Sir Patrick Joseph Dollan (3 April 1885 – 30 January 1963) and his wife, Agnes, Lady Dollan (née Moir; 16 August 1887 –16 July 1966) were Glasgow activists in the Scottish Independent Labour Party. During the First World War they campaigned against the

Munitions of War Act The Munitions of War Act 1915 was a British Act of Parliament passed on 2 July 1915 during the First World War. It was designed to maximize munitions output and brought private companies supplying the armed forces under the tight control of the ne ...

of 1915 which suspended trade unionists' rights for the duration of hostilities.

Early years

Born in Baillieston, Lanarkshire on 3 April 1885 of Irish descent and raised Roman Catholic, Dollan attended St Bridget's elementary school until he was ten years old. He later joined his father working as a miner at Clydeside Colliery in 1900. He married Agnes Moir, a Protestant, in 1912. She was a

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

and a staunch

pacifist Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campaign ...

during World War I.

Activism

Patrick and Agnes Dollan were vocal in raising awareness of the plight of thousands of Glasgow tenants who were having their rents raised at a time when military conscription had reduced their earning potential. Government concern at the volatile situation in the city led to the Rent Restrictions Act of November 1915, freezing rents at pre-war levels. In the 1920s he was the author of a booklet, ''The Clyde Rent War!'', a narrative of the Glasgow

rent strike A rent strike is a method of protest commonly employed against large landlords. In a rent strike, a group of tenants come together and agree to refuse to pay their rent ''en masse'' until a specific list of demands is met by the landlord. This can ...

s of 1915–16, which also contained proposals for housing policy reform. Dollan was election organiser for the Independent Labour Party (ILP) in the

1922 United Kingdom general election The 1922 United Kingdom general election was held on Wednesday 15 November 1922. It was won by the Conservative Party, led by Bonar Law, which gained an overall majority over the Labour Party, led by J. R. Clynes, and a divided Liberal Party. ...

and then the chairman of the Scottish section of the ILP from 1922 until 1932, when he was expelled and formed his own Scottish Socialist Party, which immediately affiliated to the Labour Party.James Jupp, ''The Radical Left in Britain: 1931-1941'', p. 47 Dollan served as Lord Provost of Glasgow from 1938 to 1941. In 1939 he won the inaugural

St Mungo Prize The St Mungo Prize is a prize awarded triennially to the person who has done most to improve and promote the city of Glasgow. The full text of the conditions for the prize states that it is to be awarded to the person "deemed to have done most in ...

, which is awarded triannually to the person deemed to have done the most to promote and improve the city of Glasgow in the previous three years. He dedicated the prize to his mother. At the beginning of World War II, Dollan encouraged his fellow Glaswegians to support the war effort against fascism, for which efforts he was knighted in 1941. In 1940, he was a co-founder and co-chairman (with Jadwiga Harasowska) of the Scottish-Polish Society promoting friendship between the Scottish population and the Polish Army stationing in Scotland at that time. Keenly interested in town planning, he was a member of the council of the Town and Country Planning Association and of the executive of the Scottish Section. He was the Chairman of the East Kilbride Development Corporation, crucial in bringing industry to that new town. Renowned Scottish planner,

Elizabeth Buchanan Mitchell Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

, spoke about him fondly: "His work there was unique. It was there that he wrote his name in the social history of the Scottish nation."

Miscellanea

The

Dollan Baths Dollan Aqua Centre (previously known as Dollan Baths) is a 20th-century category A listed building in East Kilbride, Scotland. Design Designed by Alexander Buchanan Campbell and named after former Lord Provost Sir Patrick Dollan, it was opene ...

in East Kilbride, Scotland's first Olympic-sized swimming pool, is named in his honour. Dollan died in the

Victoria Infirmary Victoria Infirmary is a small hospital located in the town of Northwich, Cheshire, England. It is managed by the Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. History The Infirmary originally opened in 1887 when a local MP, Robert Verdin, dona ...

, Glasgow, on 30 January 1963. He was buried in Dalbeth cemetery on 1 February. The

Sikorski Club Sikorski Club, also known as the Sikorski Polish Club, is a historic Polish club in Glasgow, Scotland. It was founded as the Polish Social and Educational Society in 1954. The building, known as Sikorski House, was donated by Sir Patrick Dollan. I ...

was donated by Sir Patrick Dollan.

Honours

King George V conferred a knighthood on Dollan in the New Year's Honours of 1941 for his work as Lord Provost of Glasgow.

References

External links

Newspaper articles by Patrick Dollan in 1915, from the Glasgow Digital Library

Google Books reference to the Dollans
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dollan, Patrick 1885 births 1963 deaths Councillors in Glasgow People from Baillieston Independent Labour Party National Administrative Committee members Lord Provosts of Glasgow Scottish people of Irish descent Scottish political writers Trade unionists from Glasgow Red Clydeside Knights Bachelor