Communist Party (British Section of the Third International)
Encyclopedia
The Communist Party was a Left Communist organisation established at an emergency conference held on 19–20 June 1920 at the International Socialist Club in London
. It comprised about 600 people.
The emergency conference was called in preparation for the Communist Unity Convention scheduled for 1 August 1920 in London. Here binding decisions were to be made by majority vote, and the Left Communists wanted to organise themselves against the right at this conference. The initial call was sent out by the Workers Socialist Federation
and attracted communist groups from Aberdeen
, Croydon
and Holt
, the Gorton
Socialist Society, the Manchester
Soviet, Stepney Communist League and the Labour Abstentionist Party.
E. T. Whitehead, of the Labour Abstentionist Party, became the secretary. Workers' Dreadnought
was adopted as the official weekly organ of the party and a provisional Organising Council of 25 members was elected to manage the affairs of the organisation pending a National COnference scheduled for September 1920. Soon there was a dispute with Guy Aldred
and the Glasgow Communist Group, who had suspended their support for the Third International on account of their avowed revolutionary parliamentarianism.
In the end the CP(BSTI) withdrew from the Communist Unity Convention, just as Lenin's pamphlet Left-Wing Communism: An Infantile Disorder came out with extracts being quickly translated. Lenin also wrote to the convention urging participation in parliament, something which was agreed by 189 votes to 19.
Meanwhile, the CP(BSTI) sent delegates to the Second Congress of the Third International, whereat they were instructed to unite with the Communist Party of Great Britain
as founded at that convention. Upon their return a further conference was held in Manchester 18–19 September. Here they voted to accept the conditions of the Second Congress with reservations about taking parliamentary action. Sylvia Pankhurst
of the WSF, one of the delegates to the congress, argued that the tactic of revolutionary parliamentarianism would be dropped at the next congress. She had been impressed by the size of the abstentionist faction at the congress, and reported that Lenin has said the issue was not important during an informal discussion.
At the third conference of CP(BSTI), Cardiff
, 4 December, the Statutes and These of the Third International were accepted, although there was a consensus that they were not bound to parliamentary action. The four Manchester branches saw this as a sell out, and resigned, taking 200 members with them. Whitehead and Pankhurst maintained they still had the freedom to fight for abstentionism within the CPGB, and they formally fused with them at the second Communist Unity Conference in Leeds
, January 1921.
In response to this the Glasgow Communist Group inaugurated Red Commune declaring "there is no other party organ in this country ... that stands fearlessly for Communism. They all urge or compromise with, in some shape or form, parlamentarianism". At Easter that year they established the Anti-Parliamentary Communist Federation
.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. It comprised about 600 people.
The emergency conference was called in preparation for the Communist Unity Convention scheduled for 1 August 1920 in London. Here binding decisions were to be made by majority vote, and the Left Communists wanted to organise themselves against the right at this conference. The initial call was sent out by the Workers Socialist Federation
Workers Socialist Federation
The Workers' Socialist Federation was a socialist political party in the United Kingdom, led by Sylvia Pankhurst. Under many different names, it gradually broadened its politics from a focus on women's suffrage to eventually become a left communist grouping....
and attracted communist groups from Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
, Croydon
Croydon
Croydon is a town in South London, England, located within the London Borough of Croydon to which it gives its name. It is situated south of Charing Cross...
and Holt
Holt
- Natural world :* Holt, an otter den* Holt, an occasional name for a fox den* Holt, an area of woodland, e.g. a grove or copse, especially as a place-name in Great Britain, Scandinavia, Iceland, and Germany...
, the Gorton
Gorton
Gorton is an area of the city of Manchester, in North West England. It is located to the southeast of Manchester city centre. Neighbouring areas include Longsight and Levenshulme....
Socialist Society, the Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
Soviet, Stepney Communist League and the Labour Abstentionist Party.
E. T. Whitehead, of the Labour Abstentionist Party, became the secretary. Workers' Dreadnought
Workers' Dreadnought
Workers' Dreadnought was a newspaper published by variously-named political parties led by Sylvia Pankhurst.Provisionally titled Workers' Mate, the newspaper first appeared on International Women's Day, March 8, 1914, as Women's Dreadnought, with a circulation of 30,000.The paper was started by...
was adopted as the official weekly organ of the party and a provisional Organising Council of 25 members was elected to manage the affairs of the organisation pending a National COnference scheduled for September 1920. Soon there was a dispute with Guy Aldred
Guy Aldred
Guy Alfred Aldred - often Guy A. Aldred - was a British anarchist communist and a prominent member of the Anti-Parliamentary Communist Federation...
and the Glasgow Communist Group, who had suspended their support for the Third International on account of their avowed revolutionary parliamentarianism.
In the end the CP(BSTI) withdrew from the Communist Unity Convention, just as Lenin's pamphlet Left-Wing Communism: An Infantile Disorder came out with extracts being quickly translated. Lenin also wrote to the convention urging participation in parliament, something which was agreed by 189 votes to 19.
Meanwhile, the CP(BSTI) sent delegates to the Second Congress of the Third International, whereat they were instructed to unite with the Communist Party of Great Britain
Communist Party of Great Britain
The Communist Party of Great Britain was the largest communist party in Great Britain, although it never became a mass party like those in France and Italy. It existed from 1920 to 1991.-Formation:...
as founded at that convention. Upon their return a further conference was held in Manchester 18–19 September. Here they voted to accept the conditions of the Second Congress with reservations about taking parliamentary action. Sylvia Pankhurst
Sylvia Pankhurst
Estelle Sylvia Pankhurst was an English campaigner for the suffragist movement in the United Kingdom. She was for a time a prominent left communist who then devoted herself to the cause of anti-fascism.-Early life:...
of the WSF, one of the delegates to the congress, argued that the tactic of revolutionary parliamentarianism would be dropped at the next congress. She had been impressed by the size of the abstentionist faction at the congress, and reported that Lenin has said the issue was not important during an informal discussion.
At the third conference of CP(BSTI), Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, 4 December, the Statutes and These of the Third International were accepted, although there was a consensus that they were not bound to parliamentary action. The four Manchester branches saw this as a sell out, and resigned, taking 200 members with them. Whitehead and Pankhurst maintained they still had the freedom to fight for abstentionism within the CPGB, and they formally fused with them at the second Communist Unity Conference in Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, January 1921.
In response to this the Glasgow Communist Group inaugurated Red Commune declaring "there is no other party organ in this country ... that stands fearlessly for Communism. They all urge or compromise with, in some shape or form, parlamentarianism". At Easter that year they established the Anti-Parliamentary Communist Federation
Anti-Parliamentary Communist Federation
The Anti-Parliamentary Communist Federation was a communist group in the Britain. It was founded by the group around Guy Aldred's Spur newspaper - mostly former Communist League members - in 1921...
.
See also
- Communist Party (French Section of the Communist International) of the Region of Madagascar
- Communist Party of Spain (international) (1975)Communist Party of Spain (international) (1975)Communist Party of Spain , was a political party in Spain. It was formed following the 2nd conference of the Communist Party of Spain , which then changed its name to Party of Labour of Spain. The group reconstituted a party with the name PCE.In 1978 PCE was dissolved...
- International Communist PartyInternational Communist PartyThe International Communist Party is a left communist international political party which is often described by outside observers as Bordigist, due to the contributions by longtime member Amadeo Bordiga...
- International Communist Party (Dominican Republic)International Communist Party (Dominican Republic)International Communist Party is a small communist group in the Dominican Republic. The president of the party is Wilson del Obre...
- Internationalist Communist PartyInternationalist Communist PartyThe Internationalist Communist Party was a Trotskyist political party in France. It was the name taken by the French Section of the Fourth International from its foundation until a name change in the late 1960s....
- Internationalist Communist Party (Battaglia Comunista)Internationalist Communist Party (Battaglia Comunista)The Internationalist Communist Party is a left communist party in Italy.It was founded in 1952 by the wing of the International Communist Party led by Onorato Damen, which opposed Amadeo Bordiga's advocacy of a "return to Lenin"...