Anna Mendelssohn
Encyclopedia
Anna Mendelssohn who wrote under the name Grace Lake, was a British
writer, poet and political activist. She came from a left-wing political family, was inspired by the Paris student risings in May 1968, and became a political radical in Britain.
Mendelsohn was convicted of conspiracy to cause explosions as part of The Angry Brigade
, a ruling she insisted was unjust. After her release she raised a family, resumed her education and devoted her life to art and to poetry. She grew somewhat isolated from the rest of society, but her friends saw to it that some of her work was published.
in Cheshire
. Her father was from a working class Jewish background, and was a Labour
councillor in Stockport;, the Mendleson family was later described by Des Wilson
as 'politically radical'. Mendleson was educated at Stockport High School for Girls
, where she became Head Girl
. She was reported to have been a "brilliant and unruly pupil". In addition Mendleson fostered her artistic ability through attending the New Era Academy of Drama and Music from 1957 to 1967, and performed at several Northern Music Festivals.
to read English Literature and American History. In May 1968 she went to Paris
, to join in the student political rising; what she saw had a great effect on her political thinking. In 1969 she dropped out of her university course rather than continue into her final year, but remained living in Wivenhoe
around the university for several months. In early 1970 she was living in York Way in the King's Cross
area of London, and was close friends with a group including some university friends who were living a semi-communal life in Stamford Hill
; among them was Hilary Creek. Mendleson and Creek were supporting a group which had squatted
empty flats in Arbour Square
in Stepney. She made friends with Jim Greenfield after meeting him on leaving a political meeting.
. The police were called by someone who thought the group looked suspicious and when Greenfield had no documents for their hire car, all five were arrested. Police searches discovered cannabis
and a stolen Essex University cheque
book; the five gave false names and were bailed to report to Colchester Police Station. The newspaper eventually appeared under the name Strike; for it Mendleson wrote an article on "Judges and the Law". After the arrests the police linked the case to other stolen cheque books and on 11 June 1971 Mendleson was one of six people to be charged with conspiracy to defraud. However she had jumped bail and her picture was printed in the Police Gazette as a wanted person. People arrested in a police raid in Wivenhoe in April 1971 were shown pictures of Mendleson and asked if they recognised her.
. One of the Mendleson's main concerns was that the group continue to support the defence of Jake Prescott and Ian Purdie, who were charged with carrying out two bombings for The Angry Brigade
anarchist group. The duplicating equipment at Amhurst Road was used to produce Angry Brigade Communiqué No. 11 published on 31 July 1971, and Mendleson drafted the 'Angry Brigade Moonlighter's Cell' Communiqué which followed it.
, two submachine gun
s, a Browning
pistol and 81 rounds of ammunition. Mendleson was remanded in custody at Holloway Prison
and was eventually charged with possession of the armaments and conspiracy to cause explosions. Mendleson's fingerprints were found on a copy of Rolling Stone
magazine used to wrap a bomb planted at the Italian consulate in Manchester, and she was also charged with attempting to cause this explosion.
became the longest criminal trial at that point in English legal history, Mendleson was one of three defendants to represent themselves; the "Stoke Newington Eight Defence Group" argued that this was the right decision as they had challenged prosecution witnesses and exposed several as liars. However her health suffered and she was ill throughout much of the trial; on occasion she was too ill to take part at all and the trial had to be halted. She was granted bail during a four week summer adjournment of the trial, spending the time in Wales.
witnesses to the fact that she was in Wivenhoe when the bomb was planted. Although she knew others in the case, she asserted that there was no evidence of any plots or conspiracies. Mendleson said that she understood the feelings behind those who would make bomb attacks on cabinet ministers but doing so "isn't going to get rid of the capitalist system, because there is always somebody to step into his place unless the situation and conditions are right". In conclusion she stressed that those in dock "are working together for a happier and more peaceful world".
Notwithstanding her oratory, Mendleson was convicted by a 10-2 majority of conspiracy to cause explosions. She was also found guilty of the possession charges, but not guilty of attempting to cause an explosion in Manchester. The jury foreman asked for "leniency or clemency" for the defendants, which the Judge took into account by reducing the overall sentence by five years. Mendleson was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment. While being taken down to the cells she called out "I would like to say thank you to the two members of the jury who had faith in us". Along with others convicted in the trial, Mendleson appealed against both verdict and sentence, being represented by Michael Mansfield
. The appeals failed.
in November 1976, just four years after the end of the trial. The news was not disclosed by the Home Office
until 13 February 1977, causing a storm of press coverage which one reporter described as "scandalous and distasteful". The issue was raised in Parliament with Home Secretary
, Merlyn Rees, saying that Mendleson was no longer a danger to society; William Whitelaw
criticised the decision and asserted that protection of the public and police morale came first. Mendleson returned to Stockport to live with her family, and her father gave an interview to BBC Radio explaining that prison had had a terrible effect on her, making it impossible for her to concentrate. He also said that she had taken no part in the bombings and that she and the other defendants were "good young people" who tried to help others.
, Cambridge University
, and devoting her life to poetry and art. She became opposed to technology and disliked judgments based on rationality in favour of those based on an artistic judgment, which led to her life becoming increasingly disconnected from the rest of society.
Such a lifestyle meant she was not greatly interested in seeing her poetry published, but others thought that her work deserved a larger audience. She is said to have had poems published in the Sheffield Free Press. Also, a volume of poetry, due to be published by the Common Ground Printing Co-operative, was reportedly removed prior to publication after the printer sought to censor the content. She was first published in 1986, according to a later reviewer, through "a series of home-made, distributed hand to hand, photographed-manuscript feuilles volantes". In 1988 two of her poems were published under the title La Facciata as issue number 5 of Poetical Histories, with a cover design by the author.
under the literary pseudonym
Grace Lake. Viola Tricolor published in 1993 was followed by Bernache nonnette in 1995; a review of the latter in Angel Exhaust
magazine saw it as a critique of left-wing politics
since 1970 for seeing the population it hopes to serve as a single group rather than as millions of individual people, a critique which the reviewer Andrew Duncan linked to the poet's own history. 1997 saw the appearance of Tondo Aquatique, which had a theme of the relationship between water and language.
In 2000 a full book of Mendelssohn's poetry was published by Salt Publishing
under its 'Folio' imprint and Equipage, this time not using her pseudonym. As with previous publication, it was due to pressure by others that Implacable Art was taken up by its publishers; included some of her line drawings, and some poetry appeared in handwritten form.
. As the tumour developed, she became incapacitated by it and dependent on hospital care, being almost unconscious for the last two weeks before her death in November 2009.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
writer, poet and political activist. She came from a left-wing political family, was inspired by the Paris student risings in May 1968, and became a political radical in Britain.
Mendelsohn was convicted of conspiracy to cause explosions as part of The Angry Brigade
The Angry Brigade
The Angry Brigade was a small British militant group responsible for a series of bomb attacks in Britain between 1970 and 1972.-History:During the summer of 1968 there were a number of demonstrations in London against the American involvement in the Vietnam War, centred on the American Embassy in...
, a ruling she insisted was unjust. After her release she raised a family, resumed her education and devoted her life to art and to poetry. She grew somewhat isolated from the rest of society, but her friends saw to it that some of her work was published.
School
Mendleson was the daughter of Maurice Mendleson, a prosperous market trader from StockportStockport
Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on elevated ground southeast of Manchester city centre, at the point where the rivers Goyt and Tame join and create the River Mersey. Stockport is the largest settlement in the metropolitan borough of the same name...
in Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
. Her father was from a working class Jewish background, and was a Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
councillor in Stockport;, the Mendleson family was later described by Des Wilson
Des Wilson
Des Wilson is a New Zealand born British campaigner, political activist, businessman, sports administrator, author and Poker player. He was instrumental in the 1960s as a founder of the pivotal British homelessness charity Shelter and was for a while an activist in, and President of, the British...
as 'politically radical'. Mendleson was educated at Stockport High School for Girls
Hillcrest Grammar School
Hillcrest Grammar School in Cale Green, Stockport, Greater Manchester is an independent day school with around 350 pupils aged 2½ to 16. The school was founded as a boys' preparatory school in 1940 in Bramhall...
, where she became Head Girl
Head boy
Head Boy and Head Girl are terms commonly used in the British education system, and in private schools throughout the Commonwealth.-United Kingdom:...
. She was reported to have been a "brilliant and unruly pupil". In addition Mendleson fostered her artistic ability through attending the New Era Academy of Drama and Music from 1957 to 1967, and performed at several Northern Music Festivals.
Dropping out of university
In September 1967 Mendleson went up to the University of EssexUniversity of Essex
The University of Essex is a British campus university whose original and largest campus is near the town of Colchester, England. Established in 1963 and receiving its Royal Charter in 1965...
to read English Literature and American History. In May 1968 she went to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, to join in the student political rising; what she saw had a great effect on her political thinking. In 1969 she dropped out of her university course rather than continue into her final year, but remained living in Wivenhoe
Wivenhoe
Wivenhoe is a town in north eastern Essex, England, approximately south east of Colchester. Historically Wivenhoe village, on the banks of the River Colne, and Wivenhoe Cross, on the higher ground to the north, were two separate settlements but with considerable development in the 19th century the...
around the university for several months. In early 1970 she was living in York Way in the King's Cross
Kings Cross, London
King's Cross is an area of London partly in the London Borough of Camden and partly in the London Borough of Islington. It is an inner-city district located 2.5 miles north of Charing Cross. The area formerly had a reputation for being a red light district and run-down. However, rapid regeneration...
area of London, and was close friends with a group including some university friends who were living a semi-communal life in Stamford Hill
Stamford Hill
Stamford Hill is a place in the north of the London Borough of Hackney, England, near the border with Haringey. It is home to Europe's largest Hasidic Jewish and Adeni Jewish community.Stamford Hill is NNE of Charing Cross.-History:...
; among them was Hilary Creek. Mendleson and Creek were supporting a group which had squatted
Squatting
Squatting consists of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied space or building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have permission to use....
empty flats in Arbour Square
Arbour Square
Arbour Square is a late Georgian square in Stepney, in the borough of Tower Hamlets, east London, England.It is located just off the Commercial Road approximately one mile east of the City of London...
in Stepney. She made friends with Jim Greenfield after meeting him on leaving a political meeting.
Wanted by police
On 27 February 1971 Mendleson and Greenfield went to Liverpool to discuss founding a new radical libertarian newspaper; after leaving the meeting they and three others drove to Greenfield's nearby home town of Widnes to go to a pubPublic house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
. The police were called by someone who thought the group looked suspicious and when Greenfield had no documents for their hire car, all five were arrested. Police searches discovered cannabis
Cannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...
and a stolen Essex University cheque
Cheque
A cheque is a document/instrument See the negotiable cow—itself a fictional story—for discussions of cheques written on unusual surfaces. that orders a payment of money from a bank account...
book; the five gave false names and were bailed to report to Colchester Police Station. The newspaper eventually appeared under the name Strike; for it Mendleson wrote an article on "Judges and the Law". After the arrests the police linked the case to other stolen cheque books and on 11 June 1971 Mendleson was one of six people to be charged with conspiracy to defraud. However she had jumped bail and her picture was printed in the Police Gazette as a wanted person. People arrested in a police raid in Wivenhoe in April 1971 were shown pictures of Mendleson and asked if they recognised her.
Amhurst Road
Needing a base to produce Strike, the group decided to rent a flat in London. On 2 July 1971, John Barker and Hilary Creek posing as a married couple, and Mendleson using the name 'Nancy Pye', rented the top floor flat at 359 Amhurst Road in Stoke NewingtonStoke Newington
Stoke Newington is a district in the London Borough of Hackney. It is north-east of Charing Cross.-Boundaries:In modern terms, Stoke Newington can be roughly defined by the N16 postcode area . Its southern boundary with Dalston is quite ill-defined too...
. One of the Mendleson's main concerns was that the group continue to support the defence of Jake Prescott and Ian Purdie, who were charged with carrying out two bombings for The Angry Brigade
The Angry Brigade
The Angry Brigade was a small British militant group responsible for a series of bomb attacks in Britain between 1970 and 1972.-History:During the summer of 1968 there were a number of demonstrations in London against the American involvement in the Vietnam War, centred on the American Embassy in...
anarchist group. The duplicating equipment at Amhurst Road was used to produce Angry Brigade Communiqué No. 11 published on 31 July 1971, and Mendleson drafted the 'Angry Brigade Moonlighter's Cell' Communiqué which followed it.
Police raid
With regular police raids on people known to be supportive of the Angry Brigade and with Mendleson a wanted person (although for cheque fraud only), the police were interested in finding any addresses where she might be found. Mendleson was keeping in regular touch with her family in Stockport and a police informer there passed the Amhurst Road address to police on 18 August 1971. An observation was set up and when Jim Greenfield was seen leaving the flat, a search warrant was obtained. At 4:15 PM on 20 August the police entered the flat and arrested Mendleson, Creek, Barker and Greenfield. Mendleson again gave her name as 'Nancy Pye'. The police reported that their searches of 359 Amhurst Road discovered not only duplicating equipment on which Angry Brigade publications had been produced, but a stick of geligniteGelignite
Gelignite, also known as blasting gelatin or simply jelly, is an explosive material consisting of collodion-cotton dissolved in either nitroglycerine or nitroglycol and mixed with wood pulp and saltpetre .It was invented in 1875 by Alfred Nobel, who had earlier invented dynamite...
, two submachine gun
Submachine gun
A submachine gun is an automatic carbine, designed to fire pistol cartridges. It combines the automatic fire of a machine gun with the cartridge of a pistol. The submachine gun was invented during World War I , but the apex of its use was during World War II when millions of the weapon type were...
s, a Browning
Browning Arms Company
Browning Arms Company is a maker of firearms, bows and fishing gear. Founded in Utah in 1927, it offers a wide variety of firearms, including shotguns, rifles, pistols, and rimfire firearms and sport bows, as well as fishing rods and reels....
pistol and 81 rounds of ammunition. Mendleson was remanded in custody at Holloway Prison
Holloway (HM Prison)
HM Prison Holloway is a closed category prison for adult women and Young Offenders, located in the Holloway area of the London Borough of Islington, in north and Inner London, England...
and was eventually charged with possession of the armaments and conspiracy to cause explosions. Mendleson's fingerprints were found on a copy of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine used to wrap a bomb planted at the Italian consulate in Manchester, and she was also charged with attempting to cause this explosion.
Stoke Newington Eight trial
Mendleson found prison life extremely stressful and at the committal hearing complained that five months in Holloway had caused "isolation and repression, both physical and mental". The resulting trial of eight defendants at the Old BaileyOld Bailey
The Central Criminal Court in England and Wales, commonly known as the Old Bailey from the street in which it stands, is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court...
became the longest criminal trial at that point in English legal history, Mendleson was one of three defendants to represent themselves; the "Stoke Newington Eight Defence Group" argued that this was the right decision as they had challenged prosecution witnesses and exposed several as liars. However her health suffered and she was ill throughout much of the trial; on occasion she was too ill to take part at all and the trial had to be halted. She was granted bail during a four week summer adjournment of the trial, spending the time in Wales.
Defence speech
The most important part of the trial for Mendleson was her final speech in her own defence, which took a day and a half of court time. She urged the jury to understand her political work and lifestyle, which would help them see why the police should have planted guns and explosives on her. She noted that at the time of the Manchester bombing she had been living in Wivenhoe where doors were left open and people borrowed each others' magazines, and she had been able to produce unchallenged alibiAlibi
Alibi is a 1929 American crime film directed by Roland West. The screenplay was written by West and C. Gardner Sullivan, who adapted the 1927 Broadway stage play, Nightstick, written by Elaine Sterne Carrington, J.C...
witnesses to the fact that she was in Wivenhoe when the bomb was planted. Although she knew others in the case, she asserted that there was no evidence of any plots or conspiracies. Mendleson said that she understood the feelings behind those who would make bomb attacks on cabinet ministers but doing so "isn't going to get rid of the capitalist system, because there is always somebody to step into his place unless the situation and conditions are right". In conclusion she stressed that those in dock "are working together for a happier and more peaceful world".
Notwithstanding her oratory, Mendleson was convicted by a 10-2 majority of conspiracy to cause explosions. She was also found guilty of the possession charges, but not guilty of attempting to cause an explosion in Manchester. The jury foreman asked for "leniency or clemency" for the defendants, which the Judge took into account by reducing the overall sentence by five years. Mendleson was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment. While being taken down to the cells she called out "I would like to say thank you to the two members of the jury who had faith in us". Along with others convicted in the trial, Mendleson appealed against both verdict and sentence, being represented by Michael Mansfield
Michael Mansfield
Michael Mansfield QC is an English barrister. A republican, vegetarian, socialist, and self-described "radical lawyer", he has participated in prominent and controversial court cases and inquests involving accused IRA bombers, the Bloody Sunday incident, and the deaths of Jean Charles de Menezes...
. The appeals failed.
Parole
Mendleson was quietly released on paroleParole
Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole . Following its use in late-resurrected Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their...
in November 1976, just four years after the end of the trial. The news was not disclosed by the Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
until 13 February 1977, causing a storm of press coverage which one reporter described as "scandalous and distasteful". The issue was raised in Parliament with Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
, Merlyn Rees, saying that Mendleson was no longer a danger to society; William Whitelaw
William Whitelaw, 1st Viscount Whitelaw
William Stephen Ian Whitelaw, 1st Viscount Whitelaw, KT, CH, MC, PC, DL , often known as Willie Whitelaw, was a British Conservative Party politician who served in a wide number of Cabinet positions, most notably as Home Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister.-Early life:Whitelaw was born in Nairn, in...
criticised the decision and asserted that protection of the public and police morale came first. Mendleson returned to Stockport to live with her family, and her father gave an interview to BBC Radio explaining that prison had had a terrible effect on her, making it impossible for her to concentrate. He also said that she had taken no part in the bombings and that she and the other defendants were "good young people" who tried to help others.
Poetry
After her release, she adopted the alternate spelling of her surname as 'Mendelssohn'. She spent some time in Sheffield, where she started a family and had three children. Mendelssohn moved to Cambridge in about 1985, studying poetry at St Edmund's CollegeSt Edmund's College, Cambridge
Saint Edmund's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is the second oldest of the four Cambridge colleges oriented to mature students, which only accept students reading for either Masters or Doctorate degrees, or undergraduate degrees if they are aged 21 or older, the...
, Cambridge University
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, and devoting her life to poetry and art. She became opposed to technology and disliked judgments based on rationality in favour of those based on an artistic judgment, which led to her life becoming increasingly disconnected from the rest of society.
Such a lifestyle meant she was not greatly interested in seeing her poetry published, but others thought that her work deserved a larger audience. She is said to have had poems published in the Sheffield Free Press. Also, a volume of poetry, due to be published by the Common Ground Printing Co-operative, was reportedly removed prior to publication after the printer sought to censor the content. She was first published in 1986, according to a later reviewer, through "a series of home-made, distributed hand to hand, photographed-manuscript feuilles volantes". In 1988 two of her poems were published under the title La Facciata as issue number 5 of Poetical Histories, with a cover design by the author.
Grace Lake
Three volumes of her poetry were published by EquipageEquipage
Equipage is a small press publisher of poetry, based in Cambridge, run by the poet and academic Rod Mengham. Equipage's authors include J. H. Prynne, Tom Raworth, Barry MacSweeney, Anna Mendelssohn , Peter Gizzi, Brian Henry, and John Kinsella....
under the literary pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
Grace Lake. Viola Tricolor published in 1993 was followed by Bernache nonnette in 1995; a review of the latter in Angel Exhaust
Angel Exhaust
Angel Exhaust is a British poetry magazine founded by Steve Pereira and Adrian Clarke in the late 1970s. Andrew Duncan took over as editor in 1992, and by 1993 it was one of the first poetry magazines to appear regularly on the internet.-Editors:...
magazine saw it as a critique of left-wing politics
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
since 1970 for seeing the population it hopes to serve as a single group rather than as millions of individual people, a critique which the reviewer Andrew Duncan linked to the poet's own history. 1997 saw the appearance of Tondo Aquatique, which had a theme of the relationship between water and language.
In 2000 a full book of Mendelssohn's poetry was published by Salt Publishing
Salt Publishing
Salt Publishing is an independent publisher whose origins date back to 1990 when poet John Kinsella launched Salt Magazine in Western Australia. The journal rapidly developed an international reputation as a leading publisher of new poetry and poetics...
under its 'Folio' imprint and Equipage, this time not using her pseudonym. As with previous publication, it was due to pressure by others that Implacable Art was taken up by its publishers; included some of her line drawings, and some poetry appeared in handwritten form.
Illness
Mendelssohn collapsed in February 2009, and was subsequently diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour on her cerebellumCerebellum
The cerebellum is a region of the brain that plays an important role in motor control. It may also be involved in some cognitive functions such as attention and language, and in regulating fear and pleasure responses, but its movement-related functions are the most solidly established...
. As the tumour developed, she became incapacitated by it and dependent on hospital care, being almost unconscious for the last two weeks before her death in November 2009.