Guy Alfred Aldred (often Guy A. Aldred; 5 November 1886 – 16 October 1963) was a British

anarcho-communist Anarchist communism is a far-left political ideology and anarchist school of thought that advocates communism. It calls for the abolition of private real property but retention of personal property and collectively-owned items, goods, and ser ...

and a prominent member of the Anti-Parliamentary Communist Federation (APCF). He founded the

Bakunin Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin. Sometimes anglicized to Michael Bakunin. ( ; – 1 July 1876) was a Russian revolutionary anarchist. He is among the most influential figures of anarchism and a major figure in the revolutionary socialist, so ...

Press publishing house and edited five

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

-based anarchist periodicals: ''The Herald of Revolt'', ''The Spur'', ''The Commune'', ''The Council'', and ''The Word'', where he worked closely with Ethel MacDonald and his later partner Jenny Patrick.

Early life

Aldred was born in

Clerkenwell Clerkenwell ( ) is an area of central London, England. Clerkenwell was an Civil Parish#Ancient parishes, ancient parish from the medieval period onwards, and now forms the south-western part of the London Borough of Islington. The St James's C ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. His father was a 22-year-old lieutenant in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

, and his mother was Ada Caroline Holdsworth, a 19-year-old

parasol An umbrella or parasol is a folding canopy (building), canopy supported by wooden or metal ribs that is mounted on a wooden, metal, or plastic pole. It is usually designed to protect a person against rain. The term ''umbrella'' is traditionall ...

maker. Although Ada was socially unacceptable to the young naval officer, he married her shortly before Guy's birth. After the wedding, he left her at the church to return to his mother.

Guy Fawkes Guy Fawkes (; 13 April 1570 – 31 January 1606), also known as Guido Fawkes while fighting for the Spanish, was a member of a group of provincial English Catholics involved in the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605. He was born and educate ...

night, 5 November, gave Guy his forename. Guy was brought up in the home of Ada's father, Charles Holdsworth, a Victorian

radical Radical (from Latin: ', root) may refer to: Politics and ideology Politics *Classical radicalism, the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and Latin America in the 19th century *Radical politics ...

. He attended the Iron Infant's School in

Farringdon Road Farringdon Road is a road in Clerkenwell, London. Route Farringdon Road is part of the A201 route connecting King's Cross to Elephant and Castle. It goes southeast from King's Cross, crossing Rosebery Avenue, then turns south, crossing C ...

, later moving to the Hugh Middleton Higher Grade School, where he was presented to the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

because he was the youngest pupil. One of his fellow pupils was the son of Hermann Jung, the Swiss watchmaker and one-time activist in 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 ...

. His first adventures in

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded l ...

were with the Anti-Nicotine League, the Band of Hope, and the total abstinence movement, and he remained an abstainer in these respects all his life. His grandfather, an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

, encouraged him to attend the church of St Anne and St Agnes, where he took communion in 1894. However, he soon developed a critical attitude to the church, even though he was close to his cousin, a curate at Holloway. At the age of 15 (1902), he was made aware of his London provincialism when Madho Singh II, the

Maharaja of Jaipur Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a prince. However, in late ancient India ...

, visited the city. He became fascinated by the newspaper accounts of the Maharaja moving around with his "travelling god": Later that year he gained a reputation as a "Boy Preacher", printing and handing out his own leaflets, which were often received with ridicule and disdain. He found employment as an office boy with the National Press Agency in Whitefriars House, where he was promoted to sub-editor. Working with an evangelist named McMasters, he co-founded the "Christian Social Mission", opening shortly after his 16th birthday as the '' Holloway Boy Preacher''. His non-conformist approach aroused concern following his first sermon. After contacting Charles Voysey, Guy was eventually granted an audience on 20 December 1902. The 74-year-old well-to-do Voysey was surprised to be confronted with a coarse-dressed 16-year-old working-class boy. After careful preliminaries on the part of Voysey, the meeting lasted three hours. Their friendship was to continue until Voysey's death in 1912. In January 1903 the Reverend George Martin, an Anglican priest, visited Guy with one of his leaflets, asking to meet the ''Holloway Boy Preacher''. Martin worked in London's worst slums, and Guy joined him in his work with London's poorest. His friendship with Martin lasted six years and influenced Guy strongly. He soon gave his last sermon from the pulpit and left the "Christian Social Mission".

Agnosticism

Guy became a speaker at the ''Institute of

Theism Theism is broadly defined as the belief in the existence of at least one deity. In common parlance, or when contrasted with '' deism'', the term often describes the philosophical conception of God that is found in classical theism—or the co ...

'', but soon felt it was time to set up his own organisation. In 1904 he founded the ''Theistic Mission'', which met every Sunday. With a considerable, though sometimes boisterous, crowd, Guy was gaining a reputation as a forceful young orator. He was also shifting towards

atheism Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the Existence of God, existence of Deity, deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the ...

. By August, the meeting banner was changed to read ''The Clerkenwell

Freethought Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an unorthodox attitude or belief. A freethinker holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and should instead be reached by other meth ...

Mission''. Meetings often generated extreme hostility. On one occasion the crowd charged the platform, knocking Guy to the ground and beating him. Police intervention put an end to the meeting. Around this time he became interested in ''The

Agnostic Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, the divine, or the supernatural is either unknowable in principle or unknown in fact. (page 56 in 1967 edition) It can also mean an apathy towards such religious belief and refer to ...

Journal'' and became friendly with its editor, "Saladin", a

Scotsman Scottish people or Scots (; ) are an ethnic group and nation native to Scotland. Historically, they emerged in the early Middle Ages from an amalgamation of two Celtic peoples, the Picts and Gaels, who founded the Kingdom of Scotland (o ...

. It was at the Journal's office that he met another Scotsman, John Morrison Davidson, and Guy became more interested in Scottish affairs.

Indian Sedition Trial, 1907

'' The Indian Sociologist'' was an Indian nationalist newspaper edited by Shyamji Krishnavarma. When Krishnavarma left London for Paris, fearing repression by the authorities, the printing of the newspaper was first taken over by Arthur Fletcher Horsley. However, he was arrested and tried for printing the May, June and July issues. (He was tried and sentenced on the same day as Madan Lal Dhingra, who was convicted of the assassination of Sir William Hutt Curzon Wyllie). At Horseley's prominent trial the

Lord Chief Justice The Lord or Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales is the head of the judiciary of England and Wales and the president of the courts of England and Wales. Until 2005 the lord chief justice was the second-most senior judge of the English a ...

Lord Alverstone Richard Everard Webster, 1st Viscount Alverstone, (22 December 1842 – 15 December 1915) was a British barrister, politician and judge who served in many high political and judicial offices. Background and education Webster was the second so ...

, indicated that anyone printing that sort of material would be liable for prosecution. Nevertheless, Aldred, as an advocate of the free press, published it, bearing his own name. The police obtained a warrant and seized 396 copies of the issue. At the trial the prosecution was led by the

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

, Sir William Robson, at the Central Criminal Court. Robson highlighted parts of ''TIS'' which Aldred had himself written, particularly focussing on a passage which touched on the execution of Dhingra: Aldred also remarked that the Sepoy Mutiny, or Indian Mutiny, would be described as The Indian War of Independence. Aldred received a sentence of twelve months hard labour. His involvement with ''The Indian Sociologist'' brought him into contact with

Har Dayal Lala Rudra Dayal Mathur ( Punjabi: ਲਾਲਾ ਹਰਦਿਆਲ; 14 October 1884 – 4 March 1939) was an Indian nationalist revolutionary and freedom fighter. He was a polymath who turned down a career in the Indian Civil Service. His si ...

, who combined anarchism with his

Indian Nationalism Indian nationalism is an instance of civic nationalism. It is inclusive of all of the people of India, Composite nationalism (India), despite their Demographics of India, diverse ethnic, linguistic and religious backgrounds. Indian national ...

, based on his view of ancient

Aryan ''Aryan'' (), or ''Arya'' (borrowed from Sanskrit ''ārya''), Oxford English Dictionary Online 2024, s.v. ''Aryan'' (adj. & n.); ''Arya'' (n.)''.'' is a term originating from the ethno-cultural self-designation of the Indo-Iranians. It stood ...

culture and

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

Socialism and anarchism

Aldred joined the

Social Democratic Federation The Social Democratic Federation (SDF) was established as Britain's first organised socialist political party by H. M. Hyndman, and had its first meeting on 7 June 1881. Those joining the SDF included William Morris, George Lansbury, James ...

, but left in 1906. He was a political

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 ...

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 ...

and also a founder of the Glasgow

Anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hierarchy, hierarchy, primarily targeting the state (polity), state and capitalism. A ...

Group. He initiated the Communist Propaganda Groups, in support of the

October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...

, which subsequently became a component of the

Communist League The Communist League ( German: ''Bund der Kommunisten)'' was an international political party established on 1 June 1847 in London, England. The organisation was formed through the merger of the League of the Just, headed by Karl Schapper, and th ...

in 1919. Following its collapse, he founded the Anti-Parliamentary Communist Federation (APCF) in 1921, and gradually moved towards opposing the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. His links with

left communist Left communism, or the communist left, is a position held by the left wing of communism, which criticises the political ideas and practices held by Marxist–Leninists and social democrats. Left communists assert positions which they regard ...

s across Europe brought him close to

council communism Council communism or councilism is a current of communism, communist thought that emerged in the 1920s. Inspired by the German Revolution of 1918–1919, November Revolution, council communism was opposed to state socialism and advocated wor ...

. In 1932 he split with the APCF and later founded the Workers Open Forum, which eventually became the United Socialist Movement. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

the USM worked with people from across the political spectrum to oppose military action, in a form of Popular Front, and came to advocate

World Government World government is the concept of a single political authority governing all of Earth and humanity. It is conceived in a variety of forms, from tyrannical to democratic, which reflects its wide array of proponents and detractors. There has ...

. After

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

's death, Aldred became increasingly supportive of the Soviet Union.

Free love

Aldred worked closely with his partner Rose Witcop (9 April 1890 – 4 July 1932), a pioneer of

birth control Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth control only be ...

and sister of Milly Witkop (who was, in turn, partner of anarchist Rudolf Rocker).Nicolas Walter, ‘Witcop, Rose Lillian (1890–1932)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 200
http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/58610
accessed 4 Sept 2007 Together they published an edition of

Margaret Sanger Margaret Sanger ( Higgins; September 14, 1879September 6, 1966) was an American birth control activist, sex educator, writer, and nurse. She opened the first birth control clinic in the United States, founded Planned Parenthood, and was instr ...

's ''Family Limitation'', an action which saw them denounced by a London magistrate for "indiscriminate" publication''The Times'', 11 January 1923, p.7 and, despite expert testimony from a consultant to

Guy's Hospital Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital founded by philanthropist Thomas Guy in 1721, located in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the Kin ...

and evidence at the appeal that the book had only been sold to those aged over twenty-one, the stock was ordered to be destroyed.''The Times'', 12 February 1923, p.5 Their case had been strongly supported by

Dora Russell Dora Winifred Russell, Countess Russell ( Black; 3 April 1894 – 31 May 1986) was a British author, a feminist and socialist campaigner, and the second wife of the philosopher Bertrand Russell. She was a campaigner for contraception and pea ...

who, with her husband

Bertrand Russell Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, and public intellectual. He had influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, and various areas of analytic ...

and

John Maynard Keynes John Maynard Keynes, 1st Baron Keynes ( ; 5 June 1883 – 21 April 1946), was an English economist and philosopher whose ideas fundamentally changed the theory and practice of macroeconomics and the economic policies of governments. Originall ...

, paid the legal costs of the appeal.Russell, Dora, (1975) ''The Tamarisk Tree'' Aldred and Witcop had a son, Annesley, in 1909. Although they were drifting apart by the time Aldred settled permanently in Glasgow in 1922, finally parting in 1924, they had a legal marriage on 2 February 1926, when it seemed possible Witcop might be deported for her continuing work on

family planning Family planning is the consideration of the number of children a person wishes to have, including the choice to have no children, and the age at which they wish to have them. Things that may play a role on family planning decisions include marit ...

.Caldwell, John Taylor (1988), Come Dungeons Dark: The Life and Times of Guy Aldred, Glasgow Anarchist, p.211.

Death and legacy

After initially refusing hospital treatment for a heart condition, Guy Aldred died, almost penniless, in the

Western Infirmary The Western Infirmary was a teaching hospital situated in Yorkhill in the West End of Glasgow, Scotland, that was managed by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. It was opened in 1874 and closed in 2015. History After the University of Glasgow moved ...

, Glasgow, on 16 October 1963 aged 76, leaving his body to

Glasgow University The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in post-nominals; ) is a public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ...

's Department of

Anatomy Anatomy () is the branch of morphology concerned with the study of the internal structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old scien ...

. His remains were cremated at the Maryhill Crematorium, Glasgow on 4 May 1964.Bob Jones, ‘Aldred, Guy Alfred (1886–1963)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, May 200
http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/40278
accessed 10 Sept 2007 Aldred's long-time associate and

literary executor The literary estate of a deceased author consists mainly of the copyright and other intellectual property rights of published works, including film rights, film, translation rights, original manuscripts of published work, unpublished or partially ...

, John Taylor Caldwell, produced a biography ''Come Dungeons Dark: The Life and Times of Guy Aldred, Glasgow Anarchist'' and ensured that Aldred's work was collated and preserved on

microfilm A microform is a scaled-down reproduction of a document, typically either photographic film or paper, made for the purposes of transmission, storage, reading, and printing. Microform images are commonly reduced to about 4% or of the original d ...

. His personal papers were deposited in the Bailie's Library, Glasgow, now held in the

Mitchell Library The Mitchell Library is a large public library located in the Charing Cross area of Glasgow, Scotland. It is the largest public reference library in Europe, and the centre of Glasgow's public library system. History The library was initiall ...

. He was survived by his son, Annesley.

Work

Some of Aldred's pamphlets can be found online as part of th
Jo Labadie Collection
*''The Last Days - War of Peace?'', 1902 *''The Safety of Unbelief'', 1904 *
The Case for Anarchism
', 1906 *''The Possibility and Philosophy of Anarchist Communism'', 1906 *
Logics and Economics of the Class Struggle
', 1907 *''Open Letter to a Constitutional Imbecile'', 1907 *''The Basis and Exodus of Bourgeois Sectarianism'', 1907 *''Sex Oppression'', 1907 *''Anarchism, Socialism and Social Revolution'', 1908 *''From Anglican Boy-Preacher to Anarchist Socialist Impossibilist'', 1908 *
Representation and the State
', 1910 *
Trade Unionism and the Class War
', 1911 *
Richard Carlile: His Battle for the Free Press: How Defiance Created Government Terrorism
' , The Bukunin Press, 1912 (The Revolt Library, No. 2)
''Bakunin's Writings'' (ed)
1913 *
Socialism and Marriage
' *
The Socialism and Anti-Parliamentarism of William Morris
', 1915 *
Michael Bakunin, Communist
', 1920 *''Communism and Religion'', 1920 *
Socialism and Parliament
', 1924 *''Socialism and Parliament Part I: The Burning Question of Today'' (revised edition, 1928) *''Socialism and Parliament Part II: Government by Labour'', 1928 *''At Grips with War'', 1929 *''John Maclean'', 1932 *''Life of Bakunin (Revised Edition)'', 1933 *''Towards Social Revolution?: Whither the ILP?'', 1934 *''Socialism and the Pope'', 1934 *''For Communism'', 1935 *''Against Terrorism in the Workers' Struggle'', 1938 *''The Rebel and his Disciples'', 1940 *''Historical and Traditional Christianity'' 1940 *''Studies in Communism'', 1940 *
Bakunin
', 1940 *
Dogmas Discarded
', 1940 *
Pioneers of Anti-Parliamentarianism
', 1940 *''Why Jesus Wept'', 1940 *''The Conscientious Objector, The Tribunal and After'', 1940 *
Communism: The Story of the Communist Party
', 1943 *''Convict 9653 - Eugene Debs'', 1942 *''A Call to Manhood: 26 Essays'', 1944 *''Sown in Dishonour'', 1945 *''Peace Now and Forever'', 1945 *''Rex v. Aldred - Report of Trials for Sedition, 1909 and 1912'', 1948 *''No Traitors' Gait! - The Life and Times of Guy A. Aldred'', (Issued in 19 parts between December 1955 and June 1963), ''unfinished''. *
Two Nations
', 1963

References

Bibliography

* * * * * *

External links

*, articles from the pages of Solidarity, the paper of the Anti-Parliamentary Communist Federation

BBC World Service radio programme broadcast 1989
"Guy Aldred: Rebel With a Cause"
Ruth Kinna,
Berfrois
', 30 September 2011 {{DEFAULTSORT:Aldred, Guy 1886 births 1963 deaths 20th-century anarchists Anarchism in Scotland Anarcho-communists British agnostics British anti-war activists British conscientious objectors British free speech activists English anarchists Former Anglicans Freethought writers People associated with Glasgow People from Clerkenwell Social Democratic Federation members