AN afternoon of talks and discussion on Cowling-born Philip Snowden, Labour's first Chancellor of the Exchequer, will be held in at Keighley Library on Saturday, October 5.
He entered office in 1924, and to mark the centenary, a new edition of his remarkable autobiography has been published.
Snowden was born and raised in Cowling and as a politician started out as a councillor in Keighley, later becoming MP for Colne Valley.
He was very proud of his Yorkshire heritage, beginning his autobiography with the line "I am a Yorkshireman."
He earned the moniker Iron Chancellor after standing up to the French in tense negotiations.
Leading historians of the Labour party will speak on Snowden's life and legacy and reassess this unique and controversial statesman. They include:
- Professor Andrew Thorpe, (Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Humanities & Culture at Leeds University and author of The History of the British Labour Party)
- Professor Keith Laybourn (President of the Society for the Study of Labour History, author of the leading biography of Snowden).
- Alexander Clifford (author of several books on the interwar period and editor of the new edition of Snowden's autobiography).
The panel will be chaired by Will Barber-Taylor, deputy director of the Centre Think Tank and host of several political podcasts.
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