Arthur MacManus

Arthur MacManus (1889–1927) was a Scottish trade unionist and communist politician.

Biography

Early years

Arthur MacManus was born in 1889.

Political career

MacManus joined the De Leonist Socialist Labour Party (SLP) and began work at Singers in Clydebank, then known as part of the Red Clydeside. However, he was sacked in April 1911 following an unsuccessful strike.

Supporting the SLP's opposition to World War I, MacManus was arrested in 1915 at a meeting in George Square, Glasgow, for speaking against the threatened introduction of conscription.

MacManus became a leading member of the Clyde Workers Committee, and for supporting David Kirkwood in the William Beardmore and Company strike of 1916, he was one of five people deported to Edinburgh.

In the 1918 UK general election, MacManus stood unsuccessfully for the SLP in Halifax. Following the October Revolution, he became a proponent of a united communist party. In January 1919, he was appointed to serve on a Unity Committee, to engage in discussions on uniting with the British Socialist Party, Workers Socialist Federation and various smaller groups.