ample supply of food, raiment and shelter, or the necessaries and comforts of life, and for the remainder of his time, every person is entitled to education, recreation and sleep. [20] | ” |
In a Paper Dedicated to the Governments of Great Britain, Austria, Russia, France, Prussia and the United States of America written in 1841, Owen wrote: "The lowest stage of humanity is experienced when the individual must labor for a small pittance of wages from others. "[21]
Pierre-Joseph Proudhon
Pierre-Joseph Proudhon pronounced that "Property is theft" and that socialism was "every aspiration towards the amelioration of society". Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (ˈpruːd ɒn in British English, dɔ̃ in French) ( 15 January 1809 – 19 January 1865) was Proudhon termed himself an anarchist and proposed that free association of individuals should replace the coercive state. [22][23] Proudhon, Benjamin Tucker, and others developed these ideas in a free-market direction, while Mikhail Bakunin, Piotr Kropotkin, and others adapted Proudhon's ideas in a more conventionally socialist direction. Benjamin Ricketson Tucker ( April 17, 1854 &ndash June 22, 1939) was a leading proponent of American Individualist anarchism
In a letter to Marx in 1846, Proudhon wrote:
| “ | I myself put the problem in this way: to bring about the return to society, by an economic combination, of the wealth which was withdrawn from society by another economic combination. In other words, through Political Economy to turn the theory of Property against Property in such a way as to engender what you German socialists call community and what I will limit myself for the moment to calling liberty or equality. | ” |
Mikhail Bakunin
Mikhail Bakunin, the father of modern anarchism, was a libertarian socialist, a theory by which the workers would directly manage the means of production through their own productive associations. Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin ( - July 1 1876) was a well-known Russian Revolutionary and theorist of Collectivist anarchism. Libertarian socialism is a group of political philosophies that aim to create a society without political economic or social hierarchies – a society in which all violent There would be "equal means of subsistence, support, education, and opportunity for every child, boy or girl, until maturity, and equal resources and facilities in adulthood to create his own well-being by his own labor. "[24]
While many socialists emphasized the gradual transformation of society, most notably through the foundation of small, utopian communities, a growing number of socialists became disillusioned with the viability of this approach and instead emphasized direct political action. Early socialists were united, however, in their desire for a society based on cooperation rather than competition.
Marxism and the socialist movement
The French Revolution of 1789, Karl Marx and Frederick Engels wrote, "abolished feudal property in favour of bourgeois property". The French Revolution (1789–1799 was a period of political and social upheaval in the History of France, during which the French governmental structure previously an Friedrich Engels (28 November 1820 – 5 August 1895 was a German social scientist and philosopher, who [25] The French Revolution was preceded and influenced by the works of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, whose Social Contract famously began, "Man is born free, and he is everywhere in chains. "[26] Rousseau is credited with influencing socialist thought, but it was François-Noël Babeuf, and his Conspiracy of Equals, who is credited with providing a model for left-wing and communist movements of the 19th century. François-Noël Babeuf ( November 23, 1760 - May 27, 1797) known as Gracchus Babeuf (in tribute to the Roman reformers
Marx and Engels drew from these socialist or communist ideas born in the French revolution, as well as from the German philosophy of GWF Hegel, and English political economy, particularly that of Adam Smith and David Ricardo. Adam Smith ( baptised 16 June 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish moral philosopher and a pioneer of Political economy. David Ricardo (18 April 1772 &ndash 11 September 1823 was an English political economist, often credited with systematizing economics and was one of the most influential Marx and Engels developed a body of ideas which they called scientific socialism, more commonly called Marxism. Scientific Socialism is the term used by Friedrich Engels to describe the socio-political-economic theory pioneered by Karl Marx. Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Marxism comprised a theory of history (historical materialism) as well as a political, economic and philosophical theory. Historical materialism is the methodological approach to the study of society economics and history which was first articulated by Karl Marx ( 1818 - 1883
In the Manifesto of the Communist Party, written in 1848 just days before the outbreak of the revolutions of 1848, Marx and Engels wrote, "The distinguishing feature of Communism is not the abolition of property generally, but the abolition of bourgeois property. Manifesto of the Communist Party ( often referred to as The Communist Manifesto, was first published on February 21, 1848, and is The European Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Spring of Nations or the Year of Revolution, were a series of political upheavals throughout the European " Unlike those Marx described as utopian socialists, Marx determined that, "The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles". Utopia is a name for an ideal community taken from the title of a book written in 1516 by Sir Thomas More describing a fictional Island in the While utopian socialists believed it was possible to work within or reform capitalist society, Marx confronted the question of the economic and political power of the capitalist class, expressed in their ownership of the means of producing wealth (factories, banks, commerce - in a word, 'Capital'). Marx and Engels formulated theories regarding the practical way of achieving and running a socialist system, which they saw as only being achieved by those who produce the wealth in society, the toilers, workers or "proletariat", gaining common ownership of their workplaces, the means of producing wealth.
Marx believed that capitalism could only be overthrown by means of a revolution carried out by the working class: "The proletarian movement is the self-conscious, independent movement of the immense majority, in the interest of the immense majority. "[27] Marx believed that the proletariat was the only class with both the cohesion, the means and the determination to carry the revolution forward. Unlike the utopian socialists, who often idealised agrarian life and deplored the growth of modern industry, Marx saw the growth of capitalism and an urban proletariat as a necessary stage towards socialism.
For Marxists, socialism or, as Marx termed it, the first phase of communist society, can be viewed as a transitional stage characterized by common or state ownership of the means of production under democratic workers' control and management, which Engels argued was beginning to be realised in the Paris Commune of 1871, before it was overthrown. Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Means Of Production is a compilation of Aim 's early 12" and EP releases recorded between 1995 and 1998 The Paris Commune (La Commune de Paris was a Government that briefly ruled Paris from 18 March (more formally from 26 March) to 28 May [28] Socialism to them is simply the transitional phase between capitalism and "higher phase of communist society". Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where Because this society has characteristics of both its capitalist ancestor and is beginning to show the properties of communism, it will hold the means of production collectively but distributes commodities according to individual contribution. To each according to their contribution is considered by Marxists and other socialists as a characteristic of society after a socialist revolution and before the transition [29] When the socialist state (the dictatorship of the proletariat) naturally withers away, what will remain is a society in which human beings no longer suffer from alienation and "all the springs of co-operative wealth flow more abundantly. The " dictatorship of the proletariat " or workers' state is a term employed by Marxists that refers to what they see as a temporary state between the " Here "society inscribe[s] on its banners: From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs!" [30] For Marx, a communist society entails the absence of differing social classes and thus the end of class warfare. From each according to his ability to each according to his need (or needs) is a Slogan popularized by Karl Marx in his 1875 Critique Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions (or stratification) between individuals or groups in Societies or Cultures. According to Marx and Engels, once a socialist society had been ushered in, the state would begin to "wither away", [31] and humanity would be in control of its own destiny for the first time.
While the various socialist groups championed many different socialist ideas, Marxism appeared to offer a coherent strategy which, within a few decades, began to draw mass support, and some alliances between trade unionism and socialism began to form.
International Workingmen's Association (First International)
The International Workingmen's Association (IWA), also known as the First International, was founded in London in 1864. The International Workingmen's Association (IWA, sometimes called the First International, was an international socialist organization which aimed at uniting a variety Victor Le Lubez, a French radical republican living in London, invited Karl Marx to come to London as a representative of German workers. [32] The IWA held a preliminary conference in 1865, and had its first congress at Geneva in 1866. Geneva (Genève is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and is the most populous city of Romandy (the French -speaking Marx was appointed a member of the committee, and according to Saul Padover, Marx and Johann Georg Eccarius, a tailor living in London, became "the two mainstays of the International from its inception to its end". [33] The First International became the first major international forum for the promulgation of socialist ideas.
The Social Democratic Workers' Party of Germany was founded in 1869 under the influence of Marx and Engels. The Social Democratic Workers' Party of Germany, in German Sozialdemokratische Arbeiterpartei Deutschlands, SDAP was a German left-wing political In 1875, it merged with the General German Workers' Association of Ferdinand Lassalle to become what is known today as the German Social Democratic Party (SPD). The General German Workers' Association, in German Allgemeiner Deutscher Arbeiterverein, ADAV was founded on 23 May 1863 by Ferdinand Lassalle Ferdinand Lassalle (11 April 1825 &mdash 31 August 1864 was a German Jurist and socialist political Activist. Socialism became increasingly associated with newly-formed trade unions. A trade union or labour union is an organization of workers who have banded together to achieve common goals in key areas such as wages hours and working conditions forming In Germany, the SPD founded unions. In Austria, France and other European countries, socialist parties and anarchists played a prominent role in forming and building up trade unions, especially from the 1870s onwards. Anarchism is a Political philosophy encompassing theories and attitudes which support the elimination of all compulsory Government, i This stood in contrast to the British experience, where moderate New Model Unions dominated the union movement from the mid-nineteenth century, and where trade unionism was stronger than the political labour movement until the formation and growth of the Labour Party in the early twentieth century. New Model Trade Unions (NMTU were a variety of Trade Unions prominent in the 1850s and 1860s in the UK. The Labour Party is a Political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century it has been since the 1920s the principal party of the
Socialist groups supported diverse views of socialism, from the gradualism of many trade unionists to the radical, revolutionary theory of Marx and Engels. Anarchists and proponents of other alternative visions of socialism, who emphasized the potential of small-scale communities and agrarianism, coexisted with the more influential currents of Marxism and social democracy. Agrarianism is a social and Political philosophy which stresses the viewpoint that the cultivation of plants or Farming leads to a fuller and happier life Social democracy is a Political ideology of the left and centre-left The anarchists, led by the Russian Mikhail Bakunin, believed that capitalism and the state were inseparable, and that one could not be abolished without the other. Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin ( - July 1 1876) was a well-known Russian Revolutionary and theorist of Collectivist anarchism. Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where A state is a political association with effective Sovereignty over a geographic Area and representing a Population.
Paris Commune
In 1871, in the wake of the Franco-Prussian War, an uprising in Paris established the Paris Commune. The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War ( 19 July, 1870 — 10 May, 1871 The Paris Commune (La Commune de Paris was a Government that briefly ruled Paris from 18 March (more formally from 26 March) to 28 May According to Marx and Engels, for a few weeks the Paris Commune provided a glimpse of a socialist society, before it was brutally suppressed by the French government.
| “ | From the outset the Commune was compelled to recognize that the working class, once come to power, could not manage with the old state machine; that in order not to lose again its only just conquered supremacy, this working class must, on the one hand, do away with all the old repressive machinery previously used against it itself, and, on the other, safeguard itself against its own deputies and officials, by declaring them all, without exception, subject to recall at any moment. | ” |
|
— Engels' 1891 postscript to The Civil War In France by Karl Marx[34]
|
In Paris Commune, large-scale industry was to be "based on the association of the workers" joined into "one great union", all posts in government were elected by universal franchise, elected officials took only the average worker's wage and were subject to recall. For Engels, this was what the dictatorship of the proletariat looked like (as opposed to the "dictatorship of the bourgeoisie", which was capitalism). The " dictatorship of the proletariat " or workers' state is a term employed by Marxists that refers to what they see as a temporary state between the Engels goes on to state: "In reality, however, the state is nothing but a machine for the oppression of one class by another, and indeed in the democratic republic no less than in the monarchy; and at best an evil inherited by the proletariat after its victorious struggle for class supremacy", and a new generation of socialists, "reared in new and free social conditions, will be able to throw the entire lumber of the state on the scrap-heap". [35]
After the Paris Commune, the differences between supporters of Marx and Engels and those of Bakunin were too great to bridge. Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin ( - July 1 1876) was a well-known Russian Revolutionary and theorist of Collectivist anarchism. The anarchist section of the First International was expelled from the International at the 1872 Hague Congress and they went on to form the Jura federation. Anarchism is a Political philosophy encompassing theories and attitudes which support the elimination of all compulsory Government, i The Jura federation was the Anti-authoritarian and Anarchist section of the International Workingmen's Association (also known as the First International The First International was disbanded in 1876.
The Second International
As the ideas of Marx and Engels took on flesh, particularly in central Europe, socialists sought to unite in an international organisation. In 1889, on the centennial of the French Revolution of 1789, the Second International was founded, with 384 delegates from 20 countries representing about 300 labour and socialist organizations. The Second International (1889-1916 was an organization of socialist and labour parties formed in Paris on July 14, 1889. [36] It was termed the "Socialist International" and Engels was elected honorary president at the third congress in 1893.
Just before his death in 1895, Engels argued that there was now a "single generally recognised, crystal clear theory of Marx" and a "single great international army of socialists". Despite its illegality due to the Anti-Socialist Laws of 1878, the Social Democratic Party of Germany's use of the limited universal male suffrage were "potent" new methods of struggle which demonstrated their growing strength and forced the dropping of the Anti-Socialist legislation in 1890, Engels argued. The Anti-Socialist Laws or Socialist Laws ( German: Sozialistengesetze; officially Gesetz gegen die gemeingefährlichen Bestrebungen der Sozialdemokratie [37] In 1893, the German SPD obtained 1,787,000 votes, a quarter of votes cast. However before the leadership of the SPD published Engels' 1895 Introduction to Marx's Class Struggles in France 1848-1850, they removed certain phrases they felt were too revolutionary. [38]
Marx believed that it was possible to have a peaceful socialist transformation in England, although the British ruling class would then revolt against such a victory. [39] America and Holland might also have a peaceful transformation, but not in France, where Marx believed there had been "perfected. . . an enormous bureaucratic and military organisation, with its ingenious state machinery" which must be forcibly overthrown. However, eight years after Marx's death, Engels argued that it was possible to achieve a peaceful socialist revolution in France, too. [40]
Germany
The SPD was by far the most powerful of the social democratic parties. Its votes reached 4. 5 million, it had 90 daily newspapers, together with trade unions and co-ops, sports clubs, a youth organisation, a women's organisation and hundreds of full time officials. Under the pressure of this growing party, Bismarck introduced limited welfare provision and working hours were reduced. Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen Duke of Lauenburg Prince of Bismarck ( April 1, 1815 July 30, 1898) Germany experienced sustained economic growth for more than forty years. Commentators suggest that this expansion, together with the concessions won, gave rise to illusions amongst the leadership of the SPD that capitalism would evolve into socialism gradually.
Beginning in 1896, in a series of articles published under the title "Problems of socialism", Eduard Bernstein argued that an evolutionary transition to socialism was both possible and more desirable than revolutionary change. Eduard Bernstein ( January 6 1850 December 18 1932) was a German social democratic theoretician and Bernstein and his supporters came to be identified as "revisionists" because they sought to revise the classic tenets of Marxism. The term "revisionism" is also used to refer to other concepts Classical Marxism refers to the social theory expounded by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, as contrasted with later developments in Marxism. Although the orthodox Marxists in the party, led by Karl Kautsky, retained the Marxist theory of revolution as the official doctrine of the party, and it was repeatedly endorsed by SPD conferences, in practice the SPD leadership became increasingly reformist. Orthodox Marxism is the term used to describe the version of Marxism which emerged after the death of Karl Marx and acted as the official philosophy of the Karl Kautsky ( October 16 1854 - October 17 1938) was a leading theoretician of Social democracy. Socialist Reformism is the belief that gradual democratic changes in a Society can ultimately change a society's fundamental economic relations and political structures
Russia
Bernstein coined the aphorism: "The movement is everything, the final goal nothing". But the path of reform appeared blocked to the Russian Marxists while Russia remained the bulwark of reaction. In the preface to the 1882 Russian edition to the Communist Manifesto, Marx and Engels had saluted the Russian Marxists who, they said, "formed the vanguard of revolutionary action in Europe". But the working class, although many were organised in vast modern western-owned enterprises, comprised no more than a small percentage of the population and "more than half the land is owned in common by the peasants". Marx and Engels posed the question: How was Russia to progress to socialism? Could Russia "pass directly" to socialism or "must it first pass through the same process" of capitalist development as the West? They replied: "If the Russian Revolution becomes the signal for a proletarian revolution in the West, so that both complement each other, the present Russian common ownership of land may serve as the starting point for a communist development. "[41]
In 1903, the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party began to split on ideological and organizational questions into Bolshevik ('Majority') and Menshevik ('Minority') factions, with Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin leading the more radical Bolsheviks. The Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party, or RSDLP ( Росси́йская Социа́л-Демократи́ческая Рабо́чая The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists ( Большевик Большевист (singular, derived from bolshe, "more" were a faction The Mensheviks (Minority (Меньшевик) were a faction of the Russian Revolutionary movement that emerged in 1903 after a dispute between Vladimir Both wings accepted that Russia was an economically backward country unripe for socialism. The Mensheviks awaited the capitalist revolution in Russia. But Lenin argued that a revolution of the workers and peasants would achieve this task. After the Russian revolution of 1905, Leon Trotsky argued that unlike the French revolution of 1789 and the European Revolutions of 1848 against absolutism, the capitalist class would never organise a revolution in Russia to overthrow absolutism, and that this task fell to the working class who, liberating the peasantry from their feudal yoke, would then immediately pass on to the socialist tasks and seek a "permanent revolution" to achieve international socialism. Leon Trotsky ( Russian:, Lev Davidovich Trotsky, also transliterated Leo, Lyev, Trotskii, Trotski, Trotskij The European Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Spring of Nations or the Year of Revolution, were a series of political upheavals throughout the European [42] Assyrian nationalist Freydun Atturaya tried to create regional self-government for the Assyrian people with the socialism ideology. Dr Freydun Bet-Oraham Atturaya (Freydun the Assyrian (1891 &ndash 1926 was an Assyrian Physicist born in the town of Charbash in the district of Urmia The Assyrians are an Ethnic group whose origins lie in what is today Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria. He even wrote the Urmia Manifesto of the United Free Assyria. Urmia Manifesto of the United Free Assyria was written by Assyrian nationalist Freydun Atturaya, in his struggle for Assyrian independence during and after However, his attempt was put to an end by Russia.
United States
In 1877, the Socialist Labor Party of America was founded. Origins The party was founded in Newark New Jersey, in 1876 as the Workingmen's Party of America. This party, which advocated Marxism, was a confederation of small Marxist parties and came under the leadership of Daniel De Leon. Daniel De Leon ( December 14, 1852 &ndash May 11, 1914) was a Curaçao -born American socialist and Syndicalism In 1901, a merger between opponents of De Leon and the younger Social Democratic Party joined with Eugene V. Debs to form the Socialist Party of America. Eugene Victor Debs (November 5 1855 &ndash October 20 1926 was an American union leader one of the founding members of the International Labor Union and the Industrial The Socialist Party of America (SPA was a socialist Political party in the United States. In 1905, the Industrial Workers of the World formed from several independent labor unions. The Industrial Workers of the World ( IWW or the Wobblies) is an international union currently headquartered in Cincinnati Ohio, USA A trade union or labour union is an organization of workers who have banded together to achieve common goals in key areas such as wages hours and working conditions forming The IWW opposed the political means of Debs and De Leon, as well as the craft unionism of Samuel Gompers. Samuel Gompers (January 27 1850 - December 13 1924 was an American labor union leader and a key figure in American labor history. In 1910, the Sewer Socialists, the main group of American socialists, elected Victor Berger as a socialist Congressman and Emil Seidel as a socialist mayor of Milwaukee, WI, most of the other elected city officials being socialist as well. Sewer Socialism was a term originally more or less Pejorative, for the American Socialist movement that centered in Milwaukee Wisconsin, and Victor Louis (Luitpold Berger ( February 28, 1860 &ndash August 7, 1929) was an American Politician, a major part of the Emil Seidel ( December 13, 1864 &ndash June 24, 1947) was the mayor of Milwaukee from 1910 to 1912 This Socialist Party of America grew to 150,000 in 1912 and polled 897,000 votes in the presidential campaign of that year, 6 percent of the total vote. Socialist mayor Daniel Hoan, was elected in 1916 and stayed in office until 1940. Daniel Webster Hoan ( March 12, 1881 - June 11, 1961) was a United States politician The final Socialist mayor, Frank P. Zeidler, was elected in 1948 and served three terms, ending in 1960. Frank P Zeidler ( September 20 1912 &ndash July 7 2006) was an American Socialist and Mayor of Milwaukee Milwaukee remained the hub of Socialism during these years. The Socialist Party declined after the First World War.
France
French socialism was beheaded by the suppression of the Paris commune (1871), its leaders killed or exiled. The Paris Commune (La Commune de Paris was a Government that briefly ruled Paris from 18 March (more formally from 26 March) to 28 May But in 1879, at the Marseille Congress, workers' associations created the Federation of the Socialist Workers of France. France's first socialist party the Federation of the Socialist Workers of France ( Fédération des travailleurs socialistes de France or' FTSF') was founded in 1879 Three years later, Jules Guesde and Paul Lafargue, the son-in-law of Karl Marx, left the federation and founded the French Workers' Party. Jules Basile Guesde ( November 11, 1845 - July 28, 1922) was a French Socialist journalist and politician Paul Lafargue ( June 16, 1842 – November 26, 1911) was a French revolutionary Marxist socialist journalist The Parti Ouvrier Français ( POF, or French Workers' Party) was the first Marxist party in France, created in 1880 by
The Federation of the Socialist Workers of France was termed "possibilist" because it advocated gradual reforms, whereas the French Workers' Party promoted Marxism. In 1905 these two trends merged to form the French Section Française de l'Internationale Ouvrière (SFIO), led by Jean Jaurès and later Léon Blum. Jean Léon Jaurès (full name Auguste Marie Joseph Jean Léon Jaurès; 3 September 1859 31 July 1914) was a French André Léon Blum (9 April 1872 30 March 1950 was a French politician usually identified with the moderate left and three times the Prime Minister of France. In 1906 it won 56 seats in Parliament. The SFIO adhered to Marxist ideas but became, in practice, a reformist party. By 1914 it had more than 100 members in the Chamber of Deputies.
World War I
When World War I began in 1914, many European socialist leaders supported their respective governments' war aims. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The social democratic parties in the UK, France, Belgium and Germany supported their respective state's wartime military and economic planning, discarding their commitment to internationalism and solidarity. International Socialism redirects here For the journal of the same name see International Socialism (journal Proletarian internationalism is a
Lenin, however, denounced the war as an imperialist conflict, and urged workers worldwide to use it as an occasion for proletarian revolution. Imperialism has two meanings one describing an action and the other describing an attitude The proletariat (from Latin la ''proles'' "offspring" is a term used to identify a lower Social class; a member of such a class is proletarian The Second International dissolved during the war, while Lenin, Trotsky, Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg, together with a small number of other Marxists opposed to the war, came together in the Zimmerwald Conference in September 1915. ( August 13, 1871 - January 15, 1919) was a German Socialist and a co-founder of the Spartacist League and the Communist Rosa Luxemburg (Róża Luksemburg 5 March 1870 or 1871 15 January 1919 was a Polish-born Jewish German Marxist theorist, socialist The Zimmerwald Conference was held in Zimmerwald, Switzerland, from September 5 through September 8, 1915.
Social democracy to 1917
The Social Democratic Party (SPD) in Germany became the largest and most powerful socialist party in Europe, despite working illegally until the anti-socialist laws were dropped in 1890. In the 1893 elections it gained 1,787,000 votes, a quarter of the total votes cast, according to Engels. In 1895, the year of his death, Engels emphasised the Communist Manifesto's emphasis on winning, as a first step, the "battle of democracy". [43] Since the 1866 introduction of universal male franchise the SPD had proved that old methods of, "surprise attacks, of revolutions carried through by small conscious minorities at the head of masses lacking consciousness is past". Marxists, Engels emphasised, must "win over the great mass of the people" before initiating a revolution. [44]
Marx believed that it was possible to have a peaceful socialist revolution in England, America and Holland, but not in France, where he believed there had been "perfected . . . an enormous bureaucratic and military organisation, with its ingenious state machinery" which must be forcibly overthrown. However, eight years after Marx's death, Engels regarded it possible to achieve a peaceful socialist revolution in France, too. [45]
In 1896, Eduard Bernstein argued that once full democracy had been achieved, a transition to socialism by gradual means was both possible and more desirable than revolutionary change. Eduard Bernstein ( January 6 1850 December 18 1932) was a German social democratic theoretician and Bernstein and his supporters came to be identified as "revisionists", because they sought to revise the classic tenets of Marxism. The term "revisionism" is also used to refer to other concepts Classical Marxism refers to the social theory expounded by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, as contrasted with later developments in Marxism. Although the orthodox Marxists in the party, led by Karl Kautsky, retained the Marxist theory of revolution as the official doctrine of the party, and it was repeatedly endorsed by SPD conferences, in practice the SPD leadership became more and more reformist. Orthodox Marxism is the term used to describe the version of Marxism which emerged after the death of Karl Marx and acted as the official philosophy of the Karl Kautsky ( October 16 1854 - October 17 1938) was a leading theoretician of Social democracy. Socialist Reformism is the belief that gradual democratic changes in a Society can ultimately change a society's fundamental economic relations and political structures
In Europe most Social Democratic parties participated in parliamentary politics and the day-to-day struggles of the trade unions. In the UK, however, many trade unionists who were members of the Social Democratic Federation, which included at various times future trade union leaders such as Will Thorne, John Burns and Tom Mann, felt that the Federation neglected the industrial struggle. The Social Democratic Federation (SDF was established as Britain's first organised socialist Political party by H William James Thorne CBE ( 8 October 1857 &ndash 2 January 1946) known as Will Thorne, was a British Trade John Elliot Burns ( 20 October 1858 – 24 January 1943) was a prominent English Trade unionist anti-racist Socialist Tom Mann ( 15 April 1856 - 13 March 1941) was a noted British Trade unionist. Along with Engels, who refused to support the SDF, many felt that dogmatic approach of the SDF, particularly of its leader, Henry Hyndman, meant that it remained an isolated sect. Henry Mayers Hyndman ( March 7, 1842 - November 20, 1921) was an English Writer and Politician, and the founder The mass parties of the working class under social democratic leadership became more reformist and lost sight of their revolutionary objective. Thus the French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO), founded in 1905, under Jean Jaurès and later Léon Blum adhered to Marxist ideas, but became in practice a reformist party. Jean Léon Jaurès (full name Auguste Marie Joseph Jean Léon Jaurès; 3 September 1859 31 July 1914) was a French André Léon Blum (9 April 1872 30 March 1950 was a French politician usually identified with the moderate left and three times the Prime Minister of France.
In some countries, particularly Britain and the British dominions, labour parties were formed. A dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of autonomous polities under sovereign authority within the British Empire and These were parties largely formed by and controlled by the trade unions, rather than formed by groups of socialist activists who then appealed to the workers for support. In Britain, the Labour Party, (at first the Labour Representation Committee) was established by representatives of trade unions together with affiliated socialist parties, principally the Independent Labour Party but also for a time the avowedly Marxist Social Democratic Federation and other groups, such as the Fabians. See Independent Labor Party for the Political party in Burundi, Independent Labour Group for the Irish party and Labour candidates The Social Democratic Federation (SDF was established as Britain's first organised socialist Political party by H The Fabian Society is a British Intellectual Socialist movement whose purpose is to advance the principles of Social democracy via Gradualist On 1 December, 1899 Anderson Dawson of the Australian Labor Party became the Premier of Queensland, Australia, forming the world's first parliamentary socialist government . Andrew Dawson (16 July 1863 – 20 July 1910 usually known as Anderson Dawson, was an Australian politician the Premier of Queensland for one week (1-7 Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern corner of the mainland continent For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. The Dawson government, however, lasted only one week, being defeated at the first sitting of parliament.
The British Labour Party first won seats in the House of Commons in 1902. The Labour Party is a Political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century it has been since the 1920s the principal party of the The House of Commons' is the Lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords It won the majority of the working class away from the Liberal Party after World War I. The Liberal Party was one of the two major British political parties from the early 19th century until the rise of the Labour Party in the 1920s and a third party World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All In Australia, the Labor Party achieved rapid success, forming its first national government in 1904. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Labour parties were also formed in South Africa and New Zealand but had less success. The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island The British Labour Party adopted a specifically socialist constitution (‘Clause four, Part four’) in 1918.
The strongest opposition to revisionism came from socialists in countries such as the Russian Empire where parliamentary democracy did not exist. The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya A parliamentary system, also known as parliamentarianism (and parliamentarism in American English) is a System of government in which Chief among these was the Russian Vladimir Lenin, whose works such as Our Programme (1899) set out the views of those who rejected revisionist ideas. In 1903, there was the beginnings of what eventually became a formal split in the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party into revolutionary Bolshevik and reformist Menshevik factions. The Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party, or RSDLP ( Росси́йская Социа́л-Демократи́ческая Рабо́чая The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists ( Большевик Большевист (singular, derived from bolshe, "more" were a faction The Mensheviks (Minority (Меньшевик) were a faction of the Russian Revolutionary movement that emerged in 1903 after a dispute between Vladimir
In 1914, the outbreak of World War I led to a crisis in European socialism. The parliamentary leaderships of the socialist parties of Germany, France, Belgium and Britain each voted to support the war aims of their country's governments, although some leaders, like Ramsay MacDonald in Britain and Karl Liebknecht in Germany, opposed the war from the start. James Ramsay MacDonald ( 12 October 1866 &ndash 9 November 1937) was a British politician and twice Prime Minister of the United ( August 13, 1871 - January 15, 1919) was a German Socialist and a co-founder of the Spartacist League and the Communist Lenin, in exile in Switzerland, called for revolutions in all the combatant states as the only way to end the war and achieve socialism. Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation Lenin, Leon Trotsky, Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg, together with a small number of other Marxists opposed to the war, came together in the Zimmerwald Conference in September 1915. Leon Trotsky ( Russian:, Lev Davidovich Trotsky, also transliterated Leo, Lyev, Trotskii, Trotski, Trotskij Rosa Luxemburg (Róża Luksemburg 5 March 1870 or 1871 15 January 1919 was a Polish-born Jewish German Marxist theorist, socialist The Zimmerwald Conference was held in Zimmerwald, Switzerland, from September 5 through September 8, 1915. This conference saw the beginning of the end of the uneasy coexistence of revolutionary socialists with the social democrats, and by 1917 war-weariness led to splits in several socialist parties, notably the German Social Democrats. The term revolutionary socialism refers to Socialist tendencies that advocate the need for fundamental social change through Revolution, as a strategy to achieve a
The Russian Revolution of October 1917 led to a withdrawal from World War I, one of the principal demands of the Russian revolution, as the Soviet government immediately sued for peace. The October Revolution (Октябрьская революция Oktyabrskaya revolyutsiya) also known as the Soviet Revolution Germany and the former allies invaded the new Soviet Russia, which had repudiated the former Romanov regime's national debts and nationalised the banks and major industry. The House of Romanov (Рома́нов rʌˈmanəf was the second and last imperial Dynasty of Russia, which ruled the country from 1613 to 1917 Russia was the only country in the world where socialists had taken power, and it appeared to many socialists to confirm the ideas, strategy and tactics of Lenin and Trotsky.
The inter-war era and World War II
The Russian Revolution of October 1917 brought about the definitive ideological division between Communists as denoted with a capital "C" on the one hand and other communist and socialist trends such as anarcho-communists and social democrats, on the other. The October Revolution (Октябрьская революция Oktyabrskaya revolyutsiya) also known as the Soviet Revolution The Left Opposition in the Soviet Union gave rise to Trotskyism which was to remain isolated and insignificant for another fifty years, except in Sri Lanka where Trotskyism gained the majority and the pro-Moscow wing was expelled from the Communist Party. Left communism and the Left Opposition are distinct Left communism should not be confused with the Trotskyist tendency described below Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky.
In 1922, the fourth congress of the Communist International took up the policy of the United Front, urging Communists to work with rank and file Social Democrats while remaining critical of their leaders, who they criticised for "betraying" the working class by supporting the war efforts of their respective capitalist classes. The Comintern ( Com munist Intern ational also known as the Third International) was an international Communist organisation founded in Moscow For their part, the social democrats pointed to the dislocation caused by revolution, and later, the growing authoritarianism of the Communist Parties. When the Communist Party of Great Britain applied to affiliate to the Labour Party in 1920 it was turned down.
Revolutionary socialism and the Soviet Union (1917-39)
After three years, the First World War, at first greeted with enthusiastic patriotism, produced an upsurge of radicalism in most of Europe and also as far afield as the United States (see Socialism in the United States) and Australia. Leon Trotsky ( Russian:, Lev Davidovich Trotsky, also transliterated Leo, Lyev, Trotskii, Trotski, Trotskij The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Socialism as an organized political movement in the United States began with utopian communities in the early 19th century and later became closely tied to the For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. In the Russian revolution of February 1917, workers' councils (in Russian, soviets) had been formed, and Lenin and the Bolsheviks called for "All power to the Soviets". Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages After the October 1917 Russian revolution, led by Lenin and Trotsky, consolidated power in the Soviets, Lenin declared "Long live the world socialist revolution!" [46] Briefly in Soviet Russia socialism was not just a vision of a future society, but a description of an existing one. The Soviet regime began to bring all the means of production (except agricultural production) under state control, and implemented a system of government through the workers' councils or soviets.
The initial success of the Russian Revolution inspired other revolutionary parties to attempt the same thing unleashing the Revolutions of 1917-23. The Revolutions of 1917–23 formed a Revolutionary wave precipitated by the end of World War I in general and the Russian Revolutions of 1917 in particular In the chaotic circumstances of postwar Europe, with the socialist parties divided and discredited, Communist revolutions across Europe seemed a possibility. Communist parties were formed, often from minority or majority factions in most of the world's socialist parties, which broke away in support of the Leninist model. Leninism refers to various related political and economic theories elaborated by Bolshevik revolutionary leader Vladimir Lenin.
The German Revolution of 1918 overthrew the old absolutism and, like Russia, set up Workers' and Soldiers' Councils almost entirely made up of SPD and Independent Social Democrats (USPD) members. The Weimar republic was established and placed the SPD in power, under the leadership of Friedrich Ebert. The term Weimar Republic ( ˈvaɪmarɐ repuˈbliːk is used by historians to signify the democratic and Republican period of Germany from 1919 to 1933 Friedrich Ebert ( February 4, 1871 February 28, 1925) was a German Politician ( SPD) who served as Ebert agreed with Max von Baden that a social revolution was to be prevented and the state order must be upheld at any cost. Prince Maximilian Alexander Friedrich Wilhelm of Baden ( Max von Baden) ( 10 July 1867 6 November 1929) was the cousin and In 1919 the Spartacist uprising challenged the power of the SPD government, but it was put down in blood and the German Communist leaders Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg were assassinated. The Spartacist uprising, also known as the January uprising, was a General strike (and the armed battles accompanying it in Germany from January 5 ( August 13, 1871 - January 15, 1919) was a German Socialist and a co-founder of the Spartacist League and the Communist Rosa Luxemburg (Róża Luksemburg 5 March 1870 or 1871 15 January 1919 was a Polish-born Jewish German Marxist theorist, socialist Communist regimes briefly held power under Béla Kun in Hungary and under Kurt Eisner in Bavaria. Béla Kun ( February 20 1886 – August 29 1938) born Béla Kohn, was a Hungarian Communist Politician Hungary (Magyarország 'mɔɟɔrorsaːg) officially in English the Republic of Hungary ( Magyar Köztársaság, literally Magyar (Hungarian Republic Kurt Eisner ( May 14 1867 in Berlin – February 21, 1919 in München)was a Bavarian Politician Bavaria ( German:, with an area of 70553 Km² (27241 square miles and almost 12 There were further revolutionary movements in Germany until 1923, as well as in Vienna, and also in the industrial centres of northern Italy. Vienna ( in Wien; see also other names) is the Capital of Austria, and is also one of the nine States of Austria. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest
In this period few Communists doubted, least of all Lenin and Trotsky, that successful socialist revolutions carried out by the working classes of the most developed capitalist counties were essential to the success of the socialism, and therefore to the success of socialism in Russia in particular. [47] In March 1918, Lenin said, "we are doomed if the German revolution does not break out". [48] In 1919, the Communist Parties came together to form a 'Third International', termed the Communist International or Comintern. The Comintern ( Com munist Intern ational also known as the Third International) was an international Communist organisation founded in Moscow The Comintern ( Com munist Intern ational also known as the Third International) was an international Communist organisation founded in Moscow But the prolonged revolutionary period in Germany did not bring a socialist revolution.
Within a few years a bureaucracy developed in Russia as a result of the Russian Civil War, foreign invasion, and Russia's historic poverty and backwardness. The Russian Civil War (1917–1923 was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed The bureaucracy undermined the democratic and socialist ideals of the Bolshevik Party and elevated Stalin to their leadership after Lenin's death. In order to consolidate power, the bureaucracy conducted a brutal campaign of lies and violence against the Left Opposition led by Trotsky. Left communism and the Left Opposition are distinct Left communism should not be confused with the Trotskyist tendency described below
By the mid 1920s, the impetus had gone out of the revolutionary forces in Europe and the national reformist socialist parties had regained their dominance over the working-class movement in most countries. The German Social Democrats held office for much of the 1920s, the British Labour Party formed its first government in 1924, and the French Socialists were also influential. The Labour Party is a Political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century it has been since the 1920s the principal party of the In the Soviet Union, from 1924 Stalin pursued a policy of "socialism in one country". Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party Socialism in One Country was a thesis developed by Nikolai Bukharin in 1925 and adopted as state policy by Joseph Stalin. Trotsky argued that this approach was a shift away from the theory of Marx and Lenin, while others argued that it was a practical compromise fit for the times.
The postwar revolutionary upsurge provoked a powerful reaction from the forces of conservatism. Winston Churchill declared that Bolshevism must be "strangled in its cradle". Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC, PC (Can ( 30 November 1874 [49] The invasion of Russia by the Allies, their trade embargo and backing for the White forces fighting against the Red Army in the civil war in the Soviet Union was cited by Aneurin Bevan, the leader of the left-wing in the Labour Party, as one of the causes of the Russian revolution's degeneration into dictatorship. The Allied intervention was a multi-national military expedition launched in 1918 during the Russian Civil War and World War I [50] A "Red scare" in the United States was raised against the American Socialist Party of Eugene V. Debs and the Communist Party of America which arose after the Russian revolution from members who had broken from Debs' party. Red Menace redirects here For the 2007 Wildstorm Productions comic book series see Red Menace (comics. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Socialist Party of America (SPA was a socialist Political party in the United States. Eugene Victor Debs (November 5 1855 &ndash October 20 1926 was an American union leader one of the founding members of the International Labor Union and the Industrial The Communist Party of the United States of America ( CPUSA) is a Marxist-Leninist Political party in the United States. In Europe, fascist movements received significant funding, particularly from industrialists in heavy industry,[51][52] and came to power in Italy in 1922 under Benito Mussolini, and later in Germany in 1933, in Spain (1937) and Portugal, while strong fascist movements also developed in Hungary and Romania. Fascism is a totalitarian nationalist and corporatist ideology Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. Hungary (Magyarország 'mɔɟɔrorsaːg) officially in English the Republic of Hungary ( Magyar Köztársaság, literally Magyar (Hungarian Republic Romania ( dated: Rumania, Roumania
After 1929, with the Left Opposition legally banned and Trotsky exiled, Stalin led the Soviet Union into a what he termed a "higher stage of socialism. " Agriculture was forcibly collectivised, at the cost of a massive famine and millions of deaths among the resistant peasantry. Collective farming is an organization of agricultural production in which the holdings of several farmers are run as a joint enterprise The Holodomor (Голодомор is the famine that took place in Soviet Ukraine during the 1932-1933 agricultural season The surplus squeezed from the peasants was spent on a program of crash industrialisation, guided by the Communist Party through the Five Year Plan. This program produced some impressive results,[53] though at enormous human costs. Russia raised itself from an economically backward country to that of a superpower. Later Soviet development, however, particularly after the Second World War, was no faster than it was in Japan or the United States under capitalism. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where The use of resources, material and human, in the Soviet Union became very wasteful. Stalin's industrialization policy was geared towards the development of heavy industry, an emphasis that facilitated Soviet military action in its defence against Hitler's invasion during the Second World War in which the USSR stood on the side of the Allies of World War II. The Allies of World War II were the countries officially opposed to the Axis powers during the Second World War.
The Soviet achievement in the 1930s seemed hugely impressive from the outside, and convinced many people, not necessarily Communists or even socialists, of the virtues of state planning and authoritarian models of social development. This was later to have important consequences in countries like China, India and Egypt, which tried to copy some aspects of the Soviet model. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. It also won large sections of the western intelligentsia over to a pro-Soviet view, to the extent that many were willing to ignore or excuse such events as Stalin's Great Purge of 1936-38, in which millions of people died. For the coffee shop company often called Intelligentsia for short see Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea. Great Purge (Большая чистка transliterated Bolshaya chistka) was a series of campaigns of Political repression and Persecution
The Great Depression, which began in 1929, seemed to socialists and Communists everywhere to be the final proof of the bankruptcy, literally as well as politically, of capitalism. But socialists were unable to take advantage of the Depression to either win elections or stage revolutions. Labor governments in Britain and Australia were disastrous failures. In the United States, the liberalism of President Franklin D. Roosevelt won mass support and deprived socialists of any chance of gaining ground. And in Germany it was the fascists of Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party who successfully exploited the Depression to win power, in January 1933. Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately The, officially National Socialist German Workers' Party, ( abbreviated NSDAP) was a Political party in Germany between 1919 and 1945
Hitler's regime swiftly destroyed both the German Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party, the worst blow the world socialist movement had ever suffered. This forced Stalin to reassess his strategy, and from 1935 the Comintern began urging a Popular Front against fascism. A popular front is a broad Coalition of different political groupings often made up of leftists and centrists who are united by opposition to another group The socialist parties were at first suspicious, given the bitter hostility of the 1920s, but eventually effective Popular Fronts were formed in both France and Spain. After the election of a Popular Front government in Spain in 1936 a fascist military revolt led to the Spanish Civil War. The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted Coup d'état committed by parts of the army against the government of The crisis in Spain also brought down the Popular Front government in France under Léon Blum. André Léon Blum (9 April 1872 30 March 1950 was a French politician usually identified with the moderate left and three times the Prime Minister of France. Ultimately the Popular Fronts were not able to prevent the spread of fascism or the aggressive plans of the fascist powers. Trotskyists considered Popular Fronts a "strike breaking conspiracy" [54] and considered them a impediment to successful resistance to fascism. Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky.
When Stalin consolidated his power in the Soviet Union in the late 1920s, Trotsky was forced into exile, eventually residing in Mexico. The United Mexican States ( or commonly Mexico (ˈmɛksɪkoʊ () is a federal constitutional Republic in North America. He maintained active in organizing the Left Opposition internationally, which worked within the Comintern to gain new members. Left communism and the Left Opposition are distinct Left communism should not be confused with the Trotskyist tendency described below Some leaders of the Communist Parties sided with Trotsky, such as James P. Cannon in the United States. James Patrick Cannon (1890–1974 was an American Trotskyist Communist leader They found themselves expelled by the Stalinist Parties and persecuted by both GPU agents and the political police in Britain, France, the United States, China, and all over the world. Trotskyist parties had a large influence in Sri Lanka and Bolivia.
In 1938, Trotsky and his supporters founded a new international organisation of dissident communists, the Fourth International. The Fourth International ( FI) is a communist international organisation working in opposition to both Capitalism and Stalinism. In his Results and Prospects and Permanent Revolution Trotsky developed a theory of revolution uninterrupted by the stagism of Stalinist orthodoxy. This article is about the theory See Permanent Revolution (group for the group of the same name and Permanent Revolution (album for the Catch 22 Stalinism is the political regime named after Joseph Stalin, leader of the Soviet Union from 1929–1953 He argued that Russia was a bureaucratically degenerated workers state in his work The Revolution Betrayed, where he predicted that if a political revolution of the working class did not overthrow Stalinism, the Stalinist bureaucracy would resurrect capitalism. In Trotskyist political theory the term degenerated workers' state has been used since the 1930s to describe the state of the Soviet Union after Stalin 's Trotsky's monumental History of the Russian Revolution is considered a work of primary importance by Trotsky's followers.
Britain
Once the world's most powerful nation, Britain avoided a revolution during the period of 1917-1923 but was significantly affected by revolt. The Prime Minister, Lloyd George, had promised the troops in the 1918 election that his Conservative-led coalition would make post-war Britain "a fit land for heroes to live in". David Lloyd George 1st Earl Lloyd George of Dwyfor OM, PC (17 January 1863 &ndash 26 March 1945 was a British Statesman and the only But many demobbed troops complained of chronic unemployment and suffered low pay, disease and poor housing. [55]
In 1918, the Labour Party adopted as its aim to secure for the workers, "the common ownership of the means of production, distribution and exchange". In 1919, the Miners Federation, whose Members of Parliament pre-dated the formation of the Labour Party and were since 1906 a part of that body, demanded the withdrawal of British troops from Soviet Russia. The 1919 Labour Party conference voted to discuss the question of affiliation to the Third (Communist) International, "to the distress of its leaders". [56] A vote was won committing the Labour Party committee of the Trades Union Congress to arrange "direct industrial action" to "stop capitalist attacks upon the Socialist Republics of Russia and Hungary. "[57] The threat of immediate strike action forced the Conservative-led coalition government to abandon its intervention in Russia. [58]
In 1914 the unions of the transport workers, the mine workers and the railway workers had formed a Triple Alliance. The Triple Alliance is not to be confused with the Triple Entente. In 1919, Lloyd George sent for the leaders of the Triple Alliance, one of whom was miner's leader Robert Smillie, a founder member of the Independent Labour Party in 1889 who was to become a Labour Party MP in the first 1924 Labour government. Robert Smillie ( 17 March 1857 &ndash 16 February 1940) was a Trade unionist and Labour Party politician in the United See Independent Labor Party for the Political party in Burundi, Independent Labour Group for the Irish party and Labour candidates The first Labour government of the United Kingdom lasted from January to November 1924 According to Smillie, Lloyd George said:
| “ | Gentlemen, you have fashioned, in the Triple Alliance of the unions represented by you, a most powerful instrument. I feel bound to tell you that in our opinion we are at your mercy. The Army is disaffected and cannot be relied upon. Trouble has occurred already in a number of camps. We have just emerged from a great war and the people are eager for the reward of their sacrifices, and we are in no position to satisfy them. In these circumstances, if you carry out your threat and strike, then you will defeat us.
But if you do so, have you weighed the consequences? The strike will be in defiance of the government of the country and by its very success will precipitate a constitutional crisis of the first importance. For, if a force arises in the state which is stronger than the state itself, then it must be ready to take on the functions of the state, or withdraw and accept the authority of the state. Gentlemen, have you considered, and if you have, are you ready? |
” |
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— Aneurin Bevan, In Place of Fear [59]
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"From that moment on", Smillie conceded to Aneurin Bevan, "we were beaten and we knew we were". Aneurin Bevan, usually known as Nye Bevan ( 15 November 1897 &ndash 6 July 1960) was a Welsh Labour When the UK General Strike of 1926 broke out, the trade union leaders, "had never worked out the revolutionary implications of direct action on such a scale", Bevan says. The UK General Strike of 1926 was a General strike that lasted nine days from 3 May 1926 to 12 May 1926. [60] Bevan was a member of the Independent Labour Party and one of the leaders of the South Wales miners during the strike. The TUC called off the strike after nine days. In the North East of England and elsewhere, "councils of action" were set up, with many rank and file Communist Party members often playing a critical role. The councils of action took control of essential transport and other duties. [61] When the strike ended, the miners were locked out and remained locked out for six months. Bevan became a Labour MP in 1929.
In January 1924, the Labour Party formed a minority government for the first time with Ramsay MacDonald as prime minister. James Ramsay MacDonald ( 12 October 1866 &ndash 9 November 1937) was a British politician and twice Prime Minister of the United The Labour Party intended to ratify an Anglo-Russian trade agreement, which would break the trade embargo on Russia. This was attacked by the Conservatives and new elections took place in October 1924. Four days before polling day the Daily Mail published the Zinoviev letter, a forgery that claimed the Labour Party had links with Soviet Communists and was secretly fomenting revolution. The " Zinoviev Letter " is a 1924 letter that was allegedly addressed from Grigori Zinoviev, president of the presidium of the Executive Committee of the Communist The fears instilled by the press of a Labour Party in secret Communist manoeuvres, together with the half-hearted "respectable" policies pursued by MacDonald, led to Labour losing the October 1924 general election. The victorious Conservatives repudiated the Anglo-Soviet treaty.
The leadership of the Labour Party, like social democratic parties almost everywhere, (with the exception of Sweden and Belgium), tried to pursue a policy of moderation and economic orthodoxy. At times of depression this policy was not popular with the Labour Party’s working class supporters. The influence of Marxism grew in the Labour Party during the inter-war years. Anthony Crosland argued in 1956 that under the impact of the 1931 slump and the growth of fascism, the younger generation of left-wing intellectuals for the most part "took to Marxism" including the "best-known leaders" of the Fabian tradition, Sidney and Beatrice Webb. Sidney James Webb 1st Baron Passfield PC ( 13 July, 1859 &ndash 13 October, 1947) was a British socialist economist and reformer This article is about the socialist politician For the children's author see Beatrix Potter. The Marxist Professor Harold Laski, who was to be chairman of the Labour Party in 1945-6, was the "outstanding influence" in the political field. Harold Joseph Laski ( June 30, 1893 &ndash March 24, 1950) was an English Political theorist, Economist, Author [62]
The Marxists within the Labour Party differed in their attitude to the Communists. Some were uncitical and some were expelled as "fellow travellers", while in the 1930s others were Trotskyists and sympathisers working inside the Labour Party, especially in its youth wing where they were influential.
In the general election of 1929 the Labour Party won 288 seats out of 615 and formed another minority government. The depression of that period brought high unemployment and Prime Minister MacDonald sought to make cuts in order to balance the budget. The trade unions opposed MacDonald’s proposed cuts and he split the Labour government to form the National Government of 1931. In the United Kingdom the term National Government is in an abstract sense used to refer to a coalition of some or all UK major political parties. This experience moved the Labour Party leftward, and at the start of the Second World War an official Labour Party pamphlet written by Harold Laski argued that, "the rise of Hitler and the methods by which he seeks to maintain and expand his power are deeply rooted in the economic and social system of Europe. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including . . economic nationalism, the fight for markets, the destruction of political democracy, the use of war as an instrument of national policy":
| “ | The war will leave its meed[63] of great problems, problems of internal social organisation. . . Business men and aristocrats, the old ruling classes of Europe, had their chance from 1919 to 1939; they failed to take advantage of it. They rebuilt the world in the image of their own vested interests. . . The ruling class has failed; this war is the proof of it. The time has come to give the common people the right to become the master of their own destiny. . . Capitalism has been tried; the results of its power are before us today. Imperialism has been tried; it is the foster-parent of this great agony.
Given power [the Labour Party] will seek, as no other Party will seek, the basic transformation of our society. It will replace the profit-seeking motive by the motive of public service. . . there is now no prospect of domestic well-being or of international peace except in Socialism. |
” |
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— Harold Laski, The Labour Party, the War and the Future (1939) [64]
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United States
In the United States, the Communist Party USA was formed in 1919 from former adherents of the Socialist Party of America. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Communist Party of the United States of America ( CPUSA) is a Marxist-Leninist Political party in the United States. One of the founders, James Cannon, later became the leader of Trotskyist forces outside the Soviet Union. James Cannon may refer to James P Cannon (1890&ndash1974 American Communist and (later Trotskyist leader James Cannon (mathematician Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The Great Depression began in the US on Black Tuesday, October 29, 1929. The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the ’29 Crash, the Crash of 1929, the Great Crash of 1929, the Great Crash of October 1929 Unemployment rates passed 25%, prices and incomes fell 20–50%, but the debts remained at the same dollar amount. 9,000 banks failed during the decade of the 30s. By 1933, depositors saw $140 billion of their deposits disappear due to uninsured bank failures. [65]
Workers organized against their deteriorating conditions and socialists played a critical role. In 1934 the Minneapolis Teamsters Strike led by the Trotskyist Communist League of America, the West Coast Longshore Strike led by the Communist Party USA, and the Toledo Auto-Lite Strike led by the American Workers Party, played an important role in the formation of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) in the USA. The Minneapolis General Strike of 1934 grew out of a strike by Teamsters against most of the trucking companies operating in Minneapolis, a major distribution center The Communist League of America (Left Opposition was founded by James P The 1934 West Coast Waterfront Strike (also known as the 1934 West Coast Longshoremen's Strike, as well as a number of variations on these names lasted eighty-three days triggered The Communist Party of the United States of America ( CPUSA) is a Marxist-Leninist Political party in the United States. The Toledo Auto-Lite strike was a strike by a federal labor union of the American Federation of Labor (AFL against the Electric Auto-Lite company of The American Workers Party (AWP was a Socialist organization established in December 1933 by activists in the Conference for Progressive Labor Action. The Congress of Industrial Organizations, or CIO, proposed by John L
In Minnesota, the General Drivers Local 574 of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters struck, despite an attempt to block the vote by AFL officials, demanding union recognition, increased wages, shorter hours, overtime rates, improved working conditions and job protection through seniority. Minnesota ( Native Americans demonstrated the name to early settlers In the battles that followed, which captured country-wide media attention, three strikes took place, martial law was declared and the National Guard was sent in. Two strikers were killed. Protest rallies of 40,000 were held. Farrell Dobbs, who became the leader of the local, had at the outset joined the "small and poverty-stricken" Communist League of America, founded by James P. Cannon and others in 1928 after their expulsion from the Communist Party USA for Trotskyism. James Patrick Cannon (1890–1974 was an American Trotskyist Communist leader The Communist Party of the United States of America ( CPUSA) is a Marxist-Leninist Political party in the United States. [66]
Success for the CIO quickly followed its formation. In 1937, one of the founding unions of the CIO, the United Auto Workers, won union recognition at General Motors Corporation after a tumultuous forty-four day sit-down strike, while the Steel Workers Organizing Committee, which was formed by the CIO, won a collective bargaining agreement with U.S. Steel. Template talkInfobox Union for usage -->The United Automobile Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America International General Motors Corporation ( GM) ( is a multinational automobile manufacturer founded in 1908 and headquartered in the United States. The Steel Workers Organizing Committee was one of two precursor labor organizations to the United Steelworkers. The United States Steel Corporation ( is an integrated Steel producer with major production operations in the United States, Canada, and Central Europe The CIO merged with the American Federation of Labor (AFL) in 1955 becoming the AFL-CIO. The American Federation of Labor (AFL was one of the first federations of labor unions in the United States American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, commonly AFL-CIO, is a National trade union center, the largest federation of
Germany
In 1928, the Communist International, now fully under the leadership of Stalin, turned from the united front policy to an ultra-left policy of the Third Period, a policy of aggressive confrontation of social democracy. The Third Period was the policy adopted by the Comintern at the end of the Soviet Union's New Economic Policy in 1928 and was in place until the adoption This divided the working class at a critical time.
Like the Labour Party in the UK, the Social Democratic Party in Germany, which was in power in 1928, followed an orthodox deflationary policy and pressed for reductions in unemployment benefits in order to save taxes and reduce budget deficits. These policies did not halt the recession and the government resigned.
The Communists described the Social Democratic leaders as "social fascists" and in the Prussian Landtag they voted with the Nazis to bring down the Social Democratic government. Preußischer Landtag or Prussian Landtag was the Prussian diet which existed from the 15th century to the 20th century in various forms and states in the Fascism continued to grow, with powerful backing from industrialists, especially in heavy industry, and Hitler was invited into power in 1933.
Hitler's regime swiftly destroyed both the German Communist Party and the Social Democratic Party, the worst blow the world socialist movement had ever suffered. This forced Stalin to reassess his strategy, and from 1935 the Comintern began urging the formation of Popular Fronts, which were to include not just the Social Democratic parties but critically also "progressive capitalist" parties which were wedded to a capitalist policy. A popular front is a broad Coalition of different political groupings often made up of leftists and centrists who are united by opposition to another group
After the election of a Popular Front government in Spain in 1936 a fascist military revolt led to the Spanish Civil War. The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted Coup d'état committed by parts of the army against the government of The crisis in Spain brought down the Popular Front government in France under Léon Blum. André Léon Blum (9 April 1872 30 March 1950 was a French politician usually identified with the moderate left and three times the Prime Minister of France. Ultimately the Popular Fronts were not able to prevent the spread of fascism or the aggressive plans of the fascist powers. Trotskyists considered Popular Fronts a "strike breaking conspiracy", an impediment to successful resistance to fascism due to their inclusion of pro-capitalist parties which demanded policies of opposition to strikes and workers’ actions against the capitalist class. Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. [67]
Sweden
The Swedish Socialists formed a government in 1932. They broke with economic orthodoxy during the depression and carried out extensive public works financed from government borrowing. They emphasised large-scale intervention and the high unemployment they had inherited was eliminated by 1938. Their success encouraged the adoption of Keynesian policies of deficit financing pursued by almost all Western countries after World War II. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including
Social democracy (1945-85)
As a result of the failure of the Popular Fronts and the inability of Britain and France to conclude a defensive alliance against Hitler, Stalin again changed his policy in August 1939 and signed a non-aggression pact, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, with Nazi Germany. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Shortly afterwards World War II broke out, and within two years Hitler had occupied most of Europe, and by 1942 both democracy and social democracy in central Europe fell under the threat of fascism. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The only socialist parties of any significance able to operate freely were those in Britain, Sweden, Switzerland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island But the entry of the Soviet Union into the war in 1941 marked the turning of the tide against fascism, and as the German armies retreated another great upsurge in left-wing sentiment swelled up in their wake. The resistance movements against German occupation were mostly led by socialists and communists, and by the end of the war the parties of the left were greatly strengthened.
One of the great postwar victories of democratic socialism was the election victory of the British Labour Party led by Clement Attlee in June 1945. The Labour Party is a Political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century it has been since the 1920s the principal party of the Clement Richard Attlee 1st Earl Attlee, KG, OM, CH, PC ( 3 January 1883 &ndash 8 October 1967 Socialist (and in some places Stalinist) parties also dominated postwar governments in France, Italy, Czechoslovakia, Belgium, Norway and other European countries. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional The Social Democratic Party had been in power in Sweden since 1932, and Labour parties also held power in Australia and New Zealand. The Swedish Social Democratic Party, (Sveriges socialdemokratiska arbetareparti 'Social Democratic Workers' Party of Sweden' contests elections as 'Workers' Party - Social Democrats' "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island In Germany, on the other hand, the Social Democrats emerged from the war much weakened, and were defeated in Germany's first democratic elections in 1949. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The united front between democrats and the Stalinist parties which had been established in the wartime resistance movements continued in the immediate postwar years. The democratic socialist parties of Eastern Europe, however, were destroyed when Stalin imposed so-called "Communist" regimes in these countries.
The Second International, which had been based in Amsterdam, ceased to operate during the war. Amsterdam (pronounced) is the capital and largest city of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland in the west It was refounded as the Socialist International at a congress in Frankfurt in 1951. Socialist International is a worldwide organization of socialist ( social democratic and labour) political parties Since Stalin had dissolved the Comintern in 1943, as part of a deal with the imperialist powers, this was now the only effective international socialist organisation. The Comintern ( Com munist Intern ational also known as the Third International) was an international Communist organisation founded in Moscow The Frankfurt Declaration took a stand against both capitalism and the Communism of Stalin:
| “ | Socialism aims to liberate the peoples from dependence on a minority which owns or controls the means of production. It aims to put economic power in the hands of the people as a whole, and to create a community in which free men work together as equals. . . Socialism has become a major force in world affairs. It has passed from propaganda into practice. In some countries the foundations of a Socialist society have already been laid. Here the evils of capitalism are disappearing. . .
Since the Bolshevik revolution in Russia, Communism has split the International Labour Movement and has set back the realisation of socialism in many countries for decades. Communism falsely claims a share in the Socialist tradition. In fact it has distorted that tradition beyond recognition. It has built up a rigid theology which is incompatible with the critical spirit of Marxism. . . Wherever it has gained power it has destroyed freedom or the chance of gaining freedom. . . |
” |
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— The Frankfurt Declaration, 1951
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The first socialist government in a North American country
The first socialist government of North America and one of the most influential came to power in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan in 1944. Saskatchewan (səˈskætʃəwən) is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of 588276 The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation of Tommy Douglas won an overwhelming victory toppling the age old Liberal regime which had dominated Saskatchewan politics since the founding of the province in 1905. The Saskatchewan New Democratic Party (NDP (formerly the Saskatchewan Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) is a Social democratic Political party Thomas Clement "Tommy" Douglas, PC, CC, SOM ( October 20, 1904 – February 24, 1986) was a Douglas and the CCF won five consecutive electoral victories. During his time in office he created the Saskatchewan Power Corp. which extended electricity services to the many rural villages and farms who before did without, created Canada's first public automobile insurance agency, created a substantial number of Crown Corporations (government and public owned businesses) many of which still exist today in Saskatchewan, allowed the unionization of the public service, created the first system of Universal Health Care in Canada (which would later be adopted nationally in 1965 becoming something Canadians identify with proudly), and created Saskatchewan's Bill of Rights, the first such charter in Canada. In the Commonwealth realms a Crown corporation is a State-controlled company or enterprise Health care in Canada is funded and delivered through a Publicly-funded health care system with most services provided by private entities This preceded the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as the previous Canadian Bill of Rights. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (also known as The Charter of Rights and Freedoms or simply the Charter) is a Bill of rights entrenched in the The Canadian Bill of Rights is a federal statute and Bill of rights enacted by Prime Minister John Diefenbaker 's government on August 10
The New Democratic Party (as the CCF became known in 1962) went on to dominate the politics of Saskatchewan and form governments in British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, and the Yukon Territory. Principles policies and electoral achievement The NDP grew from populist, agrarian and democratic socialist roots British Columbia (ˌbrɪtɨʃ kəˈlʌmbiə ( BC) ( (la Colombie-Britannique C Manitoba (English ˌmænɨˈtoʊbə French /manitoba/ is a province of Canada, spanning 647797 square kilometres (250116 sq mi of North America Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec Yukon (ˈjuːkɒn is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three territories. Nationally the NDP would become very influential during four minority governments, and is today by far Canada's most successful left-wing political party. In 2004 Canadians voted Tommy Douglas in as The Greatest Canadian as part of a nation-wide contest organized by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). Officially launched on April 5, 2004, The Greatest Canadian was a television program series by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC to
Social democracy in government
The social democratic governments in the post war period introduced measures of social reform and wealth redistribution through state welfare and taxation policy. For instance the newly elected UK Labour government carried out nationalisations of major utilities such as mines, gas, coal, electricity, rail, iron and steel, and the Bank of England [68]. Nationalization, also spelled nationalisation, is the act of taking an industry or assets into the Public ownership of a national government France claimed to be the most state controlled capitalist country in the world, carrying through many nationalisations [69]. In the UK the National Health Service was established bringing free health care to all for the first time. Social housing for working class families was provided in council housing estates and university education was made available for working class people through a grant system.
However the parliamentary leadership of the social democracies in general had no intention of ending capitalism, and their national outlook and their dedication to the maintenance of the post-war 'order' prevented the social democracies from making any significant changes to the economy. They were termed 'socialist' by all in 1945, but in the UK, for instance, where Social Democracy had a large majority in Parliament, "The government had not the smallest intention of bringing in the 'common ownership of the means of production, distribution and exchange'" as written in Clause 4 of the Labour Party constitution. [70] In Germany, the Social Democratic Party of Germany adopted the Godesberg Program in 1959, which rejected class struggle and Marxism. The Godesberg Program (Godesberger Programm was the party program outline of the political course of Germany 's social-democratic party the SPD. Class struggle is the active expression of Class conflict looked at from any kind of socialist perspective Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.
In the UK, cabinet minister Herbert Morrison famously argued that, "Socialism is what the Labour government does", [71] and Anthony Crosland argued that capitalism had been ended. Herbert Stanley Morrison Baron Morrison of Lambeth, CH PC ( 3 January 1888 &ndash 6 March 1965) was a British Charles Anthony Raven Crosland (29 August 1918 - 19 February 1977 was a member of the Labour Party and an important socialist theorist [72] However many socialists within the social democracy, at rank and file level as well as in a minority in the leadership such as Aneurin Bevan, feared the 'return of the 1930s' unless capitalism was ended, either directly or over a definite period of time. Aneurin Bevan, usually known as Nye Bevan ( 15 November 1897 &ndash 6 July 1960) was a Welsh Labour They criticsed the government for not going further to take over the commanding heights of the economy. Bevan demanded that the "main streams of economic activity are brought under public direction" with economic planning, and criticised the Labour Party's implementation of nationalisation for not empowering the workers in the nationalised industries with democratic control over their operation. [73] In the post war period, many Trotskyists expected at first the pattern of financial instability and recession to return. Instead the capitalist world, now led by the United States, embarked on a prolonged boom which lasted until 1973. Rising living standards across Europe and North America alongside low unemployment, was achieved, in the view of the socialists, by the efforts of trade union struggle, social reform by social democracy, and the ushering in of what was termed a "mixed economy"[74].
Social democracy at first took the view that they had begun a "serious assault" on the five "Giant Evils" afflicting the working class, identified for instance by the British social reformer William Beveridge: "Want, Disease, Ignorance, Squalor, and Idleness". For the Scottish footballer and athlete see William Beveridge (footballer William Henry Beveridge 1st Baron Beveridge ( 5 March [75]
At the same time, the wartime alliance between the Soviet Union and the west broke down from 1946 onwards, and relations between the Communist parties and the democratic socialist parties broke down in parallel. Once the Stalinists helped stabilize the capitalist governments in the immediate upheavals of 1945, as per the agreements betweens Stalin, Roosevelt, and Churchill, the capitalist politicians had no more use for them. The French, Italian and Belgian Communists withdrew or were expelled from post-war coalition governments, and civil war broke out in Greece. The Greek Civil War (ο Eμφύλιος, "the Civil War" fought from 1946 to 1949 by the Governmental forces receiving logistical support by the United Kingdom Greece (Ελλάδα transliterated: Elláda, historically, Ellás,) officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία The imposition of Stalinist regimes in Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia not only destroyed the socialist parties in those countries, it also produced a reaction against socialism in general. The Australian and New Zealand Labour governments were defeated in 1949, and the British Labour government in 1951. As the Cold War deepened, conservative rule in Britain, Germany and Italy became more strongly entrenched. Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the Only in the Scandinavian countries and to some extent in France did the socialist parties retain their positions. But in 1958 Charles de Gaulle seized power in France and the French socialists (SFIO) found themselves cast into opposition. Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle ( ( 22 November 1890 – 9 November 1970) was a French General and statesman who led the Free French
In the 1960s and 1970s the new social forces, introduced, the social democrats argued, by their 'mixed economy' and their many reforms of capitalism, began to change the political landscape in the western world. The long postwar boom and the rapid expansion of higher education produced, as well as rising living standards for the industrial working class, a mass university-educated white collar workforce, nevertheless began to break down the old socialist-versus-conservative polarity of European politics. This new white-collar workforce, some claimed, was less interested in traditional socialist policies such as state ownership and more interested expanded personal freedom and liberal social policies. The proportion of women in the paid workforce increased and many supported the struggle for equal pay, which, some argued, changed both the composition and the political outlook of the working class. Some socialist parties reacted more flexibly and successfully to these changes than others, but eventually the leaderships of all social democracies in Europe moved to an explicitly pro-capitalist stance. Symbolically in the UK, the socialist clause, Clause four, was removed from the Labour Party constitution, in 1995. A similar change took place in the German SDP.
However, particularly after the coming to power of British Premier Margaret Thatcher in 1979 and US President Ronald Reagan in 1981, and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, many social democratic party leaders were won to the ideological offensive which argued that capitalism had "won" and that, in the words of Francis Fukuyama's essay, capitalism had reached "the end point of mankind's ideological evolution and the universalization of Western liberal democracy as the final form of human government. Margaret Hilda Thatcher Baroness Thatcher LG, OM, PC, FRS (born 13 October 1925 The Berlin Wall (Berliner Mauer was a physical barrier separating West Berlin from the German Democratic Republic (GDR ( East Germany) including Yoshihiro Francis Fukuyama (born 27 October 1952) is an American Philosopher, political economist, and author " [76]. Some parties reacted to these changes by engaging in a new round of revisionist re-assessment of socialist ideology, and adopting a neo-liberal outlook. For the denial and distortion of well-established historical facts see Historical revisionism (negationism. Some critics argue that in practice the Social Democractic parties, and the Labour Party in particular, can no longer be described as socialist. [77] On Prime Minister Tony Blair's departure in June 2007, left wing trade union leader Bob Crow, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport workers union (RMT), argued that Blair will be remembered for "seamlessly continuing the neo-liberal economic and social policies of Margaret Thatcher". Anthony Charles Lynton "Tony" Blair (born 6 May 1953 is a British Politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to Bob Crow (born 13 June 1961) is the general secretary of the British Trade union RMT. The National Union of Rail Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT is a Trade union in the United Kingdom which unionises Transport workers [78]
Mass discontent
Another manifestation of this changing social landscape was the rise of mass discontent, including the radical student movement, both in the United States - where it was driven mainly by opposition to the Vietnam War, and in Europe. The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, or the Vietnam Conflict, occurred in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia Aside from the Civil Rights Movement, in which socialists participated, the anti-war movement was the first left-wing upsurge in the United States since the 1930s, but neither there nor in Europe did the traditional parties of the left lead the movement. Instead Trotskyist, Maoist and anarchist groups arose. Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Maoism, variably and officially known as Mao Zedong Thought ( is a variant of Marxism derived from the teachings of the late Chinese leader Anarchism is a Political philosophy encompassing theories and attitudes which support the elimination of all compulsory Government, i They became particularly influential in 1968, when riots amounting almost to an insurrection broke out in Paris in May 1968. Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city For other events in May 1968 see 1968. Between eight and ten million workers struck, challenging the view becoming popular amongst socialists at the time that the working class were no longer a force for change. [79] There were also major disturbances in Chicago namely the Columbia University protests of 1968, Berlin by the embryonic Red Army Faction and in other cities. Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. The Columbia University protests of 1968 were among the many student demonstrations that occurred around the world in that year Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. The Red Army Faction or RAF ( German Rote Armee Fraktion) (in its early stages commonly known as Baader-Meinhof Group ''Gang'' was one In the short-term these movements provoked a conservative backlash, seen in De Gaulle's 1968 election victory and the election of Richard Nixon in the United States. Year 1968 ( MCMLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. But in the 1970s, as particularly the far left Trotskyist groups continued to grow, the socialist and Communist parties again sought to channel people's anger back into safe confines, as they did in 1945.
The British Labour Party had already returned to office under Harold Wilson in 1964, and in 1969 the German Social Democrats came to power for the first time since the 1920s under Willy Brandt. James Harold Wilson Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, PC (11 March 1916 &ndash 24 May 1995 was one of the most prominent British politicians Willy Brandt, born Herbert Ernst Karl Frahm (18 December 1913 - 8 October 1992 was a German politician Chancellor of West Germany 1969&ndash1974 In France François Mitterrand buried the corpse of the old socialist party, the SFIO, and founded a new Socialist Party in 1971, although it would take him a decade to lead it to power. François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand ( 26 October 1916 8 January 1996 served as President of France from 1981 to 1995 elected as representative of the Socialist The Socialist Party ( Parti Socialiste, PS is the largest left-wing political party in France. Labour governments were elected in both Australia and New Zealand in 1972, and the Austrian Socialists under Bruno Kreisky formed their first post-war government in 1970. Bruno Kreisky ( January 22 1911 July 29 1990) served as Chancellor of Austria from 1970 to 1983
The early 1970s were a particularly stormy period for socialists, as capitalism had its first world wide slump of 1973-4, suffered from rising oil prices, and a crisis in confidence. In southern Europe, for example, the Portuguese Carnation Revolution of 1974 threatened the existence of capitalism for a while due to the insurrection and the occupations which followed. The Carnation Revolution (Revolução dos Cravos was an almost bloodless military-led pro-democratic Coup d'état, started on April 25, 1974, in Lisbon A New York Times editorial on February 17, 1975, stated "a communist takeover of Portugal might encourage a similar trend in Italy and France, create problems in Greece and Turkey, affect the succession in Spain and Yugoslavia and send tremors throughout Western Europe. Events 1500 - Battle of Hemmingstedt. 1600 - Philosopher Giordano Bruno is burned alive at Campo de' Fiori Year 1975 ( MCMLXXV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. " The Greek military dictatorship fell in Greece, PASOK arose at first with a strong socialist outlook, and in Spain, the Franco dictatorship fell in a period of rising struggle. The Panhellenic Socialist Movement, better known as PASOK ( Greek: Πανελλήνιο Σοσιαλιστικό Κίνημα Pa nellinio So In Italy there was continual unrest, and governments fell almost annually. The Italian workers won and defended the "scala mobile", the sliding scale of wages linked to inflation. However, as before, neither the Communists nor the social democracy had any plans to abolish capitalism, and the occupations in Portugal, variously estimated to have taken between 70 - 90% of the economy, were gradually rolled back. The UK saw a state of emergency and the three day week, with 22 million days lost in strike action in 1972, leading to the fall of the Heath government and appearance of the Trotskyist Militant tendency in the Labour Party, which became the "fifth most important political party" for a period in the mid 1980s[80]. The Militant tendency was an entryist group within the UK Labour Party founded in 1964
The Soviet Union and Eastern Europe (1945-1985)
Immediately after the Second World War, a period known as the Cold War began. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including It represented a period of conflict, tension and competition between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies. Throughout the period, the rivalry between the two superpowers was played out in multiple arenas: military coalitions; ideology, psychology, and espionage; military, industrial, and technological developments, including the space race; costly defense spending; a massive conventional and nuclear arms race; and many proxy wars.
The term "Cold War" was introduced in 1947 by Americans Bernard Baruch and Walter Lippmann to describe emerging tensions between the two former wartime allies. [81] There never was a direct military engagement between the U. S. and the Soviet Union, but there was a half-century of military buildup, and political battles for support around the world, including significant involvement of allied and satellite nations. Although the U. S. and the Soviet Union had been allied against Nazi Germany, the two sides differed on how to reconstruct the postwar world even before the end of the World War II. Over the following decades, the Cold War spread outside Europe to every region of the world, as the U. S. sought the "containment" of communism and forged numerous alliances to this end, particularly in Western Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.
In 1946, speaking at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, former British prime minister Winston Churchill warned that, "From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent. Fulton is a City in Callaway County, Missouri, the United States of America This article is about the government position For other uses see Prime Minister (disambiguation. Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC, PC (Can ( 30 November 1874 Baltic Seven Islandsgif|right|thumb|330px|A contemporary transnational Euroregion encompasses the islands of the Baltic countries Trieste (Trieste Slovene and Croatian: Trst; German: Triest) is a city and port in northeastern Italy very near to The " Iron Curtain " was the symbolic ideological and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II until the end "
In the months that followed, Josef Stalin continued to solidify a Soviet sphere of influence in eastern Europe. For example, Bulgaria received its new Communist premier, Georgi Dimitrov, in November 1946, a Communist government under Bolesław Bierut had been established in Poland already in 1945, and by 1947, Hungary and Romania had also come under full communist rule. The state of Bulgaria (България transliterated bg-Latn ''Balgaria'' The country preserves the traditions (in ethnic name language and alphabet of the First Bulgarian Georgi Dimitrov Mikhaylov (Георги Димитров Михайлов also known as Georgi Mikhaylovich Dimitrov (Георгий Михайлович Димитров Bolesław Bierut (real name Bolesław Biernacki, April 18, 1892 - March 12, 1956) was a Polish Communist Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Hungary (Magyarország 'mɔɟɔrorsaːg) officially in English the Republic of Hungary ( Magyar Köztársaság, literally Magyar (Hungarian Republic Romania ( dated: Rumania, Roumania The last democratic government in the eastern bloc, Czechoslovakia, fell to a Communist coup in 1948, and in 1949 the Soviets raised their occupation zone in Germany to become the German Democratic Republic under Walter Ulbricht. During the Cold War, the term Communist Bloc (or Soviet Bloc) was used to refer to the Soviet Union and countries it either controlled or that were Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The German Democratic Republic ( GDR; Deutsche Demokratische Republik DDR; commonly known in English as East Germany) was a Socialist state Walter Ulbricht ( June 30, 1893 &ndash August 1, 1973) was a German Communist politician
To coordinate their new empire, the Soviets established a number of international organizations, first the Cominform to coordinate the policies of the various Communist parties, then the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (COMECON), in 1948, to control economic planning, and finally (in response to the entry of the Federal Republic of Germany into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization) the Warsaw Pact in 1955, which served as a military alliance against the west. Cominform ( Com munist Inform ation Bureau) is the common name for what was officially referred to as the Information Bureau of the Communist Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The North Atlantic Treaty The Warsaw Pact (see Nomenclature) was an organization of Communist states in Central and Eastern Europe.
But one crack within that sphere of influence emerged after 1948, when Marshal Tito became the president of Yugoslavia. See also Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Yugoslavia ( Serbo-Croatian Initial disagreement was over the level of independence claimed by Tito as the only East European Communist ruler commanding a strong domestic majority. Later the gap widened when Tito's government initiated a system of decentralized profit-sharing workers' councils, in effect a self-governing, somewhat market-oriented socialism, which Stalin considered dangerously revisionist. A workers' council is a Deliberative assembly, composed of Working class members intended to institute Workers' self-management or Workers' control The term "revisionism" is also used to refer to other concepts
Stalin died in 1953. In the power struggle that followed Stalin's death, Nikita Khrushchev emerged triumphant. Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (April 17 1894 – September 11 1971 served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 following In 1956, at the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, he denounced the "personality cult" that had surrounded Stalin in a speech entitled On the Personality Cult and its Consequences. The 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was held during February 14 26 1956. A cult of personality or personality cult arises when a country's leader uses Mass media to create a heroic public image through unquestioning flattery and praise On the Personality Cult and its Consequences (О культе личности и его последствиях commonly known as the Secret Speech or the In the de-Stalinization campaign that followed, all buildings and towns that had been named for him were renamed, pictures and statues were destroyed. The Cold War ensued as the USSR and the United States struggled indirectly for influence around the world Although in some respects Khrushchev was a reformer and allowed the emergence of a certain amount of intra-party dissent, his commitment to reform was thrown into doubt with the brutal use of military force on the civilian population of Hungary in 1956 during the Hungarian Revolution and the March 9 massacre in Tbilisi, 1956. The March 9 massacre in Tbilisi 1956 was a crackdown of peaceful demonstrators in Tbilisi, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union by Soviet troops
By the late 1960s, the people of several eastern bloc countries had become discontented with the human and economic costs of the Soviet system, Czechoslovakia especially so. Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia. As a result of the growing discontent, the Communist Party began to fear a popular uprising. They initiated reforms to attempt to save the regime, but eventually relied on help from the Stalinists in Russia. In 1968, Alexander Dubček initiated what is known as the Prague Spring, ending censorship of the press and decentralizing production decisions, so that they were to be made not by central planners but by the workers and managers of the factories. Alexander Dubček (November 27 1921 – November 7 1992 was a Slovak politician and briefly leader of Czechoslovakia (1968-1969 famous for his attempt to reform The Prague Spring ( Czech: Pražské jaro, Slovak: Pražská jar) was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during Censorship is the suppression of speech or deletion of communicative material which may be considered objectionable harmful or sensitive as determined by a censor People were to be allowed to travel abroad. Brezhnev reacted by announcing and enforcing what became known as the Brezhnev doctrine:
| “ | When forces that are hostile to socialism try to turn the development of some socialist country towards capitalism the suppression of these counter-revolutionary forces becomes not only a problem of the country concerned, but a common problem and concern of all socialist countries. The Brezhnev Doctrine was a Soviet Foreign policy, first and most clearly outlined by S | ” |
|
— The 'Brezhnev doctrine', 1968
|
"Socialism" in this context meant Stalinism and the dominance of the bureaucracy. Stalinism is the political regime named after Joseph Stalin, leader of the Soviet Union from 1929–1953 Bureaucracy is the structure and set of regulations in place to control activity usually in large organizations and government In August 1968, pursuant to this announcement, Soviet troops occupied Czechoslovakia. Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The following year, the Russians responded to a campaign of passive disobedience on the part of the Czech populace by arranging the replacement of Dubček as first secretary. The new first secretary, Gustáv Husák, would prove more compliant. Gustáv Husák ( January 10, 1913 - November 18, 1991) was a Slovak politician president of Czechoslovakia and a long-term He presided over a 'cleansing' of the Czech Communist Party and the introduction of a new constitution.
The early 1970s saw a period of détente. Détente is a French term meaning a relaxing or easing the term has been used in international politics since the early 1970s The arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union slackened. The term arms race, in its original usage describes a competition between two or more parties for real or apparent military supremacy The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Brezhnev worked with US President Richard Nixon to negotiate and implement the Strategic Arms Limitations Treaty of 1972. Brezhnev also scored some diplomatic advances with the non-aligned world, such as a 1971 friendship pact with India, and the close relations the Soviet Union enjoyed with several Arab countries after Soviet material support in the Yom Kippur War of 1973. The Non-Aligned Movement ( NAM) is an International organization of states considering themselves not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country The araB gene Promoter is a bacterial promoter activated by e L-arabinose binding The Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War or October War (מלחמת יום הכיפורים transliterated: Milkhemet Yom HaKipurim or מלחמת יום After his death in 1982, Brezhnev was succeeded by Yuri Andropov, who died in 1984, and then Konstantin Chernenko, who died in 1985. Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov (Ю́рий Влади́мирович Андро́пов Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov) ( &ndash 9 February 1984 was a Soviet politician Konstantin Ustinovich Chernenko (Константи́н Усти́нович Черне́нко Konstantin Ustinovič Černenko; 24 September 1911 &ndash 10 March 1985 was Andropov's brief tenure as General Secretary indicated that he might have had reformist plans, and though Chernenko put them aside, Andropov had had time to groom a group of potential reformist successors, one of whom was Mikhail Gorbachev. Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev ( Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachyov;; born 2 March 1931 in Privolnoye Stavropol Krai) is a Russian politician
It was also during Andropov's tenure and this period of generational turmoil that the rule of Communists next door, in Poland, came under challenge from Solidarność, or Solidarity, a labor union under the leadership of Lech Wałęsa. Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland The union was sufficiently threatening to the government that on 13 December 1981, the head of state, Wojciech Jaruzelski declared martial law, suspended the union, and imprisoned most of its leaders. Events 1294 - Saint Celestine V abdicates the papacy after only five months Celestine hoped to return to his previous life Year 1981 ( MCMLXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Martial law is the system of rules that takes effect when the military takes control of the normal administration of justice
Final years for the Soviet Union 1985-91
Mikhail Gorbachev (1931-), who took control in 1985, was the first Soviet leader to have been born after the October revolution. Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev ( Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachyov;; born 2 March 1931 in Privolnoye Stavropol Krai) is a Russian politician The October Revolution (Октябрьская революция Oktyabrskaya revolyutsiya) also known as the Soviet Revolution He is remembered for three initiatives: glasnost, perestroika, and the "Frank Sinatra doctrine". (Гла́сность)is literally defined as publicity and sometimes figuratively interpreted as "tipping a vase to let someone see into the vase but not the bottom of the vase" (Перестройка) is the Russian term (now used in English for the economic reforms introduced in June 1987 by the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev "Sinatra Doctrine" was the name that the Soviet government of Mikhail Gorbachev used jokingly to describe its policy of allowing neighboring Warsaw
Glasnost, or "openness", was Gorbachev's term for allowing public debate in the Soviet Union to an unprecedented degree.
Perestroika was his term for market-oriented economic reforms, in recognition of the stagnating effects of central planning.
The "Frank Sinatra" doctrine was his reversal of the Brezhnev doctrine. Sinatra sang "My Way", and the doctrine named for him was that each Warsaw Pact country could find its own "way" of doing things. " My Way " is a song with lyrics written by Paul Anka and popularized by Frank Sinatra. The Warsaw Pact (see Nomenclature) was an organization of Communist states in Central and Eastern Europe.
Gorbachev also, in 1989, withdrew Soviet troops from their engagement in Afghanistan, ten years after Brezhnev had sent them there. Afghanistan /æfˈgænɪstæn/ officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan ( Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت, They had been fighting the anti-government Mujahideen forces which since 1979 as part of its cold war strategy had been covertly funded and trained by the United States government through the Pakistani secret service known as Inter Services Intelligence (ISI). A Mujahid (Arabic ar مجاهد, literally "struggler" is a Muslim involved in a Jihad, id est fighting in a war or History After independence in 1947 two new intelligence agencies were created in Pakistan called the Intelligence Bureau (IB and Military Intelligence
By August 1991, anti-reform Communists in both the Party and the military were sufficiently desperate to attempt a military coup. Coup leaders called themselves the Committee on the State of Emergency. They announced that Gorbachev had been removed from his position as president due to illness.
Although the coup rapidly collapsed and Gorbachev returned to Moscow, it was Boris Yeltsin who had played a leading role in the street resistance to that Committee, and the incident marked a shift of power away from Gorbachev toward Yeltsin. The 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt ( August 19 - August 21, 1991) also known as the August Putsch or August Coup was a three-day Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin () (1 February 1931 23 April 2007 was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999 By the end of that year, Yeltsin was the leader of Russia, and the Soviet Union was no more. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending
China (1945-65)
Through the Second World War, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) under the leadership of Mao Zedong and the Nationalist government of Chiang Kai-shek lived in an uneasy truce in order to combat the common foe, the Japanese occupation. Mao Zedong ( 26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976) was a Chinese Military and political leader who led World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Communist Party of China ( CPC) ( also known as the Chinese Communist Party ( CCP) is the founding and ruling political party of the Mao Zedong ( 26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976) was a Chinese Military and political leader who led Chiang Kai-shek ( POJ: Chiúⁿ Kài-se̍k Jyutping: zoeng2gaai3sek6 GCB ( October 31, 1887 &ndash
Upon the Surrender of Japan, the Chinese Civil War immediately resumed. The surrender of Japan in August 1945 brought World War II to a close Another truce, negotiated by American general George C. Marshall early in 1946, collapsed after only three months. George Catlett Marshall Jr (December 31 1880 &ndash October 16 1959 was an American military leader Chief of Staff of the Army, Secretary of
While war raged in China, two post-occupation governments established themselves next door, in Korea. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Korea is a geographic area composed of two sovereign countries a civilization and a former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. In 1948, Syngman Rhee was proclaimed president of the Republic of Korea, at Seoul, while the Communist Workers Party of North Korea in the north proclaimed the establishment of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Syngman Rhee or Yi Seungman ( March 26, 1875 – July 19, 1965) was the first president of South Korea. South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often referred to as Korea ( Korean: 대한민국 tɛː Seoul ( soʊl is the Capital and largest City of South Korea. The Workers Party of North Korea (북조선로동당 ( 1946 – 1949) was a Communist party in North Korea, a predecessor of the current Workers North Korea is the commonly used short form name for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (or DPRK) a State located in East Asia,
In January 1949, the Chinese Nationalist armies suffered a devastating defeat by the Communists at Tientsin. ( Postal map spelling: Tientsin) is the second largest city in northern coastal China. By spring, Chiang Kai-shek, now losing whole divisions by desertion to the Communists, began the removal of remaining forces to Formosa (Taiwan). Taiwan ( Taiwanese: Tâi-oân/Tāi-oân (historically 大灣/台員/大員/台圓/大圓/台窩灣 is an Island in East Asia. In August, U. S. aid to the Nationalists ended. In October, Mao Zedong took office as the Chairman of the Central People's Administrative Council of the People's Republic of China in Beijing. Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES Zhou Enlai was named premier and foreign minister of the new state. Zhou Enlai ( (5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976 was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from 1949 until his death in January 1976
On 25 June 1950, the forces of North Korea invaded the South unleashing the Korean War. Events 524 - Battle of Vézeronce, the Franks defeat the Burgundians Year 1950 ( MCML) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. North Korea is the commonly used short form name for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (or DPRK) a State located in East Asia, The Korean War refers to a period of military conflict between North Korean and South Korean regimes with major hostilities lasting from June 25 1950 until the Although Mao was apparently unenthusiastic about that war, Chinese forces would enter it in November. Meanwhile, Tibet had refused to take part in the People's Republic, and Chinese Communist forces had invaded that region in October leading to the signing of the Seventeen Point Agreement. Definitions of Tibet See also Definitions of Tibet Name In English The English word Tibet, like the word for Tibet in most European The Agreement of the Central People's Government and the Local Government of Tibet on Measures for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet, or the Seventeen Point Agreement for the Peaceful
After this burst of expansion, the Communist government in China settled down to the consolidation of domestic power . During the 1950s, they redistributed land, established the Anti-Rightist Movement, and attempted mass industrialization, with technical assistance from the Soviet Union. In the Common law, real property (or realty) refers to one of the two main classes of Property, the other class being Personal property ( The Anti-Rightist Movement ( of the People's Republic of China in the 1950s and early 1960s consisted of a series of campaigns to purge alleged "rightists" By the mid-1950s, after an armistice in Korea and the surrender of French forces in Indochina, China's borders were secure. Mao's internal power base was likewise secured by the imprisonment of those he called "left-wing oppositionists".
As the 1950s ended, however, Mao became discontented with the status quo. On the one hand, he saw the Soviet Union attempting "peaceful co-existence" with the imperialist Western powers, and he believed China could be the center of worldwide revolution only by breaking with Moscow. On the other hand, he was dissatisfied with the economic consequences of the revolution thus far, and believed the country had to enter into a program of planned rapid industrialization known as the Great Leap Forward. The Great Leap Forward ( of the People's Republic of China (PRC was an economic and social plan used from 1958 to 1960 which aimed to use China 's vast population
The economic planning of the Great Leap period focused on steel -- because steel was considered emblematic of industry. The government arranged to have small backyard steel furnaces built in communes, in the hope that the mobilization of the entire populace would compensate for the absence of the usual economies of scale. During this period, Mao stepped down as head of state in favor of Liu Shaoqi, but Mao remained Chairman of the Communist Party of China. Liu Shaoqi ( (24 November 1898 12 November 1969 was a Chinese revolutionary statesman and theorist This article lists the leaders of the Communist Party of China, from its beginning to the present General Secretaries (1921-1943 Between 1921 and 1943 the Communist
The rushed program of industrialization was a disaster. It diverted labor and resources from agriculture to marginally productive cottage industry and so contributed to years of famine. It also caused a loss of Mao's influence upon the Communist Party and government apparatus. Modernizers such as Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping sought to relegate him to the status of figurehead. Liu Shaoqi ( (24 November 1898 12 November 1969 was a Chinese revolutionary statesman and theorist Deng Xiaoping ( 22 August 1904 19 February 1997) was a prominent Chinese Revolutionary, Politician, Pragmatist and Reformer
Mao wasn't ready to be a figurehead. In the early 1960s he gathered around himself the so-called "Shanghai Mafia" consisting of his fourth wife, Jiang Qing, as well as Lin Biao, Chen Boda, and Yao Wenyuan, unleashing the Cultural Revolution. Jiang Qing ( March 14, 1914 May 14, 1991) is the Pseudonym that was used by Chinese leader Mao Zedong 's last wife Lin Biao ( born as Lin Yurong ( December 5, 1907 ?[[September 13]] 1971) was a Chinese Communist military leader Chen Boda ( was born 1904 in Hui'an ( Fujian province, China) and died on 20 September 1989 in Beijing. Yao Wenyuan ( (1931 &ndash December 23, 2005) was a Chinese literary critic and politician and a member of the " Gang of Four " during The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution in the People’s Republic of China was a struggle for power within the Communist Party of China that manifested into
Socialism in China since the Cultural Revolution
In 1965, Wenyuan wrote a thinly veiled attack on the deputy mayor of Beijing, Wu Han. Over the six months that followed, on behalf of ideological purity, Mao and his supporters purged many public figures, Liu Shao-chi among them. By the middle of 1966, Mao had not only put himself back into the center of things, he had initiated what is known as the Cultural Revolution, a mass (and army-supported) action against the Communist Party apparatus itself on behalf of a renovated conception of Communism.
Chaos continued throughout China for three years, particularly due to the agitations of the Red Guards until the CCP's ninth congress in 1969, when Lin Biao emerged as the primary military figure, and the presumptive heir to Mao in the party. Red Guards ( were a mass movement of civilians mostly students and other young people in the People's Republic of China, who were mobilized Lin Biao ( born as Lin Yurong ( December 5, 1907 ?[[September 13]] 1971) was a Chinese Communist military leader In the months that followed, Lin Biao restored domestic order, while diplomatic efforts by Zhou Enlai cooled border tensions with the Soviet Union. Zhou Enlai ( (5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976 was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from 1949 until his death in January 1976 Lin Biao died under mysterious circumstances in 1971.
Mao's final years saw a notable thaw in the People's Republic's relations with the United States, the period of "Ping Pong Diplomacy". Ping Pong Diplomacy ( refers to the exchange of ping pong players of the United States and People's Republic of China (PRC in the 1970s
Mao died in 1976, and almost immediately his ideological heirs, the Gang of Four lost a power struggle to more "pragmatic" figures such as Deng Xiaoping. The Gang of Four ( was the name given to a leftist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist party officials Deng Xiaoping ( 22 August 1904 19 February 1997) was a prominent Chinese Revolutionary, Politician, Pragmatist and Reformer The term "pragmatic" is often used in media accounts of these factional struggles but should not be confused with the philosophy of pragmatism proper. Pragmatism generally considered to have originated in the late nineteenth century with Charles Peirce, who first stated the Pragmatic maxim.
Deng launched the "Beijing Spring", allowing open criticism of the excesses and suffering that had occurred during the Cultural Revolution period. For the pop band see Beijing Spring (band The Beijing Spring (北京之春 refers to a brief period of political Liberalization in the He also eliminated the class-background system, under which the communist regime had limited employment opportunities available to people deemed associated with the pre-revolutionary landlord class.
Although Deng's only official title in the early 1980s was chairman of the central military commission of the CP, he was widely regarded as the central figure in the nation's politics. In that period, Zhao Ziyang became premier and Hu Yaobang became head of the party. Zhao Ziyang ( (17 October 1919&ndash17 January 2005 was a politician in the People's Republic of China. Hu Yaobang ( Chinese: 胡耀邦 Pinyin: Hú Yàobāng Wade-Giles: Hu Yao-pang 20 November 1915&ndash15 April 1989 was a leader of the People's
Near the end of that decade, the death of Hu Yaobang sparked a mass demonstration of mourning students in Tiananmen Square, Beijing. The Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 culminating in the Tiananmen Square Massacre (referred to in Chinese as the June Fourth Incident, to avoid confusion with two Tiananmen Square ( is the large Plaza near the center of Beijing, China, named after the Tiananmen (literally Gate of Heavenly Peace The mourning soon turned into a call for greater responsiveness and liberalization, and the demonstration was captured live on cameras to be broadcast around the world. On May 30, 1989 students erected the "Goddess of Democracy" statue, which looked a bit like Lady Liberty in New York harbor. Events 1416 - The Council of Constance, called by the Emperor Sigismund a supporter of Antipope John XXIII burns Jerome of Prague following Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) The Goddess of Democracy ( also known as the Goddess of Democracy and Freedom, the Spirit of Democracy ( minzhu jingshen) and Goddesses named for and representing the concept Liberty have existed in many cultures including classical examples dating from the Roman Empire and some national symbols such
On 4 June 1989 under the orders of Deng Xiaoping, troops and tanks of the People's Liberation Army ended the peaceful protest. Events 781 BC - The first historic Solar eclipse is recorded in China. Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) Thousands were killed in the resultant massacre.
By the start of the 21st century, though, the leadership of China was embarked upon a program of market-based reform that was more sweeping than had been Soviet leader Gorbachev's perestroika program of the late 1980s, which is tracable to Deng's Socialism with Chinese characteristics. This article is about the term itself and its relationships For its implementation and effects see Economy of the People's Republic of China and Chinese economic
It is in this context that Leo Melamed, chairman emeritus and senior policy adviser to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, spoke to the 2003 Beijing Forum on China and East Asian Prospects of Financial Cooperation on September 23. Leo Melamed is a former chairman of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME and a longtime executive in the field of global derivatives. Events 1122 - Concordat of Worms. 1459 - Battle of Blore Heath, the first major battle of the English He said that the CME applauds the National People’s Congress for recognizing their country’s need for additional trading in futures contracts. In Finance, a futures contract is a standardized Contract, traded on a Futures exchange, to buy or sell a certain Underlying instrument
Socialism in developing countries
While the developed countries fought during the Cold War on the socialism versus capitalism, the developing countries were rather forgotten. The term developed country, or advanced country, is used to categorize countries with developed Economies in which the tertiary and quaternary sectors Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the Developing countries are countries that haven't reached Western-style standards of democratic government free market economy industrialization social programs and human rights guaranties There have been examples of socialism in these regions.
Cuba is an example of a Communist state in the Third World, established in 1959 and led by Fidel Castro. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la Communist state is a term used by many Political scientists to describe a Form of government in which the State operates under a one-party system Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (born August 13 1926 is a Cuban revolutionary leader who was prime minister of Cuba from December 1959 to December 1976 and then president until
Another example is the Mexican Constitution of 1917, established during the Mexican Revolution, which has been regarded as the first modern socialist constitution. The Political Constitution of the United Mexican States of 1917 is the present Constitution of Mexico. The Mexican Revolution (Revolución Mexicana was a major armed struggle that started with an uprising led by Francisco I It prescribes an activist state that will ensure national autonomy and social justice, guarantees the right to organize and strike, as well as an eight-hour workday, and provides for the protection of women and minorities in the workplace. It mandates that the minimum wage "should be sufficient to satisfy the normal necessities of life of the worker". But none of this amounts to a guarantee of public or worker ownership of the means of production.
Last but not least, the term may evoke a socialism of the land, centered on the demand that land ought to be taken from holders of title and given to the workers who till it, and that natural resources that can't be widely distributed ought to belong to the nation. Land reforms (also Agrarian reform, though that can have a broader meaning is an often- controversial alteration in the societal arrangements whereby government In this sense, the Egyptian Gamal Abdel Nasser is a paradigmatic third-world socialist, both in his agrarian-reform legislation and in his seizure of the Suez canal
Contemporary socialism
The demise of the Soviet Union led to a period of triumphalism by capitalists world wide, and a shattering of the confidence of those who looked to the Soviet Union for an example of a counter to the capitalist system. This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. Gamal Abdel Nasser (جمال عبد الناصر Gamāl ‘Abd an-Nāṣir; - January 15 1918 September 28 1970) was the second President The Suez Canal is a Canal in Egypt. Opened in 1869 it allows Water transportation between Europe and Asia without circumnavigation Others however saw the Soviet Union as an obstacle to the development of a wider socialist consciousness. Nevertheless socialists continue to differ about whether the working class is the class which must lead a socialist revolution, as described in traditional Marxist terms, or whether the peasantry can carry out this task, as expressed in traditional Maoist terms, or whether this approach is mistaken altogether.
Leo Panitch, for example, in Renewing Socialism (2001) wrote that Marx was wrong to contend that the rise of trade unions would generate schools for socialism. Leo Panitch (born May 3, 1945 in Winnipeg Manitoba, Canada) is professor of Political science at York University, in The association of workers for the purpose of collective bargaining has proven quite compatible with capitalism -- since such bargaining concerns the terms of wage labor, not the legitimacy of wage labor. He argues that Marxist political parties must abandon the assumption that there is anything inherently revolutionary about any class, so that they can get to work creating a self-conscious revolutionary class of wage earners, "articulating the articulation".
On the other hand, the Trotskyist movement finds its positions vindicated by the restoration of capitalism in the Soviet Union and the increasing pace of globalization. Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. The recent international movements, such as the Anti-globalization protests, and demonstrations in opposition to the war in Iraq and the vagaries of global corporations could be seen as the seeds for an as yet unconscious struggle against world capitalism. " Anti-globalization " is a term that encompasses a number of related ideas
21st century democratic socialism in Latin America
Since the 1998 election of Hugo Chavez as President in Venezuela and the beginnings of his "Bolivarian Revolution" aimed at creating greater equality, Latin American nations have seen a tidal wave of democratically elected socialist and centre-left governments emerge. Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (ˈuɰo rafaˈel ˈtʃaβ̞es ˈfɾias (born July 28 1954 is the current President of Venezuela. Venezuela (ˌvɛnəˈzweɪlə) officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (Spanish República Bolivariana de Venezuela) is a country on the The “Bolivarian Revolution” refers to a mass social movement and political process in Venezuela. The centre-left (or center-left) is a political term commonly used to describe or denote individuals political parties or organizations (such as Think They have been elected in increasing numbers as the poor and middle classes of many countries have become increasingly disillusioned with the neo-liberal economic policies still encouraged by the United States and as a very large gap continues to exist between rich and poor, denying millions of people basic opportunities and necessities. Originally coined by its critics and opponents " neoliberalism " is a label referring to the recent reemergence of Economic liberalism or Classical liberalism The United States of America —commonly referred to as the
A long and controversial history of U.S. military and political intervention in the region dating back to the 19th century and as recent as the Venezuelan coup attempt of 2002 has severely tarnished the image of the United States in the eyes of many Latin Americans and shapes governments' policies to this day. The foreign policy of the United States is highly influential on the world stage as it is a Superpower. The Venezuelan coup attempt of 2002 was a failed Coup d'état on April 11, 2002 that lasted only 47 hours whereby the head of state President A recent example of the influence of the aforementioned sentiment was The Latin American and Caribbean Congress in Solidarity with the Independence of Puerto Rico, an international summit held at Panama City, Panama, in which fifteen incumbent political parties (in government) requested that the United States "relinquish its colonial rule over said island-nation and recognize Puerto Rico's independence". Panama City (Ciudad de Panamá is the Capital and largest city of the Republic of Panama. Panama, officially the Republic of Panama (República de Panamá) is the southernmost country of Central America.
Chavez is joined by democratic socialist president of Bolivia Evo Morales (that nation's first indigenous leader), who has adopted strong reformist agendas and attracted overwhelming majority electoral victories. Democratic socialism is a description used by various socialist movements tendencies and organizations to emphasize the democratic character of their political orientation The Republic of Bolivia (República de Bolivia) named after Simón Bolívar, is a Landlocked country in central South America. Juan Evo Morales Ayma (born October 26 1959 in Orinoca, Oruro) popularly known as Evo (ˈeβo is the President of Bolivia since
A number of centre-left/social democratic presidents have also come to power in South American countries recently promosing a greater redistribution of wealth within the framework of the free market. A free market is a Market in which property rights are voluntarily exchanged at a price arranged completely by the mutual consent of sellers and buyers They include Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of Argentina, Lula da Silva of Brazil, Rafael Correa of Ecuador, Michelle Bachelet of Chile, and Alan García of Peru. Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner (born February 19 1953) commonly known as Cristina Fernández or Cristina Kirchner, is an Argentine For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (pronounced /lu'iz i'nasju 'lulɐ da 'siwvɐ/; born October 27, 1945) known simply as Lula, is the thirty-fifth and |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado (born 6 April 1963 in Guayaquil) is the President of the Republic of Ecuador. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Ecuador topics. Verónica Michelle Bachelet Jeria beˈɾonika mɪˈʃɛl baʃˈle ˈxeɾja / --> (born September 29 1951) is a center-left politician and Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the Alan Gabriel Ludwig García Pérez (born May 23 1949 in Lima) is the current President of Peru, having won the 2006 elections on June 4 2006 in a run-off Peru (Perú Piruw Piruw officially the Republic of Peru ( reˈpuβlika del peˈɾu is a country in western South America. The majority of these governments are still enjoying high approval ratings in their nation's public opinion polls. In Nicaragua's 2006 elections the former Sandinista President Daniel Ortega was re-elected President after having been out of office since 1990. Nicaragua (ˌnɪkəˈrɑgwə officially the Republic of Nicaragua () is a representative democratic republic and the largest nation in Central America The Sandinista National Liberation Front ( Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional) is a socialist Nicaraguan Political party. José Daniel Ortega Saavedra (xoˈse ðanjεl ɔrteγa saˈβeðra(born 11 November 1945 is the current President of Nicaragua.
In Colombia's previous presidential elections, Carlos Gaviria Díaz of the socialist Alternative Democratic Pole came in second place to Alvaro Uribe of Colombia First, a conservative party. Carlos Gaviria Díaz, born May 8, 1937 in Sopetrán, Antioquia, is a Colombian Lawyer, former The Alternative Democratic Pole ( Sp: Polo Democrático Alternativo or PDA) is a political alliance in Colombia, formed by the Independent Álvaro Uribe Vélez ('alβ̞aɾo u'ɾiβ̞e 'β̞eles born July 4 1952 in Medellín) is a Colombian politician and lawyer who is currently the 39th President Colombia First (Primero Colombia is a political movement in Colombia that supported the candidacy of Álvaro Uribe in the 2002 and 2006 presidential While in Peru's previous presidential election Alan Garcia's main challenger was Ollanta Humala of the Union for Peru, a leftwing Peruvian nationalist with close ties to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. Alan Gabriel Ludwig García Pérez (born May 23 1949 in Lima) is the current President of Peru, having won the 2006 elections on June 4 2006 in a run-off Union for Peru (Unión por el Perú was originally a liberal or centrist Political party in Peru. The results of the 2006 Peruvian election were close. The first round of the 2006 Peruvian national election was held on April 9, 2006 to elect the President of the Republic, two Vice-Presidents 120 Members In El Salvador, the FMLN a former leftwing guerrilla group which once fought against a military dictatorship is now the official opposition to the Salvadoran government. El Salvador ( República de El Salvador,) is a country in Central America. The Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (in Spanish: Frente Farabundo Martí para la Liberación Nacional, FMLN) is a Left-wing political
Other parts of the Developing world have also seen a rise in radical socialist parties and movements. Developing countries are countries that haven't reached Western-style standards of democratic government free market economy industrialization social programs and human rights guaranties In Nepal following the end of the Nepalese Civil War, the formerly militant Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) and the more moderate Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) have emerged as the two most powerful opposition parties in the country. Nepal (नेपाल) is a Landlocked country in South Asia. The Nepalese Civil War (labelled People's War by the Maoists was a conflict between Government forces and Maoist rebels in Nepal The Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist (नेपाल कम्युनिष्ट पार्टी (माओवादी is a Maoist Political party The Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist, also known as CPN-UML, CPN(UML, is one of the largest Communist parties in Nepal In Nepal's 2008 Constituent Assembly elections the Maoists emerged as the largest party allowing them to form an interim government. An election for a Constituent Assembly was held in Nepal on 10 April 2008 after having been postponed from earlier dates of 20 June Their leader, Prachanda has vowed to respect multiparty democracy. Prachanda (प्रचण्ड pɾəʦəɳɖə born Pushpa Kumal Dahal on 11 December 1954 is the Post Officer of Nepal. A multi-party system is a system in which three or more political parties have the capacity to gain control of government separately or in coalition
In some of the poorest parts of India, the Communist Party of India (Maoist) has also been fighting a violent insurgency against the Indian government, a similar rebellion is being waged by the Maoist, New People's Army in the Philippines. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country The Communist Party of India (Maoist is an underground Maoist Political party in India. The New People's Army ( NPA) is the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines. The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP
The emergence of a "New Left" in the developed world
In many developed nations the adoption of Third Way policies by social democratic parties has led to the rise of many new socialist parties running on solid left-wing agendas. The term developed country, or advanced country, is used to categorize countries with developed Economies in which the tertiary and quaternary sectors The Third Way is a term that has been used to describe a variety of political philosophies of governance that embracing a mix of market and interventionist philosophies They include Sinn Féin in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland (they also represent the Nationalist constituency of Northern Ireland), the The Left of Germany, Left Party of Sweden, New Zealand Progressive Party, Socialist Party of Ireland, Socialist Party of the Netherlands, Respect Party of the United Kingdom, Scottish Socialist Party and Quebec Solidaire in the Canadian province of Quebec. Sinn Féin () is a political party in Ireland. The current party led by Gerry Adams was formed following a split in January 1970 Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe. Northern Ireland (Tuaisceart Éireann Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann) is a Country within the United Kingdom, lying in the northeast of The Left (Die Linke is a German political party that came into being on 16 June 2007 as a merger of The Left Party/PDS the former The Left Party ( Vänsterpartiet) is a Socialist and Feminist political party in Sweden, from 1967 to 1990 known as the Left The Progressive Party is a Political party in New Zealand. It is presently the junior partner in the governing coalition being somewhat to the left of The Socialist Party (in Irish Páirtí Sóisialach) is a Political party active in Ireland The Socialist Party ( SP, Dutch: Socialistische Partij) is a Dutch socialist Political party. Respect – The Unity Coalition is a Left wing political party in England and Wales founded on 25 January, 2004 in London. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located This article deals with the Scottish Socialist Party that was formed in 1998 and is still active today Québec solidaire is a broadly left-wing and sovereignist political party in Quebec, Canada, that was created on February 4, Quebec (kwɨˈbɛk
Notes and references
- ^ Encyclopedia Australia entry on socialism
- ^ Oxford University Press Politics Dictionary, entry on socialism
- ^ Lerux, Pierre, "Individualism and socialism" (1834)
- ^ Oxford English Dictionary, etymology of socialism
- ^ Encyclopedia Britannica, entry on socialism
- ^ Encyclopaedia Britannica, Saint Simon
- ^ There would be "equal means of subsistence, support, education, and opportunity for every child, boy or girl, until maturity, and equal resources and facilities in adulthood to create his own well-being by his own labor. " Revolutionary Catechism, Mikhail Bakunin, 1866
- ^ "Market socialism", Dictionary of the Social Sciences. Craig Calhoun, ed. Oxford University Press 2002; and "Market socialism" The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Politics. Ed. Iain McLean and Alistair McMillan. Oxford University Press, 2003. See also Joseph Stiglitz, "Whither Socialism?" Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1995 for a recent analysis of the market socialism model of mid-20th century economists Oskar R. Lange, Abba P. Lerner, and Fred M. Taylor. Joseph Eugene Stiglitz (born February 9, 1943) is an American Economist and a professor at Columbia University. Oskar Ryszard Lange ( July 27, 1904 in Tomaszów Mazowiecki, then Vistulan Country – October 2, 1965 in London Abba Ptachya Lerner ( October 28, 1903 &ndash October 27, 1982) was an American economist Fred Manville Taylor (1855-1932 was a US economist and educator best known for his contribution the theory of market socialism
- ^ Bevan, Aneurin, In Place of Fear, p50, p126-8. MacGibbon and Kee, (1961).
- ^ Anthony Crossland stated: "to the question 'Is this still capitalism?' I would answer 'No'. Charles Anthony Raven Crosland (29 August 1918 - 19 February 1977 was a member of the Labour Party and an important socialist theorist " In The Future of Socialism p46. Constable (2006)
- ^ Since 1995 the UK Labour Party aims are: "The Labour Party is a democratic socialist party. It believes that by the strength of our common endeavour we achieve more than we achieve alone, so as to create for each of us the means to realise our true potential and for all of us a community in which power, wealth and opportunity are in the hands of the many, not the few. Where the rights we enjoy reflect the duties we owe. And where we live together, freely, in a spirit of solidarity, tolerance and respect"
- ^ [1] Chavez accelerates on path to socialism, BBC news, 10 January 2007 accessed July 8, 2007
- ^ Leroux called socialism “the doctrine which would not give up any of the principles of Liberty, Equality, Fraternity” of the French Revolution of 1789. Events 49 BC - Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon, signaling the start of civil war. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 939 - The Major Occultation or Ghaybat el-Kubra of Muhammad al-Mahdi 1099 - First Crusade: 15000 Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. The French Revolution (1789–1799 was a period of political and social upheaval in the History of France, during which the French governmental structure previously an "Individualism and socialism" (1834)
- ^ Oxford English Dictionary, etymology of socialism
- ^ Williams, Raymond (1976). Raymond Henry Williams ( 31 August 1921 &ndash 26 January 1988) was a Welsh academic Novelist and Critic. Keywords: a vocabulary of culture and society. Keywords A Vocabulary of Culture and Society is a book written by the Welsh Marxist Academic Raymond Williams, and published in 1976 Fontana. 0006334792.
- ^ Engels, Frederick, Preface to the 1888 English Edition of the Communist Manifesto, p202. Penguin (2002)
- ^ Encyclopaedia Britannica, Saint Simon; Socialism
- ^ New Lanark World Heritage Site accessed 8 July, 2007
- ^ http://www.learningcurve.gov.uk/snapshots/snapshot13/snapshot13.htm The National Archives (UK government records and information management) The 1833 Factory Act: did it solve the problems of children in factories?] accessed 7 July, 2007
- ^ From the Foundation Axioms of Owen's "Society for Promoting National Regeneration", 1833
- ^ Owen, Robert, Paper Dedicated to the Governments of Great Britain, Austria, Russia, France, Prussia and the United States of America London 1841
- ^ Kropotkin, P. A. , 1910, Anarchism, in the Encyclopedia Britannica 11th-13th editions.
- ^ Proudhon, Pierre-Joseph, 1851, General Idea of the Revolution in the 19th Century, studies 6 & 7.
- ^ Revolutionary Catechism, Mikhail Bakunin, 1866
- ^ Marx and Engels, Manifesto of the Communist Party, p18, Oxford University Press, (1998)
- ^ Rousseau, Jean-Jacques, Social Contract, p2, Penguin, (1968)
- ^ Marx and Engels, Manifesto of the Communist Party, p14, Oxford University Press, (1998)
- ^ Engels' 1891 postscript to The Civil War In France by Karl Marx,Marx, Engels, Selected works in one volume, p257, Lawrence and Wishart (1968)
- ^ Marx, Karl, Critique of the Gotha Programme, p320-1, Selected Works, Lawrence and Wishart, (1968)
- ^ Marx, Karl, Critique of the Gotha Programme, p320-1, Selected Works, Lawrence and Wishart, (1968)
- ^ Engels, Frederick, Anti-Dühring, 1877
- ^ MIA: Encyclopedia of Marxism: Glossary of Organisations, First International (International Workingmen’s Association), accessed 5 July, 2007
- ^ MIA: Encyclopedia of Marxism: Glossary of Organisations, First International (International Workingmen’s Association), accessed 5 July, 2007
- ^ Marx, Engels, Selected works in one volume, p257, Lawrence and Wishart (1968)
- ^ Engels' 1891 Preface to Marx, Civil War in France, Selected Works in one volume, Lawrence and Wishart, (1968), p256, p259
- ^ The Second (Socialist) International 1889-1923 accessed 12 July, 2007
- ^ Engels, 1895 Introduction to Marx's Class Struggles in France 1848-1850
- ^ cf Footnote 449 in Marx Engels Collected Works on Engels' 1895 Introduction to Marx's Class Struggles in France 1848-1850
- ^ In England, "Insurrection would be madness where peaceful agitation would more swiftly and surely do the work. . . But, mark me, as soon as it finds itself outvoted on what it considers vital questions, we shall see here a new slaveowners's war. " Interview with Karl Marx, Head of L'Internationale, by R. Landor New York World, July 18, 1871.
- ^ Fischer, Ernst, Marx in his own words, p135, quoting from Marx, The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte
- ^ Marx, Engels, Preface to the Russian Edition of 1882, Communist Manifesto, p196, Penguin Classics, 2002
- ^ Trotsky, Leon, The Permanent Revolution and Results and Prospects, p169ff. New Park, (1962)
- ^ Marx, Engels, Communist Manifesto, Selected Works, p52
- ^ Engels, Frederick, 1895 Introduction to Marx’ Class Struggles in France 1848-1850
- ^ Fischer, Ernst, Marx in his own words, p135, quoting from Marx, The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte
- ^ Lenin, Meeting of the Petrograd Soviet of workers and soldiers' deputies October 25, 1917, Collected works, Vol 26, p239. Events 1147 - The Portuguese, under Afonso I, and Crusaders from England and Flanders conquer Lisbon after a Year 1917 ( MCMXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Lawrence and Wishart, (1964)
- ^ Bertil, Hessel, Introduction, Theses, Resolutions and Manifestos of the first four congresses of the Third International, pxiii, Ink Links (1980)
- ^ Lenin, Speech To The Seventh Congress Of The Russian Communist Party On The Brest-Litovsk Peace 7 March, 1918, Works, third edition, vol 22, p. 322
- ^ Cover Story: Churchill's Greatness. Interview with Jeffrey Wallin. (The Churchill Centre)
- ^ Bevan also cites the economic backwardness of the region. Aneurin Bevan, In Place of Fear, p62-3. MacGibbon and Kee, (1961)
- ^ De Grand, Alexander, Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany, p20, Routledge, (1995)
- ^ Guerin, Daniel, Fascism and big business, p22 ff
- ^ According to Trotsky there was a 250% growth in industrial production between 1929 and 1935, compared to an increase of 40% in Japan and a decline of approximately 25% in the USA (the years of the Great Depression). Heavy industry increasing by 1000% in the ten years to 1935. cf Trotsky, Revolution Betrayed, p15. Pathfinder, (1972)
- ^ [http://marxists.catbull.com/archive/trotsky/1936/whitherfrance/ch03a.htm Trotsky, Leon, France at a Turning Point, (1936) in Wither France, p105. New Park, 1974
- ^ [http://www.aftermathww1.com/landfit.asp A Land Fit For Heroes?
- ^ Cole and Postgate, The Common People, p551
- ^ Sylvia Pankhurst, 'The British Workers and Soviet Russia', published in The Revolutionary Age, August 9, 1919
- ^ Sylvia Pankhurst reported that, "The London district committee of the dockers has decided to declare a strike on July 20 and 21, but it goes further, it had decided to advise its members to abstain from working on any ships bound for Russia or assisting in any way the overthrow of the Russian proletariat". Sylvia Pankhurst, 'The British Workers and Soviet Russia', published in The Revolutionary Age, August 9, 1919.
- ^ Bevan, Aneurin, In Place of Fear p40. MacGibbon and Kee, (1961). Bevan reports verbatim what Robert Smillie told him of his meeting with Lloyd George.
- ^ Bevan, Aneurin, In Place of Fear p40. MacGibbon and Kee, (1961)
- ^ For instance, cf Mason, Anthony, The General strike in the North-East, University of Hull Publications (1970)
- ^ Crosland, Anthony, The Future of Socialism, p4 and note 2
- ^ Meed - literally, 'Reward', here used sardonically
- ^ Published by the Labour Party in November 1939
- ^ Bank Failures during the 1930s Great Depression
- ^ Dobbs, Farrell, Teamster Rebellion, Monad Press, New York, (1972), p21ff, p34, p92
- ^ [http://marxists.catbull.com/archive/trotsky/1936/whitherfrance/ch03a.htm Trotsky, Leon, France at a Turning Point, (1936) in Wither France, p105. New Park, 1974
- ^ British Petroleum, privatised in 1987, was officially nationalised in 1951 according to government archives [2] with further government intervention during the 1974-79 Labour Government, cf 'The New Commanding Height: Labour Party Policy on North Sea Oil and Gas, 1964-74' in Contemporary British History, Volume 16, Issue 1 Spring 2002, pages 89 - 118. Some elements of some of these entities were already in public hands. Later Labour renationalised steel (1967, British Steel) after it was denationalised by the Conservatives, and nationalised car production (1976, British Leyland), [3]. In 1977, major aircraft companies and shipbuilding were nationalised
- ^ The nationalisation of public utilities included the CDF - Charbonnages de France; EDF - Électricité de France; GDF - Gaz de France, airlines (Air France), banks (Banque de France) and many other private companies like the Renault car factory (Régie Nationale des Usines Renault) [4].
- ^ Beckett, Francis, Clem Attlee, Politico, 2007, p243
- ^ Beckett, Francis, Clem Attlee, Politico, 2007, p243
- ^ "To the question ’Is this still capitalism?’ I would answer ‘No’. " Crosland, Anthony, The Future of Socialism p46. Constable (2006)
- ^ Bevan, Aneurin, In Place of Fear p50, p126-128, MacGibbon and Kee, second edition (1961)
- ^ Beckett, Francis, Clem Attlee, Politico, 2007, p243
- ^ cf Beckett, Francis, Clem Attlee, Politico, 2007, p243. "Idleness" meant unemployment, and hence the starvation of the worker and his/her family. It was not then a pejorative term. Unemployment benefit, as well as national insurance and hence state pensions, were introduced by the 1945 Labour government.
- ^ Fukuyama, "The End of History?", 1989
- ^ AH Hasley writes that Blair's "collaboration with [US President] George W. Bush has shown him to be an American liberal/conservative rather than a British socialist. " Hasley, AH, Democracy in Crisis: Ethical Socialism for a Prosperous Country, p77. Politicos (2007)
- ^ Daily Telegraph, June 27, 2007, p10
- ^ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/may/24/newsid_2988000/2988263.stm BBC, 1968: De Gaulle: 'Back me or sack me'
- ^ Crick, Michael, The March of Militant p2; Financial Times, 12 June 2007, 'Working days lost to strike action soars'; Office of National Statistics. Events 1358 - Republic of Dubrovnik is founded 1709 - Peter the Great defeats Charles XII of Sweden Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1381 - Peasants' Revolt: in England, rebels arrive at Blackheath. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century.
- ^ Fred Halliday, "Cold War" The Oxford Companion to the Politics of the World, 2e. Joel Krieger, ed. Oxford University Press Inc. 2001.
See also
- List of socialist parties
- Anarcho-syndicalism
- Anti-communism
- Conservatism
- Contributions to socialist thought
- Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel
- History of the Left in France
- History of socialism in Great Britain
- History of Socialism in Canada
- List of socialists
- Libertarian socialism
- Neosocialism
- Post-Communism
- Socialism
- Socialism in the United States
- Socialist International
- Trotskyism
- Welfare State
Further reading
- James Weinstein, Long Detour: The History and Future of the American Left, Westview Press, 2003, hardcover, 272 pages, ISBN 0-8133-4104-3
- Leo Panitch, Renewing Socialism: Democracy, Strategy, and Imagination, ISBN 0-8133-9821-5
- Libertarian Communist Library Archive
- libcom.org peoples history
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