ABSTRACT
The International Socialist Congress of Paris of 14-20 July 1889 decided to organise a major international event on a certain day. In order that in all countries and in all cities at the same time on the same day workers could force the authorities to reduce by law the working day to 8 hours and to carry out other resolutions of the Congress of Paris. The First of May was an international movement based upon the two principles of universality and simultanearity in the celebration and making of labour' demands. However, within countries there were great variations in different towns and cities both of activity and of levels of support. At this level popular and workers' cultures were very important: these involved local culture and the culture of branches of industry or organisations - cultures which, above all, were non-national or, in the case of the strike, transnational.
