The Land and Labour League was formed in October 1869 by a group of radical

trade unionists A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits (su ...

affiliated to the

International Working Men's Association The International Workingmen's Association (IWA), often called the First International (1864–1876), was an international organisation which aimed at uniting a variety of different left-wing socialist, communist and anarchist groups and tr ...

. Its formation was precipitated by discussion of the land question at the Basle Congress of 1869. The League advocated the full nationalisation of land, and was for a brief time the centre of a working class republican network in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, with its own paper, ''The Republican''. Despite petering out by 1873 the League had some radicalising impact on the Land Tenure Reform Association established by

John Stuart Mill John Stuart Mill (20 May 1806 – 7 May 1873) was an English philosopher, political economist, Member of Parliament (MP) and civil servant. One of the most influential thinkers in the history of classical liberalism, he contributed widely to ...

, which adopted a policy of taxing the unearned increment on land value under pressure from the League. Patrick Hennessey, an Irish trade unionist, was the League's President. The secretaries were Martin J. Boon and John Weston, and the treasurer was

Johann Eccarius Johann Georg Eccarius (also known as John George Eccarius; 23 August 1818 – 5 March 1889) was a Thuringian tailor and labour activist. Eccarius was a member of the League of the Just and later of the Communist League before becoming General Secre ...

. Its executives included the republicans

Charles Bradlaugh Charles Bradlaugh (; 26 September 1833 – 30 January 1891) was an English political activist and atheist. He founded the National Secular Society in 1866, 15 years after George Holyoake had coined the term "secularism" in 1851. In 1880, Brad ...

and George Odger.

Benjamin Lucraft Benjamin Lucraft (28 November 1809 – 25 September 1897) was a famous craftsman chair-carver in London where his radical inclinations led him to be involved in many political movements. Lucraft was a public advocate of Chartism and a founder me ...

served on its council.

References

{{Reflist Political organisations based in London