Black International

The Black International in Switzerland

Switzerland, where the anarchist movement had been born about a decade earlier, stood at the time as a center of both thought and action. Indeed, the country was officially neutral, though in practice it conducted significant surveillance on anarchists, and was situated at the crossroads of several European powers, namely Germany, Italy, France, and Austria-Hungary. Within the country, the Jura Federation remained active and had participated in the London Congress.^[17]

In the period following that congress, the Federation met on several occasions to confirm and even reinforce the decisions made at London.^[17] For instance, on 4 June 1882, a Federation congress held in Lausanne, where Emil Werner and Élisée Reclus successfully passed a motion strengthening the London resolutions, bore witness to this evolution.^[17] Two months later, on 13 and 14 August 1882, a new international congress intended for the entire organization was held in the city of Geneva, taking advantage of an ongoing music festival to meet discreetly.^[17][18] It was attended by delegates from France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Germany, Austria, etc, and was organized to coordinate the revolutionary action between the anarchist movement in each country.^[17][18] According to French police reports on the event given by informant Droz, the Black International would have decided there the total separation of anarchists from socialists and also the means of revolutionary action they should adopt, which would have included :^[18]

1. The organization of strikes in all industrial centers as quickly as possible; 2. The use of pyrotechnics: dynamite, etc; 3. In the event of action, the seizure of all army officers, to be held as hostages and partially executed; 4. The destruction by fire, preferably using petroleum, of all public buildings, including barracks; 5. Finally and above all, as a primary measure, the looting of public funds and of wealthy individuals; the immediate takeover of all industrial establishments, stores, and distribution centers.

Furthermore, the congresses and the organization of propaganda of the deed or revolutionary activities continued in the country, for instance, in August 1883, German and Austrian anarchists gathered for a secret meeting in St. Gallen to prepare a series of attacks or actions to be carried out in Austria and the German Empire.^[19]

The Black International in France

The International and anarchist groups along the French-Swiss border in the early 1880s.^[20][21][22]

In parallel, Kropotkin, disgusted by the outcome of the London Congress and expelled from Switzerland by a decree of the Federal Council dated 23 August 1881, decided to return to France.^[23][24] There, new political events, specifically the amnesty of the Communards (1879-1880) and their return from exile or deportation, were giving fresh momentum to revolutionary and more specifically anarchist circles.^[25]

According to historian Dominique Petit, the amnesty potentially led anarchists to believe that the State was more reluctant to relaunch a crackdown based on the Dufaure Law of 1872, which had been used at the time to suppress the Commune - explaining why they would have been less keen in hiding the International.^[25] While in France, Kropotkin traveled a lot and met several anarchists who were setting up groups, some in private meetings and some in more public ones.^[24] During this period, the anarchist movement was growing rapidly in Lyon and the surrounding regions, aided by the split within the Federation of the Socialist Workers of France (FTSF) between anarchists, such as Toussaint Bordat and Philippe Sanlaville, on one hand, and reformist socialists on the other.^[25][26] It also saw the birth of the first period of the Lyon anarchist press (1882-1884).^[26]

Furthermore, republican paramilitary organizations, such as the Comité de la rue de Grolée in Lyon or the Black Band in Montceau-les-Mines, composed of armed and radical members accustomed to monitoring security forces and possessing networks across the country, gradually evolved toward anarchism and bolstered the anarchist ranks, causing a surge of activity for the movement in this region and deeply penetrating French territory.^{[27][28][29][30][31]} Reflecting on the ground gained by the anarchists in the early 1880s, the special police commissaire in charge of the whole region wrote at the time:^[32]

It is indisputable that over the last six months, anarchist groups have gained significantly, not only numerically but also in terms of revolutionary propaganda and action. This party [...] is becoming increasingly aggressive and audacious.

Indeed, the situation in the region and in France became increasingly unstable starting in 1882; tensions escalated continuously between the state and the anarchists, particularly around Lyon.^[33] This situation was further exacerbated by the severe famine striking the city during this period, which forced children to beg for food in front of military barracks for their families.^[34][35]

During the first half of the year, two anarchist workers, Florian and Pierre Fournier, fired upon their employers and were celebrated in the anarchist press.^[33] Subsequently, numerous members of the Lyon Revolutionary Federation attended the international congress in Geneva in August 1882; according to the French authorities, a delegate from the Montceau-les-Mines miners also attended, declaring that the European revolution would be launched in his region the following day.^[18]

The very next day, the Montceau-les-Mines troubles began, a period in the Saône-et-Loire mining basin marked by insurrections and dozens of propaganda of the deed attacks, initiated by the Black Band as it launched itself into action, effectively moving the French security apparatus towards its Eastern regions.^[33]

The French state reacted with a major wave of repression, cracking down on the Lyon movement and attempting to incarcerate its members.^[25] Furthermore, police authorities undertook political maneuvers during this period to imprison as many anarchists as possible, even on dubious grounds, such as when Sanlaville was re-arrested following the Trial of the 66 in 1883.^[25] This repression, far from halting anarchist activities, instead provoked a violent reaction on their part.^[25] On 22 October 1882, shortly before the first trial of the Black Band, Fanny Madignier and at least two other accomplices detonated explosives at the Assommoir restaurant, a venue frequented by the Lyon bourgeoisie; this was the first lethal anarchist attack in France, though the intent to kill isn't clearly established.^[36][37][38]

On the same day, unknown assailants threw dynamite cartridges in front of the prefecture in Montpellier, though there were no casualties.^[39] The following day, the Vitriolerie bombing occurred, targeting an army recruitment building in Lyon; this attack also resulted in no victims.^[40] Meanwhile, the trade unions of joiners, cabinetmakers, and carpenters in the Île-de-France, organizations composed of a large number of anarchists, went on strike.^[39]

A wide-scale crackdown then began, marked by the arrest of numerous anarchists and the launch of raids throughout the country. Contrary to any fears they may have had of being tried for the bombings, the repression was based on membership in the Black International using the Dufaure Law.^[25][26] By leveraging communications, meetings, and ties to the London Congress among the various groups, French authorities brought 66 defendants to trial in early 1883: this became known as the Trial of the 66.^[25][26] The trial took place in January 1883 in Lyon. Some anarchists, such as Auguste Ebersold, were not present as they had managed to escape, but the raids placed dozens of others on the defendants' bench.^[24] Among the key figures accused at the trial were Toussaint Bordat, Peter Kropotkin, Alexandre Tressaud, Philippe Sanlaville, with other interesting ones, like Nicolas Didelin, the cousin of Louise Michel, who was herself present at the London Congress.^[24][13]

During his closing argument, the prosecutor relied heavily on the anarchist press, specifically La Révolution sociale, Le Révolté, L’Étendard révolutionnaire, and Le Droit social.^[41] He also produced numerous seized letters exchanged between the anarchists involved, which, according to his argument, served as evidence of their membership in the Black International.^[41] The London Congress, its resolutions, and its underlying philosophy also formed a point of particular interest in his speech.^[41] For their part, the anarchists presented the trial as an assault on the anarchist movement as a whole, a wave of repression they claimed had nothing to do with the International, with most (though not all) maintaining that such an organization did not even exist - they also made a famous speech describing anarchism and its tenets which was republished later on.^[41][42][43] Among the speeches highlighted by the anarchist press, the interventions of Bordat and Kropotkin were particularly noted.^[41][42] Bordat spoke for several hours, producing, among other things, documents provided by spies within the police headquarters to support his claim that his co-defendant Valadier was an informant who had sold out the Lyon federation. Kropotkin, meanwhile, argued that the proceedings were a class trial directed against the proletariat.^[41][42] Michel attended the final sessions of the trial, during which the presiding judge received dozens of death threats sent from Italy and Germany, including one letter that stated:^[41][43]

If you condemn my unfortunate colleagues from Saint-Étienne, Montceau-les-Mines, Blanzy, and Lyon, and indeed all those who have taken part in anarchism, I swear on the honor of my ancestors that within four years, you shall perish. Woe to you and to all those who condemn my friends. I am still unknown to you, but you will know me in four years at the latest.

Ultimately, of the 66 defendants, 14 of whom (20%) were fugitives, all but five were convicted. Sentences ranged from a few months in prison to the maximum penalty allowed by law for the affiliation to the International for those deemed most responsible, such as Kropotkin or Bordat.^[24] Those who managed to escape also received particularly harsh sentences. In total, the court handed down 165 years of imprisonment and a sum of 50,000 francs (≃250,000 USD of 2026), a considerable amount for the time.^[24]

While some of the convicted anarchists filed appeals, Michel returned to Paris, where she published La Vengeance Anarchiste and reunited with the carpenters' union of the Île-de-France region.^[44] A few days before the appeal ruling in March 1883, Michel and this union organized the demonstration of 9 March 1883. It was a particularly insurrectionary event, during which the crowd marched on the French Ministry of the Interior and the Élysée Palace, the seat of the French president, before being pushed back at the very last moment.^[44][45] This demonstration became famous for Michel’s use of the black flag.^[46] After successfully evading capture, she eventually surrendered to the police.^[44]

Four days later, the appeal of the Trial of the 66 reduced the sentences of a number of convicts (about twenty) and introduced new considerations that the initial judge had completely ignored, such as mitigating circumstances (age, intent, etc.).^[47] However, it kept the sentences of the 'figures' intact, as well as those of the defendants who had received the lightest penalties.^[47]

US context

In 1876, most of the major American socialist organizations merged into the Workingmen's Party of the United States (WPUS). In 1877, the WPUS was renamed to the Socialist Labor Party of America (SLP).

During its first years, the SLP had very slow progress and few electoral victories. This proved frustrating and demoralizing for many Sections of the SLP. These sections began to debate the question of armed struggle and to organize paramilitary Lehr-und-Wehr Vereine lit. 'Education and Defense Societies'.^[48] This more aggressive revolutionary socialist movement was particularly strong in the tough industrial center of Chicago, populated by a large number of German-speaking immigrants cognizant of the European revolutionary movement and its German-based propaganda literature.

Anarchists and revolutionary socialists (who in the vernacular of the day called themselves "Social Revolutionists")^[49] were united by their disdain with electoral politics and piecemeal ameliorative reform.^[48] Tepid changes, such as currency reform, civil service reform, state ownership of public works, and reduction of the tariff were dismissed as inconsequential. Only through the application of armed force would revolutionary transformation of American society and economy be possible. These groups formed various independent revolutionary clubs.

The London gathering was attended by a New York social revolutionary group, which upon returning to America called for a gathering of American revolutionary groups in Chicago.^[50] The 1881 Chicago convention which followed adopted for itself the name Revolutionary Socialist Party and approved a platform urging the formation of trade unions on "communistic" principles and urging that support only be lent to unions of a "progressive" character.^[50] The platform also denounced use of the ballot as a vehicle for revolutionary social change, declaring instead that elections were "an invention of the bourgeoisie to fool the workers."^[50] Instead, it would be "armed organizations of workingmen who stand ready with the gun to resist encroachment upon their rights" which were pivotal, the platform declared.^[50]

Creation of the Revolutionary Socialists

In 1881, US sympathizers of the IWPA held the 1881 Chicago Social Revolutionary Congress. This congress was chiefly organized by the New York Social Revolutionary Club and numerous other "revolutionary clubs" formed by anarchist-oriented members who split from the SLP.^[51] This congress formalized itself as either the Revolutionary Socialist Labor Party (RSLP) or Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), but did not merge all of its sub-organizations together.

A key turning-point came in December 1882 with the arrival in America of Johann Most, a former parliamentary representative of the Social Democratic Party of Germany who had turned to anarchism. Most had just finished up a 16-month term of imprisonment for having glorified the assassination of Russian Tsar Alexander II and urged its emulation in his newspaper, Freiheit (Freedom).^[49] A popular orator and brilliant journalist in the German language, Most's arrival was celebrated by an enthusiastic crowd in the great hall of the Cooper Union Institute in New York City.^[52] A tour of the principal industrial cities of America by Most followed in early 1883, a successful venture which led to the formation of a number of new local anarchist groups.^[52]

Further aiding the anarchist cause, Most brought with him to New York City his newspaper, Freiheit (Freedom), which uncompromisingly advocated struggle against state authority, widening the gap between the electorally oriented socialists of the Socialist Labor Party and the burgeoning movement of "Social Revolutionists".^[53]

Creation of the US IWPA

In 1883, the split between the SLP and the social revolutionists and anarchist was formalized, when the groups held separate conventions, in Baltimore, Maryland, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, respectively. The October 1883 convention of the anarchists and revolutionary socialists held in Pittsburgh was attended by representatives of groups in 26 cities, including among them Johann Most, August Spies, and Albert R. Parsons.^[52]

The Pittsburgh conclave formally merged the social revolutionary organizations together and launched the International Working People's Association (IWPA) in America. The convention adopted a manifesto known as the Pittsburgh Proclamation, declaring the organization for "destruction of the existing class rule by all means" and for the establishment of an economic system based upon "free contracts between the autonomous (independent) communes and associations, resting upon a federalistic basis."^[54] An "Information Bureau" in Chicago was established to coordinate the activity of the "loose-knit federation of autonomous groups"^[55] declaring allegiance to the organization.^[52]

Delegates to the Pittsburgh convention agreed in the efficacy of armed force, but differed as to its function. Eastern delegates surrounding Johann Most argued in favor of the "propaganda of the deed"—individualistic acts of terrorism which would win alienated workers to the anarchist cause through the power of example.^[56] Western-based delegates such as Spies and Parsons argued instead for a primary emphasis on work in trade unions as the vehicle for revolutionary change, dismissing the labor movement's obsessive concern with immediate demands but insisting that the direct action of unions would be key in establishing the embryonic production groups of the new society.^[56] This mixture of anarchism and syndicalism would be known as the "Chicago Idea".^[56]

Growth

The IWPA grew steadily in America from the time of its launch in the fall of 1883, reaching a peak of about 5,000 members.^[55] The majority of these members were immigrants hailing from Europe, primarily Germany.^[55] The circulation of Most's newspaper, Freiheit, increased handsomely, while some important German-language newspapers transferred their loyalties from the SLP to the new organization.^[57]

Meanwhile, the Socialist Labor Party withered on the vine, with its membership plummeting to just 1,500 and its National Secretary, Philip Van Patten, leaving a mysterious suicide note and disappearing, only to reemerge later in another city as a government employee.^[58] At its December 1883 Baltimore convention, the SLP took the extraordinary, albeit short-lived, step of abolishing the role of National Secretary altogether and adopting a particularly radical program in hopes of cobbling together some sort of organizational unity with the so-called "Internationalists" of the IWPA.^[59] Ultimately, however, the SLP determined that the difference over the question of violence between itself and the IWPA made unification impossible and a polemic war against anarchism was launched.

The Black International in Egypt

The Egyptian Federation of the International Workingmen's Association's sent a delegate to the London Congress.^[11]

Malatesta, in charge of the organization's communications office, left London during the summer of 1882, even as events in France were unfolding, to travel to Egypt, where he had already been a few years earlier.^[9] He sought to launch an anti-colonial revolt there, without success, and returned to Europe, most specifically to Italy, in 1883.^[9] According to French police informants within London's anarchist circles, his absence was viewed with suspicion and curiosity within the movement and the International; most members, as well as the French police, were unaware of his whereabouts and wondered if it might be better to replace him at the communications office, despite him being its central and best-known figure.^[16]