Adolphe Smith Headingley (1846–1924) was a British left-wing political writer. Half-French, Smith Headingley was a member of the

First International The International Workingmen's Association (IWA; 1864–1876), often called the First International, was a political international which aimed at uniting a variety of different left-wing socialist, social democratic, communist, and anarchist ...

and took part in the

Paris Commune The Paris Commune (, ) was a French revolutionary government that seized power in Paris on 18 March 1871 and controlled parts of the city until 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard (France), Nation ...

. In 1877–78, he wrote and published the magazine series ''Street Life in London'' with photographer John Thomson, to raise awareness of the plight of the city's poor. Smith Headingley played a key role in organising the 1882 International Trades Union Congress and served as an interpreter at successive conferences from 1886 to 1905. It was Smith Headingley that, in the 1890s, popularised the singing of the socialist anthem "

The Red Flag "The Red Flag" () is a socialist song, emphasising the sacrifices and solidarity of the international labour movement. It is the anthem of the British Labour Party, the Northern Irish Social Democratic and Labour Party and the Irish Labour P ...

" to the tune of "

O Tannenbaum "" (; "O fir tree"), known in English as "O Christmas Tree", is a German Christmas song. Based on a traditional folk song that was unrelated to the holiday, it became associated with the traditional Christmas tree. History The modern lyrics were ...

Biography

Smith Headingley was born in 1846 and was half French. A left-wing political writer (under the name Adolphe Smith) and activist he was a member of the

(1864–1876). He joined the

in 1871 and narrowly escaped execution when the commune was suppressed by the French Army. Smith Headingley worked with photographer John Thomson to produce the magazine series ''Street Life in London'' between 1877 and 1878. The 12-issue monthly publication documented the lives of the poor in the city and was intended to raise public awareness of the issue. The authors acknowledged that they had been inspired by a similar project from the early 1870s, ''London Labour and the London Poor'', by photographer Richard Beard and journalist

Henry Mayhew Henry Mayhew (25 November 1812 – 25 July 1887) was an English journalist, playwright, and advocate of reform. He was one of the co-founders of the satirical magazine '' Punch'' in 1841, and was the magazine's joint editor, with Mark Lemon, in ...

. Smith Headingley contributed 24 of the essays in the work and Thomson 12. Critical opinion considered Smith Headingley's contributions to be more detailed and socially relevant. The series was later compiled into a book. After ''Street Life in London'' Smith Headingley continued to write on social matters and became renowned as a left-wing campaigner for social reform. Using his fluency in French he played a key role in organising the International Trades Union Congress of November 1882. Smith Headingley became known as "Mr. Interpreter" in trade unionist circles. He served as an interpreter at successive meetings of the International Trades Union Congress from 1886 to 1905. In the 1890s Smith Headingley popularised the singing of the socialist anthem "

" to the tune of "

". Its author Jim Connell had intended the tune to be sung to the Jacobite tune " The White Cockade", associated with the Irish nationalist movement that Connell supported. Connell disapproved of the change of tune, to which the song remains most closely linked, as he regarded "O Tannenbaum" as "church music" and conservative by nature. Smith Headingley was an associate of English writer and socialist

Henry Hyndman Henry Mayers Hyndman (; 7 March 1842 – 22 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 socialist p ...

and of the women's suffragists Sylvia, Christabel and Adela Pankhurst. Smith Headingley died in 1924. His eulogy was written by barrister and campaigner

Ernest Belfort Bax Ernest Belfort Bax (; 23 July 1854 – 26 November 1926) was an English people, English barrister, journalism, journalist, philosophy, philosopher, Men's rights movement, men's rights advocate, Socialism, socialist, and historian. Biography Er ...

who described him as an "excellent socialist".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith Headingley, Adolphe 1846 births 1924 deaths 19th-century English journalists 20th-century English journalists English trade unionists English socialists