The Lion of Freedom: Feargus O'Connor and the Chartist Movement, 1832-1842

This title is printed to order. This book may have been self-published. If so, we cannot guarantee the quality of the content. In the main most books will have gone through the editing process however some may not. We therefore suggest that you be aware of this before ordering this book. If in doubt check either the author or publisher’s details as we are unable to accept any returns unless they are faulty. Please contact us if you have any questions.

This book offers an evaluation of the political leadership of Feargus O'Connor, the most prominent leader of the Chartist movement. This study covers the period from 1832-1842 - from O'Connor’s election to Parliament through to the establishment of his ascendency over the national leadership of the Chartist movement.Central to this study is a consideration of the principal institutions of national radical leadership, organisation and agitation - the platform and the mass demonstration, the Chartist Press and National Charter Association. While O'Connor came to prominence in the familiar role of the radical gentleman orator at the mass demonstration which heralded the advent of Chartism, he was able to turn his appeal as a charismatic demagogue towards the creation of more permanent and democratic forms of working-class organisation and leadership. Not simply a political biography of O'Connor, this book offers a general history of Chartism and provides an interpretive framework for understanding this complex political movement