Sir David James Shackleton (21 November 1863 – 1 August 1938) was a cotton worker and trade unionist who became the third

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, following the formation of the Labour Representation Committee. He later became a senior

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

. Shackleton was born in

Cloughfold Cloughfold is a small hamlet in between the towns of Rawtenstall and Waterfoot in Rossendale, Lancashire, England. Clough Fold railway station on the Rawtenstall to Bacup Line opened in 1871 and closed when the line closed in 1966. Notable p ...

near

Rawtenstall Rawtenstall () is a town in the borough of Rossendale, Lancashire, England. The town lies 15 miles/24 km north of Manchester, 22 miles/35 km east of Preston and 45 miles/70 km south east of the county town of Lancaster. The town is at the cen ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

. He became a cotton worker at the age of nine. He rose through the ranks of the cotton weavers' union and became

general secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...

of the Textile Factory Workers Association. He was a member of the

Darwen Darwen is a market town and civil parish in the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The residents of the town are known as "Darreners". The A666 road passes through Darwen towards Blackburn to the north, Bolton to the sout ...

Town Council, and member of the

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...

Chamber of Commerce. Although the textile workers had not yet joined the LRC, Shackleton was appointed its candidate for the Clitheroe by-election in 1902.

Philip Snowden Philip Snowden, 1st Viscount Snowden, PC (; 18 July 1864 – 15 May 1937) was a British politician. A strong speaker, he became popular in trade union circles for his denunciation of capitalism as unethical and his promise of a socialist utop ...

, who had been considered by the

Independent Labour Party The Independent Labour Party (ILP) was a British political party of the left, established in 1893 at a conference in Bradford, after local and national dissatisfaction with the Liberals' apparent reluctance to endorse working-class candidates ...

, withdrew from the race. The Liberals and

Conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

also withdrew, sensing Shackleton's strong lead. He was thus elected unopposed on 1 August 1902. The textile workers' unions affiliated to the LRC shortly afterwards. Shackleton served as Chairman of the

Parliamentary Labour Party In UK politics, the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) is the parliamentary group of the Labour Party in Parliament, i.e. Labour MPs as a collective body. Commentators on the British Constitution sometimes draw a distinction between the Labour ...

for a period. Shackleton became chairman of the

Trades Union Congress The Trades Union Congress (TUC) is a national trade union centre A national trade union center (or national center or central) is a federation or confederation of trade unions in a country. Nearly every country in the world has a national tra ...

in 1906, maintaining his powerful position in the trade union movement. In 1910,

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...

invited him to join the

civil service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

and Shackleton left Parliament. He quickly rose to the rank of

permanent secretary A permanent secretary (also known as a principal secretary) is the most senior Civil Service (United Kingdom), civil servant of a department or Ministry (government department), ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day ...

in the new

Ministry of Labour The Ministry of Labour ('' UK''), or Labor ('' US''), also known as the Department of Labour, or Labor, is a government department responsible for setting labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, training, a ...

and is considered the first man from a working-class background to rise to such a senior position.

References

Source

*''The Lancashire Giant: David Shackleton, Labour Leader and Civil Servant'' (2000), Ross M Martin,

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shackleton, David 1863 births 1938 deaths People from Cloughfold Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Presidents of the Amalgamated Weavers' Association Members of the Parliamentary Committee of the Trades Union Congress Permanent Secretaries of the Ministry of Labour UK MPs 1900–1906 UK MPs 1906–1910 UK MPs 1910 Presidents of the Trades Union Congress Textile workers United Textile Factory Workers' Association-sponsored MPs Chairs of the Labour Party (UK) Companions of the Order of the Bath