British Brothers League

The British Brothers League was a British proto-fascist group that attempted to organise along paramilitary lines.

The group was formed in 1902 in East London as a response to waves of immigration from Eastern Europe that had begun in 1880 and had seen an influx of Jews into the area. As a result Captain William Stanley Shaw formed the BBL to campaign for restricted immigration with the slogan 'England for the English' and soon formed a close alliance with local Conservative MP Major Evans-Gordon. Initially the League was not antisemitic and was more interested in protectionism, although eventually it came to emphasis more rabid anti-foreigner rhetoric, with the Jews the main focus.

The League claimed 45,000 members, although membership was actually fairly irregular as no subscriptions were lifted and anyone who signed the organisation's manifesto was considered a member. As a result of this, attempts to militarise the group were largely a failure, although the movement continued to organise demonstrations against immigrants. The Aliens Act 1905, which restricted immigration, was largely seen as a success for the BBL and, as a result, the movement by and large disappeared.

External links

* [http://politics.guardian.co.uk/gallery/image/0,9353,-10805153757,00.html BBL rally poster]
* [http://www.searchlightmagazine.com/features/century/cbf.php?include=page2 Early British fascism]

Bibliography

* Robert Benewick, "Political Violence and Public Order", London, 1969