Ebenezer Edwards (30 July 1884 – 6 July 1961) was a trade unionist and politician in Britain.

Early life

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Born in Chevington, near Broomhill, Northumberland,[1] Edwards went down the coal mine at the age of 12. In 1906, he joined the Independent Labour Party, although he left after three years. In 1908, he attended Ruskin College in Oxford for ten months, but had to leave due to a lack of finances. After leaving the course, he became an early member of the Plebs' League and began to espouse Marxism.

Later life

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Edwards continued working as a miner during World War I. A supporter of Robert Smillie, he opposed the war. He narrowly missed election to Parliament at the 1918 Wansbeck by-election, standing as a local Labour Party candidate, losing to Robert Mason. He lost in Wansbeck again at the 1918 general election.

Long active in the Miners' Federation of Great Britain (MFGB), Edwards was elected to increasingly important posts in the union. In 1929, he was finally elected to Parliament, as the Labour MP for Morpeth, succeeding Smillie, but lost his seat at the 1931 election. Elected as vice-president of the MFGB in 1929, he became president in 1931 and secretary in 1932. He also served in various posts at the Miners' International Federation.

In 1945, he attended the World Trade Union Conference in London alongside many renowned trade unionists.

Edwards supported the MFGB's reconstitution as the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), and became the NUM's first secretary in 1945, but stepped down the following year to serve on the National Coal Board, keeping this post until 1953.

References

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  1. ^ The Colliery Guardian and Journal of the Coal and Iron Trades (1931), Volume 143, p. 394.
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Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Morpeth
19291931
Succeeded by
Trade union offices
Preceded by Financial Secretary of the Northumberland Miners' Association
1918–1929
Succeeded by
John Carr
Preceded by Trades Union Congress representative to the American Federation of Labour
1928
With: John Marchbank
Succeeded by
Preceded by Vice-President of the Miners' Federation of Great Britain
1929–1930
Succeeded by
Preceded by President of the Miners' Federation of Great Britain
1931–1932
Succeeded by
Preceded by Secretary of the Miners' Federation of Great Britain
1932–1945
Succeeded by
Position abolished
Preceded by Secretary of the Miners' International Federation
1934–1947
Succeeded by
Preceded by President of the Trades Union Congress
1944–1945
Succeeded by
Preceded by
New position
Secretary of the National Union of Mineworkers
1945–1946
Succeeded by