Noah Ablett (4 October 1883 – 31 October 1935) was a Welsh

trade unionist 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 ...

and political theorist. He is noted as a contributor to ''

The Miners' Next Step ''The Miners' Next Step'' was an economic and political pamphlet produced in 1912 calling for coal miners through their lodges, to embrace syndicalism and a new 'scientific' trade unionism. The pamphlet was written by the 'Unofficial Reform Commit ...

'', a

Syndicalist Syndicalism is a labour movement within society that, through industrial unionism, seeks to unionize workers according to industry and advance their demands through strikes and other forms of direct action, with the eventual goal of gainin ...

treatise which Ablett described as "scientific trade unionism".

Biography

Ablett was born in 1883 in

Porth Porth () is a town and community in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales. Lying in the Rhondda Valley, it is regarded as the gateway connecting the Rhondda Fawr and Rhondda Fach va ...

Rhondda Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley ( ), is a former coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fawr valley (, 'large') and t ...

to John and Jane Ablett;Lloyd (1958), pg 1113. he was the tenth child of eleven. Originally intending to join the ministry, Ablett was turned to the plight of the poor pay and working conditions of the Rhondda coal miners. A keen learner, he won a scholarship to

Ruskin College Ruskin College, originally known as Ruskin Hall, Oxford, is a higher education institution and part of the University of West London, in Oxford, England. It is not a Colleges of the University of Oxford, college of Oxford University. Named ...

, Oxford in 1907 and while there was part of the college strike and subsequent movement that saw the creation of the

Marxist Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflic ...

educational group, the

Plebs' League The Plebs' League was a British educational and political organisation founded in 1908. It was based on a Marxist ideology, and was active until 1926. History Central to the formation of the League was Noah Ablett, a miner from the Rhondda who was ...

. On returning to the valleys he set up Marxist educational classes and was part of minimum wage agitation. In 1911, Ablett became a checkweighman at

Mardy Colliery Maerdy Colliery was a coal mine located in the South Wales village of Maerdy (), in the Rhondda Valley, located in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, and within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales. Opened in 1875, it closed ...

Maerdy Maerdy (, ) is a village and community (and electoral ward) in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, and within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales, lying at the head of the Rhondda Fach Valley. History "Maerdy" is a Welsh ...

and later that year was one of the founders of the Unofficial Reform Committee. The following year he was the main author of 'The Miners' Next Step', a pamphlet demanding a minimum wage for the miners and for the miners to take control of the mines. By 1919 Ablett was an executive of the

South Wales Miners' Federation The South Wales Miners' Federation (SWMF), nicknamed "The Fed", was a trade union for coal miners in South Wales. It survives as the South Wales Area of the National Union of Mineworkers. Forerunners The Amalgamated Association of Miners ( ...

and was chairman of the board of governors of the

Central Labour College The Central Labour College, also known as The Labour College, was a British higher education institution supported by trade unions. It functioned from 1909 to 1929. It was established on the basis of independent working class education. The colle ...

. In 1919 Ablett was approached by the Labour Party to contest the

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and otherwise by the sea. Haverfordwest is the largest town and ...

constituency ahead of the 1922 general election. Ablett turned down the invitation, citing the demands of his other responsibilities. 1919 also saw the release of Ablett's sole book ''Easy outline of economics'', published through the Plebs' League. Between 1921 and 1926 he was an executive member of the

Miners' Federation of Great Britain The Miners' Federation of Great Britain (MFGB) was established after a meeting of local mining trade unions in Newport, Wales, Newport, Wales in 1888. The federation was formed to represent and co-ordinate the affairs of local and regional miners' ...

. In later life Ablett struggled with alcoholism. He died of cancer in 1935, at home in

Merthyr Tydfil Merthyr Tydfil () is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydfil, daughter of K ...

Legacy

Aneurin Bevan Aneurin "Nye" Bevan Privy Council (United Kingdom), PC (; 15 November 1897 – 6 July 1960) was a Welsh Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician, noted for spearheading the creation of the British National Health Service during his t ...

, Labour politician and founder of the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the term for the publicly funded health care, publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom: the National Health Service (England), NHS Scotland, NHS Wales, and Health and Social Care (Northern ...

, described Ablett as "a leader of great intellectual power and immense influence." Ablett played the major role in the political education of Arthur Horner, who later served as Secretary General of the National Union of Mineworkers.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ablett, Noah 1883 births 1935 deaths Alumni of Ruskin College Welsh trade unionists People from Porth Welsh syndicalists Plebs' League members