A Devilish Kind of Courage: Anarchists, Aliens and the Siege of Sidney Street

A thrilling account of the 1911 Siege of Sidney Street–when a young Winston Churchill allowed two immigrant revolutionaries to burn to death in London’s East End.

On January 3, 1911, police discovered Latvian revolutionaries on the lam in London’s East End. A six-hour gunfight ensued until fire consumed the building where the radicals had taken refuge. When a not-yet-prime-minister Winston Churchill arrived at the scene, he ordered officials to let the fire run its course. At least two people burned to death in the blaze, but the Latvian ringleader, Peter the Painter, remained at large. Known as the Siege of Sidney Street, the event was a nationwide sensation and ignited fierce debates about immigration, extremism, and law enforcement. This book unravels the full story of the siege, the Latvian expatriates, and London’s vibrant anarchist movement in the early twentieth century.