The Socialist Union was a British

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...

active from February 1886 to 1888. G. Bernard Shaw.
The Fabian Society: What it has Done; & How it has Done It.
' Fabian Tract № 41. London: The Fabian Society, August 1892. The group was formed by

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

s around

C. L. Fitzgerald Charles L. Fitzgerald (born 1836) was a British socialist activist and journalist. Fitzgerald was commissioned in the West India Regiment, and served in India from 1855 until 1857, the period leading up to the Indian Rebellion. In the 1880s, Fitz ...

who left the

Social Democratic Federation The Social Democratic Federation (SDF) was established as Britain's first organised socialist political party by H. M. Hyndman, and had its first meeting on 7 June 1881. Those joining the SDF included William Morris, George Lansbury, James Con ...

(SDF) in protest at SDF leader

H. M. 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 ...

's acceptance of money which

Maltman Barry Michael Maltman Barry (1842 – 5 April 1909), often known as Maltman Barry, was a Scottish political activist who described himself as a Marxist but stood in elections for the Conservative Party. Biography Barry was born in Glasgow and moved t ...

had obtained from 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 ...

, in order to campaign against the Liberal Party. The group published a newspaper, ''The Socialist''.Florence Boos, ed. and annot.
Footnotes
in ''William Morris's Socialist Diary''. 1887. It succeeded in gaining the support of the

Bristol Socialist Society The Bristol Socialist Society was a political organisation in South West England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the ...

, but elsewhere, membership was small. The group disbanded in 1887. James MacDonald, a prominent leader, rejoined the SDF, after Hyndman promised never again to accept money from bourgeois politicians. Other notable members of the group included future Prime Minister

Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the first who belonged to the Labour Party, leading minority Labour governments for nine months in 1924 ...

References

Social Democratic Federation breakaway groups 1880s in the United Kingdom 1886 establishments in the United Kingdom 1888 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Political parties established in 1886 Political parties disestablished in 1888 Defunct socialist parties in the United Kingdom {{UK-party-stub