Greater Britain Movement
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The Greater Britain Movement was a British
far right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and Nativism (politics), nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on ...
political group formed by
John Tyndall John Tyndall (; 2 August 1820 – 4 December 1893) was an Irish physicist. His scientific fame arose in the 1850s from his study of diamagnetism. Later he made discoveries in the realms of infrared radiation and the physical properties of air ...
in 1964 after he split from
Colin Jordan John Colin Campbell Jordan (19 June 1923 – 9 April 2009) was a British politician and a leading figure in post-war neo-Nazism in the UK. In the far-right circles of the 1960s, Jordan represented the most explicitly Nazi inclination in his ope ...
's National Socialist Movement. The name of the group was derived from ''The Greater Britain'', a 1932 book by
Oswald Mosley Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980), was a British aristocrat and politician who rose to fame during the 1920s and 1930s when he, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, turned to fascism. ...
.


Formation

While the roots of the split between Tyndall and Jordan was considered to be the marriage of Jordan to Françoise Dior – who had previously been romantically involved with Tyndall – Tyndall himself stated that the rift between the two men was a consequence of an ideological clash resulting from his rejection of Jordan's endorsement of straight
Nazism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was fre ...
and his own preference for a more 'British' solution.Taylor, ''The National Front in English Politics'', p. 55 Before the split, and during their spell as members of the
British National Party The British National Party (BNP) is a Far-right politics, far-right, British fascism, fascist list of political parties in the United Kingdom, political party in the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in Wigton, Cumbria, and is led by Adam ...
, Jordan had faced the same criticism from John Bean with Tyndall increasingly echoing Bean's view. This division led to a showdown at the April 1964 NSM conference when Tyndall demanded that Jordan give control of the movement to him. On 11 May 1964, Jordan moved to expel Tyndall from the NSM, although the following day Tyndall claimed that, having taken control of the group, he had expelled Jordan. However, soon afterwards Tyndall gave up his NSM membership and, along with most of the staff from the party's London headquarters, left the group. In August 1964, he announced the formation of the Greater Britain Movement and began publishing its magazine, '' Spearhead'', a name taken from the NSM's largely failed attempt to set up a paramilitary wing. The GBM also gained the support of James McIntyre's National Student Front which until that time had been loyal to the NSM. Tyndall would later claim that he had formed the GBM merely as a stopgap to keep his supporters united, stating that he felt, even in 1964, that their future lay in working more closely with other similar groups.


Policies

The first issue of ''Spearhead'' stated that the new movement would adhere "without fear and without compromise to every tenet of the national socialist creed" albeit "in a manner more in touch with British affairs and much more in touch with British interests and aims". However whilst leader of the GBM, Tyndall wrote his ''Six Principles of British Nationalism'' in which he broke from the Nazism of Jordan, and called for a parliamentary strategy towards a government that would be corporatist, racialist, and based on the principle of leadership. This state would be ratified by regular referendums, although
liberal democracy Liberal democracy, also called Western-style democracy, or substantive democracy, is a form of government that combines the organization of a democracy with ideas of liberalism, liberal political philosophy. Common elements within a liberal dem ...
would be brought to an end. The new movement also advocated laws banning marriage between people of different races and the use of medical procedures to prevent those with "hereditary defects" from having children: Tyndall's ideas have been characterised as an attempt to construct a specifically British national socialism, rather than following Jordan's route of simply transplanting the German version. Such was Tyndall's desire to forge a specifically British form of Nazism that he was characterised by Jordan and other critics as a "
John Bull John Bull is a national personification of England, especially in political cartoons and similar graphic works. He is usually depicted as a stout, middle-aged, country-dwelling, jolly and matter-of-fact man. He originated in satirical works of ...
in jackboots".


Development

The GBM did not contest any elections and rather became known for publicity stunts and criminal acts. An example of the sort of action they were fond of was provided soon after the group was formed when Tyndall's deputy Martin Webster attempted to assault
President of Kenya The president of the Republic of Kenya () is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Kenya. The president is also the head of the executive branch of the Government of Kenya and is the commander-in-chief of the Kenya De ...
Jomo Kenyatta, a headline-grabbing stunt that also saw Webster serve a short spell in prison.Boothroyd, ''The Politico's Guide to the History of British Political Parties'', p. 94 Tyndall had also been present at the incident, which took place as Kenyatta exited a hotel in London at which he was staying, and Tyndall was given a £25 fine for the abuse he shouted into a megaphone during the attack. The GBM's policy of provocative street activity meant that it faced frequent opposition. A meeting in the East End of London on 4 October 1964 was attacked by opponents, as was another in
Dalston Dalston () is an area of East London, in the London Borough of Hackney. It is northeast of Charing Cross. Dalston began as a hamlet on either side of Dalston Lane, and as the area urbanised the term also came to apply to surrounding areas i ...
the following October whilst earlier, in August 1965, Tyndall had been shot at five times whilst in the group's headquarters in Norwood. The group's main benefactor was an antiques dealer named Gordon Brown and in late 1966 he gave Tyndall the funds to purchase a small shop in Tulse Hill which Tyndall converted into the Nationalist Centre. The centre welcomed regular visitors from the BNP and League of Empire Loyalists although, according to the BNP's Rodney Legg, some of the older LEL members were appalled by the Nazi ephemera and loaded guns on display. In January 1965, Tyndall had attempted to make the GBM the leading lights in the World Union of National Socialists but after getting in touch with the American Nazi leader
George Lincoln Rockwell George Lincoln Rockwell (March 9, 1918 – August 25, 1967) was an American neo-Nazi activist who founded the American Nazi Party (ANP) and became one of the most notorious white supremacists in the United States until his murder in 1967. His b ...
Tyndall was dismayed to find that Jordan was still recognised as leader of the body and that the NSM was still the British chapter. The incident helped to push the GBM further away from the neo-Nazi fringe and towards the other groups on the far-right. Removed from the Nazi option and with the GBM individually failing to make much headway or attract much support, Tyndall authorised GBM members to support the campaigns of both the BNP and the LEL as well as the Patriotic Party in March 1965. According to John Bean Tyndall wrote personally to
Oswald Mosley Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980), was a British aristocrat and politician who rose to fame during the 1920s and 1930s when he, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, turned to fascism. ...
, A. K. Chesterton and Bean around the same time suggesting that as their four movements had been co-operating unofficially on activities in support of
Rhodesia Rhodesia ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state, unrecognised state in Southern Africa that existed from 1965 to 1979. Rhodesia served as the ''de facto'' Succession of states, successor state to the ...
a more formal alliance between the GBM,
Union Movement The Union Movement (UM) was a far-right political party founded in the United Kingdom by Oswald Mosley. Before the Second World War, Mosley's British Union of Fascists (BUF) had wanted to concentrate trade within the British Empire, but the ...
, LEL and BNP should be agreed upon. Nothing came of these overtures however. Meanwhile, Tyndall had not abandoned his attempts to build links internationally and instead forged an alliance between the GBM and the
National States' Rights Party The National States' Rights Party was a white supremacist political party that briefly played a minor role in the politics of the United States. Foundation Founded in 1958 in Knoxville, Tennessee, by Edward Reed Fields, a 26-year-old chiropra ...
, a far-right group in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
that had grown critical of Rockwell and the
American Nazi Party The American Nazi Party (ANP) is an American neo-Nazi Political parties in the United States, political party founded by George Lincoln Rockwell in 1959. In Rockwell's time, it was headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It was renamed the Natio ...
. The GBM, however, remained one of the more extreme groups on the far right as was evidenced in 1966 when a number of members were imprisoned for an
arson Arson is the act of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, watercr ...
attack on a
synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...
, with Tyndall later also jailed for possession of a firearm. The incidents derailed the GBM's drive for unity somewhat as LEL leader A.K. Chesterton was averse to such actions, preferring to maintain a legalist approach. As a result, the GBM undertook negotiations with the BNP and the Racial Preservation Society in early 1966 aimed at effecting a closer union but these came to nothing, with the RPS in particular turning the request down flat.


Towards merger

During the summer of 1966 Tyndall and his movement grew close to A.K. Chesterton and the two soon agreed that the hefty defeat inflicted on the Conservative Party in the 1966 general election had opened up space for a new far right party with Tyndall arguing in ''Spearhead'' that there was "no longer any great political force representative of patriotic right-wing principles". Chesterton was impressed by the organisational skills demonstrated by Tyndall in the GBM, although he was also suspicious of his Nazi past whilst Andrew Fountaine was opposed to any GBM membership, and so they did not invite GBM to join the National Front in 1967. The first issue of ''Combat'', the organ of the British National Party, to be published following the formation of the National Front (which had absorbed the British National Party) specifically stated that the GBM "would not be coming into the new movement and ... their past utterances on anti-Semitism and pro-Nazism would certainly not be a part of National Front policy". However, before the year was out Chesterton relented and allowed the GBM to join the NF 'on probation', leading to the GBM ceasing to exist.N. Copsey, ''Contemporary British Fascism'', Palgrave Macmillan, 2004, p. 15 In June of that year Tyndall told the GBM membership, which at that point stood at 138, that the movement was disbanded and that they should join the National Front as individuals.


References

; Bibliography : {{UK far right Political parties established in 1964 Political parties disestablished in 1967 Fascist parties in the United Kingdom National Front (UK) Neo-Nazi organisations in the United Kingdom