1915 Glasgow rent strikes
| 1915 Glasgow rent strikes | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Date | March 1915 - November 1915 | ||
| Location | |||
| Caused by | Rent increases | ||
| Resulted in | Passage of rent control | ||
| Number | |||
| |||
The 1915 Glasgow rent strikes were a series of tenant mobilizations by Glasgow, Scotland tenants opposing rent increases by landlords, who raised rents following a housing shortage.[1]
Background[edit]
In February 1915, Glasgow landlords announced that all rents would be increased by 25%. In response meetings were held by tenants across the city.[2] That same month the Glasgow Women's Housing Association had its first meeting to resist rent increases.[3][2]
In Govan in March 1915, a landlord attempted to evict a woman in response to her rent debt of £1 (equivalent to £85 in 2021).[3] In response, hundreds of angry neighbors led by John Wheatley, a socialist politician and member of the Independent Labor Party (ILP), blocked the way into her apartment, which prevented the evictors from carrying out the eviction.[4]
Strike[edit]
The rent strikes formally began in September 1915 by the Glasgow Women's Housing Association.[2] However many tenants were already withholding sections of rent before then, paying only the normal amount before the increase, refusing to comply with the rent raise.[2]
Mary Barbour, also a member of the (ILP) led much of the rent strikes. The peak of the strikes was in November 1915, when around 20,000 families were participating in it.[4] One notable victory for tenants occurred after the city attempted to charge 49 tenants for striking on November 17. In response to the charges striking residents gathered outside the courthouse and lead a massive demonstration outside for the entire day which led the city to drop all charges.[4]
Soon after on November 25, the Increase of Rent and Mortgage Interest (War Restrictions) Act 1915 was introduced and passed by parliament on November 27.[5][3] It froze rent increases at 1914 levels unless landlords could prove improvements were made to the property.[3][6] The law however was consistently weakened after 1915.[4]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ "Glaswegian Women Campaign for Rent Control, Scotland, 1915". Global Nonviolent Action Database. Swarthmore College. Retrieved 2023-11-05.
- ^ a b c d "Our Housing Heritage: How Glasgow tenants 'fought the huns at home' during World War One". Scottish Housing News. 2020-09-03. Retrieved 2023-11-05.
- ^ a b c d "The rent strikes - Domestic impact of World War One - society and culture". BBC Bitesize. Retrieved 2023-11-05.
- ^ a b c d "1915 Glasgow Rent Strike: how workers fought and won over housing". rs21. 2015-06-12. Retrieved 2023-11-05.
- ^ Sommerlad, Joe (2021-05-14). "A short history of community action in Glasgow, from the Rent Strike of 1915 to Scottish independence". The Independent. Retrieved 2023-11-05.
- ^ 1914-16 The Public General Acts Passed in the Fifth and Sixth Years of the Reign of King George the Fifth; Being the Fifth Session of the Thirtieth Parliament of the United Kingdom and Ireland. Eyre & Spottiswoode. 1916. pp. 345–351.
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