Remembering blood spilt on rights march

On the 175th anniversary of the August 1842 march for the rights of working people, when blood was shed on the streets of Halifax, a large number gathered at Lister Lane Cemetery in the town to hear the wider story of this troubled time.
Chartists: Historian David Glover  speaks about Chartist graves, including that of Ben Rushton,  at Lister Lane cemeteryChartists: Historian David Glover  speaks about Chartist graves, including that of Ben Rushton,  at Lister Lane cemetery
Chartists: Historian David Glover speaks about Chartist graves, including that of Ben Rushton, at Lister Lane cemetery

The event was also attended by the Mayor and Mayoress of Calderdale, Coun Ferman Ali and Mrs Shaheen Ali, and Holly Lynch, MP, with the Mayor and Ms Lynch addressing the crowd.

Mark Metcalf, the well-known local writer and organiser of the Unite Rebel Road project, gave a wide-ranging speech explaining the conditions and events in 1842.

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This was followed by a conducted tour of the cemetery by Halifax historian David Glover, which was specific to its connections with the political unrest of the 1840s..

Civic: The Mayor speaks to the crowdCivic: The Mayor speaks to the crowd
Civic: The Mayor speaks to the crowd

The tour included taking in the burial sites there of four leading Chartists, including the noted Ben Rushton, of the town’s Deputy Constable, and also of a Sheriff’s Officer.

Unite’s Rebel Road project celebrates trade union and labour movement figures.

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