''The Clarion'' was a weekly

newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports a ...

published by

Robert Blatchford Robert Peel Glanville Blatchford (17 March 1851 – 17 December 1943) was an English socialist campaigner, journalist, and author in the United Kingdom. He was also noted as a prominent atheist, nationalist and opponent of eugenics. In the early ...

, based 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 ...

. It was a

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 ...

publication with a Britain-focused rather than internationalist perspective on political affairs, as seen in its support of the British involvement in the Anglo-Boer Wars and the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

History

Blatchford and

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'' ...

founded the paper in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

in 1891 with capital of just £400 (£350 from Thompson and Blatchford, and the remaining £50 from Robert's brother Montague Blatchford). Robert Blatchford serialised his book '' Merrie England'' in the paper, and also published work by a variety of writers, including

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

, and artwork by

Walter Crane Walter Crane (15 August 184514 March 1915) was an English artist and book illustrator. He is considered to be the most influential, and among the most prolific, children's book creators of his generation and, along with Randolph Caldecott and K ...

. The women's column was written initially by Eleanor Keeling Edwards and, from October 1895, as the women's letters page by Julia Dawson, the unmarried name of Julia Myddleton-Worrall. It was Julia Dawson who pioneered the ''Clarion'' Vans, which toured small towns and villages throughout England and Scotland from 1896 until 1929, spreading socialist messages. A large number of associated clubs and societies (cycling, rambling, handicrafts, field, drama and Cinderella clubs, as well as "vocal unions" or choral societies) connected with the paper were created, of which the

National Clarion Cycling Club The National Clarion Cycling Club is a British cycling club founded in 1894, and which retained strong links with the labour movement through the 20th century. At its peak, in 1936, it had 233 UK sections and 8,306 members. In 2021, it replaced ...

still survives, as does the

People's Theatre, Newcastle upon Tyne The People's Theatre is an amateur theatre in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Originally located in the city centre, the People's Theatre moved to its current site, adjacent to the Coast Road in Heaton, in 1962. It shows approximately 13 producti ...

, which began its life in 1911 as the Newcastle Clarion Drama Club. The Sheffield Clarion Ramblers were founded in 1900 by

G. H. B. Ward George Herbert Bridges Ward, known as G. H. B. Ward or Bert Ward (1876 – 14 October 1957) was an activist for walkers' rights and a Labour Party politician. Political activism Born in central Sheffield, Ward worked as an engineer in a loc ...

, a Labour politician;Bill Bevan, ''From Cairns to Craters: Conservation Heritage Assessment of Burbage'', 2006 it is recognised as the first

working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...

rambling Walking is one of the most popular outdoor recreational activities in the United Kingdom, and within England and Wales there is a comprehensive network of rights of way that permits access to the countryside. Furthermore, access to much uncultiv ...

club, and survived until 2015. On 27 June 1904, three weeks before the

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria a ...

and

Queen Alexandra Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 January 1901 to 6 May 1910 as the wife of King ...

opened

Liverpool Cathedral Liverpool Cathedral is the Cathedral of the Anglican Diocese of Liverpool, built on St James's Mount in Liverpool, and the seat of the Bishop of Liverpool. It may be referred to as the Cathedral Church of Christ in Liverpool (as recorded in the ...

, Jim Larkin and Fred Bower, workmen on the site, composed a message ''"from the wage slaves employed on the erection of this cathedral"'' to a future socialist society, and, along with a copy of the ''Clarion'' and the ''

Labour Leader The ''Labour Leader'' was a British socialist newspaper published for almost one hundred years. It was later renamed ''New Leader'' and ''Socialist Leader'', before finally taking the name ''Labour Leader'' again. 19th century The origins of the ...

'', placed it in a biscuit tin deep inside the brickwork and covered it. Emil Robert Voigt (1883-1973), an English-born engineer and former activist in the ''Clarion'' movement in Manchester, was one of the pioneers of the Australian broadcasting industry in the early 1920s and the man behind the birth of the progressive radio station 2KY.

20th Century

The paper enjoyed sales of around 30,000 copies a week for many years, but some readers gave it up after it argued in favour of the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...

and against even limited

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

. Circulation rose again as it became associated with the Labour Party and by 1907 it had reached 74,000. In 1912,

Rebecca West Dame Cicily Isabel Fairfield (21 December 1892 – 15 March 1983), known as Rebecca West, or Dame Rebecca West, was a British author, journalist, literary critic and travel writer. An author who wrote in many genres, West reviewed books ...

became a contributor to ''The Clarion''. The paper again lost readers when it supported the First World War. It closed in 1931. Despite, or because of, its popularity, the ''Clarion'' was viewed with suspicion by both parliamentary and Marxist socialists, and has been treated as little more than a footnote in histories of English socialism.

Margaret Cole Dame Margaret Isabel Cole (née Postgate family, Postgate; 6 May 1893 – 7 May 1980) was an English socialism, socialist politician, writer and poet. She wrote several detective stories jointly with her husband, G. D. H. Cole. She went on to h ...

wrote: "There never was a paper like it. It was not in the least the preconceived idea of a socialist journal. It was not solemn; it was not highbrow … It was full of stories, jokes and verses, sometimes pretty bad verses and pretty bad jokes, as well as articles."cited by Martin Wright, ''Robert Blatchford, the Clarion Movement and the Crucial Years of British Socialism, 1891-1900'', in Tony Brown (ed.) ''Edward Carpenter and Late Victorian Radicalism'', (London: Frank Cass, 1990), page 75 Robert Blatchford stated in his book ''My Eighty Years'':

''I will go as far as to say that during the first ten years of the ''Clarion''s life that by no means popular paper had more influence on the public opinion in this country than any other English journal, ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' included''.

''The Clarion'' was also popular in some other countries in the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...

, especially

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. A Clarion Colony was established in New Zealand in 1901 by William Ranstead. At least one Clarion Cycling Club was established in New Zealand, at

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

in the 1890s.

Legacy

''The New Clarion'', founded in 1932, carried similar socialist and recreational content. Many of the cycling, rambling, theatre and other social clubs associated with the original ''Clarion'' continued, leaving a diverse legacy. The title ''The Clarion'' was adopted by another left-wing publication in late 2016. It is produced monthly as a "socialist magazine by Labour and Momentum activists". The magazine's editorial board consists of activists from various socialist traditions.

Notes

References

Spartacus: ''The Clarion''Clarion ClubhousesTony Judge, 'Tory Socialist: Robert Blatchford and Merrie England

External links

Contact details for the Sheffield Clarion Ramblers
(a rambling club in South Yorkshire, England)

Hayes Peoples icHistory
Working Class Movement Library: The Clarion Movement
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clarion, The 1891 establishments in the United Kingdom 1931 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Defunct newspapers published in the United Kingdom Defunct weekly newspapers Newspapers established in 1891 Publications disestablished in 1931 Socialist newspapers published in the United Kingdom