Not even one Welsh sheep will hear the Mosley message
On 11 June 2025, The Pontypridd Branch of the Communist Party hosted a successful commemoration to remember, 89 years ago to the day, the heroic efforts of local socialists, communists and anti-fascists in Tonypandy which saw off the British Union of Fascists (BUF) and ensured Mosely’s black shirts made no attempt to organise in Wales again.
The event was held at Tonypandy NUM club and drew in around 60 people to listen to speakers provide a history of this historical event and what lessons can we learn to apply to today’s conditions.
Darren Macey, social historian, gave some history about Tonypandy and the valleys that led up to the Battle of De Winton Fields in 1936. The valleys were run with poverty and the first hunger march to London was in 1927. Coal mining peaked in 1930, which is a lot sooner than most people think. In areas where poverty is prevalent, radical ideology can occur. Oswald Mosely, being an opportunist, saw Tonypandy as the perfect breeding ground to recruit members for the BUF. However, he failed to recognise that trade unions, communists and community spirit were strong in the valleys which disrupted any recruitment attempts the black shirts had in mind.
Annie Powell, the first Communist Mayor in the UK, famously said “not even one Welsh sheep will hear the Mosley message”.
Macey finished off by drawing the following distinction between the Battle of De Winton Fields and others such as the Battle of Cable Street.
The Black shirts targeted Jewish areas like Cable Street in East London, whereas Tonypandy was specifically targeted in an attempt to recruit more members, as the BUF saw their membership fall from 50,000 in 1934, to only 5,000 in 1935.
Andrew Murray, Morning Star Political Reporter, also highlighted that the BUF never came back to Wales after they were shown the door, whereas in other areas they still attempted to march and spread their dangerous ideology. This was in large because the unions and socialist spirit was strong and organised.
Murray drew parallels to what we see today in the US with Trump’s authoritarianism as he is deploying the national guard against workers in LA. Reform, with Labour following suit, are scapegoating immigrants to distract workers from the fact that capitalism and the greedy elite are the reason for our living standards rapidly declining.
Britain tried to preserve their empire before WWII, and we are seeing the same thing today as the Government try to preserve themselves with a proxy war in Ukraine.
He pointed out the contradictions from Rachel Reeves’ summer budget announced earlier this week. “Our own economy is taking a hit to fund the ‘defence budget’ whilst disabled people and pensioners are taking the hit.”
Alun Cox, Plaid Cymru candidate for the Senedd 2026 elections, shared some words from Leanne Wood in her absence. “Rhondda were the perfect conditions for Mosely, but solidarity didn’t allow it.”
Cox stated three lessons we must learn from this historic event and put into action today.
- Organisation – Unions, socialists, communists and anti-fascists were well placed in 1936 to combat fascism. Today we must focus on building these areas back up to combat racism and fascism wherever we encounter it.
- Education – we must educate ourselves and our communities why we face poor living conditions and not buy into the racist and lazy rhetoric that immigrants are to blame.
- Bravery – we cannot leave it to others to combat the far right; we must deal with this collectively and in unity.
The final speaker was Beth Winter, Former Labour MP for Cynon Valley, who shared a story about her connections to the struggles in the valleys, and that her grandfather was on the 1927 hunger march to London.
“We have to acknowledge that capitalism has ruined working class communities.” Beth said.
She highlighted that people in the valleys are disillusioned with politicians at the moment. Reform UK came second in eight seats in the valleys in the General Election last year.
So, what is to be done? Beth Winter also reiterated that we must call out racism and challenge it wherever it raises its ugly head. Secondly, we must offer a real alternative that is bigger than party politics and can take the task to Reform UK in the next election. And finally, Tax the rich! There is an abundance of wealth in the UK which must be redistributed so everyone can live a life with our basic needs met, including, free healthcare, shelter and no more choosing between eating and heating.
The evening was rounded off with entertainment by Cor Cochion, Fiona Cullen and the Red Poets.
A blue plaque will be installed next year and there are plans underway to mark the 90th anniversary of the Battle of De Winton Fields.
An extensive article on the event can be found at the Morning Star website:
