Chartism: a new history

Chartism has been subject to a great deal of academic scrutiny in recent years – albeit by a relatively small, dedicated group of historians. One result has been the publication of a fascinating series of books dealing with specific aspects of the Chartist movement.
One of the more interesting books, at least from my point of view, was Papers for the People: A Study of the Chartist Press, edited by Joan Allen and Owen Ashton. But I also enjoyed Keith Flett’s Chartism After 1848, which proved extraordinarily hard to get hold of (even for ready cash) but was a fascinating account of late Chartism’s involvement in the politics of radical education.
What has been lacking, however, is a reliable overview of Chartism. Later this month, Malcolm Chase, Reader in Labour History at the University of Leeds, will fill that gap with the publication of Chartism: A New History.
The book runs from 1838 to 1858, when the National Charter Association was finally wound up. This is particularly important as so many general histories tend to treat Chartism as dead after the third petition of 1848. In fact, although it was never again a mass movement after that date, the ideas developed by the later Chartist movement and the schooling it gave to a younger generation of working class radicals were crucial to the later development of trade unions, the ultimately successful campaign to extend the franchise, and even the emergence of the socialist organisations which would form the basis of the modern Labour Party.
Although the book is not published until 30 June, I am writing about it now because Malcolm Chase has kindly allowed me to run an index of nearly 500 names from Chartism: A New History on my Chartist Ancestors website. The site is widely used by people researching their family history who believe that they have some Chartist connections, and will undoubtedly be much appreciated by them. In fact, the index appearing on the site is somewhat longer than that which will appear in the book, as space constraints are more pressing in print than online.
In addition to his academic post at the University of Leeds, Malcolm Chase chairs the Society for the Study of Labour History and has published extensively on Chartism and Labour history. I’m in no doubt at all that his latest book will become a standard text for the study of Chartism – as well as a must-read account for those with a less academic interest in the subject.