| Description | Papers and photographs of Dan Chater (1870-1959), MP for Bethnal Green North-East, 1935-1950, and his son Alfred. Including: birth, marriage and death certificates of Alfred; letter to Alfred's wife, Helen, regarding his life insurance policy payment; Alfred's Will, leaving everything to his wife; and photographs including: Alfred and Helen, Helen, several of Daniel Chater, and some unidentified. |
| AdminHistory | Daniel Chater was active for many years in the trade union and co-operative movements. He became MP for Bethnal Green North East at the General Election in 1935. His extensive political interests included membership of the Plebs League, whose raison d'etre was education for the working classes. It was formed by students at Ruskin College, Oxford, some of whom were dissatisfied by the lack of Marxist influence in the curriculum (1/2).
He held strong views about the financial crisis of the 1930s. In a newspaper article he targeted how 'inestimable injury to the people has been done; industry has been dislocated; confidence shaken ... genuine industry is starved of credit and the unemployment figures take an upward leap' (3).
He frequently addressed events which held potential national and international significance. Take a major protest against the hated Means Test organised by East London Labour organisations, culminating in a gathering at Tower Hill, and locally advertised as 'March To Tower Hill' (4). A companion article written by Ernest Bevin described the Means Test as 'designed to emphasize the differences between the workers and the masters' (5).
Daniel spoke at a demonstration staged by the Co-operative Movement in 1938 in support of the League of Nations, against the backdrop of the slogan 'Stand By The League of Nations' (6). During WW2, he supported a campaign calling for a ban on Fascist organisations in Britain (7).
He represented Bethnal Green North East until 1950, when the constituency was abolished by boundary changes, then stood down from Parliament.
Sources of information
1. 'Formation Of The Plebs League' at Working Class Movement Library
2. 'The Plebs League' in spartacus-educational.com
3. 'What The Financial Crises Mean For The Common People': p.2 in Reynolds Illustrated News, 13th July 1930.
4. 'March To Tower Hill ': p.12 in The Daily Herald, Thursday, 23rd July 1936.
5. 'Means Test Aim Is To Degrade': Ernest Bevin in p.12 Ibid (via 'Record', Journal of The TGWU)
6. 'Stand By The League of Nations': p.11 in The Daily Herald, Saturday 26th February 1938
7. 'Great Protest Meeting': p.11 in The Daily Mirror, Saturday, 20th February 1943.
(References 3-7: The British Newspaper Archive)
Autobiography of Daniel Chater MP c.1951 (Hull History Centre) |