Violence et syndicalisme dans le port de Londres en 1912

• Main Author: Tri Tran
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Presses Universitaires de la Méditerranée 2008-12-01
• Series: Cahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens
• Online Access: http://journals.openedition.org/cve/8528

In May 1912, shortly after the great miners’ strike, the workers of the port of London were called out by the National Federation of Transport Workers. The latter aimed at opposing employers’ federations and wanted to establish an alliance with the other trade unions. The confrontation between the management and the unions resulted in numerous outbreaks of violence and intimidatory tactics between unionists and strike breakers, which culminated in a few localized riots. Using parliamentary papers, Home Office records, and contemporary press accounts, this contribution attempts to explain the reasons of this violence and its psychological impact on the workers of the port of London and the inhabitants of the dockland. Recent research suggests clearly that East Enders had the impression of living in a violent and dangerous environment.