George
Julian Harney, the son of a seaman, was born in Depford on 17th February,
1817. When Harney was eleven he entered the Boy's Naval School at
Greenwich. However, instead of pursuing a career in the navy he became
a shop-boy for Henry Hetherington,
the editor of the Poor Man's Guardian.
Harney was imprisoned three time for selling this unstamped newspaper.
This experience radicalized Harney and although he was initially a
member of the London Working Man's Association he became impatient
with the organisation's failure to make much progress in the efforts
to obtain universal suffrage. Harney was influenced by the more militant
ideas of William Benbow, James
Bronterre O'Brien and Feargus O'Connor.
In January 1837 Harney became one of the founders of the openly republican
East London Democratic Association. Soon afterwards Harney became
convinced of William Benbow's theory that a Grand
National Holiday (General Strike) would result in a uprising and
a change in the political system.
At the Chartist Convention held in the summer of 1839, Harney and
William Benbow convinced the delegates
to call a Grand National Holiday on 12th
August. Feargus O'Connor, argued against
the plan but was defeated. Harney and Benbow toured the country in
an attempt to persuade workers to join the strike. When Harney and
Benbow were both arrested and charged with making seditious speeches,
the General Strike was called off. Harney was kept in Warwick Gaol
but when he appeared at the Birmingham Assizes the Grand Jury refused
to indict him.
Disappointed by the failure of the Grand National
Holiday, Harney moved to Ayrshire, Scotland, where he married
Mary Cameron. Harney's exile did not last long and the following year
he became the Chartist organizer in Sheffield.
During the strikes of 1842 Harney was one of the fifty-eight Chartists
arrested and tried at Lancaster in March 1843. After his conviction
was reversed on appeal, Harney became a journalist for Feargus O'Connor's
Northern Star. Two years later
he became the editor of the newspaper.
Harney became interested in the international struggle for universal
suffrage and helped establish the Fraternal Democrats in September
1845. It was through this organisation that Harney met Karl
Marx and Friedrich Engels. Harney persuaded
both men to write articles for the Northern
Star. Excited by the Continental Revolutions of 1848, George
Julian Harney travelled to Paris in March, 1848 to meet members of
the Provisional Government.
Harney was now a socialist and he used the Northern
Star to promote this philosophy. Feargus
O'Connor disagreed with socialism and he pressurized Harney into
resigning as editor of the paper. Harney now formed his own newspaper,
the Red Republican. With the
help of his friend, Ernest Jones, Harney
attempted to use his paper to educate his working class readers about
socialism and internationalism. Harney also attempted to convert the
trade union movement to socialism.
In 1850
the Red Republican published
the first English translation of The Communist
Manifesto. The Red Republican
was not a financial success and was closed down in December, 1850.
Harney followed it with the Friend of the
People (December 1850 - April 1852), Star
of Freedom (April 1852 - December 1852) and The
Vanguard (January 1853 - March 1853).
After The Vanguard ceased publication
Harney moved to Newcastle and worked
for Joseph Cowen's newspaper, the Northern
Tribune and after travelling to meet French socialists
living in exile in Jersey, Harney became editor of the Jersey
Independent. Harney's support for the North in the American
Civil War upset Joseph Cowen and in November 1862 was forced to
resign.
In May 1863 Harney emigrated to the United States.
For the next fourteen years he worked as a clerk in the Massachusetts
State House. After his retirement he returned to England where he
wrote a weekly column for the Newcastle
Chronicle. George
Julian Harney
died on 9th December, 1897.
(1)
R. G. Gammage, History of the Chartist
Movement (1894)
George Julian Harney's talent was best displayed when he wielded
the pen; as a speaker he never came up to the standard of third class
orators. The more knowing politicians adjudged him to be a spy, but
there was no ground for such a supposition. Many a young man of inflexible
honesty has been as foolish in his day as was George Julian Harney.
Harney appeared to think that nothing but the most extreme measures
were of the slightest value. He was for moving towards the object
by the speediest means, and he seldom, if ever, stopped to calculate
the cost. It might serve very well for men who wanted a reputation
for bravery to deal out high sounding phrases about death, glory,
and the like; but no body of men have the right to organise an insurrection
in a country, unless fully satisfied that the people are so prepared
as to hold victory in their very grasp; and a conviction of such preparedness
should be founded on better evidence than their attendance at public
meetings, and cheering in the moment of excitement the most violent
and inflammatory orator.
(2)
George Julian Harney, speech at Derby, 28th January, 1839.
We demand Universal Suffrage, because we believe the universal suffrage
will bring universal happiness. Time was when every Englishman had
a musket in his cottage, and along with it hung a flitch of bacon;
now there was no flitch of bacon for there was no musket; let the
musket be restored and the flitch of bacon would soon follow. You
will get nothing from your tyrants but what you can take, and you
can take nothing unless you are properly prepared to do so. In the
words of a good man, then, I say 'Arm for peace, arm for liberty,
arm for justice, arm for the rights of all, and the tyrants will no
longer laugh at your petitions'. Remember that.
(3)
George Julian Harney, speech in London on emigration that was reported
in the Northern Star (5th January,
1850).
George Julian Harney declared that he had no objection to emigration,
providing the right persons were sent away - the idlers and the plunderers.
But he strongly objected to the transportation of the industrious
classes.
History
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