The British Union of

fascists
Overview

The BUF was founded in 1932 by Oswald

Mosley. The BUF modelled its ideology and
approach on those of the Italian Fascist
regime and Nazi Germany, both of which provided financial support for the British movement. It
was disbanded shortly after the beginning of World War II. Mosley was in prison during most of
the war. The BUF was racist and antisemitic, and in October of 1936, it held a march through
East London, an area to many Jewish people and Irish immigrants, turning into a violent crash
that became known as ‘the battle of cable street’. The struggle against fascism in World War 2
made the BUF and Mosley very unpopular. The BUF was banned in 1940.

Oswald Mosley

Mosley was born in Westminster in 1896. He was a promising labour

MP, before he became disillusioned with the lack of innovation with
tackling the economic crisis. He founded the New Party to promote his
own ideas in the 1931 election, but only gained 0.2 percent of the vote.
After this terrible result, he distanced from democracy, and after a visit
to Benito Mussolini in Italy, he converted to fascism, and founded the
British Union of Fascists in 1932. Mosley was imprisoned for 3 years
and the BUF was banned in 1940. He was released in 1943 when he
was deemed not a threat to the war effort.
Success and support

The BUF claimed 50,000 members at one point, and the daily mail was
an early supporter, running the headline ‘hurrah for the black shirts!’ (the supporters were
known as 'Blackshirts’ after the uniform they wore). Despite strong resistance from anti-
fascists, including the local Jewish community, the Labour Party, and the Communist Party of
Great Britain, the BUF found a small amount of support in the East End of London, where in the
London County Council elections of March 1937, it obtained reasonably successful results in
Bethnal Green, Shoreditch and Limehouse, polling almost 8,000 votes, although none of its
candidates was elected. Towards the middle of the 1930s, the BUF's violent clashes with
opponents began to alienate some middle-class supporters, and membership decreased. At the
Olympia rally in London, in 1934, BUF stewards violently ejected anti-fascist disrupters, and
this led the Daily Mail to withdraw its support for the movement. The level of violence shown at
the rally shocked many, with the effect of turning neutral parties against the BUF and
contributing to anti-fascist support
The communist Party of Great Britain

Overview

The Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) was the largest communist organisation in Britain
and was founded in 1920 through a merger of several smaller Marxist groups. Many miners
joined the CPGB in the 1926 general strike. In 1930, the CPGB founded the Daily Worker. In
1936, members of the party were present at the Battle of Cable Street, helping organise
resistance against the British Union of Fascists. The party beliefs focused on far-left ideologies
such as Marxism.
Success and support

The CPGB gained one seat in 1924 and 1935, and two in 1945. However, with a maximum 0.4
percent of the vote, it was clear British voters rejected communism. This was largely due to the
traditions and the strength of trade unions and labour movements. The Socialism that these
movements promoted was far more practical for British people compared to the more extreme,
revolutionary socialism that the Communists wanted. The CPGB gained more support due to
the role of Soviet Russia (the only communist state) in defeating Nazi Germany. The support for
the labour party was not big enough just through its own party, so the only way forward was in
a few inner – city councils through ‘entryism’ into the labour party, where communists would
conceal their true loyalties and infiltrate the labour party to try to steer national politics to the
radical left.