Hunter Watts
Encyclopedia
John Hunter Watts known as Hunter Watts, was a British
socialist activist.
Based in Manchester
, Watts was an active secularist before joining the Social Democratic Federation
(SDF). While he was friendly with William Morris
, he remained with the SDF when Morris left to found the Socialist League
in 1885. He then became treasurer of the SDF, and was a notable figure in the organisation's major 1886 demonstration against unemployment. During the late 1880s, he was the group's organiser in Manchester.
Watts was elected to the reorganised Executive of the SDF in 1895, serving for one year, then again from 1902 to 1906. He spoke in favour of socialist Sunday schools
, and published State Maintenance for School Children in 1904. In 1906, he was a leading opponent of proposals to affiliate the SDF to the Independent Labour Party
. He served on the executive again in 1911, and remained with the group as it became the British Socialist Party
. He opposed the toleration of syndicalists within the membership of the new organisation.
Always loyal to SDF leader H. M. Hyndman, Watts joined his pro-war split in 1916, the National Socialist Party
. His daughter, Frediswyde Hunter-Watts, became an actress, achieving acclaim in Australia. with her husband Allan Wilkie
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
socialist activist.
Based in Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, Watts was an active secularist before joining the Social Democratic Federation
Social Democratic Federation
The Social Democratic Federation was established as Britain's first organised socialist political party by H. M. Hyndman, and had its first meeting on June 7, 1881. Those joining the SDF included William Morris, George Lansbury and Eleanor Marx. However, Friedrich Engels, Karl Marx's long-term...
(SDF). While he was friendly with William Morris
William Morris
William Morris 24 March 18343 October 1896 was an English textile designer, artist, writer, and socialist associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and the English Arts and Crafts Movement...
, he remained with the SDF when Morris left to found the Socialist League
Socialist League (UK, 1885)
The Socialist League was an early revolutionary socialist organisation in the United Kingdom. The organisation began as a dissident offshoot of the Social Democratic Federation of Henry Hyndman at the end of 1884. Never an ideologically harmonious group, by the 1890s the group had turned from...
in 1885. He then became treasurer of the SDF, and was a notable figure in the organisation's major 1886 demonstration against unemployment. During the late 1880s, he was the group's organiser in Manchester.
Watts was elected to the reorganised Executive of the SDF in 1895, serving for one year, then again from 1902 to 1906. He spoke in favour of socialist Sunday schools
Socialist Sunday Schools
Socialist Sunday Schools were set up as an alternative to Christian Sunday Schools in the United Kingdom. They arose in response to a feeling as to the inadequacy of the orthodox Sunday Schools as a training ground for the children of socialists and of the need for some organised and systematic...
, and published State Maintenance for School Children in 1904. In 1906, he was a leading opponent of proposals to affiliate the SDF to the Independent Labour Party
Independent Labour Party
The Independent Labour Party was a socialist political party in Britain established in 1893. The ILP was affiliated to the Labour Party from 1906 to 1932, when it voted to leave...
. He served on the executive again in 1911, and remained with the group as it became the British Socialist Party
British Socialist Party
The British Socialist Party was a Marxist political organisation established in Great Britain in 1911. Following a protracted period of factional struggle, in 1916 the party's anti-war forces gained decisive control of the party and saw the defection of its pro-war Right Wing...
. He opposed the toleration of syndicalists within the membership of the new organisation.
Always loyal to SDF leader H. M. Hyndman, Watts joined his pro-war split in 1916, the National Socialist Party
National Socialist Party (UK)
The National Socialist Party was a small political party in the United Kingdom, founded in 1916. It originated as a minority group within the British Socialist Party who supported British participation in World War I; while historically linked with the Marxist left, the party grew more moderate...
. His daughter, Frediswyde Hunter-Watts, became an actress, achieving acclaim in Australia. with her husband Allan Wilkie
Allan Wilkie
Allan Wilkie was an English Shakespearean actor of Scottish descent noted for his career in Australia.Born in Toxteth Park, Lancashire, he was educated at Liverpool High School and went to work in a merchant's office but became infatuated with the theatre after experiencing a performance by Osmond...
.