The Anarchists

The Anarchists is a book by the historian James Joll. At 265 pages, it is a relatively brief history of the anarchist movement, covering its philosophical beginnings in Europe with William Godwin and Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, the further development by the Russians Peter Kropotkin and Mikhail Bakunin and its influence on the working class movements of the 19th and 20th centuries – mainly in Europe and Russia, but also in the United States.

The Anarchists was first published in 1964; the second edition was published in 1979.

Contents

1. Part One
1. Heresy and reason
2. The myth of Revolution

   Part Two

3. Reason and revolution: Proudhon
4. Bakunin and the great schism

   Part Three

5. Terrorism and propaganda by the deed
6. Saints and rebels
7. The Revolution that failed
8. Anarchists and syndicalists
9. Anarchists in action: Spain
10. Conclusion