Ken Weller (1935-2021) and the socialist movement in Finsbury Park at the end of World War I

[From London Socialist Historians Group Newsletter 72 (Spring 2021)]

Ken Weller (1935-2021) and the socialist movement in Finsbury Park at the end of World War One

The libertarian socialist, activist and historian Ken Weller has died aged 85. An obituary is here .  It appears a collection of his writings will appear from PM Press, which will be welcome. One of his works is available online covering the anti-war network (1914-1918) in North London - see here 

 This brief extract on the socialist movement in Finsbury Park as World War One ended gives a flavour of this well researched and fascinating piece of socialist history 

“The scene at Finsbury Park after the War reflected the changed situation. Where previously the venue had been dominated by the Herald League, with the coming of peace out came all the groups and parties which had kept a low profile during the War. I. Renson, who was a teenager in that period, remembers Sunday mornings in the park: There were numerous platforms, sometimes up to 20 if one included the religious ones. I remember seeing the Herald League, the BSP, the National Socialist Party. the ILP and the Socialist Party of Great Britain. There was also the Labour Party and quite a few small organisations which folded up in a few years' time. some of them getting absorbed into other groups and parties like the Communist Party. Trade Unions also had platforms there.” 

I spoke with Ken Weller at his East London home on several occasions over the years about his historical researches. He was an activist writing above all histories of activism from below. Putting together such writing from fragmented sources requires a lot of work but also a deep understanding of how the left and its networks operated. It appears that Ken may have been another victim of the scourge of COVID, but his writings and life as an activist provide an admirable legacy. 

Keith Flett