Spirit of Revolt Big Day.

       Friday May 10th. 2019 was an important date for Spirit of Revolt, of course we have lots of important dates at SoR, but this one marked the occasion of our first collection being entered into the Mitchell Library Archive Catalogue and will now be available in the reading room of the archive department on the 5th. floor. Spirit of Revolt has 38 collections listed on its website, and others in the pipeline. Most of them contain thousands of documents and most have a considerable number of those documents scanned and on line to read on the website https://spiritofrevolt.info However the Allan Burnett is the first collection to be completely, scanned and on line. Hence our pride in seeing it now being readily available for the public through both our own website and the Mitchell Library Archive Catalogue.
         The scanning process is slow and time consuming, but the backbone of getting our material on line to make it easily accessible to the public at large. Have a look at our website and see what we stand for, and if you feel you would like to volunteer to be part of that operation then you can contact us at info@spiritofrevolt.info

 

       Our archivist, Paula, in the middle, and wrinkly old me, handing over the completed Allan Burnett Collection to a Mitchell archivists. 

     A proud Paula handing over to wrinkly old me, the SoR catalogue, that will be available in the reading room of the Mitchell Library Archive Department.

      A proud moment when I sit down and peruse the Spirit of Revolt, Allan Burnett Collection catalogue that will be available to the public in the reading room of the Mitchell Library Archive Department.  

       A big thank you to all those who made this possible.

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk 

Happy Birthday.

 

        This month marks the 6th anniversary of the birth of Spirit of Revolt Archive. August 2011 a small group of dedicated activists sat down in a café in Glasgow and put in place their ideas to preserve the history of the struggles of the ordinary people in their city and Clydeside area. From that small band with their ideas, has grown what I believe to be a unique archive of considerable scope and breadth. It was not just a desire to record and preserve this valuable history, but to make it all easily accessible to the public at large. This requires a small army of dedicated volunteers to sit and scan thousands of documents to make them available on our website, so you don't have to make your way to a library in Glasgow to read them, but can do it from the comfort of your home. Have a look at our collection, read rare documents from the past and not so distant past, learn about the struggles of your parents, grand parents and actions you may have been involved in yourself. It is a living history, still being created by you, your friends and neighbours.

       Browse our catalogue, transport your self in to the struggles of ordinary people as they strive for that better life for all. I believe it was George Orwell who said, and I paraphrase, "the best way to destroy a people is to destroy their history". Without a record of our history we become a people without a history or a culture. We must never let that happen, we have a very rich history, of which we can be very proud, our history is our culture, it's who we are. Our archive strives to make sure our history is preserved, recorded and made readily available for all. 

       All this requires time and volunteers, but sadly it also requires money, and it is always a struggle to keep ahead of the financial demands the capitalist system makes on us. We believe what we do is not only valuable, but necessary, if you also feel this way, perhaps you can see you way to helping with a small donation, one of or, a monthly direct debit, no amount is too small. You can donate by going to our DONATE page and follow the instructions there. In anticipation of you thoughtful generosity, a big thank you. 

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

Our History, Spirit of Revolt.

         Spirit of Revolt Archive is an extensive collection of Glasgow/Clydeside non-party political struggles of ordinary people. We have rare one of documents from away back, to papers, books, magazines, leaflets and banners, etc. right up to date, plus international papers and memorabilia. As volunteers we work hard at making this material available and easily accessible to the general public by digitalising as much as possible, as quickly as possible and putting it up on our website. The range of subject matter is as varied as the people in the area we try to cover, and we consider it a very important party of the history of the ordinary people. 

           One of the latest additions to the digitalised collection is two issues of The Wolverine, a London based publication whose headline is gay voices of hostility, you can read them HERE:
           All this work is done by volunteers who give hours of their time to managing the collection and sitting scanning this material and putting it on line. Sadly time and effort is not always enough, in this capitalist world we do need money, there are always on-going needs from stationery to equipment to web hosting, but our biggest outlay is having to pay for an archivist to catalogue the collection to international standard. I'm sure there are lots of you out there with a few quid extra in your pockets and who think what we do is really worth while and are worth supporting. We are very grateful for any donation, £2, £5, or what ever, either as a one of donation or as a standing order. Thanking you in anticipation of your generosity.

Details:

 

 Unity Trust Bank plc.

 Account name: Spirit of Revolt

 Account number: 20290793

 Sort code: 60-83-01

You can contact us at info(at)spiritofrevolt(dot)info 

Visit ann arky's home at www.radicalglasgow.me.uk

Spirit of Revolt.

      Spirit of Revolt is a group of enthusiasts who are passionate about collecting, saving and cataloguing material from grass-roots campaigns and struggles, in the belief that it is an essential part of the history of the ordinary people, and is free of party political politics. It is the part of our history that seldom finds a home and is lost to future generations. Each generation can learn from the actions of the past, but only if that past is available. That is why the group is intent on making all this material easily accessible through the medium of their website and the catalogue system of the Mitchell Library. We are also keen to put on exhibitions in various locations similar to our recent successful exhibition on Radical Presses Clydeside, held in the Mitchell Library foyer.

     This is the history of the ordinary people of the Clydeside area, part of our culture, and if we let it disappear, we become a people without a history, a people without a culture. There is also the point that without this section of history, recorded history becomes a distorted image.

     The cataloguing is well under way, images are being scanned on a regular basis and will eventually find their way onto our website. The website is slowly taking shape but still has a long way to go, images being the next big part of the project.

      Why not visit our website, have a look, make a comment, 

www.spiritofrevolt.info

      Though all those involved are unpaid volunteers, sadly all this work can't survive on passion alone and funding is always a problem. So we welcome any donation no matter how small, it will always be gratefully received.

ann arky's home.

SPANISH CIVIL WAR, 75 YEARS AGO THIS YEAR.

PRESS RELEASE:      Files reveal full extent of British involvement in the Spanish Civil War.

        More volunteers may have left Britain with the aim of joining the International Brigades in Spain than previously thought according to documents discovered at The National Archives.

      This year marks the 75th anniversary of the start of the Spanish Civil War in July 1936. Despite the British government’s official policy of non-intervention, thousands of men and women from Britain and Ireland were inspired by their political beliefs to fight in defence of the Spanish Second Republic. They were among the first of a generation defined by the fight against Fascism.

        The British Security Service, sometimes known as MI5, was interested in which British volunteers were defying the ban to fight in Spain as many were also suspected members of the Communist Party. 

      James Cronan, Diplomatic and Colonial Records Specialist at The National Archives, said: “The records show that the Security Service tracked the movements of around 4,000 people it believed were trying to travel to Spain to fight with the International Brigades, many more than previously thought. It’s not clear how many made it to Spain although we know that hundreds never returned. “The International Brigades brought volunteers together from all over the world in defence of democracy but few if any records exist of their service. That’s why uncovering a document like this is so exciting.”

      The list has now been digitised and is available to view online at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/spanish-civil-war. It provides researchers and historians with a valuable new resource and is a good starting point for anyone wishing to find out whether a relative fought in Spain. The annotated list includes entries for the poet John Cornford, union leader Jack Jones and Eric Blair, better known as George Orwell, whose famous book Homage to Catalonia detailed his experiences with the International Brigades.

CAPA; Refugees on the beach.

      The newly-digitised material contains more than 200 pages of names and dates detailing the movements of the men and women who left British ports on their way to the frontline in Spain and a roll of honour of those killed in action. A selection of index cards have also been digitised and put online for notable brigade volunteers including the classicist Bernard Knox, Irish Brigade leader Frank Ryan and George Orwell as well as recently deceased veterans such as Sam Lesser, Bob Doyle, Jack Edwards and Paddy Cochrane.

     A ceremony will be held on 2 July 2011 at the International Brigades Memorial in Jubilee Gardens, London to mark the 75th anniversary of the start of the conflict with two of the five surviving British veterans. Further commemorations are planned later this year.

Contact secretary@international-brigades.org.uk for details.

For media enquiries please contact Thomas Norton on 0208 392 5277 or e-mail press@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk

ann arky's home.