1941 Committee
Encyclopedia
The 1941 Committee was a group of British politicians, writers and other people of influence who got together in 1940. Its members comprised liberals, and those further left, who were not generally involved with a political party. Its immediate purpose was to press for more efficient production in order to enhance the war effort. This swiftly developed into discussion of the methods and mores by which the United Kingdom
would be governed after World War II
. The members met at the home of Edward Hulton
, the publisher of Picture Post
.
. Shortly after, Priestley and most of the moderate members left, and under the guidance of Richard Acland
the committee merged with his organisation 'Forward March' to create the Common Wealth Party
in July 1942.
Committee members were responsible for the publication of two anonymous best-selling books: Guilty Men by Cato (Driberg, Foot and Wintringham) and Your M.P. by Graccus (Wintringham), both published by Gollancz
, which exposed pro-fascist sympathies amongst Conservative politicians.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
would be governed after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The members met at the home of Edward Hulton
Edward George Warris Hulton
Sir Edward George Warris Hulton was an English magazine publisher and writer.Edward George Warris Hulton was the illegitimate son of Sir Edward Hulton, Baronet, a newspaper publisher and racehorse owner originally from Manchester, and his second wife, the actress Millicent Warris.Educated at...
, the publisher of Picture Post
Picture Post
Picture Post was a prominent photojournalistic magazine published in the United Kingdom from 1938 to 1957. It is considered a pioneering example of photojournalism and was an immediate success, selling 1,700,000 copies a week after only two months...
.
Members
The Committee's members included:- Richard AclandRichard AclandSir Richard Thomas Dyke Acland, 15th Baronet was one of the founding members of the British Common Wealth Party. He had previously been a Liberal Member of Parliament and joined the Labour Party in 1945...
- David AstorDavid AstorFrancis David Langhorne Astor CH was an English newspaper publisher and member of the Astor family.-Early life and career:...
- Thomas BaloghThomas BaloghThomas Balogh, Baron Balogh was a Hungarian economist and member of the British House of Lords....
- Vernon BartlettVernon BartlettCharles Vernon Oldfield Bartlett CBE was an English journalist, politician and author who served as a Member of Parliament from 1938 to 1950.-Life:...
- Violet Bonham CarterViolet Bonham CarterHelen Violet Bonham Carter, Baroness Asquith of Yarnbury, DBE was a British politician and diarist. She was the daughter of H. H. Asquith, Prime Minister from 1908-1916, and later became active in Liberal politics herself, being a leading opponent of appeasement, standing for Parliament and being...
- Tom Driberg
- Michael FootMichael FootMichael Mackintosh Foot, FRSL, PC was a British Labour Party politician, journalist and author, who was a Member of Parliament from 1945 to 1955 and from 1960 until 1992...
- Raymond Gauntlett, Secretary
- Victor GollanczVictor GollanczSir Victor Gollancz was a British publisher, socialist, and humanitarian.-Early life:Born in Maida Vale, London, he was the son of a wholesale jeweller and nephew of Rabbi Professor Sir Hermann Gollancz and Professor Sir Israel Gollancz; after being educated at St Paul's School, London and taking...
- Eva Hubback
- Edward HultonEdward George Warris HultonSir Edward George Warris Hulton was an English magazine publisher and writer.Edward George Warris Hulton was the illegitimate son of Sir Edward Hulton, Baronet, a newspaper publisher and racehorse owner originally from Manchester, and his second wife, the actress Millicent Warris.Educated at...
- Julian HuxleyJulian HuxleySir Julian Sorell Huxley FRS was an English evolutionary biologist, humanist and internationalist. He was a proponent of natural selection, and a leading figure in the mid-twentieth century evolutionary synthesis...
- Margaret Storm JamesonStorm JamesonMargaret Storm Jameson was an English writer, known for her 45 novels, and criticism.She was born in Whitby, Yorkshire, and studied at the University of Leeds. She moved to London, where she earned an MA from King's College London in 1914 and then went on to teach before becoming a full-time writer...
- Douglas JayDouglas Jay, Baron JayDouglas Patrick Thomas Jay, Baron Jay, PC was a British Labour Party politician.Educated at Winchester College and New College, Oxford, Jay became a Fellow of All Souls between 1930 and 1937...
- David LowDavid LowSir David Alexander Cecil Low was a New Zealand political cartoonist and caricaturist who lived and worked in the United Kingdom for many years. Low was a self-taught cartoonist...
- Kingsley MartinKingsley MartinBasil Kingsley Martin was a British journalist who edited the left-leaning political magazine the New Statesman from 1930 to 1960....
- Christopher MayhewChristopher MayhewChristopher Paget Mayhew, Baron Mayhew was a British politician who was a Labour Member of Parliament from 1945 to 1950 and from 1951 to 1974, when he left the Labour Party to become a Liberal...
- J. B. PriestleyJ. B. PriestleyJohn Boynton Priestley, OM , known as J. B. Priestley, was an English novelist, playwright and broadcaster. He published 26 novels, notably The Good Companions , as well as numerous dramas such as An Inspector Calls...
, chairman - Ritchie Calder
- Peter ThorneycroftPeter ThorneycroftGeorge Edward Peter Thorneycroft, Baron Thorneycroft CH, PC , was a British Conservative Party politician. He served as Chancellor of the Exchequer between 1957 and 1958.-Biography:...
- Richard TitmussRichard TitmussRichard Morris Titmuss was a pioneering British social researcher and teacher. He founded the academic discipline of Social Administration and held the founding chair in the subject at the London School of Economics.His books and articles of the 1950s helped to define the characteristics of...
- H. G. WellsH. G. WellsHerbert George Wells was an English author, now best known for his work in the science fiction genre. He was also a prolific writer in many other genres, including contemporary novels, history, politics and social commentary, even writing text books and rules for war games...
- Tom WintringhamTom WintringhamThomas Henry Wintringham was a British soldier, military historian, journalist, poet, Marxist, politician and author. He was an important figure in the formation of the Home Guard during World War II and was one of the founders of the Common Wealth Party.-Early life:Tom Wintringham was born 1898...
- Konni ZilliacusKonni ZilliacusKonni Zilliacus was a left-wing Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom.-Life:Zilliacus was born on 13 September 1894 in Japan, where his parents, Finland-Swedish Konrad Viktor Zilliacus , a prominent activist for the independence of Finland from the Russian Empire, and American-born Lilian...
The Nine-Point Plan
In May 1942 the committee published a Nine Point Plan on which it had agreed, calling for works councils and the publication of "post-war plans for the provision of full and free education, employment and a civilized standard of living for everyone." This plan was the basis for the successful election campaign of Tom Driberg as an independent in the Maldon by-electionMaldon by-election, 1942
The Maldon by-election, 1942 was a parliamentary by-election held on 25 June 1942 for the British House of Commons constituency of Maldon in Essex...
. Shortly after, Priestley and most of the moderate members left, and under the guidance of Richard Acland
Richard Acland
Sir Richard Thomas Dyke Acland, 15th Baronet was one of the founding members of the British Common Wealth Party. He had previously been a Liberal Member of Parliament and joined the Labour Party in 1945...
the committee merged with his organisation 'Forward March' to create the Common Wealth Party
Common Wealth Party
The Common Wealth Party was a socialist political party in the United Kingdom in the Second World War. Thereafter, it continued in being, essentially as a pressure group, until 1993.-The war years:...
in July 1942.
Committee members were responsible for the publication of two anonymous best-selling books: Guilty Men by Cato (Driberg, Foot and Wintringham) and Your M.P. by Graccus (Wintringham), both published by Gollancz
Victor Gollancz Ltd
Victor Gollancz Ltd was a major British book publishing house of the twentieth century. It was founded in 1927 by Victor Gollancz and specialised in the publication of high quality literature, nonfiction and popular fiction, including science fiction. Upon Gollancz's death in 1967, ownership...
, which exposed pro-fascist sympathies amongst Conservative politicians.