The British Brothers League was a British proto-fascist group that attempted to organise along paramilitary lines. Fascism is a political ideology and mass movement that seeks to place the nation, defined in exclusive biological, cultural, and/or historical terms, above all other sources of loyalty, and to create a mobilized national community. ... A paramilitary organization is a group of civilians trained and organized in a military fashion. ...

The group was formed in 1902 in East London as a response to waves of immigration from Eastern Europe that had begun in 1880 and had seen an influx of Jews into the area. As a result Captain William Stanley Shaw formed the BBL to campaign for restricted immigration wuith the slogan 'England for the English' and soon formed a close alliance with local Conservative MP Major Evans-Gordon. Initially the League was not anti-Semitic and was more interested in Protectionism, although eventually it came to emphasis more rabid anti-foreigner rhetoric, with the Jews the main focus. 1902 (MCMII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... East London is the name commonly given to the eastern part of London on the north side of the River Thames. ... Regions of Europe as delineated by the United Nations (UN definition of Eastern Europe marked salmon):  Northern Europe  Western Europe  Eastern Europe  Southern Europe Pre-1989 division between the West (grey) and Eastern Bloc (orange) superimposed on current national boundaries: Russia (dark orange), other countries of the former USSR (medium... Year 1880 (MDCCCLXXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar). ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... The Conservative Party (officially the Conservative & Unionist Party) is currently the second largest political party in the United Kingdom in terms of sitting Members of Parliament (MPs), and the largest in terms of public membership. ... Major William Eden Evans-Gordon (1857-October 31, 1913) was a British Conservative politician and Member of Parliament. ... The Eternal Jew: 1937 German poster. ... Protectionism is the economic policy of restraining trade between nations, through methods such as high tariffs on imported goods, restrictive quotas, a variety of restrictive government regulations designed to discourage imports, and anti-dumping laws in an attempt to protect domestic industries in a particular nation from foreign take-over...

The League claimed 45,000 members, although membership was actually fairly irregular as no subscriptions were lifted and anyone who signed the organisation's manifesto was considered a member. As a result of this, attempts to militarise the group were largely a failure, although the movement continued to organise demonstrations against immigrants. The 1905 Aliens Act, which restricted immigration, was largely seen as a success for the BBL and, as a result, the movement by and large disappeared. This article concerns the History of British nationality law. ...

External links

• BBL rally poster
• Early British fascism

Bibliography

• Robert Benewick, Political Violence and Public Order, London, 1969