When Roy Lambeth sent me these pictures I had no idea how I was going to present them. Keir Hardie was a giant in the history of the labour movement, I learned about him during my student days when I studied politics for a number of years. When I remembered he had worked in the coal mines in Scotland my enthusiasm was fired.
James Keir Hardie A Brief History.
1856.
James Keir Hardie was born born in a one-roomed cottage on August 15th, 1856, his Mother Mary was a servant in Lanarkshire, she became pregnant, but was unmarried, so "Keir" came into this world under a cloud. In those days such a thing was frowned upon, in fact it was thought of as bringing disgrace upon a family and many people would shun unmarried mothers.
Life was hard for most families, but must have been harder for a single parent and child. Mary latter married David Hardie who worked as a ships carpenter.
The family moved a couple of times first to Partick then back to Lanarkshire.
1864.
Keir began work at the age of 8 delivering bakery goods. ( in Partick ).
1866.
In 1866, at the age of ten or eleven ( some sources say ten others eleven ), Keir started work in a coal mine in Lanarkshire.
He was illiterate, again depending upon which story is true, until the age of eleven or seventeen. He read in the newspapers of workers who were trying to improve their pay and working conditions by forming trade unions.
1880.
Keir helped to start a union at the colliery he worked at, but after a strike in 1880, he was sacked.
1881.
The next year 1881, he moved to Old Cumnock and became a journalist for a local newspaper.
1886.
Five years later 1886, he was appointed secretary for the Ayrshire Miners' Union, and shortly afterwards he became secretary of the Scottish Miners' Federation.
In 1887 he began publishing The Miner, the name was changed later to the Labour Leader. The paper attempted to educate the miners on political matters.
1888.
Politically, he supported of the Liberal Party at first, but became disillusioned with them. He believed the working class needed a political party of its own and with support from the leader of the Lanarkshire miners, Robert Smillie, he began to push for socialism, in 1888 he stood in the constituency of Mid-Lanark. He was hoping for Liberal adoption however he became convinced that the Liberal Party would do nothing for the workers. He stood as an Independent Labour a candidate. He was unsuccessful and finished last in the election.
On August 25th.1888 he took part in forming the Scottish Labour Party and he became secretary with R.B. Cunninghame Graham becoming President.
Keir was a lay preacher and his political ideas were influenced by his devout religious beliefs.
1892.
Four years after he finished bottom of the poll in Mid-Lanark, James Keir Hardie was elected to Parliament by the people of the West Ham South constituency in London. He again stood as Independent Labour, two other Independent Labour men elected were, John Burns ( Battersea ) and J. Havelock Wilson ( Middlesborough ) the sailors leader.
Keir Hardie was escorted to Parliament by his constituents in a charabanc on which a small brass band was playing. Keir Hardie wore a cloth cap thus breaking with a long standing tradition of MPs wearing top hats and long black coats.
The policies he campaigned for or supported, included:-
1) A higher rate of income-tax for those earning over £1000 a year.
2) The provision of old age pensions.
3) Free schooling for the working class.
4) The reform of Parliament.
5) Votes for women.
6) Paying Members of Parliament.
7) Abolition of the House of Lords.
1893.
He helped form the Independent Labour Party in 1893, and he was elected as its leader and chairman.
1894.
June 25th. 1894, Keir Hardie opposed the vote ( in Parliament ), to send congratulations to the Queen upon the birth of a child to the Duchess of York ( who had given birth on June 23rd ).
This action would seem to the casual observer to be a bit severe, until other events are examined. On the very day that the Duchess gave birth, 260 workers were killed in a mining disaster at Cilfynydd. The following day the French President, M. Carnot was assassinated.
Sir William Harcourt, on behalf of the Government, moved that condolences be sent to France. Keir Hardie rose to ask whether some official regrets should not also be sent to those bereaved by the Cilfynydd disaster.
Sir William's reply "Oh, no, I can dispose of that now by saying that the House does sympathize with these poor people." this casual remark infuriated Keir Hardie so he believed he had to oppose the vote.
1895.
In the 1895 General Election he lost his seat.
1900.
Keir Hardie believed that the various trade unions and socialist groups would only be successful if they joined forces to form one large political party. 1900 saw the formation of the Labour Representation Committee, with J. Ramsay MacDonald elected secretary. ( This evolved and became the Labour Party in 1906 ). This same year (1900) Keir Hardie became an MP once again, this time he was elected by the people of Merthyr Tydfil in Wales. He was joined in Parliament by one other Labour MP, Richard Bell elected to represent the constituency of Derby. Shortly after they were joined by three others, David Shackleton ( Clitheroe, 1902 ), Will Crooks ( Woolwich, 1903 ), and Arthur Henderson ( Barnard Castle, 1903 ).
Richard Bell passed over to the Liberals in 1904.
1906.
The two Labour MPs were weak in Parliamentary terms so Keir Hardie made a pact with leaders of the Liberal Party not to stand against each other in 30 constituencies in the 1906 General Election. The pact resulted in obtaining 29 MPs for the Labour Party. The Liberal Party enjoyed success as well and they formed a new government.
Keir Hardie was elected Labour leader in the House of Commons, he held the position until 1908 when he resigned from the post.
1910.
Labour won 40 seats in the 1910 election and for a short time he was leader again.
1914.
Keir Hardie was a pacifist and tried to organize a national strike against Britain's participation in the war in 1914. He was denounced as a traitor by some of his former supporters because he took part in anti-war demonstrations.
James Keir Hardie died September 25th, 1915.
It has been said by some that he died of a broken heart.
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