The Angry Brigade

The Angry Brigade
Name	The Angry Brigade
Founded	1970
Founders	Anonymous collective
Active	1970–1972
Motives	Radical left-wing anarchism
Area	United Kingdom
Status	Disbanded

The Angry Brigade was a short-lived urban guerrilla collective that conducted a series of bombing attacks in the United Kingdom between 1970 and 1972. Drawing on anarchist, libertarian socialist, and anti-imperialist currents, the group targeted symbols of establishment power, corporate influence, and state policy. The campaign prompted major investigations by British policing bodies and provoked debates across media, parliament, and the legal system.

Origins and Ideology

The Angry Brigade emerged amid the late 1960s and early 1970s milieu that included May 1968 events in France, Port Huron Statement, Student nonviolent coordinating committee, Anti-Vietnam War movement, New Left, International Socialists (UK), Solidarity (Poland), People's Park protests, Movement for Civil Rights, Black Panther Party, Weather Underground, Italian Years of Lead, and Red Army Faction. Influences cited included Guy Debord, Situationist International, Rosa Luxemburg, Emma Goldman, Murray Bookchin, Herbert Marcuse, Antonio Gramsci, Karl Marx, and Vladimir Lenin in debates over praxis. Members read The Times Literary Supplement reviews, pamphlets from Freedom Press (London), and essays published by International Socialists (UK). Their communiqués referenced events such as the Vietnam War, Northern Ireland conflict, Gibraltar sovereignty dispute, and industrial disputes like the Durham miners' strike to frame targets. Tactics were justified by reference to anarchist tracts circulated in venues such as London School of Economics, University of Warwick, Goldsmiths, University of London, University of Manchester, and University of Oxford student movements.

Bombing Campaign (1970–1972)

The group conducted letter bombs, incendiary devices, and small explosives aimed at institutions including British Leyland, Rolls-Royce, RAC (Royal Automobile Club), Birmingham Police Headquarters, Hammersmith Magistrates' Court, Harrods, Embassy of the United States, London, British Oxygen Company, Shell (retailer), and premises associated with Institute of Directors. Attacks coincided with strikes involving National Union of Mineworkers, actions around University of Sussex, and protests at sites like Greenham Common. Several devices targeted offices of Sunday Times and Daily Telegraph distribution centers, attracting coverage from BBC News and ITV (TV network). Police responses involved operations by Metropolitan Police Service, Scotland Yard, and coordination with Home Office (United Kingdom). Arrests and raids were publicized in outlets such as The Guardian, The Observer, and The Times (London).

Investigation and Trial

Investigations incorporated forensic approaches used by Forensic Science Service (United Kingdom), surveillance by Special Branch, and intelligence-sharing with agencies including MI5 and foreign counterparts like Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution and Bundeskriminalamt. High-profile prosecutions culminated in the 1972–1973 trial at the Old Bailey where defendants faced charges under statutes including the Explosive Substances Act 1883 and other legislation debated in House of Commons of the United Kingdom. Defendants included activists associated with groups like International Socialists (UK), Anarchist Federation (UK), and independent collectives from Notting Hill and Camden Town. The trial featured prominent lawyers from chambers linked to Inner Temple and Middle Temple and drew observers from Amnesty International, Liberty (organisation), and trade unions such as Transport and General Workers' Union. Verdicts and sentencing were reported by international media including Le Monde, Die Zeit, and The New York Times.

Members and Associates

Named defendants and alleged associates appeared in reporting and court documents alongside figures from the British radical milieu, cultural scenes, and legal advocacy networks. Individuals were linked through networks that included activists from Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, contributors to International Times, and participants in squats across Brixton, Nottingham, Brighton, and Leeds. Support came from intellectuals connected to University of Sussex, Goldsmiths, University of London, and writers published by Penguin Books and Faber and Faber. Legal defence teams referenced precedents from cases involving groups like Red Army Faction defendants and lawyers who had represented members of Irish Republican Army-linked trials. Journalists from The Guardian, Evening Standard, and The Economist covered personal histories of those accused, while artists and musicians from scenes tied to The Clash, Buzzcocks, John Lennon, and the underground press expressed varied responses.

Public and Political Impact

The campaign intensified debates within institutions such as the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, Home Office (United Kingdom), and local councils including Greater London Council. Media outlets like BBC News, The Guardian, Daily Mail, The Times (London), and ITV (TV network) framed the events in contexts of public order, civil liberties, and police powers. Trade unions including National Union of Mineworkers and civil liberties groups including Liberty (organisation) and Amnesty International weighed in on policing tactics and trial fairness. Parliamentary questions and committees referenced legislation such as the Explosive Substances Act 1883 and prompted discussion in forums like Camden Town Hall meetings and university student unions at University of Manchester and University of Oxford. International reactions came from figures in France, West Germany, United States, and Italy.

Aftermath and Legacy

Convictions and subsequent appeals influenced legal practice in the United Kingdom and informed surveillance policies by MI5 and policing doctrine at Metropolitan Police Service. The events spurred cultural responses in literature, music, and film discussed in outlets like The Guardian, The Observer, and academic journals at London School of Economics. Debates about political violence referenced cases involving Weather Underground, Red Army Faction, and Irish Republican Army in comparative studies at institutions such as King's College London, University of Cambridge, Birkbeck, University of London, and SOAS University of London. Archives held by British Library and collections at International Institute of Social History preserve pamphlets, communiqués, and trial materials. The episode remains a point of reference in discussions among historians, legal scholars, and activists connected to anarchism in the United Kingdom and radical movements of the late twentieth century.

Category:Political organisations in the United Kingdom