Today is Thursday, June 18th, 2020.

On this day in 1984, a miner's union strike

in Orgrieve, South Yorkshire, devolved into a bloody clash with local policemen.

But this so-called Battle of Orgrieve was not just an isolated incident of violence, it was

the end of a heated decades-long war

between the Miners Union and the British government, and it still reverberates through

UK politics today.

Welcome to today in true crime, a parcast original.

Due to the graphic nature of today's Welcome to Today in True Crime, a parcast original.

Due to the graphic nature of today's crimes,

listener discretion is advised.

Extreme caution is advised for listeners under 13.

Today we're covering the Battle of Orgrieve, a South Yorkshire minor strike turned bloodbath.

Now let's go back to the morning of June 18, 1984, around 8 a.m.

It was set to be a blistering summer day, but that hadn't stopped the National Union of

Mine Workers from rallying nearly 5,000 strikers and supporters and marching out to the British steel corporations or grieve coaking plant.

The miners had been picketing for weeks already as part of an extensive nationwide effort,

and this after decades of conflict between the

Min Workers Union and the British government. The government had wanted to shut down

the coal mines for years but it would leave thousands of working-class Britain's without jobs.

So the miners had put up a good fight many times.

By striking and shutting down the coal industry, they'd pressured the past several

...