1960: Thousands protest against H-bomb

Tens of thousands of people marked the end of the Aldermaston "ban the bomb" march this afternoon with a rally that built up to a tremendous climax this Easter weekend in London.

At least 60,000 protesters gathered at Trafalgar Square. Organisers said the crowds numbered at least 100,000.

But there was no doubt this was the largest demonstration London has seen this century.

It is the third annual Easter march from the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston, Berkshire, to the capital organised by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND).

Canon John Collins, who founded CND in 1958 with Bertrand Russell, introduced various speakers.

They included the Bishop of Southark, Dr Mervyn Stockwood who praised Prime Minister Harold Macmillan for his efforts to bring about world peace.

He added: "I hope that just as he has spoken for all that is best in Britain by condemning apartheid in South Africa, so he will set an example to the world by renouncing the hydrogen bomb."

'Military dictatorship'

Prominent Labour MP Michael Foot also spoke out against the bomb. He said nuclear weapons threatened the very existence of democracies around the globe because decisions were gradually being removed from elected bodies to military advisers.

He said the Aldermaston march was a democtratic protest against "military dictatorship".

In spite of the huge crowds, there were few disturbances. Police divided the marchers into sections when they arrived at the end of Whitehall and moved them into areas around the main crowd already in the square.

At the head of the march, protesters carried a banner that read "Aldermaston to London". The slogans on the banners showed the marchers came from towns around the country and from all backgrounds, representing trade unions, local government and students.

Demonstrators came from all over the world - Pakistan, Sweden, India, Cyprus , Iraq, Malta, South Africa, France, Ghana and Nigeria. Among the religious groups represented were Quakers, Unitarians, Methodists and Roman Catholics.

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