Hartmann the Anarchist or The Doom of the Great City is a science fiction novel by Edward Douglas Fawcett first published in 1893. It remained out of print for over 100 years and has only recently been re-published.
The plot centers around Mr Stanley, a young moneyed gentleman who aims to stand for election as part of the Labour party in the early 20th century. Through his associations with many of London's most prominent socialists and anarchists, he encounters and befriends Rudolf Hartmann, an anarchist notorious for an attack on a bridge in London.
Hartmann was a talented engineer, and during exile in Switzerland had invented a new lightweight material from which his aircraft the Attila was constructed. It was a large heavier-than-air flying machine, consisting of a hull suspended below an aeroplane (or aerofoil.) The power source was electricity generated directly from coal, with motors driving external screws. Various saftely features were included such as redundancy and spare parts, with an emergency supply of compressed hydrogen which could be used to inflate a balloon. Hiram Maxim's design for a flying machine was suggested as an inspiration.
Hartmann uses his machine to attack London, intending to destroy civilisation to allow for it to be reconstructed on anarchist principles. Much of London is destroyed by fire and shells.
See also
Die Anarchisten, an 1891 novel by John Henry Mackay also set in the fin de siècle London anarchist milieu The Aerial Anarchists Invasion literature
References
External links Hartmann the Anarchist at the Internet Archive Hartmann the Anarchist at the Project Gutenberg
Tangent Books Website A 2007 appreciation of the novel