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Bliss Tweed Mill Strike 1913–14: Causes, Conduct and Consequences

In: A Business and Labour History of Britain

Author

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  • Mike Richardson

Abstract

The 1910–14 strike wave in Britain is generally associated with the infamous and intense industrial battles in the coal, cotton, transport, metal, engineering, shipbuilding, and building industries.1 It is not surprising, therefore, that localized disputes involving a single employer, especially in rural areas not renowned for militancy, tend to be overlooked or underestimated except in the annuals of local history.2 A six month strike, involving just 237 woollen textile workers (125 women and 112 men) which took place at Bliss Tweed Mill in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, is one such dispute. Yet, as the Oxford academics G. N. Clark and G. D. H. Cole argued at the time, there was much riding on this strike not only for those directly involved, but also for workers in Oxford, the nearest city to Chipping Norton: The strike now in progress at Chipping Norton is of exceptional significance. Wages in Oxfordshire are notoriously low. The Oxford tram strike of last year showed conclusively that there is no hope of improving the deplorably bad conditions of workers in Oxford unless there is a general upward movement in the surrounding country districts. Till the country worker is better off, he will always be tempted into towns to take the place of any town worker who endeavours to raise his wages.3

Suggested Citation

  • Mike Richardson, 2011. "Bliss Tweed Mill Strike 1913–14: Causes, Conduct and Consequences," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Mike Richardson & Peter Nicholls (ed.), A Business and Labour History of Britain, chapter 4, pages 60-82, Palgrave Macmillan.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:palchp:978-0-230-33700-8_4
    DOI: 10.1057/9780230337008_4
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