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Space, Place, and Protest in London, 1780–2010

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Space, Place, and Protest in London, 1780–2010 Contesting the Capital: Space, Place, and Protest in London, 1780–2010 Hannah Awcock Royal Holloway, University of London PhD Geography July 2017 Declaration of Authorship I, Hannah Awcock, hereby declare that this thesis and the work presented in it is entirely my own. Where I have consulted the work of others, this is always clearly stated. Signed: Date: 22/07/17 1 2 Abstract This thesis investigates the relationship between space, place, and protest in London between 1780 and 2010, focussing primarily on four themes: communication and organisation; control of, and access to, public space; memory and commemoration; and repertoires of protest. Space, place, and protest are shown to be mutually constitutive, impacting and shaping each other in complex and interactive ways. The thesis demonstrates that although developments in areas such as communication technology and policing have impacted protest in the capital since 1780, some elements remain relatively unchanged: the ways in which protesters communicate and organise, despite new media; the ongoing struggle with the authorities for the highly symbolic public space of the capital; the ways in which collective memories of past protests are constructed and used; and the ways in which repertoires of protest develop. Combining a long-term historiographical approach with an event- based empirical focus, the thesis examines four case studies: the Gordon Riots (1780), the Hyde Park Railings Affair (1866), the Battle of Cable Street (1936), and the Student Tuition Fee Protest (2010). This thesis is primarily an exercise in historical geography, but it draws on, and contributes to, a range of scholarship in geography, history, and social science concerned with protest, social movements, London, and the urban. Archival 3 research—engaging with a wide variety of historical sources, including pamphlets, newspaper articles, images, and social media—was used to explore the ways that space and place shape, and are contested during, protest. 4 Acknowledgements First of all, I would like to thank my supervisors, Professor David Gilbert and Dr. Innes Keighren. They agreed to supervise my PhD when my original supervisory team fell through during my Masters, and I will always appreciate that. Since then, they have guided me through the PhD process with skill and wisdom. They work well as a team; their expertise complements each other, and they always made an effort not to offer contradictory advice. I will always be grateful for their knowledge, feedback, and support. I would also like to express my appreciation to my advisor, Dr. Mike Dolton, who has always been ready to provide a second (or third, in this case!) opinion. I owe an important debt to the Economic and Social Research Council, for funding my PhD, and for trusting me with the freedom to change the project as my research evolved. I am also grateful to the staff at the various archives I have consulted during my PhD; their knowledge and advice has been invaluable. I would also like to thank my examiners, Dr. Briony McDonagh and Professor David Green, whose feedback helped me to produce a better thesis. The Department of Geography at Royal Holloway, University of London, has been an encouraging and supportive intellectual home for me over the last eight years, I am grateful to everyone there for contributing to such a nurturing environment. The Social, Cultural, and Historical Research Group has been particularly important to me during my postgraduate career. The Landscape Surgery seminar group has been a lifeline over the last four years, making me feel part of a community in what can be a lonely experience. I am also grateful to the organisers and attendees of the London Group of Historical Geographers seminar series. The meals afterwards in the Olivelli restaurant on Store Street were integral to the development of my networking skills—they helped me to feel like I belong in the world of academia. I would also like to thank my fellow PhD 5 students, at Royal Holloway and elsewhere, with whom sharing experiences has given me strength. Lastly, I could not have got through this without the support of my friends and family. Rachel Taylor has shared my achievements and setbacks with equal enthusiasm, even from the other side of the world. Daniel Dougherty has always believed in me, even when I haven’t believed in myself. My cousin, Theo Hardcastle, has made my Wednesdays a joy and has been a wonderful distraction from all things PhD. My sister, Emily Awcock, is unfailingly positive, unless you try and make her go for a walk. My Mum, Tricia Awcock, from whom I could not ask for more. My Dad, Graeme Awcock, who showed me what an academic looks like. I am grateful to you all. This thesis is dedicated to my Nan, Olive Awcock, who always supported me, even though she never understood why a nice girl like me would want to study protest. 6 Contents Abstract ................................................................................................. 3 Acknowledgements ............................................................................... 5 Contents ................................................................................................ 7 List of Figures ....................................................................................... 11 List of Tables ........................................................................................ 15 List of Tweets ....................................................................................... 17 Introduction: Researching the Historical Geographies of Protest in London ................................................................................................ 21 1.1 Research Design: Learning from the Annales School and Microhistories ........................................................................................... 25 1.2 Thesis Structure .................................................................................. 32 Theories of Space, Place, and Protest ................................................... 37 2.1 Terminology of Protest ....................................................................... 37 2.1.1 Collective Action ............................................................................... 38 2.1.2 Social Movements ............................................................................. 39 2.1.3 Contentious Politics .......................................................................... 41 2.1.4 Protest ................................................................................................ 42 2.2 Geographies of Protest ....................................................................... 44 2.2.1 Space .................................................................................................. 45 2.2.2 Place ................................................................................................... 49 2.2.3 Scale .................................................................................................... 52 2.2.4 Networks ............................................................................................ 54 2.3 Historical Geographies and History’s Geographies of Protest ........... 58 2.3.1 Historical Geography from Below ................................................... 59 2.3.2 The ‘Spatial Turn’ .............................................................................. 66 2.3.3 Protest, Practice, and Performance ................................................ 69 2.3.4 Historical Geographies of Protest in London ................................. 74 2.4 Conclusions ......................................................................................... 81 7 Methodology ....................................................................................... 83 3.1 Research Design: Responding to the Research Questions ................. 84 3.2 Archives .............................................................................................. 87 3.3 Sources ............................................................................................... 92 3.3.1 Published Sources ............................................................................. 92 3.3.2 Official Papers ................................................................................... 97 3.3.3 Unpublished Sources ...................................................................... 102 3.3.4 Images .............................................................................................. 106 3.3.5 Social Media .................................................................................... 108 3.4 Analysis ............................................................................................. 113 3.5 Conclusions ....................................................................................... 116 Communication and Organisation in the Gordon Riots ....................... 119 4.1 The Gordon Riots: The Biggest Riots You Have Never Heard Of ...... 120 4.2 The Rioters: Organised Chaos .......................................................... 124 4.2.1 Organisation .................................................................................... 125 4.2.2 Communication ............................................................................... 132 4.3 The Authorities: Structured Inefficiency .......................................... 143 4.3.1 Organisation .................................................................................... 147 4.3.2 Communication
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