Conducts research and collects data on the global history of labour, workers, and labour relations

Walter Kendall

In February 2010 the IISH received the vast archive of Walter Kendall. All his life Kendall (born in London in 1926) combined political activism with serious scholarly ambitions. At the age of 18 he started working at the Ministry of Economic Warfare. At the same time he was active in the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers, and the Labour Party. During the 60s, he directed the magazine Voice of the Unions, and he received a grant to study at Ruskin College, Oxford. In 1969 his book, The Revolutionary Movement in Britain 1900-1921; The Origins of British Communism was published. Until he died, Kendall worked on a book that was to remain unpublished: "The World Revolution, the Russian Revolution and the Communist International 1898-1935." The Kendall archive includes hundreds of articles written for various periodicals. In addition to writing books and articles, Kendall was active in many other areas. His papers include correspondence on a campaign to liberate Len Wincott, a British sailor and communist who was improsoned in the Siberian Gulag during the 50s, as well as documents on the Polish Solidarity Campaign in Great Britain during the 80s. In October 2003 Kendall passed away after a protracted illness.


          Call number: BG A63/362

Posted: 
1 June 2010