The Daubing of Winston Churchill

Tony Blair, Jack Straw, William Hague and Ann Widdecombe have all expressed their disgust and outrage at the malicious vandalism melted out to the statue of Sir Winston Churchill in Parliament Square.

You would expect such protests from Tory politicians. After all, Churchill represented the interests of British capitalism throughout his life. As for the so-called Labour leaders, their horror over Churchill's desecration shows how far removed they are from the traditions and heritage of the British working class.

It is worth recalling a few facts. Churchill was the a ruthless representative of big business. As Home Secretary in 1910, he ordered 600 Metropolitan Police into Tonypandy to deal with the strike of 30,000 miners in the Rhondda and Aberdare Valleys. He ordered General Nevil Macready, who later commanded the Black and Tans in Ireland, to go to South Wales to take charge of the military forces in the area.

Strikers and their families were continually attacked and bludgeoned by police, and one striker was killed. Churchill's troops later restored "order".

In the Dock Strike of 1911, again Churchill threatened to use 25,000 troops in defence of the employers. Asquith was forced to intervene "least Mr Churchill's habit of calling in the military to settle industrial disputes should bring open warfare in the streets." (Francis Williams). In the rail strike of the same year, Churchill nevertheless mobilised 50,000 troops to crush the strike. In Liverpool and Llanelli, troops opened fire on strikers.

After the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, Churchill gave whole-hearted backing to the White Armies and the forces of counter-revolution. He was behind the British counter-revolutionary expeditionary forces into Russia.

During the British General Strike of 1926, he edited the Government's newspaper, the British Gazette. According to Jimmy Thomas, the Railway workers' leader and betrayer of the strike: "How strongly Winston felt over the General Strike I have every reason to know; I remember meeting him behind the Speaker's chair a few hours before that great event, and he not only denounced the whole business, but did not hesitate to tell me that a little bloodshed would do no harm!

"I replied that I was quite sure he was ready to lead the tanks up Whitehall." (My Story, p. 238.)

Before the war, Churchill and his chums were delighted with Hitler's attacks on Bolshevism. Observed with favour the rise of Mussolini and Hitler. This "great" war leader only opposed German fascism when it threatened the interests of British capitalism.

In the General Election of 1945, this great Prime Minister then tried to frighten British workers away from Labour by saying a Labour victory would prepare the way for the Gestapo! This was out of desperation. It didn't pay off, and Labour was elected with a landslide. Became Tory Prime Minister again in 1951-55. When he died in 1965, he was not missed by class conscious workers who remembered his role as a ruthless representative of the British ruling class. This is the real character of Winston Churchill.