The 43 Group - Softcover

Beckman, Morris

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0752499424 ISBN 13: 9780752499420

Publisher: The History Press, 2013

Synopsis

Written by a founding member, the remarkable history of an incredibly effective anti-fascist action group that shut down thousands of fascist meetings and rallies

Oswald Mosley decided he could carry on where Hitler and Mussolini had left off, and on street corners his fascist speakers would proclaim "not enough Jews were burned at Belsen." Enter the 43 Group. In a ferocious, bloody, and brilliantly covert five-year campaign, they destroyed the Mosleyites. The membership of the Group was almost entirely made up of British servicemen, the original 43 members quickly swelling to more than 300 and including a Battle of Britain ace, a VC winner—and Vidal Sassoon. The Group's philosophy of the "3 D's"—Discuss, Decide and Do it—was quickly manifested on the streets of London, with literally thousands of fascist meetings and rallies sent packing. Quickly gaining a reputation, the 43 Group was organized in "wedges" of a dozen or so. These wedges would attend a British Union of Fascists rally and at a given signal would storm the speaker's platform, attacking BUF stewards and speaker. The Group's military background ensured tight discipline and brutally effective actions. This, combined with a number of spies within the fascist ranks, ensured the 43 Group almost always came out on top, closing down two-thirds of all fascist activity in the UK until its simultaneous demise with organized fascism in Britain in 1950.

About this title

About the Author:

Morris Beckman was a founding member of the 43 Group. He is the author of The Jewish Brigade. Vidal Sassoon (1928-2012) was an internationally famous hairdresser, businessman, and philanthropist, and the author of Vidal. He was the youngest member of the 43 Group. David Cesarani is a historian who specializes in Jewish history and the author of Becoming Eichmann.

About this edition

• Publisher: The History Press
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0752499424
• ISBN 13: 9780752499420
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 240