The ‘Battle of Featherston Street’, in downtown Wellington, saw some of the most violent street fighting of the 1913 Great Strike.
1913 Strike
Events In History
24 October 1913
Violent clashes between unionised waterside workers and non-union labour erupted two days after Wellington’s ‘wharfies’ held a stopwork meeting in support of striking shipwrights.
Articles
Merchant marine
On 3 September New Zealand honours Merchant Navy Day. Here we explore the little-known but vital role played by the merchant marine during the First World War, when these civilian seafarers often found themselves in the front line of the war at sea. Read the full article
Page 8 - Politics, patriotism and protest
Although New Zealand seafarers served in many hostile theatres, some questioned the politics of the
The 1913 Great Strike
The Great Strike of 1913 was in fact a series of strikes between mid-October 1913 and mid-January 1914. It was one of New Zealand’s most violent and disruptive industrial confrontations. Read the full article
Page 1 - The 1913 Great Strike
The Great Strike of 1913 was in fact a series of strikes between mid-October 1913 and mid-January 1914. It was one of New Zealand’s most violent and disruptive industrial
Page 2 - Class war comes to the workers' paradise 1890-1913
History of New Zealand's employment relations,
Page 3 - Outbreak of the 1913 strike
The 1913 Great Strike was sparked off by two relatively small
Page 4 - The 1913 strike in Wellington
Because the strike threatened their livelihoods, rural men were keen to volunteer as special
Page 5 - The 1913 strike in Auckland
Watersiders in Auckland began to strike in support of those in Huntly and
Page 6 - The 1913 strike in the South Island
Although the 1913 strike had its biggest impact on Auckland and Wellington, the South Island's cities and mining towns were also
Page 7 - The defeat of the 1913 strike
The seizure of the wharves in Wellington and Auckland greatly reduced the strikers’ industrial power. Similar takeovers by ‘scab’ arbitration unions soon happened in other
Page 8 - Further information
Recommended books and websites relating to the Great Strike of
Biographies
Harry Holland was an Australian-born radical who led the Labour Party from 1919 until his death in 1933. Holland's socialism was described as 'emotional, not intellectual'. He believed socialism would overcome society's problems.
William Massey is our second-longest serving leader. Although he was reviled by the left for crushing workers in 1913 with his ‘Massey’s Cossacks’ (strike-breakers), his legacy is being re-evaluated.
Main image: Rūnanga miners' hall
West Coast authorities did not enrol specials, realising they would be outnumbered by strike supporters.
