Hurrah For The Blackshirts!: Fascists and Fascism in Britain Between the Wars

by Martin Pugh

Britain is celebrated for having avoided the extremism, political violence, and instability that blighted many European countries between the two world wars. However, disillusionment with parliamentary democracy, outbreaks of fascist violence, and fears of communist subversion in industry and the Empire ran through the entire period. Fascist organizations may have failed to attract the support they achieved elsewhere but fascist ideas were adopted from top to bottom of society and by men and women in all parts of the country. This book will demonstrate for the first time the true spread and depth of fascist beliefs - and the extent to which they were distinctly British.

Genres: History, Politics, British Literature, 20th Century, Nonfiction, War

416 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2005

About the author

Martin Pugh is a historian of nineteenth- and twentieth-century Britain, and was formerly professor of modern British history at the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. His publications include State and Society and The Pankhursts.

Reviews

[Dylan Horrocks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating account of fascism in the UK until the end of WW2. Typically, histories of fascism focus on those countries where fascism took power, and there's a tendency to interpret the history of the previous few decades (social, political and cultural currents) as indications of that society's inevitable drift towards fascism. In contrast, I'm used to thinking of early 20th century British history in the context of quite different narratives - the rise of the labour movement, women's suffrage; in short, the expansion of democracy culminating in the post-war welfare state. Pugh's book effectively removes that filter and allows one to see how deeply the roots of fascism ran through British society.

He demonstrates that fascism was not simply an imported ideology or an isolated fringe movement, but drew on deep British political and cultural tendencies and traditions, and sat very comfortably with much of the respectable conservative establishment (and, for that matter, with elements of the socialist movement, too). The Daily Mail's enthusiasm for Moseley's blackshirts (the books title was originally the headline of a Daily Mail editorial) is a reminder that those forces remain active in British society to this day.

This book offers a revealing insight into British politics and society. But also, by focusing on the rise of fascism in a country usually associated with its wartime resistance to it, Pugh allows us to see fascist ideology itself in a new light. Fascism wasn't simply an aberration that grew out of Italian and German conditions; it's an expression of currents that pervade all Western societies, and persist to this day.

I wish it were possible to read this book and feel nothing more than historical curiosity; instead, sadly, it's even more relevant today than when it was first published twelve years ago.

[Gareth Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can’t help thinking that ‘Hurrah for the Blackshirts’ is an unfortunate title. I know it is taken from Rothermere’s article for the Daily Mail, but it seems to trivialise the content of this serious and well informed study. Whilst the wilder eccentrics of British fascism are introduced, the main content is a wonderfully detailed account of between-the-wars politics with particular reference to the intersection between the better-connected fascists and right wing conservatives. There are fine chapters on the the abdication crisis and appeasement in the run up to the war.

Serious, well-written and wide-ranging, it was a joy to read. If only it didn’t have such an off-putting title.

[Reza Amiri Praramadhan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Contrary to the common perception that British people are supposedly immune to revolutionary thoughts because of its democratic and liberalistic traditions. Britain during interwar time was proven to be a fertile ground for many sorts of revolutionary thoughts. Started with some people disgruntled with the hubbub of parliamentary politics and hoped for an imperialistic revival, British fascism found its most powerful expression in Sir Oswald Mosley’s British Union of Fascists, nicknamed the Blackshirts for their military-style uniforms. Backed with many sympathetic MPs in parliament, and even mainstream media such as Daily Mail, the fascists were not doomed to fail, at least at first. However, series of unfortunate events unfavorable to the fascists, constant outmaneuvering by Stanley Baldwin’s National Government, the general antics of many aristocrats who were fascist sympathizers, and also the most important factor in their downfall, the slide towards full-blown antisemitism, british fascists were put in an awkward position of being Hitler’s apologists when general mood of the people was geared towards the war with fascist Germany. A good and informative book on british fascism, and why it fails to bloom before and after the World War II.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent study of British Fascism in the inter-war era. It is fair, judicious, and very well-written. While we might be inclined to dismiss Fascism as entirely un-British, the author argues that it could have been much stronger in Britain had the circumstances been different. The discussions surrounding the build-up to World War II further highlight the complexities of this period. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the period under review.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book, well written and easy to follow. A good starting point for any research into pre war Britain. It was also amusing in places.

[Oolalaa · Rating 5 out of 5]

18/20

[Gary Holtzman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating and, while it seemed firmly in the realm of history at the time Mr. Pugh wrote it, it unfortunately seems relevant again in the 2020s.

[Michael Cargill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting read.