The National Democratic and Labour Party, usually abbreviated to National Democratic Party (NDP), was a short-lived political party in the United Kingdom.

History

The party's origins lay in a split by the right wing of the

British Socialist Party The British Socialist Party (BSP) was a Marxist political organisation established in Great Britain in 1911. Following a protracted period of factional struggle, in 1916 the party's anti-war forces gained decisive control of the party and saw t ...

, primarily over issues raised by the First World War. In 1915,

Victor Fisher Frederick Victor Fisher (10 July 1870 – 30 January 1954) was a British political activist. Fisher was born in London; his mother was English, and his father was Hungarian. He was privately educated in London and Paris, then worked in journalism ...

formed the

Socialist National Defence Committee The Socialist National Defence Committee also known as the Socialist National Defence League was a pro First World War socialist faction. The party's origins lay in the 1915 split by the right-wing of the British Socialist Party, led by Victor ...

along with

Alexander M. Thompson Alexander Mattock Thompson (9 May 1861 – 25 March 1948), sometimes credited as A. M. Thompson, was a German-born English journalist and dramatist. From the 1880s, Thompson wrote for socialist newspapers and journals, co-founding '' The Clarion'' ...

and Robert Blatchford. They supported "the eternal idea of nationality" and aimed to promote " socialist measures in the war effort". The Committee was supported by

John Hodge John Hodge may refer to: *John R. Hodge (1893–1963), United States Army officer *John E. Hodge (1914–1996), American chemist *John Hodge (politician) (1855–1937), British politician *John Hodge (engineer) (1929–2021), British-born aerospace ...

, George Henry Roberts, and for a time by

Henry Hyndman Henry Mayers Hyndman (; 7 March 1842 – 20 November 1921) was an English writer, politician and socialist. Originally a conservative, he was converted to socialism by Karl Marx's ''Communist Manifesto'' and launched Britain's first left-wing p ...

who subsequently formed his own party, the National Socialist Party. In 1916, this committee formed the

British Workers League The British Workers League was a 'patriotic labour' group which was anti-socialist and pro-British Empire. Founded originally as the ''Socialist National Defence Committee'', the league operated fro''May 1916''to 1927. The league's origins lay ...

. It described itself as a "patriotic labour" group, and focused on support for the war and the British Empire and opposition to

Little Englander In its original meaning during the late 18th and 19th centuries, a "Little Englander" was a member of the Liberal Party who was opposed to expansion of the British Empire, as well as certain traditionalist conservatives who wanted England to exte ...

and

Cobdenite Cobdenism is an economic ideology (and the associated popular movement) which perceives international free trade and a non-interventionist foreign policy as the key requirements for prosperity and world peace. It is named after the British statesma ...

laissez-faire economics. The League was subsidised by

Waldorf Astor Waldorf Astor, 2nd Viscount Astor, DL (19 May 1879 – 30 September 1952) was an American-born English politician and newspaper proprietor. He was a member of the Astor family. He was active in minor political roles. He was devoted to charitab ...

through

Lord Milner Alfred Milner, 1st Viscount Milner, (23 March 1854 – 13 May 1925) was a British statesman and colonial administrator who played a role in the formulation of British foreign and domestic policy between the mid-1890s and early 1920s. From De ...

, who consulted with Fisher during the war. The League was supported by Labour MPs such as James O'Grady, Stephen Walsh and

William Abraham William Abraham is the name of: * William Abraham (Irish politician) (1840–1915), Irish Parliamentary Party Member of Parliament in the British House of Commons * William Abraham (trade unionist) (1842–1922), Welsh Liberal-Labour Member of Parl ...

. The League sought to challenge pacificist Parliamentary candidates; this caused a rupture with the Labour Party. Eleven out of thirty-eight of the Labour Parliamentary MPs showed support for the British Workers League; however, many later returned to the Labour Party.Pugh, p. 116. The British Workers League reconstituted itself in 1918 as the National Democratic and Labour Party, with the support of George Barnes, MP for Glasgow Blackfriars and Hutchesontown, when he resigned from the Labour Party (Barnes, however, never stood for election under the NDP banner, and was re-elected in 1918 as a Coalition Labour MP). The group gained the support of the Musicians' Union and parts of other unions, including some sections of the Miners' Federation of Great Britain. It was primarily funded by

Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for lea ...

Coalition Liberals. The party fielded twenty-eight candidates in the 1918 general election—twenty of them on the Coalition Coupon—and won ten seats.Barberis, McHugh and Tyldesley, p. 274. After the election,

Clement Edwards (Allen) Clement Edwards (7 June 1869 – 23 June 1938), usually known as Clem, was a Welsh people, Welsh lawyer, journalist, trade union activist and Liberal Party (UK), Liberal Party politician. Family and education Edwards was born in Knight ...

was elected chairman of the NDP in parliament. The National Democratic and Labour's remaining MPs joined the National Liberal Party and stood under that label in the 1922 general election. The National Democratic and Labour party was wound up in 1923, but a grouping continued as the Empire Citizen League until the late 1920s. Victor Fisher stood, unsuccessfully, for the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

.Crick, p. 304.

Election results

1918 UK general election

Some prominent members such as George Barnes were elected as Coalition Labour. Taylor ran as a joint NDP-Liberal candidate, and sat as a Coalition Liberal MP after election.

By-elections, 1918-1922

Turnour ran as a joint NDP-Conservative candidate.

Footnotes

{{reflist

References

* Crick, Martin, ''History of the Socialist-Democratic Federation", Keele, UK: Keele University Press, 1994 * Callaghan, John, "Socialism in Britain", Hoboken, NJ (USA): Blackwell, 1990 * Pugh, Martin, "Speak for Britain! A New History of the Labour Party", London: The Bodley Head, 2010 * Barberis, Peter, John McHugh and Mike Tyldesley: Encyclopedia of British and Irish Political Organizations, "British Workers League", London: Continuum, 2005 * Thompson, J. Lee, "Forgotten Patriot: a life of Alfred, Viscount Milner of St. James's and Cape Town, 1854-1925", Cranbury, NJ (USA): Rosemont, 2007 * Roy, Douglas
''The Historical Journal, Vol. XV''
"The National Democratic Party and the British Worker's League", Cambridge: University Press, 1972 * Craig, F. W. S., "Minor Parties in British By-Elections, 1885-1974", London: MacMillan, 1975 * Lockwood, P.A.
''The Historical Journal, Vol VII''
"Milner's Entry into the War Cabinet, December 1916", Cambridge: University Press, 1964

History

Election results

1918 UK general election

By-elections, 1918-1922

Footnotes

References

Other Reading