Anarchists in London

Pietro Di Paola. The Knights Errant of Anarchy: London and the Italian Anarchist Diaspora (1880-1917). Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2013. 256 pp. $99.95, cloth, ISBN 978-1-84631-969-3. Reviewed by Andrew Hoyt Published on H-Italy (August, 2015) Commissioned by Matteo Pretelli (University of Naples "L'Orientale") Anarchists are notoriously difficult subjects to transnational anarchist network.[2] All of these study. They have this reputation for several rea‐ scholars are part of the larger emergence of anar‐ sons: they cloaked their activity in a security cul‐ chist studies as a growing subfield of research and ture to avoid state persecution, their noninstitu‐ scholarship. Pietro Di Paola’s recent monograph is tional cultural activity was overlooked by social perhaps the most recent example of this exciting historians, and as highly mobile transnational mi‐ and invigorating trend. grants they often disappear from nationally fo‐ Di Paola’s work situates itself at the conflu‐ cused narratives. However, recent develops in an‐ ence of several vibrant felds, including transna‐ archist studies have begun to allow anarchism tional migration and diaspora studies, labor histo‐ and anarchists to emerge from academic obscuri‐ ry, the history of radicalism, and studies on social ty. For example, work by Jennifer Guglielmo has movements. Or, as he states, “this monograph in‐ highlighted the role anarchist cultural-production tends to contribute to the historiography of dias‐ played in building a diasporic movement, while poric anarchism by exploring practical and ideo‐ Italian language scholars such as Maurizio Anto‐ logical aspects of the Italian anarchists--their ev‐ nioli and Giampietro Berti have laid foundations eryday lives as well as their ideological thought for a new social history of anarchism’s base mili‐ and its development--in London, one of the most tants.[1] Additionally, work by Davide Turcato has significant nodes of the transnational anarchist blended biography and intellectual history to pro‐ network” (p. 5). He places his anarchist migrants, vide a contextual understanding of the lives of ex‐ most of whom were also political exiles, into a iled anarchist thinkers like Errico Malatesta, larger tradition of Italian exile and diaspora root‐ while scholarship by historians such as David ed in the Risorgimento. Indeed, the exile experi‐ Berry and Constance Bantman has highlighted the ence is central to the book’s emotional core. This importance of particular urban nodes in the is made apparent in the book’s opening quotation H-Net Reviews of Pietro Gori (anarchist poet, musician, play‐ 1871 and the birth of anarchism at the First Inter‐ wright, lawyer, criminologist, and journalist). Gori national Workingmen’s Association. He stresses comments, “It is not easy to leave the loyal com‐ the heavy repression meteed out to anarchiss by rades of the frst struggles, those with whom I Italian politicians such as Francesco Crispi, whom cheerfully shared the harshness of an odyssey, Di Paola describes as unleashing a “wave of vio‐ without a storm of memories and sadness pouring lent repression … on Italian society” (p. 16) in into the heart” (p. 1). Di Paola argues that Gori’s which political repression in Italy surpassed any experience of exile and dislocation was not European nation outside Tsarist Russia and was unique. Rather his experience was shared by a comparable to that invoked by Mussolini decades large number of his fellow Italian anarchists. later. For Di Paola, the Italians--along with Jews and In response to these extraordinary measures Spaniards--were the major vectors for the dissem‐ of state violence, thousands of anarchists fed ination of anarchism transnationally, spreading abroad. Many ended up fnding their way to Lon‐ their ideology not only across Europe but also don, where the liberal British establishment throughout the Americas and the Mediterranean maintained a largely open-door immigration poli‐ basin. Drawing on the works of scholars such as cy and an unwillingness to extradite a person for Donna Gabaccia and Pier Carlo Masini, Di Paola political speech or for anything not considered a focuses on the metropolis of late nineteenth-cen‐ crime in England. Di Paola writes, “the tradition tury London, a city that has already received of free access was deeply rooted in British culture, some attention from Carl Levy and Hermia Oliver being tightly linked with the idea of free-trade for hosting the most important anarchist thinkers and based on an understanding of the advantages from numerous different national groups. Howev‐ of utilizing foreigner’s skills” (p. 18). The British er, Di Paola’s work stands out from previous policy was in fact so welcoming that many Euro‐ scholarship for its close examination of the Italian pean countries such as France and Spain began to anarchist colony in London through a transna‐ deport anarchists and other unwanted elements tional lens sensitive to cultural production and so‐ directly to England. Thus many anarchists came cial networks. His breadth and depth are partially to reside in the city on the Thames and it was the result of his combination of British and Italian there that they continued their fght against the sources and partially a result of his ability to syn‐ national governments that had driven them thesize discourses from both the English- and Ital‐ abroad: plotting, raising funds, and printing pro‐ ian-language scholarly communities. Indeed, Di paganda materials to be smuggled back to their Paola’s transnational archival research and his sending communities. Di Paola does an excellent cross-national scholarly engagement combine to job narrating these paths, exploring the govern‐ form a monograph of special quality and insight ment policies and the anarchist reactions. He does that should prove useful to scholars for years to this through the careful use of British police come. records as well as those produced by spies paid The frst two chapters provide street-level de‐ for and dispatched by foreign governments, par‐ tail--mapping and describing the anarchist com‐ ticularly Italy. Indeed the theme of spies animate munity in London and exploring its relationship the book both in the narrative moments of action to the larger Italian immigrant colony. Di Paola and in Di Paola’s source material. starts off tracing the routes exiles took to reach Chapters 3 and 4 explore the major activities London, reminding the reader of the political cli‐ organized by the Italian anarchists, such as mate in Italy following the Paris Commune of demonstrations, conferences, and meetings. But 2 H-Net Reviews Di Paola cannot do this without also exploring tions been assassinated by anarchists, but the some of the major personalities behind these turn to popular organizing and away from indi‐ events, such as Errico Malatesta, who moved the vidual action represented even a greater threat-- printing press for his journal L’Associazione from the general strike, which many saw as “the frst Nice to London in 1889. He also unpacks some of step towards a popular insurrection aiming at the the major conflicts, controversies, and arguments destruction of the government” (p. 97). Di Paola that animated the community. In particular he re‐ take us deep into the intellectual world in which veals the major players behind the two ideologi‐ these new politics were coming to shape anar‐ cally dominate strains of anarchism active in the chism in this new century with particular atten‐ city from the 1870s until the outbreak of World tion to important journals such as Lo Sciopero War I: organizational and anti-organizational an‐ Generale. We also see the Italian anarchists at‐ archism. This “great schism” works as the major tempting to emerge from the ethnic ghetto as they narrative structure in the center of book. And engage with British trade unionism and the grow‐ while it is fair to say that Di Paola’s sympathies lie ing power of various state-based and electoral so‐ with Errico Malatesta and the organizationalists, cialist and communist trends. the author does not ignore their ideological rivals. Di Paola takes us through various publication Indeed, groups like Gli Intransigenti di Londra e and propaganda projects, various attempts to or‐ Parigi, L’Anonimato, and La Libera Iniziativa ganize workers and strikes, and several major along with leading fgures such as Vittorio Pini cases of arrest, trial, and state oppression in a pe‐ and Luigi Parmeggiani receive extensive exami‐ riod in which the British government was becom‐ nation. Di Paola looks at their propaganda tactics, ing less tolerant of the many political radicals their “illegalism” and fringe lifestyles (for years housed in its capital city, a change made most Parmeggiani sold counterfeit art to Europe’s elite), clear by the introduction of the Alien Act in 1905. and the biographies of the most noteworthy fg‐ This chapter takes us all the way to the years just ures, just as he does with Malatesta. In fact the before the First World War, when the Italian dias‐ falling-out of individuals, the personal insults and pora was particularly engaged with antimili‐ abuses, and the way ideology and personal associ‐ tarism due to Italy’s increased expansionistic poli‐ ation fracture and turn through the last decade of cy in the Mediterranean, specifically in Libya. the nineteenth century are particularly well nar‐ Here we see the extent to which Italians abroad rated. This is the section of the book where the were still focused on politics at home.

Load more