Flag Group - Definition

The Flag Group represented aone of the two wings of the British National Front in the 1980s and stood in opposition to the Political Soldier wing. It took its name from The Flag, a National Front journal that they kept control of.

The Flag Group rejected the mysticism of the Political Soldiers and argued that the National Front should continue its earlier policies of fighting elections and playing on populist and racist sentiments. The Flag Group was particularly opposed to the Political Soldiers' technique of establishing contacts with Black Power groups.

Essentially the Flag Group, with Martin Wingfield and Ian Anderson as their leaders, formed an internal opposition to the Political Soldiers within the NF during the 1980s. They briefly split from the NF in 1986 having occasionally run candidates in elections against the wishes of the radical leadership before this.

As the 1980s drew to a close the Flag Group managed to regain control of the NF as the radicals drifted away to the International Third Position and the Third Way. The Flag Group name ceased to be used after this as their control of the NF was now guaranteed. Soon they would attempt to relaunch the NF as the National Democrats.

Given that the Flag Group was unofficial for the majority of its existence it was also known by a number of other names, including the Flag NF and the NF Support Group.