Tagged with: 20th century
Posts (66)
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The Penarth Pier fire of 1931
Phil Carradice
From the two pavilions, one at each end of Penarth's elegant Victorian pleasure pier, the strains of music wafted, clear as chapel bells, on the night air. It was just after 9pm on 3 August 1931. Penarth Pier (Image from istockphoto.com) The music was loud but it was also very diffe...
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Roald Dahl - the Cardiff Connection
Phil Carradice
Go into any school, in any part of Wales, Scotland or England, and ask the pupils for the names of their favourite authors. Nine times out of 10 Roald Dahl will feature high in the list of responses. The author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Witches and Matilda remains constantly popular yet, in school, his teachers did not think he had any particular talent for writing. How wrong can you be? Roald Dahl was born on 13 September 1916 at Villa Marie in Fairwater Road, Llandaff, Cardiff. His parents were Norwegian, his father Harald having given up his previous career as a farmer and come to Cardiff to seek his fortune in the 1880s. In those days Cardiff was one of the biggest and most important ports in the country, thousands of tons of coal being exported through the docks every year. Add in the fact that Norway had the third largest merchant fleet in the world and a pattern begins to emerge. Before too long Harald was the joint owner of a large and successful ship broking business, Aadnesen and Dahl. When he married Sophie Magdalene (who came from Norway for the wedding and to settle down with her new husband) the young couple seemed set on the road to success. Children soon began to arrive: Roald and three sisters. Despite living all their married life in Wales, Harald and Sophie remained very conscious and proud of their Norwegian heritage. Roald was named after the famous Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen, the man who had beaten Captain Scott to the South Pole in 1912, and when it was time to christen their new son, the ceremony took place in the Norwegian Church just outside Cardiff docks. The Norwegian Church had been established in Cardiff in 1868 by the Norwegian Seamen's Missions. It was always more than just a church, being intended as a place where Norwegian sailors who were in port for a few brief hours or days could go to read newspapers and find comfort. Of course, there was the church element as well and the place was also intended to be used by Norwegian expatriates like Harald and Sophie Dahl. They and their family worshipped here regularly and all of their children were christened in the church. In 1916, when Roald was christened, the Norwegian Church was not in the position or location we see today. Then it was situated on the spot where the Wales Millennium Centre now stands, at the entrance to Bute West Dock. It was an ideal location for the sailors who came regularly to use the facilities. Churches like this, made of wood and put together almost like flat-pack furniture, were fairly common in most ports at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries - certainly in ports where the Norwegian presence was strong. Swansea had one - it has now been pulled down and remains in storage until, hopefully, it will one day be erected in a new location. The Cardiff Norwegian Church was well used for many years, before closing in 1974 and falling into disrepair. Thanks to preservationists, the building was saved and moved, piece by piece, to its present site in 1990. Roald Dahl was the first President of the Preservation Trust, a position he held until his death in 1990. The building has recently undergone a major refurbishment. Now known as the Norwegian Church Arts Centre, it regularly holds exhibitions and workshops - and the fact that Roald Dahl was christened there is commemorated on a large painting and a small plague on one of the walls inside the church. Dahl's comfortable existence in Llandaff was cruelly destroyed in 1920 when first his sister Astri and then his father both suddenly died. Harald had been on a fishing trip in the Arctic and his death, in particular, must have been both a blow and a shock for the young boy. His education began in Cardiff. He attended Cathedral School in Llandaff where his chief claim to fame was slipping a dead mouse into a jar of sweets in a shop owned by an unpleasant shop keeper. The boys in the school apparently consigned the occasion to immortality by giving the affair the name of 'The Great Mouse Plot of 1924'. The incident - which Roald duly went on to write about - shows a certain wicked sense of humour but, in his essays and school work, there was little or no sign of the prose style that later made him famous. After this Roald was packed off to boarding school in England where, again, nobody saw any literary merit in his stories and essays. He used to travel home for holidays on the old Beachley ferry across the River Severn but, despite the excitement of the trip, his time at this school was a very unhappy one. A further period at Repton in Derbyshire further removed Roald Dahl from Wales and for the last past of his childhood and adolescence he spent most of his holidays with relatives in Norway. Roald Dahl went on to achieve fame as a pilot in the Second World War and, in particular, as one of the most gifted writers ever to pick up a pen. Clearly his literary talent flourished later in his life. He wrote novels, poems and stories, not just for children but for adults as well - his Tales Of The Unexpected are a classic of their genre. He died on 23 November 1990. Now, every year, Roald Dahl is remembered on 13 September, the date of his birth. Readings and discussions of his work take place all over the country, always well attended and always a source of huge enjoyment for children and adolescents. As far as Cardiff is concerned, he is remembered in the Norwegian Church Arts Centre and by the naming of a roadway, the Roald Dahl Plass in the recently revamped dock area, in his honour. When he was given the further honour of a 'blue plaque' it was placed, not on the house where he was born but on the wall of the former sweet shop where the Great Mouse Plot of 1924 took place. Roald Dahl would probably have been very pleased.
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The First Severn Bridge
Phil Carradice
These days, travelling across the new or second Severn crossing, it is all too easy to forget that, when it was built, the original Severn Bridge, a bare mile upstream, was a crucially important piece of infrastructure that would revolutionize transport in Wales. It offered, in the words of the ...
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130th anniversary of the Sunday drinking ban in Wales
成人论坛 Wales History
This month marks the 130th anniversary of William Gladstone's Liberal government's passing of the Sunday Closing (Wales) Act 1881 which banned the sale of alcohol in Welsh pubs on the Sabbath. The act was the first piece of Wales-only legislation passed by Westminster since the 1542 Act of Un...
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The history of the Royal Welsh Show
Phil Carradice
No doubt about it. You either love the Royal Welsh Show and can happily spend hours wandering around the show ground every July - or you hate it with a vengeance and sit there, in your car, fuming as you try to navigate your way around Builth Wells. Whichever category you fall into, one thing is sure - you can't ignore it. The Royal Welsh Show came to Llanelwedd at Builth Wells for the first time on 23 July 1963. Before then it had led a peripatetic life, the show being held at no fewer than 37 different locations, alternating between the north and the south. The new show ground, slap bang in the middle of Wales, was an ideal venue being relatively easily reached from most parts of the country. Heddiw filming the show jumping at The Royal Welsh Show, Llanelwedd, Builth Wells 1963 The Royal Welsh Agricultural Society was founded in 1904. It was then called, simply, the Welsh National Agricultural Society and the inaugural meeting, when rules and regulations were set down, took place at the House of Commons in London. Twenty well-known and established figures from the field of agriculture made up the initial forum and right from the start it was clear that the main aim of the society was to encourage the growth and development of agriculture throughout the whole of Wales. The early days of the society were not easy. There were arguments between members and finances were usually perilous. Nevertheless, the society survived, holding its first annual show at Aberystwyth in 1904, the year of its creation. For that first meeting there were just over 400 livestock entries; within four years that figure had risen enormously with over 200 cattle trucks and horse boxes making their way to the seaside town. Twenty three special trains had to laid on in order to cater for the visitors and those wishing to show their livestock. The Royal Welsh Show has continued to grow. These days livestock entries number around 8,000 each year and 20,000 cars are expected every day of the four day gathering. Many people bring their camper vans or tents and spend the week in and around Builth Wells. No wonder something of a log jam can be created at certain times! As anyone who has ever been to the show will tell you, the experience is well worth the effort. The first show at the new ground in Llanelwedd in 1963 brought in just over 40,000 people. These days that figure has risen to an average of 200,000. In 2004, the centenary year, 227,360 people made their way to the ground and since then the attendance figures have continued to climb. Heddiw at the Royal Welsh Show 1963, Llanelwedd, Builth Wells The Royal Welsh Show has the avowed aim of showcasing the very best of Welsh livestock and certain days - such as the Welsh cob day - have become important moments in the rural year. But the show is more than just livestock. There are stalls and exhibitions, displays of country sports and traditional Welsh crafts. The showcasing of high quality Welsh food and drink makes a visit to the show almost compulsory. The Royal Welsh Show is not just for farmers and those who live in the country - these days there are almost as many town dwellers to be found around the show ring. The show is an important part of the Welsh social calendar, for everyone, regardless of where they live or their occupation. It is something not to be missed. Don't forget to check out he 成人论坛 Wales Nature website every day for the latest blogs and galleries from the Royal Welsh Show and to watch Royal Welsh Show 2011 on 成人论坛 Two Wales from Monday 18 July to Thursday 21 July, when Sara Edwards, Rachael Garside and Rhys Jones will explore the highlights from the show.
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Fancy a cwtsh at the National Library of Wales?
成人论坛 Wales History
The National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth has come up with a unique way of commemorating the 100th anniversary of the laying of the foundation stone of the iconic building. On Friday 15 July 2011, staff will attempt to form the world's biggest cwtsh around the iconic neo classical building, and they are calling on friends and fans of the Library to help them with this record attempt. The Library employs 300 people but to create a human chain to encircle the half kilometre circumference of the building, they will need around 450 people. Commenting on the approaching anniversary, librarian, Andrew Green said: "Over the years thousands of people have visited the Library as readers or to see exhibitions and events here. We'd like to invite them to join us and a create a huge human chain around the building in celebration of the contribution of the National Library to Welsh cultural and intellectual life and to the town of Aberystwyth. "The National Library of Wales was founded on the back of a mass subscription campaign waged by the Welsh people over a century ago. In that respect it is unique among the national libraries of the world. We are now asking the Welsh people to show their continued support for the Library and affirm that the building and its collections will serve the people for the next hundred years." The foundation stone was laid on 15 July 1911 by George V. Images kindly provided by the National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth Cornish granite was used for the ground floor and white Portland stone for the floors above. The building itself wasn't actually completed until 1936 as a result of financial constraints brought about by World War One and later, by the Depression. To find out how you can be part of the cwtsh, and to read more about the history of this wonderful building, visit the website of the National Library of Wales. Supporters are asked to wear red clothing if possible - the colour of the Library's logo and Welsh dragon, so that the chain will stand out. Other centenary events taking place at the Library include: Wednesday 13 July at 1.15pm The Library of Film - archive clips of the Library including a film of laying the foundation stone, the official opening in 1937 and an early film by Sir Ifan ab Owen Edwards. Thursday 14 July at 1.15pm Gwyneth Lewis - Poetry and talk in the company of Wales's National Poet who composed the Library's centenary poems during the celebrations of the Library's founding in 2007. Friday 15 July at 10.30 am & 3.30 pm Guided Tour of the Building and its History in the company of Tony Morgan, architect.
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Wales and the world's first passenger helicopter service
Phil Carradice
These days we regularly see helicopters flashing over head and think nothing more about it but in the immediate post-war days, helicopters were a rare sight in the skies above Britain. So, it comes as something of a surprise to find that the world's first scheduled passenger helicopter servi...
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The Montague on Lundy
Phil Carradice
Lundy Island, that knotted fist of rock set in the Bristol Channel, is not really a Welsh island at all. It actually belongs - postally at least - to Devon. But so many Welsh men and women, boys and girls, took trips there in the days when the White Funnel Fleet regularly patrolled up and down t...
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The death of Lloyd George
Phil Carradice
David Lloyd George was the only Welshman to have become Prime Minister of Great Britain. By the time of his death on 26 March 1945, his glory days were long past and although still a member of Parliament during most of the war years, he rarely attended the House of Commons during that time and t...
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Clough Williams-Ellis, the man who built the Prisoner's Village
Phil Carradice
Anybody visiting the Italianate village of Portmeirion in north Wales cannot fail to remember the 1960s cult TV programme The Prisoner. For a few years it was essential viewing and even now has a dedicated band of followers, many of whom regularly take trips to the strange but enchanting village...
