ABSTRACT
In the political crisis of August 1931 the Labour Party died and had to be reborn. The dramatic events of that period saw the literal disintegration of a minority Labour government caught in the midst of a sterling crisis and fundamentally split over whether to implement public spending cuts.1 Labour’s Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald, deserted the Party to lead a Conservativedominated National government, other influential members of the leadership either following him or leaving politics altogether.2
The Party’s discomfiture was compounded by the ensuing general election in October which resulted in an overwhelming victory for the National government, the previous complement of 288 MPs being reduced to 46 with many senior Party figures losing their seats.3
