Page 38 - All About History - Issue 12-14

With a grandiose appearance forged at the
height of British imperialism, the square
Scotland O
Glasgow O
embodies Glasgow’s rich cultural

heritage and rebellious spirit

George Square is one of
Glasgow’s cultural hubs

01 The Battle of George Square
On 31 January 1919, a huge union rally saw more than
40,000 workers gathered in the square, demanding shorter
working hours and improved conditions. Two prominent
union leaders, Emanuel Shinwell and Harry Hopkins, addressed
the crowd from the steps of the City Chambers, but were arrested.
Violence broke out when police charged the crowd with batons and
officers attempted to read the Riot Act, but were driven away. Fearing an uprising,
the government sent over 10,000 troops into the square and surrounding area,
including tanks and machine-gun posts to deter any further resistance.

02 INSPIRING WORDS 03 Celebrating Nelson
Mandela’s freedom
The most prominent feature in the square, In October 1993, Nelson Mandela visited the
square to finally receive the Freedom of the
Sir Walter Scott’s 24m (80ft) tall monument City, granted to him in 1981 during his long
incarceration by the South African apartheid
was commissioned just a month after the regime. Glasgow was the first city in the world
writer’s death in 1832. Scott remains one of to confer such an honour on Mandela and in
so doing recognised his equal rights as a citizen
the most celebrated contributors to Scottish as well as the injustice of his imprisonment. From
a stage set up opposite the City Chambers, Mandela
literature, notable for poems and novels such as greeted a crowd of over 10,000 people before receiving his
Rob Roy and The Lady in the Lake . honour from city officials.

38