General Facts- 2015

Question 1

How many workers were on strike?

Answer 1

2.5 million

Question 2

How long did it last?

Answer 2

9 days

Question 3

What was the TIA

Answer 3

Triple Industrial Alliance ( made up of miners, transport workers and railway men)

Question 4

Why was the Coal Industry less important after 1918?

Answer 4

End of war, coal not needed for war effort and other countries producing coal at lower prices

Question 5

What happened to the coal industry after word war 1?

Answer 5

De nationalised/ privatised again

Question 6

What happened on Black Friday?

Answer 6

15 April railway union refused to act on the day of the strike

Question 7

What happened on Red Friday

Answer 7

Conservative government to give 9 month subsidy to help to pay the minors

Question 8

What would happen 9 months after Red Friday?

Answer 8

Subsidy would cease, hours would go up and pay would go down, possibly by as much as 13%

Question 9

What was Samuel commission?

Answer 9

It was set up to investigate problems in mining industry

Question 10

What did the Samuel commission find out?

Answer 10

Workers should accept lower pay but not longer hours

Question 11

Who was the leader of the minors?

Answer 11

Author Cooke

Question 12

Complete the following… Not a peny off the pay…

Answer 12

Not an hour on the day

Question 13

What event in Russia made the government worry about how far the Strike would develop?

Answer 13

1917 revolution, tsar and government force out of power by new communist government

Question 14

List four organisational tactics that the government planned to try to limit the impact of the strike?

Answer 14

Any of:

The country was divided into regions, with each on having permanent headquarters so reactions to local events would be faster and easier.

Resources were stockpiled

Organisation for the Maintenance of Supplies was set up

Control of the media during the strike

Armed forces were planned to maintain supplies guard installations and fight against the strikers if required.

Question 15

Which newspaper supported the strike?

Answer 15

The British Worker

Question 16

Which newspaper supported the government and attacked the strikers?

Answer 16

The British Gazette

Question 17

Describe 3 ways in which the TUC wanted the strikers to operate:

Answer 17

Come out in stages

Public health, medical and food workers not to strike.

Public not to be put at risk

Question 18

Why would the TUC want the strike to be like this?

Answer 18

To keep the public on their side and to show the government that it was a industrial dispute not a political threat

Question 19

How many people came out in strike on the first day?

Answer 19

Millions

Question 20

Where did clashes take place between the police and the strikers?

Answer 20

London, Newcastle and Glasgow

Question 21

Most areas were peaceful, why?

Answer 21

Neither police nor strikers wanted violence

Question 22

How many strikers were arrested for disorder?

Answer 22

Over 5000

Question 23

Why did the TUC call off the strike?

Answer 23

They felt they were kissing control of the strike and were becoming a threat to the government

Question 24

When did the last miners return to work and why?

Answer 24

November 1926, hunger and poverty

Question 25

What happened to many strike participants?

Answer 25

Victimised and blacklisted by employers, forced to sign a letter promising never to join a trade union

Question 26

What happened to numbers of those belonging to a trade union?

Answer 26

Fell for 7.9 million in 1919 too below 4 million in 1939

Question 27

What did the trade disputes act of 1927 state?

Answer 27

All general strikes and ‘sympathy strikes’ illegal.

Question 28

In what year was the general strike?

Answer 28

1926