Charles Dukes, 1st Baron Dukeston
CBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
(28 October 1881 – 14 May 1948) was a British
trade union
A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...
ist and
Labour Party politician.
Born in
Stourbridge
Stourbridge () is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Situated on the River Stour, Worcestershire, River Stour, the town lies around west of Birmingham,
at the southwester ...
, Dukes left school at the age of eleven, taking up work as an errand boy.
When his family moved to
Warrington
Warrington () is an industrial town in the Borough of Warrington, borough of the same name in Cheshire, England. The town sits on the banks of the River Mersey and was Historic counties of England, historically part of Lancashire. It is east o ...
, he joined working in a forge.
He subsequently had a number of casual jobs throughout north west England, including working on the
Manchester Ship Canal
The Manchester Ship Canal is a inland waterway in the North West England, North West of England linking Manchester to the Irish Sea. Starting at the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary at Eastham, Merseyside, Eastham, near Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, it ...
.
In 1909 his career as a trade union official began when he was elected secretary of the Warrington branch of the National Union of Gasworkers. He was a founding member of the
British Socialist Party
The British Socialist Party (BSP) was a Marxist political organisation established in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Great Britain in 1911. Following a protracted period of political faction, factional struggle, in 1916 the party's ...
, and was elected to the party's national executive in 1914.
During the
First World War
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
he was a
conscientious objector
A conscientious objector is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of conscience or religion. The term has also been extended to objecting to working for the military–indu ...
, serving some time in prison.
He became a district secretary in what had become the
National Union of General Workers. From 1934 to 1946, Dukes was General Secretary of the
National Union of General and Municipal Workers
The GMB is a general union, general trade union in the United Kingdom which has more than 560,000 members. Its members work in nearly all industrial sectors, in retail, security, schools, distribution, the utilities, social care, the National He ...
. From 1946 to 1947 he was
President of the Trades Union Congress The president of the Trades Union Congress is a prominent but largely honorary position in United Kingdom, British trade unionism.
History
Initially, the post of president was elected at the annual Trades Union Congress (TUC) itself, and would serv ...
.
In 1947 he was appointed a director of the
Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the Kingdom of England, English Government's banker and debt manager, and still one ...
.
Although Charles Dukes had no biological children, he mentored two of his sister Annie's children, Jack and Reginald Cooper, and raised them in what is now known as the GMB Union.
Jack Cooper later followed in his Uncle's footsteps and became a Labour MP and also a General Secretary of the GMB Union (
Jack Cooper, Baron Cooper of Stockton Heath
John Cooper, Baron Cooper of Stockton Heath (7 June 1908 – 2 September 1988) was a British Labour Party politician and trade union leader.
He was mentored by his Uncle, Charles Dukes ( Charles Dukes, 1st Baron Dukeston) the drafter of the Un ...
)
Parliamentary career
At the
1923 general election, Dukes was elected as the
Member of Parliament (MP) for
Warrington
Warrington () is an industrial town in the Borough of Warrington, borough of the same name in Cheshire, England. The town sits on the banks of the River Mersey and was Historic counties of England, historically part of Lancashire. It is east o ...
in
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
, narrowly defeating the sitting
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
MP
Alec Cunningham-Reid
Captain Alec Stratford Cunningham-Reid (20 April 1895 – 26 March 1977), known in his early life as Alec Stratford Reid, was a British First World War flying ace credited with seven aerial victories. After the war, he entered politics as a Cons ...
.
When the
First Labour Government fell in 1924, Dukes lost his seat in the resulting
1924 general election, unseated by his predecessor Cunningham-Reid.
However, at the
1929 general election, when Cunningham-Reid abandoned Warrington and stood unsuccessfully in
Southampton
Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...
, Dukes was returned again to the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
. When Labour split in 1931 over the handling of budgetary response to the
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, Dukes was defeated in the
subsequent general election, and did not stand for
election to the House of Commons again.
In 1942 he was made a
Commander of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
and in 1946 was appointed an adviser to the
Paris Peace Conference Agreements and declarations resulting from meetings in Paris include:
Listed by name
Paris Accords
may refer to:
* Paris Accords, the agreements reached at the end of the London and Paris Conferences in 1954 concerning the post-war status of Germ ...
.
Charles Dukes served as the British representative on the
United Nations Commission on Human Rights
The United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) was a functional commission within the United Nations System, overall framework of the United Nations from 1946 until it was replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2006. It was a ...
in 1947 and was one of the nine individuals who drafted the
Universal Declaration on Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly that enshrines the rights and freedoms of all human beings. Drafted by a UN committee chaired by Eleanor Roosevelt, ...
.
He was ennobled in 1947 as Baron Dukeston, of Warrington in the County Palatine of Lancaster, and was an active Labour Party peer.
He died the following year in a London hospital, aged 66, without an heir, and the title became extinct.
He was buried in
Chesham Bois
Chesham Bois (traditionally , but now more commonly ) is a village in the Chiltern Hills, in Buckinghamshire, England, adjacent to both Amersham and Chesham.
History
Initially a hamlet in the parish of Chesham, the manor was assessed at 1½ ...
,
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...
, close to his home in
Amersham
Amersham ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England, in the Chiltern Hills, northwest of central London, south-east of Aylesbury and north-east of High Wycombe. Amersham is part of the London commuter belt.
There ar ...
.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dukes, Charles
1881 births
1948 deaths
British conscientious objectors
GMB (trade union)-sponsored MPs
Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
UK MPs 1923–1924
UK MPs 1929–1931
UK MPs who were granted peerages
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
General secretaries of the GMB (trade union)
Presidents of the Trades Union Congress
People from Stourbridge
Labour Party (UK) hereditary peers
Barons created by George VI