Party versus Party: Beatrice Webb and the Ascent of the British Labour Party

This chapter discusses resistance to the organization of political parties in Great Britain. Parties in the sense of a festive gathering, traditionally facilitating the political process, were an in fact an impediment to the development of political parties in the fashion of their Continental equivalents. The case of the Labour Party is discussed since after 1870 formal organization and seeking strength in numbers became intrinsic to socialism. Beatrice Webb’s persistent belief in the central position of the political hostess, as a base for politics, recorded in her diaries, shows that in England socialism was not necessarily bound to result in a class-based mass political party.