St Ann's riots

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The 1958 St Ann's riots, also known as the Nottingham riots or the Nottingham race riots, was a racially motivated riot from the 23 August 1958 to 6th September in the suburb of St Ann's in Nottingham. [1] Racism after post-war immigration from the Caribbean led to racial tensions, which exploded into clashes in the summer of 1958. Several men and women were injured, and one man needed 37 stitches after a throat wound. [2] The riots led to discussions between Caribbean countries and the UK government, which were intensified a week later by the Notting Hill riots in London. [1]

Contents

The events were downplayed by Nottingham City Police's Chief Constable at the time Capt. Athelstan Popkess who claimed they were not racially motivated. [3]

Contextual background

Afro-Caribbean immigration had been increasing in numbers since 1955.

Event

23rd of August

The race riot started on the 23rd of August 1958. A fight, the exact cause of which is unknown and has been debated, between a White and Afro-Caribbean man took place outside a public house. [4] The violence spread within a couple of minutes in which a number of White men were stabbed by Afro-Caribbeans and to which then around 1,500 people gathered in a hostile crowd. [4] Within 90 minutes of the riot starting the police had restored order. [4]

30th of August

The following week a larger crowd of around 4,000 gathered due to the events of last week. [5]

6th of September

A smaller crowd gathered the next week. A battle between Afro-Caribbean tenants in the upper floors of a house and Whites on the ground occurred. [6]

References

  1. 1 2 "Notting Hill Riots 1958". The Exploring 20th century London Project. Archived from the original on 27 March 2012. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  2. ↑ "St Ann's riot: The changing face of race relations, 60 years on". BBC News. 25 August 2018. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  3. ↑ Cousins, Emily (30 August 2010). "Nottingham Riots (1958)". Black Past.
  4. 1 2 3 Ruth Glass (1961). London's newcomers: the West Indian migrants. Internet Archive. Harvard University Press. On Saturday, August 23rd 1958, a fight between a coloured and a white man started just at closing time, around 10 p.m., outside a public house in The Chase (...) the exact cause of the fight is obscure (...) But it is clear that the fighting spread within a few minutes. Several white men were stabbed by coloured men. A hostile shouting crowd of about 1,500 people gathered.
  5. ↑ Ruth Glass (1961). London's newcomers: the West Indian migrants. Internet Archive. Harvard University Press. It was reported that there was a "milling mob" which grew to about 4,000 people during the evening
  6. ↑ Ruth Glass (1961). London's newcomers: the West Indian migrants. Internet Archive. Harvard University Press. On the following Saturday evening, September 6th, there was again a crowd in the district, though a much smaller one than previously. A siege of some coloured people's houses developed into a missile battle between the tenants who threw milk bottles from the upper floors and the crowd below who bombarded the houses with bricks and bottles and broke windows. In a dark side street coloured men were chased; five were assaulted. But the pohce vans arrived quickly, and the fighting was stopped.


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