Enamel badges from the Northumberland area
A collection of nine badges from branches from Northumberland. Listed from top left to bottom right.
Ashington
Produced in 1985 by John Smith, Ashington N.U.M. Secretary.
1,000 issued. 24mm round with scroll. Red, light green and yellow. Gilt.
Lynemouth Colliery Mechanics
Produced by Joe Lloyd of the Tynemouth Mechanics. NCMA = Northumberland Coal Miners Association.
300 issued. 21mm square. Green and black. Gilt.
(Twenty eight of a second colour scheme of green and blue was issued to strikers.)
Northumberland Picket
Pickets from Northumberland were called “Murphy’s Marauders” after Dennis Murphy, a Northumberland NUM official during the strike.
Issued in large numbers. 24mm round with scroll. Red, black and blue. Gilt.
(A second colour scheme of red, black and purple was also issued in large numbers.)
Northumberland sacked miners
Produced in 1986 to raise funds for the 17 sacked men from Northumberland.
33mm x 25mm oval. Black, red, blue and green. Gilt.
Northumberland Area
Produced as a stickpin (as opposed to a broach fastening).
Produced in large numbers. 15mm round. Black, green and light blue. Chrome.
Bates Loyalty
Produced for striking miners. The scroll contains “INS”, the abbreviation for “I never scabbed”. This stops any miner who scabbed from wearing it.
Several hundred produced. 24mm round and scroll. Black, light blue and green. Gilt.
Northumberland WAPC
Northumberland Women Against Pit Closures.
Produced as a fund raiser for the National Justice for Mineworkers Campaign by the Northumberland WAPC.
Several hundred issued. 25mm round. Black and green. Gilt.
Northumberland Mechanics
Issued after the strike as a fund raiser.
33mm x 25mm oval. Black, red, yellow and blue and green within the gear wheel. Gilt.
Northumberland Mechanics
Badge for the Northumberland Colliery Mechanics to identify pickets.
500 issued in 1985. 29mm Black and white. Gilt.
The Miners’ Strike 1984-85
The Miners’ Strike of 1984/5 was in defence of the coal industry, to protect jobs and communities. By the end of the strike in March 1985, 200 mineworkers served time in prison or custody, 20,000 people had been injured and 966 mineworkers had been sacked by the NCB. Two members of the National Union of Mineworkers were killed on picket lines; David Jones on the 15th March 1984 and Joe Green on the 15th June 1984. Three people died digging for coal during the winter.
National Justice for Mineworkers Campaign
The National Justice for Mineworkers Campaign was formed at the 1985 Labour Conference and was launched at the Albert Hall, London, in October 1986. The objectives of the campaign are to keep the issue of those victimised miners to the forefront of the labour and trade union movement and to raise money to alleviate hardship among the families of the victimised men.
The 966 men were originally sacked for no more than honouring picket lines, defending their jobs and pit communities, their class and the future of their children. Only a small number had been dismissed for offences against the person or damage to property. Many miners subsequently cleared by the courts were not re-instated and neither were many more who successfully won their cases for unfair dismissal at Industrial Tribunals. Many were even blacklisted from getting any work outside the coal industry.
The Justice Campaign is supported by the NUM, Labour Party, TUC conferences and many national & regional unions.
National Justice for Mineworkers Campaign
103 Cliff Road Hornsea HU18 1JB
Email: to be advised
Web: www.justiceformineworkers.org.uk
Phone: 01964 532954 & 07816 030236
A minimum of 10p of the purchase price of this card is donated to the NJMC.
Enamel badges of the National Union of Mineworkers
Many thanks to Brian Witts for information, advice and access to his collection. Brian produces the definitive book about the enamel badges and a large format poster using images of the badges to illustrate the wreckage caused by the Thatcher government to the mining industry and the mining communities. Contact Past Pixels if you want details.
Image of badgesare copyright National Union of Mineworkers.
Photography by Martin Shakeshaft www.strike84.co.uk
