Cymdeithas Hanes Resolfen History Society
A web log for the Resolven History Society which publishes articles and stories related to Resolven and the immediate surroundings.
Monday, March 18, 2024
Tuesday, March 12, 2024
Huw Williams Returns.
Huw Williams makes a
glorious return
This was sixth occasion that Huw
Williams of Merthyr had spoken to the Society, and despite the long break
during the pandemic he had lost none of his enthusiasm and indeed his humour.
He noticed that numbers were down on past years , however he maintained that
the Society was doing well in comparison with other major societies which had
crashed in recent years in the Cynon and Merthyr areas.
Mr Williams took as his broad canvas,
which included recruitment for an imagined film. That Resolven stood on an apex
historically between three varieties of Wales. To the west was traditional
Welsh Wales, steeped in the Welsh language and chapel culture. To the east were
the more anglicised valleys and to the south the “Americanised” coast. This was
highlighted by the traditions of the anthracite and steam coal areas with their
waves of migration coming from different directions, both to avoid the penury
of agriculture in Carmarthen as against
the Forest of Dean and Herefordshire. After all, a collier could earn more in a
few weeks than a year as a tenant farmer, ensuring his diet of salted butter,
cheese and fatty bacon. This was illustrated by comparing Resolven resident
B.L. Coombes who had moved from rural Herefordshire to “Aberclwyd”, when he met
the hymnal of Pantycelyn. This was capture in his book “These Poor hands”, and
“Miner’s Day”.
The technological revolution in the
valleys epitomised in the Railway age, saw Brunel’s vale of Neath Railway carry
coal to Swansea, usurping the monopoly of the Butes in east Wales. Similarly
David Davies of Llandinam, had exported more coal through Barry Docks which
fuelled the sea traffic of world trade. This was epitomised by Chaplin’s
“Modern Times”, film.
Mr David Woosnam, thanked Mr Williams
for a brilliant talk, and hoped he would speak on north versus south next year.
Trefor Jones.
Saturday, February 24, 2024
Thursday, February 15, 2024
Friendly Societies in Neath
A Report on the February Meeting of Resolven History Society
In 2015 an article appeared in the history journal Morgannwg
on Friendly Societies in Neath and Mr David Michael of Neath Antiquarians was
invited to speak on the topic to the History Society. Owing to work commitments,
clashing dates and a pandemic, some nine years later Mr Michael made it, and it
was well worth the wait. Since Mr Michael gave a glimpse of a movement once all
pervading in its time but now largely forgotten or subsumed into the world of
insurance.
During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, sickness and
welfare was largely absent save for the meagre Parish relief and the workhouse
following the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1831. The workhouse split up families
and a friendly society was a means to ensure that this did not happen.In order
to combat this working men had come together to form friendly societies which would
give relief in times of distress but also had a social function in that they
were largely based on pubs. The societies had rituals reminiscent of the
masonic lodges with joining ceremonies. In essence a joining fee of 10
shillings was followed by smaller weekly contributions in order to ensure
relief. In the 1801 century Neath had a population
of around 2,500 adults, though this trebled with the advent of industrialization
as did the number of societies. Indeed there were 14 societies with a
collective membership of 1,222, with the earliest tracing its roots to the Coal
Miners Society of 1768. The largest and most prominent group were the
Oddfellows ,but other more exotic names such as “True Friends” abounded. The money
was kept in a box with three keys, though a pub where part of your contribution
was to provide the beer was hardly an ideal situation. Indeed some societies
lodeged their funds with the Gnoll Estate. The Ivorites were an exclusively
Welsh friendly society and several societies had Welsh names such as “LLeision
Nedd”, in Glynneath and “Iestyn ap Gwrgan”
Resolven was tiny at that time with a population of around 380.
Yet it boasted four societies. The New Inn was the home of the Ynysfach Lodge
of the Oddfellows in 1841. In 1844 the True Britons Lodge was established at what
later became the Vaughans., and in 1862 the Church began its own friendly
society which held its meetings at the Vaughans, another society was ensconced
at the Gored. The Farmers or Ynysbipan Arms was home to the Foresters Lodge , a
society which was more closely masonic in organization. Each society had its
sashes, its ceremonies and banners. In return the publican did exceedingly well
from the proceeds. The processions were not unlike those of the Whitsun marches
of recent memory, and were usually
accompanied by a brass band. These were illustrated by Mr Michael in his talk.
The Societies declined during the 20th century as
they became redundant as a welfare state tookover much of their role. The
Peoples’ Budget of 1909, and the establishment of both an old age pension and
national Insurance. The reforms of the Attlee government in 1945, and the
provision of a National Health Service in 1948 made the notion of a self-help
society redundant. The Oddfellows held their final annual meeting in Neath in
1980.
Mr David Woosnam thanked Mr Michael for a memorable talk,
and hoped members would take uop his offer of a course with the Antiquarians in
order to further explore the history of friendly societies in Resolven.
Trefor Jones
Wednesday, January 24, 2024
Wednesday, January 10, 2024
Richard is "de-feeted" January meeting.
A Report on the January Meeting of
Resolven History Society
Despite the
cold, new-year weather, some sixteen members attended this month’s meeting. They
were not to be disappointed, since the speaker this month was Mr John Richards
who was to speak on the death of Richard the Third in 1485. The Chair , Mr
David Woosnam, said that this was Mr Richards’s seventh occasion in speaking to
the Society and that he had spoken on an eclectic range of topic ranging from
the theatre of Shakespeare to the derivation of surnames.
Mr Richards
began his talk by stating that because of the notoriety of the Princes in the
Tower, Richard the Third was well known despite only being monarch for a mere
two years, before his defeat by the Welshman Henry the Seventh at the Battle of
Bosworth. Shakespeare had labelled him as a hunchback and a rather dark
character, and there is little doubt he was complicit in the death of the
princes who threatened his claim to the throne. Following a detailed explanation
of the rivalries between the York and the Lancastrians in the thirty year
period known as the Wars of the Roses, Mr Richards turned his attention to
Bosworth.
Henry landed
near his Pembrokeshire birthplace near Dale, and proceeded to march through
Wales. A nominally Lancastrian army led by Rhys ap Thomas, initially shadowed
him, and then switched side to the Tudors. At Bosworth, in Leicestershire, Richard
fought bravely but was eventually killed in the battle, and his soldiers
appeared to lack vim and vigour, despite having superiority in numbers. Importantly,
his body was lost. In August, 2012 at a car park in Leicester, under the regal
letter “R”, a body was found and subsequently identified as that of Richard.
Mr Richards
then elaborated with the use of medieval weapons and a skull what the
consequent post mortem of the body would show about. The numerous wounds
indicated that he had indeed fought bravely and had succumbed to the long
pointed sword and dagger which would prize open the chain mail, in addition he
would he been stabbed in the groin and in the eye. An examination of his
backbone indicated that he suffered from scoliosis, rather than him being a
hunchback. He lacked any feet, which may have been due to a plough on site, and
Mr Richards added wryly that he had indeed been “de-feeted”, much to the mirth
of some audience members.
Mr David
Woosnam thanked Mr Richards for a wonderful talk, and hoped he would return in
future to address the Society. Next month’s the speaker will be Mr David
Michael of Neath Antiquarians, who will speak on the fascinating topic of ”Pubs
and Friendly Societies”.
Trefor Jones