As minister of health in Clement Attlees Labour government of 1945, he was responsible for developing housing programs and for establishing the National Health Service. After a Labour landslide victory in 1945, Clement Attlee appointed Bevan Minister of Health, with a remit that also covered housing, given the severe post-war shortage. BBC Wales - History - Themes - Aneurin Bevan He was convinced that. He lost the seat in 1931, but regained it in 1932 before deciding against seeking re-election in 1934. [42], In August 1939 came the MolotovRibbentrop Pact, a non-aggression pact between the Nazi and Soviet governments that shocked democratic governments around the world. He was the sixth of ten children born to Phoebe and David Bevan, of whom only eight survived infancy and only six to adulthood. [61], The free National Health Service was paid for directly through public money. [51] He also voiced criticism of trade union leaders, which drew complaints from both the Miners' Federation and the Trades Union Congress. Bevan died from stomach cancer in 1960 at the age of 62. [62] This system proved so popular that 20,000 people supported the organisation during the 1930s. He is particularly noted for his tenure as Minister for Health in Clement Attlee's government, in which he pioneered the creation of the British National Health Service. However, the. Winston Churchill, the target of numerous diatribes from Bevan during his career, commented that Bevan was "one of the few members that I will sit still and listen to". Attlee and Labour were ousted from power in a snap election held six months after Bevan's resignation, but Attlee continued on as Labour Party Leader. He was no calculating machine. In 1947, Bevan stated "All I am doing is extending to the entire population of Britain the benefits we had in Tredegar for a generation or more. Aneurin Bevan was born on 15 November 1897 at 32 Charles Street in Tredegar, Monmouthshire, a working-class mining town, where an estimated 90 per cent of the town's inhabitants relied on the local mines for employment. Later today he will be taken home to Wales. 3. Aneurin Bevan - Wikipedia [102] In July of the same year, Bevan announced his intention to stand for election as the Treasurer of the Labour Party against Hugh Gaitskell. [12] Bevan resigned from his position two weeks later, stating both the proposed changes and the increase in military expenditure that necessitated the need for such proposals. [101] He later said that he had resigned his position to "call attention to the fact that their movement was in grave crisis", and stated his belief that he would have been party chairman by the following year if he had remained. Aneurin Bevan - Former Secretary of State for Health, Facts, Childhood Photo by Duncan from Leicestershire, UK Wikimedia Commons. [1][3], The couple had ten children altogethersix boys and four girlsalthough four died in infancy and one died at the age of eight. Photo by Spudgun67 Wikimedia Commons. His "vermin" speech still resonated: imagination shuddered at a repetition of that on the international stage. Read more. The facts, figures and quotes that shaped the history of the National Health Service . "Oratory in Political Life,", This page was last edited on 14 April 2023, at 03:25. With less motivation for studies, he left school at age 13 to work at a local Ty- Trist Colliery. [113] According to the journalist Paul Routledge, Donald Bruce, a former MP and Parliamentary Private Secretary and adviser to Bevan, had told him that Bevan's shift on the disarmament issue was the result of discussions with the Soviet government, where they advised him to push for British retention of nuclear weapons so they could possibly be used as a bargaining chip in negotiations with the United States.[114]. Bevan always stood up for the underdog, and was a voice for the unemployed in the period between the two world wars when joblessness was a major domestic political issue. Shortly afterwards he resigned from the government in protest at the introduction of prescription charges for dental care and spectacles. [100] In April 1954, Bevan resigned from the Parliamentary Labour Party, having been rebuked by Attlee after accusing the Labour leader of surrendering to American pressure over a proposed multi-national defence organisation in Asia and the Pacific. He grew up steeped in the traditions of Welsh miners radicalism; self-help organizations, trade unionism, religious dissent, and socialism. Photo by Geoff Charles Wikimedia Commons. [123][124] An open-air service was held in his constituency of Ebbw Vale and was presided over by Donald Soper. [130] The Nye Bevan Estate in Clapton Park, Hackney, London, was named after Bevan, and was opened in October 1962 by his friend and biographer Michael Foot. [75][76][77] 1946 saw the completion of 55,600 new homes; this rose to 139,600 in 1947 and 227,600 in 1948. Bevan opposed the heavy censorship imposed on radio and newspapers and wartime Defence Regulation 18B, which gave the Home Secretary the powers to intern citizens. Aneurin Bevan, Minister of Health, on the first day of the National Health Service, 5 July 1948 at Park Hospital, Davyhulme, near Manchester. Bevan's past association with Mosley would be used against him in subsequent years by his political rivals. Aneurin's name is pronounced 'uh-ny-rin'. C. 1924. Updates? The National Health Service was launched in 1948, and Bevan is quoted as saying, No society can legitimately call itself civilised if a sick person is denied medical aid because of a lack of means. Aneurin Bevanand other members were briefly suspended from the Labour Party in March 1939 as he advocated for a united socialist front of all parties of the left. Bevanism - Wikipedia [22] Although described in The Times as "an outstanding back-bench critic" and "one of (Labour's) most brilliant members in debate", his appointment was regarded as a relative surprise, given his previous disciplinary issues. Aneurin had a stammer as a child which he would later overcome and be recognised as a great public speaker. Confrontation with the British Medical Association (BMA) was led by Charles Hill, who published a letter in the British Medical Journal describing Bevan as "a complete and uncontrolled dictator". Soon, thereafter became an activist and initially, a supporter of syndicalism. It was Aneurin Bevan, the Minister of Health in the UK from 1945 to 1951, who started the NHS in 1948. Indeed, he was increasingly critical of his own party, and from 1940 to 1945 was the editor of the independent Socialist Tribune. In his political career, Bevan served as a minister of health in Clement Attlees Labor government of 1945, he was responsible for developing housing programs and for establishing the National Health Service. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. [57][58] These reforms were achieved in the face of great financial difficulty following the war. FIGHT FOR OUR NHS free at the point of need for all. He went on to serve as shadow foreign secretary from 1956-59 and deputy leader of the Labour party from 1959-60. Anenurin Bevan, Minister of Health, on the first day of the National Health Service, 5 July 1948 at Park Hospital, Davyhulme, near Manchester. This club was aimed at helping members in monetary terms in their times of need. His remains were cremated at Gwent Crematorium in Croesyceiliog in a private family ceremony. Corrections? Bevan foresaw that it would always be the subject of public debate, warning that "This service must always be changing, growing and improving; it must always appear to be inadequate." [129], A bronze statue was commissioned by South Glamorgan County Council and erected in 1987 in the city centre of Cardiff. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Bevan gained more than twice the votes of Liberal candidate William Griffiths, receiving 20,000 votes to Griffiths' 8,000. He believed that a civilized society should be able to provide medical care for all of its citizens for free so that anyone in need of medical care, no matter what they earn, can have access to it. Photo by Howard Coster Wikimedia Commons. Photo by Jeremy Segrott from Cardiff, Wales, UK Wikimedia Commons. [12] In Parliament, he became noticed as a harsh critic of those he felt opposed the working man and woman. Top 15 Things to do Around the Eiffel Tower, 10 Things to Do in Paris on Christmas Day (2022), 10 Things to Do in Luxembourg Gardens in Paris. In February 1925, his father died of pneumoconiosis, an illness caused by the inhalation of coal dust. He was the architect of the National Health Service and leader of the left-wing (Bevanite) group of the Labour Party. "[62] Government income was increased for the welfare state expenditure by a large increase in marginal tax rates for wealthy business owners in particular, as part of what the Labour government largely saw as the redistribution of the wealth created by the working-class from the owners of large-scale industry to the workers. 'Father of the NHS': Who Was Aneurin Bevan? | History Hit [86] However, three months after his appointment, Hugh Gaitskell introduced a proposal of prescription charges for dental care and spectaclescreated to save a potential 25m to meet the financial demands imposed by the Korean War. Aneurin's mother was also from Tredegar, but had English roots: her grandfather was from Hereford. From 1940 to 1945 he was editor of the independent Socialist Tribune. Bevanism was opposed by the Gaitskellites, moderate social democrats within the party. Aneurin Bevan was a British Labour Party politician who took up the portfolio of Health and Housing during Clement Attlee's government from 1945 to 1951. For the next few years Bevan was the centre of controversy within the Labour Party and involuntarily gave his name to the partys radical wing. His autobiography, In Place of Fear, appeared in 1952. [106] Bevan's remark that "I know the right kind of political Leader for the Labour Party is a kind of desiccated calculating machine" was assumed to refer to Gaitskell, although Bevan denied it (commenting upon Gaitskell's record as Chancellor of the Exchequer as having "proved" this). In 1934 he married another Labour MP, Jennie Lee. [117] His last speech in the House of Commons, in the debate of 3 November 1959 on the Queen's Speech,[118] referred to the difficulties of persuading the electorate to support a policy which would make them less well-off in the short term, but more prosperous in the long term. A member of the Tredegar branch of the South Wales Miners Federation, Bevan was the head of his local Miners Lodge at just 19 years of age. Aneurin Bevan was one of the most important ministers of the post-war Labour government and the chief architect of the National Health Service. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. It was one of a long row of four-roomed miners' cottages. Welsh Greats - Aneurin Bevan - YouTube [44] Churchill was a frequent target of Bevan's, who already held a dislike of him following his intervention in the Tonypandy riots and the 1926 United Kingdom general strike which Bevan considered heavy handed. In January 1951, Bevan became Minister for Labour but resigned in protest just three months later after Hugh Gaitskell, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, proposed an introduction of prescription charges for dental care and spectacles in order to save a potential 25 million to meet the financial demands of the Korean War. Aneurin Bevan, byname Nye Bevan, (born November 15, 1897, Tredegar, Monmouthshire [now in Blaenau Gwent], Walesdied July 6, 1960, Chesham, Buckinghamshire), controversial figure in post-World War II British politics and one of the finest orators of the time. Bevan believed that the key to the war was the involvement of Russia and considered Churchill was too focused on the intervention of the United States. "[83], Bevan was instead appointed Minister of Labour in January 1951 in place of George Isaacs. But seven decades after it was founded, a 2013 opinion poll conducted on behalf of British Future found that the NHS was more popular than at its creation, and more popular than the monarchy, the BBC, and the British Armed Forces. It was during this period that he became convinced by the ideas of socialism. "[49], Dunbar had been recommended for a commission, but rejected it himself to remain with his unit. [31] In 1936 he joined the board of the new socialist newspaper Tribune. [46] Historian Max Hastings described Bevan's role in Parliament during the war as "his figures were accurate but his scorn was at odds with the spirit of the momentfull of gratitude, as was the prime minister". [96] In the opening page of the book, Bevan begins: "A young miner in a South Wales colliery, my concern was with the one practical question: Where does power lie in this particular state of Great Britain, and how can it be attained by the workers? [84][85] During his tenure, he helped to secure a deal for railwaymen which provided them with a significant pay increase. His agitations for a united socialist front of all parties of the left (including the Communist Party of Great Britain) led to his brief expulsion from the Labour Party from March to November 1939 (along with Stafford Cripps, C. P. Trevelyan and three others). He read Marxism at the college and was a brief follower of Noah Ablett,[11][12] developing his left-wing political outlook. Bevan shared a liberal ideology and was additionally a supporter of the Liberal party that had a change of ideology to socialism after reading Robert Blatchfords in the Clarion. Photo by University of Liverpool Faculty of Health & Life Sciences from Liverpool, United Kingdom Wikimedia Commons. Aneurin 'Nye' Bevan (1897-1960) is widely regarded as one of the most influential left-wing politicians in British history. They would collect money weekly for any member who needed it. BBC - History - Aneurin Bevan [9] The miners remained on strike for six months. On his return to South Wales he struggled to find work, remaining unemployed for nearly three years before gaining employment as a union official, which led to him becoming a leading figure in the 1926 general strike. We are going to Tredegar-ise you. [14], Upon returning home in 1921, he found that the Tredegar Iron and Coal Company refused to re-employ him. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Born into a working class family in Monmouthshire, Wales, Bevan worked in a coal mine as a teenager, and it was through a miners union that he first became interested in politics. [5] Bevan also joined the Tredegar branch of the South Wales Miners' Federation and became a trade union activist: he was head of his local Miners' Lodge at 19 years of age. We enter this campaign at this general election, not merely to get rid of the Tory majority. He was born to David Bevan a coal miner and Phoebe nee Prothero a seamstress as one of their ten children. As minister of health in Attlee's postwar government from 1945-51, he spearheaded the creation of the National Health Service in 1948. Aneurin Bevan | Encyclopedia.com Image Credit: https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portraitLarge/mw58048/Aneurin-Bevan / Wikimedia Commons, The Road to the Crown - Elizabeth I's Coronation Procession, Built by a Giantess? While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. He is known for leading the creation of the National Health Service (NHS) to give medical care free at point-of-need to all Britons. Bevan was as critical of Nasserist Egypt's seizure of the Suez Canal on 26 July 1956 as he was of the subsequent Anglo-French military response. He was Chief of Staff in Spain, he won the Battle of the Ebro, and he is a sergeant. In 2002, Bevan was voted the 45th greatest Briton of all time by a BBC public opinion poll. He was later fired for refusing to unload, and successfully challenged the motion but was moved to Pochin, generally considered a punishment due to the poor site conditions. Aneurin Bevan was born on November 15, 1897, in Tredegar, Monmouthshire, to David Bevan and Phoebe nee Prothero. The Gaitskellites typically won most of the battles inside Parliament, but Bevanism was stronger among local Labour activists. Here you can learn about the life and work of Aneurin (Nye) Bevan (1897-1960), founder of Britain's National Health Service and one of the Labour movement's greatest orators and thinkers. [4] Aneurin Bevan attended Sirhowy Elementary School, where he achieved little. Despite Bevan's criticism of the new party leader, Gaitskell decided to appoint him as Shadow Colonial Secretary,[109] and then Shadow Foreign Secretary in 1956. Who was Aneurin Bevan, when did he create the NHS and where - The Sun In its early stages this proved true, as the service went vastly over budget in its inaugural year, and Attlee was forced to make a radio address to the nation in an attempt to limit the strain on the system. When Winston Churchill said that the Labour Party should refrain from giving Adolf Hitler the impression that Britain was divided, Bevan rejected this as sinister: The fear of Hitler is to be used to frighten the workers of Britain into silence. However, by the end of his tenure, he had declared Bevan as "the best minister we have had". After eighteen months of ongoing dispute between the Ministry of Health and the BMA, Bevan finally managed to win over the support of the vast majority of the medical profession by offering a couple of minor concessions, including allowing consultants to keep their own private practices and continuing to allow doctors to be paid in capitation fees rather than salaries,[66] but without compromising the fundamental principles of his National Health Service proposals. [110] He was a vocal critic of the Conservative government's actions in the Suez Crisis, noticeably delivering high-profile speeches at a protest rally in Trafalgar Square on 4 November 1956, and criticising the government's actions and arguments in the Commons on 5 December 1956. Are we prepared to accept for ourselves the logic we are applying to Egypt? [90] Bevan received unanimous support for his actions from his local Labour constituency leaders. With the support of the Miners' Federation, the case was judged as one of victimisation and the company was forced to re-employ him. The NHS is a massive employer. The Labour conference voted to drop its opposition to rearmament. [103] Although unsuccessful in his bid, he did celebrate 25 years as the MP for Ebbw Vale. [10], 1919 saw the foundation of the Tredegar Labour Party and Bevan was selected as one of four Labour delegates to contest the West Ward in the Tredegar Urban District election. Additionally, he was a brilliant spontaneous debater and a colorful public personality. After two years at Central Labour College, London, he entered politics and in 1929 was elected to the House of Commons as Labour member from Ebbw Vale. Aneurin "Nye" Bevan was a Welsh politician born on November 15, 1897. Aneurin is second from right on the back row and his brother Billy is second right on front row. He had also seen disputes with some of Attlee's closest allies, Ernest Bevin and Herbert Morrison, who were appointed Foreign Secretary and Leader of the House respectively. He died on 6 July 1960. In addition, he is known for his wider contribution to the founding of the British welfare state. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Aneurin-Bevan, British Broadcasting Corporation - Biography of Aneurin Bevan, Spartacus Educational - Biography of Aneurin Bevan. Bevan called for the nationalisation of the coal industry and advocated the opening of a Second Front in Western Europe to help the Soviet Union in its fight with Germany. Nye Bevan Speech (1946) - YouTube Omissions? Aneurin Bevan Facts: Aneurin Bevan was a Welsh Labour politician widely considered the architect of the National Health Service. A free health service is pure Socialism and as such it is opposed to the hedonism of capitalist society. [9][20] In keeping with his background, Bevan described his initial thoughts on the House of Commons as a shrine to "the most conservative of all religions ancestor worship". Bevan and Cripps had previously been threatened with disciplinary action by the party for sharing a stage with a Communist speaker, and all party members were threatened with expulsion if they were associated with the Popular Front. He published the bookIn Place of Fear in 1952, which became the most read socialist book at the time. If nations more powerful than ourselves accept the absence of principle, the anarchistic attitude of Eden and launch bombs on London, what answer have we got, what complaint have we got? Bevanism was a movement on the left wing of the Labour Party in the late 1950s led by Aneurin Bevan which also included Richard Crossman, Michael Foot and Barbara Castle. After his resignation, Bevan served as Shadow Foreign Secretary from 1955 to 1959. BBC Wales documentary, originally aired December 18th 2012.Aneurin Bevan (pronounced /narn/; Welsh: [an.rin]; 15 November 1897 - 6 July 1960), often k. Aneurin Bevan was born on 15 November 1897 in Tredegar in Wales. Nye gave us the greatest Socalist model ever seen in 1948. There was an outpouring of national mourning that followed his death, while the Daily Herald reported that some MPs were seen to be crying in Parliament. . Aneurin "Nye" Bevan PC (/narn bvn/; Welsh:[an.rn]; 15 November 1897 6 July 1960) was a Welsh Labour Party politician, noted for tenure as Minister of Health in Clement Attlee's government in which he spearheaded the creation of the British National Health Service. In one of his most noted speeches made against Churchill, he railed that the prime minister "wins debate after debate and loses battle after battle". During the 1926 General Strike, Bevan emerged as one of the leaders of the South Wales miners. Bevan contested the leadership against both Morrison and Labour right-winger Gaitskell, but it was Gaitskell who emerged victorious with more than half of the ballots. A powerful speaker, debater and champion of the working class, Bevan was voted number one in the 100 Welsh Heroes poll, a response to find the publics favourite Welsh people of all time. Why Did Shakespeare Paint Richard III as a Villain? [21] His targets included the Conservative Winston Churchill and the Liberal David Lloyd George, as well as Ramsay MacDonald and Margaret Bondfield from his own Labour party (he targeted the latter for her unwillingness to increase unemployment benefits). Bevan followed his advice, often practising his speeches to his friends to perfect his speech and wording, and remarked that Conway's words were the "best advice I ever had". This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. Bevan attended the local school, where he was deeply shy because of a severe stammer that he developed as a child. Get out! It was around this time that he first "reject[ed] his chapel upbringing" and became an atheist. Bevan accused the government of a "policy of bankruptcy and despair",[111] stating at the Trafalgar rally: We are stronger than Egypt but there are other countries stronger than us. He was first elected as MP for Ebbw Vale in 1929, and used his Parliamentary platform to make a number of influential criticisms of Winston Churchill and his Conservative government during the Second World War. A blue plaque was erected in 2015 by English Heritage at 23 Cliveden Place, Chelsea, London SW1W 8HD, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Bevan was a supporter of the Liberal Party as a child, but later converted to socialism and joined the Independent Labour Party. A statue of Aneurin Bevan in Cardiff. Bevan first worked as a miner during his teens where he became involved in local miner's union politics. Bevan was not good academically and was at a time repeated for a year in school. Plaque, Aneurin Bevan memorial stones, Tredegar. Bevan also failed in a bid to become deputy leader, losing out to Jim Griffiths. As exposure to the atmosphere reduces all mummies to instant dissolution, so war passes supreme judgment upon social systems that have outlived their vitality. Bevan is widely regarded as one of the most influential left-wing politicians in British history. [16][17] In 1926 he found work as a paid union official. full audio of Bevan's speech at the 4 November 1956 Trafalgar Square rally against British action in Suez. He would be studying economics, history, and politics for the next two years while in that school. [105] After the 1955 general election, Attlee retired as Labour leader. Get time period newsletters, special offers and weekly programme release emails. He was born in Tredegar, Wales, on 15th November 1897. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). When Attlee retired from the leadership in 1955, Bevan unsuccessfully contested the party leadership with Hugh Gaitskell, but was appointed Shadow Colonial Secretary and later Shadow Foreign Secretary. Image Credit: http://www.cradleofnhs.org.uk/nye.htm / Wikimedia Commons. [2] He was a member of the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion and wrote his own poems, one of which won an inter-chapel eisteddfod. After General Neil Ritchie's retreat across Cyrenaica early in 1942 and his disastrous defeat by General Erwin Rommel at Gazala, Bevan made one of his most memorable speeches in the Commons in support of a motion of censure against the Churchill government. He was cremated at Gwent Crematorium, Croesyceiliog. He had then joined the board of the socialist newspaper, the Tribune in 1936. [18], In 1928, Bevan won a seat on Monmouthshire County Council in the Tredegar Central Division. Aneurin Bevan and the setting up of the NHS - BBC Bitesize Despite resistance from opposition parties and the British Medical Association, the National Health Service Act 1946 was passed and launched in 1948, nationalising more than 2,500 hospitals within the United Kingdom. Bevan was named Minister of Labour in 1951, but resigned after two months in office, when the Attlee government proposed the introduction of prescription charges for dental and vision care and decided to transfer funds from the National Insurance Fund to pay for rearmament. He became a well-known local orator, and was regarded with suspicion by his employers, the Tredegar Iron and Coal Company. To achieve mastery as a speaker, he had first to overcome a speech impediment. He agreed to serve as shadow foreign secretary under Gaitskell. [40] When the government introduced voluntary national service in December 1938, Bevan argued that Labour should demand the nationalisation of the armaments industry, support the democratic government of Spain and sign an Anglo-Soviet pact in return for its support. But the lowest paid a tax rate of 1%, up from 0.2% in 1938, the middle income brackets paid 14% to 26%, up from 10% to 18% in 1938, the higher earners paid 42%, up from 29%, and the top earners 77%, up from 58% in 1938. multi-national defence organisation in Asia and the Pacific, subsequent Anglo-French military response, Political history of the United Kingdom (1945present), "Aneurin Bevan, stormy petrel of the Labour left", "Dying father inspired Nye Bevan's NHS dream", "Britain's near-brush with Fascism: The politician who rooted for Hitler", "Play tells the inspiring story of political couple Aneurin Bevan and Jennie Lee", "How Jennie Lee helped Aneurin Bevan shape political change", "70 years of the NHS: How Aneurin Bevan created our beloved health service", "Let Us Face the Future: A Declaration of Labour Policy for the Consideration of the Nation", "NHS 70: Aneurin Bevan Day celebrations in Tredegar", "Housing owned by the people for the people Nye would have approved", "Bevan's speech to the Manchester Labour rally", "Major John Freeman: Soldier who became an MP, diplomat and broadcaster best known for his series of interviews, Face to Face", "In Place of Fear A Free Health Service 1952", "Mr. Bevan and Others Awarded 2,500 Each", "Did you know NHS founder Aneurin Bevan lived in Bucks? From 1950, onwards it's been attacked, the reason he resigned from government, but has managed to last 75yrs. By 1932, Mosley's New Party had migrated from the left over to the far-right of British politics and was rebranded as the British Union of Fascists. Indeed, these factors, exacerbated by post-war restrictions on the availability of building materials and skilled labour, collectively served to limit Bevan's achievements in this area.

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