The biggest and most influential revolutionary party to have existed in Britain was the Communist Party founded in August 1920. Despite rapidly succumbing to Stalinism, the CPGB represented strong roots in the working class and immense potential. Here PHIL HEARSE explains how the party was founded and why, despite very different conditions today, the story of its foundation has many lessons for Marxists. WITHOUT the Russian revolution of 1917, and without the active intervention of the Communist International founded by Lenin and Trotsky in 1919, the formation of the Communist Party in 1920 would have been impossible.
The Comintern and Lenin's personal intervention creaico the conditions 100 the unity of warring socialist groups, and a political clarification of fundamental problems. This involved the fight against passive propagandism and against ultraBy far the biggest organisation involved in the foundation of the CP wis the British Socialist Party (BSP). The BSP came out of the old Social Democratic Federation, Britain's first Marxist party, founded in 1893.
Pro-imperialist
Changing its name to the BSP in 1911. this party had been marred by the pro-imperialist positions of its founder-leader in the BSP with the onset of the First World War, with the majority adopting an anti-war position, and Hyndman lead. ing a minority out of the party. highly propagandistic, in line with much of the British socialist movement. The idea of active intervention as a party in workers struggles was almost absent; the tradition of passive Sunday school-type propaganda for abstract "socialism' was very strong.
It was however in the BSP that the idea of forming a unified Communist Party took root after the Russian revolution. But the BSP had to deal with several other Tom Mann socialist formations, more or less committed to Marxism.
Scotland
The Socialist Labour Party (SLP), strong in scotland, nad ocea formico un der the influence of the American De Leonist semi-syndicalist tradition. James Connolly and John McLean were its most This tradition rejected both unpolitical unkxist and polacal acton invorvig standing for parliament. It was in fact a combination of syndicalist ideas and the propagandism typical of the British socialist movement.
The third main grouping was the Workers Socialist Federation (WSF) led member of the famous suffragette family. Sylvia Pankhurst had a formidable reputation for organising among the working class in the East End of London, and had links with the South Wales Socialist Society, an informal organisation of working class socialist propagandists. determinedly revolutionary, but also very ultra-left.
The fourth major factor to be taken into consideration was the Shop Stewards Movement, and especially its Civ deside component, built out of the wartime struggles of "Red Clydeside' and including some of Britain's most famous socialist leaders.
Many in the Shop Stewards Movement were deeply influenced by the Russian revolution, but opposed to the idea of building a revolutionary party. They sought affiliation to the Communist International, but opposed Bolshevik ideas about organising the working class vantionary change coming through Housina raker than pondcal acaon.
Lenin and the Bolshevik leadership insisted on the fight for unity among the different revolutionary groups. However overall Lenin insisted on a combination of the fight for unity and a fundamensal political clarification against both ultraleft and opportunist ideas.
The issue of affiliation to the Labour Party, favoured by the BSP, became a touchstone debate, a central point of clintication for tie unity process.
The SLP eventually split over the question of unity, a minority going on to join in the Communist Unity Convention in August 1920 and eventually the formation of the Communist Party itself in September. Some of the party's most prominent leaders, such as Tom Bell and IT Murphy, came from the SI.P.
Sylvia Pankhurst, bitterly opposed to work in the unions, standing in parliamentary elections and affiliating to the Labour Party, lumped the sun and formed her own Communist Party (British Section of the Third International) in 1919. Lenin fought her political ideas. and insisted that the 'BSTT' go into the Lenin's answers to Sylvia Pankhurst and Willie Gallagher in the Shop Stewards Movement, on the question of the revolutionary attitude to parliament, the Labour Party and work remains among the classics of Marxism (1). His fundamental point was that revolutionaries have no illusions in parliament or the union leaders, but seek every platform to influence the working class masses. "Lenin's fundamental point was that revolutionaries have no illusions in parliament or More than that, the Communists should seck to influence reformist workLenin: 'without revolutionary theory there can be no revolutionary party' the affiliation of all the unions. Thus he argued it was possible for the Communist Party to formally affiliate, but only on the basis of open action as the Communist Party, agitation for the dictatorship of the proletariat and open criticism of the leadership of the Labour Party on that basis.
ates important to streas that this acoate was conducted between all sides on the issue of the formal affiliation of the Communist Party as a narty to Labour. considered possible because of the kind of coctal structire of the Labour Party al that time. Thas it was a very different debate to subsequent debates among Marxists about the usefulness of working in the Labour Party. The political basis the right to build the Communist Party openly within the Labour Party.
Insufficient
Lenin was however narticularly atten tive to the question of the Shop Stewards Movement, and its fundamental role in the building of a Communist Party. Lenin insisted that the 6000 or so members of the BSP were an insufficient basis to get a row nearing among to masso. bate with the Shop Stewards Movement over whether a revolutionary party was necessary or whether the workers could rely on purely industrial strike action.
At the Second Congress of the Comintern he answered Jack Tanner in the fol. lowing way: "If comrade Tanner says he is opposed to parties but at the same time in favour of an organised minority of the best organised and most revolutionary workers, then I say there is no difference between us...an organised minority, if it leads the masses, if it is capable of answering every question of the day is essentially a party.