Haydn Lloyd Davies hails from the north
of Wales and although he took out Australian citizenship
in the early 1960s, there is still a strong attachment to
his homeland. Since migrating to Australia in 1955 with
his Australian bride, he has busied himself in Welsh cultural
activities. He is currently the vice president and patron
of Cymdeithas Cymraeg Sydney and a Senior Deputy Convener
of the Celtic Council.
His early years
spent in and around the town of Denbigh played an important
part in shaping his life and remain a fond source of memories.
He readily recalls the social cohesion which characterised
life in the surrounding villages, under the watchful eye
of the village policeman who maintained law and order. "There
was a terrific sense of community," he said. "There
were mechanisms for looking after the left hand side and
the right hand side [of the normal curve]."
On the death of his mother soon after his birth, Lloyd Davies
went to live with his maternal grandmother in town. He attended
the Love Lane Boys School where all classes were conducted
in English and there was no acknowledgment of Welsh language
or culture. The cane was used frequently. "There was
one teacher in particular who was bad. His name was Robert
Savage and we used to describe him as 'Savage by name and
savage by nature,'" he said.
When he was fourteen,
he moved to Cae Drain, his maternal grandparents' farm in
Henllan, on the death of his maternal grandmother. By North
Wales standards, Cae Drain was a large and fertile mixed
farm. It had dairy and beef cattle, prime lambs, pigs and
poultry as well as producing wheat, barley, oats, swedes
and mangels.
At this stage, Lloyd Davies was studying at Denbigh Grammar
School and helping out on the farm. "I learned to milk
a cow at a very young age, certainly before my teens. I
was involved in all the work. I handled a horse pulling
a roller for rolling a paddock. I could take feed in bags
to cattle in a pony and float. Every Saturday afternoon
we used to grind oats and sometimes peeled beans for cattle
feed. We pulped the swedes and we chaffed the hay and I
took part in all those activities. "
With his background,
it was fitting that Lloyd Davies went on to obtain a degree
with honours in Agriculture. "I was brought up farming.
I had to do something with agriculture," he said. In
Canberra, he was accepted as a research scientist for the
CSIRO, before getting a Ph.D.
About a decade
ago, in a nostalgic exercise, Lloyd Davies wrote an essay
titled ‘Social Life in Rural Wales’, drawing on
his experiences growing up. Earlier this year, he delivered
a speech based on the essay at the Parc Menai Celtic Festival,
describing once again the world of his youth.
Aspects of Welsh Social Life in rural
Wales in the first half of the 20th Century
by H. Lloyd Davies
Introduction
There has been a tendency to emphasise
the social and cultural life of industrial Wales in contrast
with rural Wales and I would like to give a few thoughts
on my assessment of social life in Wales in the first half
of the 20th century but, particularly up to the out break
of the 1939-45 War.
The area I would be referring to will be the area surrounding
the town of Denbigh which was the county town of Denbighshire
in the heart of the vale of Clwyd. One feature, which is
repeated over many parts of rural Wales, is the many villages
which form the catchment area for Denbigh, both for marketing,
secondary education and social activities. These include
the villages of Henllan, Llanefydd, Llanrhaeadr, Trefnant,
Llansanan, Prion, Groes, Bylchau and many others. All these
villages had populations varying from 100 to 400 and each
was a microcosm in its own right. One interesting feature
was that, with the exception of Trefnant, in all the villages
mentioned the spoken language then was Welsh, whereas the
spoken language on the High Street and in the shops in Denbigh,
but not in the Livestock Market, was mainly English.
Language
As already mentioned Welsh was the language of the village
and English in the town. This pattern, even in the town,
however, was very dependent on the teaching in the primary
schools. In the primary schools I attended, there was a
strong pro-English and very anti-Welsh attitude. For sheer
survival, although I was monoglot Welsh up to the age of
5, I had to learn English without the benefit initially
of formal instruction. Welsh was entirely the language of
worship unless you happened to be Episcopalian. There were
no English services in any of the non-conformist chapels.
The effect of this very anti-Welsh drive in the primary
schools, with the exception of tis one girls school, was
such that when I went to Grammar School, the pupils were
divided into, the ‘Welsh class’ which studied
Welsh language and literature and ‘non-Welsh’
classes where Welsh was taught as a foreign language. I
was one of only six boys in a class of 30, and of that only
one came from the town of Denbigh – the rest of us
were either from a village or a farm.
Education
The level of primary education in rural Wales at this time
was very variable. The qualifications of the Primary school
were very variable = ranging from science and arts graduates
who were unable to find employment in the secondary schools
or industry to some, sadly near-illiterates who somehow
had drifted through the system starting as pupil teachers
and who had no tertiary training and some of whom should
never been given the care of young minds. The emphasis in
the primary schools was very much on the three r’s
and an excessive use of the cane. Many opportunities were
missed to widen and deepen the education of the pupils.
There was one exception to this and that was music. In all
the primary schools that I was aware of, the emphasis on
music and singing in particular was very great. A particular
impetus was given to this in the late 1930s in Denbigh because
of the holding of the Welsh National Eisteddfod in Denbigh
in 1939 and one of the highlights was an evening performance
by the children’s choir which was recruited from all
the primary schools in the area. I know of at least three
Primary School headmasters who were very gifted musically
and who ensured tat a sizeable proportion of each day was
allotted to music. However, the music was not taught in
depth, rather we sang innumerable Welsh airs “The Ash
Grove”, “Counting The Goats” “The Gipsy”
“The Bells of Aberdovey”. The medium used was
tonic sol-fa no-one was taught to read music
at school.
In sharp contrast with the backward state of the primary
schools those fortunate enough to pass the 11+ examination
to attend the secondary Grammar school were very fortunate.
We were particularly lucky in Denbigh Grammar school which
as measured by examination results and job placement was
by common consent the out standing Grammar school of North
Wales thanks to the fantastic drive, energy and commitment
of the headmaster –W A Evans MC, MSc, MA. He had a
firmly held belief in the work ethic and insisted a very
full and heavy academic programme and a very heavy homework
programme. This homework would include weekly essays in
history, geography, Welsh and English, .translations in
French and Latin, laboratory work in chemistry, physics
and biology and problems in arithmetic algebra, geometry
and trigonometry In later life I have been particularly
grateful for this background and discipline There was, however
a price paid for this intensive training. That was the neglect
of Welsh.. All instruction was given in English with the
exception of those like me chose to study Welsh Language
and Literature.. The only sentence of Welsh in six years
in Assembly was at the end of the list of old boyys who
fell in the two world wars read out on Armistice Day {Nov.11}
–“Mewn Angof Ni Chant Fod” (We Will Remember
Them.)The majority of pupils eventually entered the Professions
(including teaching and Holy Orders).banking and local government
Social Structure
The social and class structures in rural North Wales have
been referred to as “The last remaining Feudal part
of Britain”- A J P Taylor. There was an area sociology,
a town sociology and a village sociology. Occupying the
top stratum and regarding themselves as the aristocracy
were the “old families” (Arglwydd y Plas) who
were completely Anglicised despite having welsh names such
as Griffiths, Watkins, Williams-Wynn and Lloyds. Characteristically,
they lived in the ‘Plas’ –a vast mansion
employing a large indoor and outdoor staff. To the rest
of us, they did not appear to do any work, hunted minimally
two or three days a week, sometimes sat on the bench of
Magistrates and were generous and courteous to their staff.
The management of the estate was left to agents. They were
never educated in Welsh schools ( their children were taught
by governesses until sent to English Public Schools) nor
made any contribution to the Celtic way of life with one
outstanding exception and that was Squire Wynn of Garthewin
who, at his own expense, built the first Welsh Drama Theatre
in Wales for the production of Welsh plays. He was of course
regarded as a rather dotty eccentric by his peers.
The social structure in the town would be similar to the
social structure of towns almost anywhere else in the UK
with the professions heading the list, but in the early
20th Century this would include the Grammar School teachers
who were regarded certainly as being on par with the learned
professions and also, unlike the present situation, Ministers
of Religion, regardless of denomination, were also classified
with the professions. Below that tier were the business
men and the various self-employed and managerial strata.
Rather more interesting in relation to the Celtic culture
was the village structure. The aristocracy felt themselves
very much part of the village, would always know the farmers,
craftsmen and shopkeepers and would exchange the time of
day with every strata of society and usually busied themselves
in ecclesiastical affairs, locally and nationally and were
usually the commanding officers of the local Territorial
infantry battalions. The village structure consisting of
the farmers, who were very jealous of their status and this
was generally accorded on the number of employees per farm,
the shopkeepers. craftsmen (blacksmith, carpenter, plumber
and ‘builder’) and labourers. An important feature
of the village life was easy communication within the society
and the protective mechanisms to ensure that the less able
did not suffer unduly and the gifted were encouraged. One
area where all social distinctions disappeared was in cultural
activities and in religious matters. Neither occupation,
social standing nor assets owned would necessarily ensure
senior position as an elder of the Chapel. These situations
could only be attained by the respect and regard in which
in which the elected elders (or deacons as they were sometimes
called} were held in the community. It is fashionable to
poke fun at the Elders of the Church now but in those days
they were incorruptible guardians of moral standards.
Religion
Religious life in Wales was still an important sociological
force up to the outbreak of the 1939-1945 war. Nearly everyone
and certainly all children would attend church or chapel
every Sunday. I knew no-one who would openly confess to
either atheism or even agnosticism1 In loking at the make-up
denominations, there was an absence of Jewry; there were
very few Roman Catholics –virtually none (I knew of
only one in Henllan) and a very small number in the towns.
Roman Catholics were excused Religious Instruction in the
Grammar School but had to sit in a class at the same level
not being given Religious Instruction- their numbers would
rarely exceed two in 60 and none in the forms studying Welsh
Language and Literature, who would be all Welsh speakers.
The Church in Wales (the Episcopalian Church) occupied a
strange position. They claimed to have continued the Apostolic
Succession and so, therefore until the disestablishment
in the early 20th Century it was theoretically the official
religion; for instance all burials in churchyards until
the reforms of Lloyd George in the early 20th Century had
to be according to the rites of the Anglican church and
non-conformist ministers were not allowed to bury the dead
according to their own prayer books. Despite being the official
religion the great Welsh author, Gwilym R Jones, stated
that it was a church never really accepted by the Welsh
people and, in fact, prior to the spiritual revivals of
the nineteenth and early twentieth century, was notorious
for slackness, pluralism and keeping the people in ignorance
despite being the church of Bishop Morgan who translated
the Bible into Welsh in the late 16th Century. By the twentieth
century it had thrown off most of the early criticisms levelled
at it by the Welsh revivalists and most of the clergy were
cultured University graduates who carried out there pastoral
duties with sincerity and sympathy. Nevertheless, like the
schools, they were, sadly, a major force in the continuing
Anglicisation of Wales and most of there services were in
English and, with one or two honourable exceptions played
no part nor did they involve themselves in the maintenance
of Celtic culture.
In great contrast with the Church in Wales were the nonconformist
denominations which were all well accepted by the people
and were the major force, both in the 19th and 20th centuries
in the maintenance of Welsh culture and its development.
Outstanding leadership on matters theological, sociological
and political was provided by the Ministers usually from
one of the four denominations: Calvinistic Methodist (or
Presbyterian in England) .Wesleyan Methodists, (Methodists
in England),Baptists and the Congregationalists. In North
Wales the Calvinistic Methodists are the most numerous but
I would conservatively estimate that the Nonconformists
out number the Anglicans by at least 4:1.An important feature
in the maintenance of religion as a strong moral force in
the first half of the 20th century were the powerful sermons
given by the ministers. There were usually two sermons prepared
per month - one for the morning service and one for the
evening. They would deliver these sermons on the first Sunday
in the month in their own chapel and then the same sermons
would be delivered in chapels in the area travelling up
to 10 miles from their home base. These sermons were often
a direct appeal to the emotions and yet offered a deep insight
into philosophy and theology even though the emphasis was
on sin and sacrifice without much emphasis on absolution
or forgiveness.. In the midst of their discourse they would
break into a chant called “hwyl” arising from
religious fervour and conviction. There was always relevance
to important contemporary issues including pacifism, trade
unionism, temperance, moral standards, social legislation..
The great preachers of that era became a bye-word for inspiration.
With the decline of the Age of Faith their descendants found
their outlet either on the stage or as barristers.
The non-conformist chapels identified themselves with Celtic
aspirations and raised the level of Welsh literacy and many
of the ministers were leading poets and authors.
A near unique feature of Welsh religious activity was the
Sunday school. e. The Welsh Sunday School was instigated
by the Reverend Thomas Charles of Bala the mid 19th Century.
A particular feature of the Welsh Sunday Schools was the
adult classes which were a forum for theological and sociological
discussion at a very sophisticated level for adults in the
community. The chapel initiated and organised mid-week meetings
such as The Band of Hope –a junior temperance movement;
the Seiat an adult religious discussion group and various
other meetings. Each chapel held its own Eisteddfod. Most
of the credit for the continuation and expansion of the
language and the development of poetry and the articulation
of deep National feelings has been associated with non-conformism
in Wales.
Music
The Welsh are always assumed to be musical. However the
music in Wales is more associated with interpretive contributions
rather than original creations. Within this interpretive
framework, choral singing (both mixed choirs and male voice))solos
on the harp and individual solo singers still figure prominently
in the international Celtic contribution. An uniquely Welsh
musical tradition is “Penillion Singing”. This
is a complex interaction of the meter of the lyrics to a
contrapuntal traditional air which called for great skill
on the part of singer and accompanist – the singer
came in after one or two bars from the accompanist, but
both had to finish simultaneously.
Work and Diet on the Farm
Despite the invention of the internal combustion engine
in the 19th century, mechanisation of cultivation, sowing
and harvest9ing was not extensive in Welsh agriculture until
after 1939. There are many reasons for this, including,
particularly, the very depressed state of the whole of British
Agriculture from the mid-1920s until 1939 and the lack of
a cash flow for the investment in large capital items such
as a tractor. In addition, right up to 1939 many farmers
including my grandfather and uncles went about their business
in a pony and trap.
The working day of both farmer and worker was hard and long.
Typical hours were 6.00 am to 6.00 pm Monday to Friday,
6.00am o 4.00 pm Saturday; Sunday differed from the other
days because there would be no field work, just milking,
feeding cleaning out and bedding of the animals –a
mere 7 hour day! Every one helped in order to get the work
finished. Wages were low. I can remember my Grandfather
hiring a ploughman for 30s a week plus meals. Very few were
paid more than two pounds a week.
In the rural community, there was considerable community
interaction. This was seen best in the peripatetic threshing
machine that was still being drawn and driven by steam traction.
Nearly every farm sent at least one man to a neighbour to
assist with threshing because in those days about twelve
men were required for threshing and the meals were memorable.
There was always a communal effort at shearing time and
also in the harvests. If your own crop was in, you gave
willingly of your horses and wagons and man or men to ensure
that a neighbour got his in.
Diet on the farm in the valley was, on the whole excellent.
Nearly every farmer or farm labourer killed one, two or
three quite large pigs which ensured a distribution of pork
and offal two days after killing and a supply of bacon and
ham into spring and summer. Milk was free and most labourers
kept poultry. Eggs from the farm flock were usually kept
for sale and one of the differences between breakfasts for
the family compared with the men was that we always had
eggs with our bacon! There was usually a mid-day meat dish
which would be minimally two vegetables and a pudding, usually
the dreaded rice pudding. Tea was served at 3.30 to 4.00
pm consisting of good bread with adequate butter and homemade
jam. Supper was often cold meat and salad or cheese.
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