100 years since the 1926 General Strike: nine days that shook Britain

100 years ago today, the British general strike began. To commemorate this milestone in the labour movement, the British Revolutionary Communist Party's general secretary, Ben Gliniecki, has written a book aimed at drawing out the hard-won lessons of this titanic class battle for communists today.

The book is available for order here from Wellred Britain. To give a taste of the book, we publish below the introduction, written by Rob Sewell, political secretary of the RCP and author of In the Cause of Labour and Chartist Revolution.

This year, 2026, marks the centenary of the 1926 General Strike, a towering monument in the landscape of British working-class history.

The Strike did not appear like a thunderbolt from a clear blue sky. It was rooted in and prepared by the social contradictions of the previous period.

After the First World War, Britain was no longer the dominant industrial and imperial power it had been in the nineteenth century. New rivals had emerged. Old industries were less competitive. Profits were under pressure. Britain had slipped from first place in the world economy, and was struggling to adjust to this new reality.

The owners of industry sought to resolve this problem by attacking the working class. Wages had to be cut. Working conditions had to worsen. Social spending had to be reduced. The burden of restoring competitiveness was placed squarely on the shoulders of those who worked for a living.

In the 1920s, this produced a growing militancy among workers. Miners, railway workers, transport workers and others resisted wage cuts and worsening conditions. They organised, struck and demanded leadership that would defend them. Political and industrial tensions mounted year after year until the General Strike finally broke out in 1926.

The Strike was nine days long and it shook the very foundations of British capitalism. In terms of the class struggle, an all-out general strike is no ordinary strike. Its dramatic impact in paralysing society poses the question of power: who actually runs society, the workers or the capitalists?

The 1926 British General Strike is an answer to all those sceptics – and there are many – who pour scorn on the very idea that workers can change society. It demonstrated in practice the potential power of the working class. The source of this power lies in the position of workers within production. They operate the transport systems, generate energy, manufacture goods and distribute necessities. They possess practical knowledge of how the economy functions because they are the ones who make it function.

In the course of the General Strike, Councils of Action – embryonic soviets – were thrown up. The spontaneous action of the working class gave rise to the beginnings of a dual power. The established constitutional state power was challenged by workers’ power. It demonstrated that not a wheel turns, not a light bulb shines, not a meal is delivered – the list is endless – without the kind permission of the working class.

Unfortunately, this power was not used in 1926 to carry through the overthrow of the capitalist system. The workers came close and tasted the potential. The fledgling Communist Party proved too weak and placed too much confidence in the left trade union leaders to take advantage of the situation. In the end, the General Strike was paralysed and betrayed by the leaders of the General Council of the Trade Union Congress (TUC).

The General Strike can seem out of character to the British tradition. After all, we have not had such a strike for one hundred years. It has seemingly vanished from the general consciousness. Nevertheless, there have been occasions in the last century, such as in 1972 and 1984, when another general strike was entirely possible. The social contradictions building up in Britain today in 2026 can produce similar conditions.

A century later, the pattern of contradictions that preceded 1926 is familiar. Britain again finds itself searching for a place in a changing world. Growth is weak. Debt is high. Productive industry has been hollowed out after decades of underinvestment and a shift towards speculation. Infrastructure decays while inequality grows.

Internationally, the framework that once underpinned global capitalism is fraying. Economic rivalry has intensified. Political alliances are unstable. Under these conditions, British capitalism once again seeks relief by cutting costs at home. The result has been a sharp fall in living standards, underfunded public services and widespread insecurity. The parallels could not be clearer. Class battles are on the order of the day.

As a result, we must learn the lessons of the past. A re-examination of the 1926 General Strike is of great importance for today.