A century of peace activism

The Northern Friends Peace Board gathers to mark its centenary

Almost a hundred years to the day since the Northern Friends Peace Board (NFPB) was launched, Quakers will gather to celebrate its work.

Central Manchester Meeting house will host the celebration on 2 February. The Board was founded on 30 January 1913 to mobilise peace activism in northern England and Scotland.

The celebration will be followed by a major conference in June. In July, there will be a ‘walk of witness’ from Richmond Castle, where conscientious objectors (COs) were imprisoned in the first world war, to the United States Air Force base at Menwith Hill near Harrogate. The Board have also produced a calendar depicting historic peace posters.

Philip Austin of the NFPB said the anniversary is an opportunity for Friends to re-dedicate themselves to peace. The Board is producing resources to help Local Meetings engage with difficult issues.

NFPB spoke out against both world wars and supported COs. Philip Austin said it was ‘inspiring’ to think of Friends ‘publishing a peace message during wartime’.

The Board’s other achievements include work on conflict in Northern Ireland and the development of workshops looking at the links between peace and other issues, including race and economics.

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