Max Plowman's pacifism

Tyldesley, Michael G. (2002) Max Plowman's pacifism. Peace and change, 27 (1). pp. 20-36. ISSN 1468-0130

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Abstract

This article considers the pacifism of Max Plowman, the notable British pacifist. It focuses upon the period between the outbreak of the Second World War and his death in June 1941. It examines the strategy for British pacifism that Plowman advocated at that time, and situates it in the context of ongoing debates in the Peace Pledge Union (PPU), in which Plowman was a leading figure. As a point of contrast to Plowman's viewpoint, consideration is given to the arguments advanced by the Forward Movement grouping within the PPU. The article notes that Plowman's pacifism originated in the First World War and developed in the stormy decade of the 1930s. It considers how well the pacifism Plowman advocated stood up to the challenges of the Second World War, and to what extent it acted as a useful guide for pacifists during that war.