| Workers Defence Corps | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Lang's Army |
| Leader | Jack Fegan[1][2] Dave Williams |
| Foundation | 1929; 96 years ago (1929) |
| Dates of operation | c. 1929–1935 |
| Dissolved | 1935; 90 years ago (1935) |
| Country | Australia |
| Allegiance | Communist Party of Australia |
| Headquarters | Lithgow, New South Wales |
| Newspaper | Red Fist[3] |
| Active regions | New South Wales |
| Ideology | Communism Marxism–Leninism Anti-fascism |
| Allies |
|
| Opponents | New Guard Centre Party |
TheWorkers Defence Corps (WDC) was an Australiancommunist paramilitary organisation during theGreat Depression.[3][1]
The WDC was based on similar organisations formed in Britain during the1926 United Kingdom general strike by theCommunist Party of Great Britain for protectingpicket lines from police and paramilitaries, which the WDC also undertook.[3][4][5] The organisation was first active in 1929 during theNorthern Coalfields lockout, where it was used to coercestrikebreakers and defend picket lines from police. The organisation was reformed in 1931 to defend Communist meetings from the growing proto-fascistNew Guard.[3][4]
The WDC is most notable for its clashes with the New Guard, but also engaged inbank robberies and reprisals against police officers. Most of which failed.[3] The WDC did have a successful string of weapons thefts.[3][2] The WDC assisted the Unemployed Workers Movement in opposing evictions.[6]
The WDC saw itself as a Red Army that would eventually lead a nationwideCommunist revolution.[3][1][4]
Members of the WDC were involved in the 'Battle ofBankstown,' in which several hundredNew Guardsmen brawled with Bankstown locals, workers, Unemployed Worker's Movement members and WDC members. The New Guard was reportedly defeated, with their vehicles heavily damaged. The riot then continued as the crowd searched Bankstown for New Guardsmen or police officers.[3][7]
.jpeg) | This article about an organisation in Australia is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. |