Striking a Light: The Bryant and May Matchwomen and their Place in History

Description

In July 1888, fourteen hundred women and girls employed by the matchmakers Bryant and May walked out of their East End factory and into the history books. Louise Raw gives us a challenging new interpretation of events proving that the women themselves, not celebrity socialists like Annie Besant, began it. She provides unequivocal evidence to show that the matchwomen greatly influenced the Dock Strike of 1889, which until now was thought to be the key event of new unionism, and repositions them as the mothers of the modern labour movement. Returning to the stories of the women themselves, and by interviewing their relatives today, Raw is able to construct a new history which challenges existing accounts of the strike itself and radically alters the accepted history of the labour movement in Britain.

Louise Raw is a Labour historian with a background in the Trade Union movement and political campaigning. She has spoken throughout the world and in the media about her research into the matchwomen's strike, and writes a monthly column for The Morning Star.She has appeared on television and radio as well as delivering many talks in the local and Union communities.

In a careful reconstruction of events, Raw exposes inaccuracies in the standard accounts ... [she] tells a great story with a terrific cast of characters ... parts of the book read like a detective story, with Raw ingenious in tracking down the strike leaders. * Times Higher Education * The Match Girls Strike is "integral to our national story". [It is a] history lesson that should be taught in our schools. * Jeremy Corbyn MP, leader of the Labour Party * A spectacular but very readable account of epic original research that has uncovered a very different story from the traditional tale ... [Raw's] claim for this as an important foundation of New Unionism is strong also, so this really is a must-read book if you're interested in British political history. -- Natalie Bennett, former leader of the Green Party of England and Wales [Louise is] a most excellent historian ... [an] excellent book. -- Ed Vaizey, former UK Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries I am most grateful to Louise Raw, whose outstanding work first published in 2009 documents in fine detail the strike and the events leading up to it. -- Lyn Brown, MP for West Ham Louise Raw must be congratulated for her persistence over many years to try and discover what really happened at Bryant and May in 1888 as she has produced a book of vital importance. -- Book of the Month (August 2014) * Unite * Raw's book is infused with a desire to right an historical wrong, and to give credit to those who through enduring hardship deserve it ... Raw's primary motive is that the true contribution of the matchwomen be given proper respect in trade union history. She convinces me. * Tribune * In this study the author offers a new interpretation of the famous London matchgirls' strike of July 1888. Returning to the stories of the women themselves and using interviews with some of their descendants, she sets out to prove that, contrary to the commonly held view, the women themselves begin began the strike, not celebrity socialists like Annie Besant. * International Review of Social History * Don't miss this now it is out in paperback. * Labour Research * This is an extraordinary book ... The conclusion reached by the author, as a result of the most detailed research extending over many years, was that the strike was not confined to hapless young girls. * Spokesman * The Matchwomen are part of the fabric of the trade union movement in this country and as such quite rightly deserve their place in our history. I am confident Louise's excellent and sympathetic book will ensure that this happens. * Working Class Movement Library * Well-conceived and researched ... this is a book that deserves the opportunity to overturn [the] traditional interpretation. * International Socialism * This is a good example of revisionist historical writing which gives full credit to an important and usually misunderstood event. * Contemporary Review * The work is a major contribution to labour and social history. Incredibly well researched and written ... an absolute must for serious historians. -- Terry McCarthy * The Morning Star *