Tag: Merthyr War Memorial

Merthyr Tydfil and its Brave Souls of War

by Gavin Burns

Upon moving to Merthyr in 2010 and in the years that followed, it always struck me as strange that there were multiple war memorials scattered around with names (Pant/Cefn/Troedyrhiw etc), but that the main war memorial was locked away in Pontmorlais, with no record of any names. Fast forward to 2019 and a chance advert on Ebay caught my eye, where a 1914/1915 trio of medals were up for sale to a Merthyr man who had been killed in World War 1. Unfortunately I can’t remember the name and I didn’t purchase them, but it made me look into how many men had died from Merthyr at the time and how were they commemorated.

This slowly morphed into my current project which members may have seen, which is called “Merthyr Tydfil Remembers – The WW1 & WW2 Memorial Project”. Initially set up as a Facebook page for somewhere to post some of my research, it became apparent that people across the Borough have found the articles and pictures really interesting, and it has grown from there.

The aim of the page is to find out about the men and women who gave their lives in both wars. Where they lived, where they served & their actions which resulted in the ultimate sacrifice, their lives. The end goal is to be able to have a full memorial list which is accessible for everyone, to allow us to always remember. I certainly didn’t realise the magnitude of the task at hand until I found a rough estimate of numbers who had passed.

When the War Memorial in Pontmorlais was opened in 1931, the memorial handbook states that they believe over 1140 names would have had to be added, and due to the number, the names were not included on the memorial but in a hand out, which would turn into a “beautifully bound and illuminated book, to be deposited at Cyfarthfa Castle and then the Free Library”. Unfortunately, this never happened. The handout is now the basis of my project, and what has become apparent, is the number of anomalies within the booklet.

Noting it is 2022 and we now have the internet, but also with the various research methods now available (including most importantly WW1 pension records), I have begun cross referencing each name in the 1931 booklet to ensure they are from Merthyr. Alongside this, I have been searching through the Merthyr Express & Western Mail from 1914 – 1919, locating photos and articles that were published weekly of the men who served.

Whilst I have marked a number of entries as needing to be potentially deleted, the most important aspect is the 60+ men (and rising) who I have found from Merthyr who were missing from the initial memorial booklet. Work is ongoing, although it is a huge project.

Some of the stories of sheer bravery I have come across from Merthyr has been astounding – and one I feel that needs to be highlighted. Everyone is aware of John Collins winning the Victoria Cross at the Battle of Beersheba (and so they should), but some other examples below which are not in the ‘public eye’ so to speak:-

  • Sgt John Owen (Dowlais), who was killed in the fighting at Bourlon Wood, Cambrai with the Welsh Regiment. He was found dead on top of a German Bosche Dug Out, having single handily bombed the dug out, killing 40 Germans. Remarkably, John was not awarded with a gallantry award (however, I am still convinced he must have been!)
  • Lt John Arthur Howfield (Vaynor), who was awarded the Military Cross for attending to casualties under heavy shell fire, and rescuing a comrade whose clothes had caught fire following a hit from a German shell. He was later killed in action in September 1918.
  • Company Sergeant Major, David Jones (Penydarren), who was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal in October 1917 for actions at St Julien where he captured an enemy stronghold and killed the Garrison. He was subsequently killed by a German sniper whilst looking for an injured officer in no mans land in November 1917. David has been recently rededicated following the identification of his body this year.
  • Private James O’Brien (Dowlais) who was awarded the Military Medal for taking part in a German Trench raid with the Lancashire Fusiliers, where he was involved in hand to hand combat with the Germans. Such is the magnitude of the raid, the Lancashire Fusiliers Museum has a highlighted citation on the raid, which shows 2 x Military Crosses, 1 x DCM and 6 x Military Medals were awarded in connection with the raid.
The Merthyr Knuts with Sgt John Collins front centre

Since I have started this project, it has brought me into contact with so many people who have been willing to share pictures & stories of their relatives, which has enabled me to post them onto the page and I am very grateful.

Some of the brave men I have researched:-

Pte Ieuan George (Vaynor Villas) – awarded the Military Medal in April/May 1917 ‘ for conspicuous bravery during a bombing attack on the German lines, during which he was badly wounded in both arms’. He was killed in action by a German Sniper on 14th July 1918.
Pte Llewellyn Thomas Samuel (Dowlais) – discharged due to sickness on active duty & died in 1920. Buried at Pant Cemetery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2nd Lt Richard Stanley Evans & his brother Captain Rees Tudor Evans’ (Brynteg Villa), who were both killed in action on the same day at the same battle in Gallipoli (10th August 1915).

An open request to anyone reading this – if you have any pictures, stories, memorabilia etc. from relatives (or even non relatives) from Merthyr and would be willing to share with myself, that would be fantastic. I am keen to continue sharing stories to ensure their memory stays alive. I am also a keen collector of war memorabilia to Merthyr to preserve items locally, and to ensure they are ‘brought home’.

Lest We Forget.

For further information on the memorial project or how to adopt a Merthyr war grave, please go to www.merthyr-remembers.co.uk

Merthyr’s Coat of Arms and St Tydfil

by Carolyn Jacob

Upon becoming a Borough in 1905, the Corporation commissioned one of the top Welsh artists of the day, Sir Goscombe John, R. A. to design a suitable Coat of Arms. (Goscombe John was fond of using traditional mythical  heroic images and in 1906 he also designed the Fountain to the Pioneers  of the South Wales Steam Coal Trade to celebrate the efforts of Robert and Lucy Thomas in the steam coal trade).

It was decided that the central figure of the coat of arms should be St Tydfil, as the whole parish is named after her and the original pre – industrial small town grew up around the church dedicated to her. The name Merthyr Tydfil means THE BURIAL PLACE OF TYDFIL.

St Tydfil as depicted in a stained glass window at Llandaff Cathedral

Legend has it that Tydfil was the daughter of a 5th Century Chieftain, Brychan, King of Breconshire. While visiting their sister Tanglwst in Aberfan, Tydfil and her family were massacred by a band of marauding Picts, who came over to Wales from Ireland. It is generally believed that she died on the site of the Parish Church, which bears her name, having defied the pagans and refused to give up Christianity. Tydfil had many brothers and sisters who became saints, including Saint Cynon.  One of her brothers, Cadoc, became the Patron Saint of Brittany. Miracles happened around her grave and the shrine of St. Tydfil the Martyr soon became a place of Christian pilgrimage.

In the Middle Ages a village grew up around the church. There was once a wooden statue in the church representing Tydfil which was probably carried out in a procession on her Saints Day on the 23rd of August. The Royal Charter was in fact formally granted only 6 days before the official Saints Day of Tydfil. This changed with the Protestant Reformation and the statue was possibly destroyed in the seventeenth century when Cromwell’s troops were drinking in the inn near the church.

It is significant that, although Merthyr Tydfil became a major centre of nonconformity and had no Roman Catholics until the Irish came in 1815, the town never abandoned the Celtic Saint, Tydfil although very little is known about her. There are in fact very few British towns named after a female Saint and the association with Tydfil is very special.

The later Merthyr Tydfil First World War Memorial has in its centre the same mythological figure of St Tydfil together with the images of a working miner and a mother and child. All these figures are emblematic of  sacrifice, St Tydfil was sacrificed for her religious beliefs, too often coal miners are sacrificed to the coal mining industry and mothers’ always make sacrifices  for their children.

The Borough Coat of Arms (right) bears a likeness of St. Tydfil as the central  motif. The heraldic description of the Borough Arms (formally granted on the 17th August 1906), is as follows:-

‘Azure a figure representing Saint Tydvil the Martyr, in Chief Two Crosses patee fitchee all Or’.

Tydfil is represented as a hard working saint because in her hands she has a distaff, which is used for spinning.  The placing of the distaff as an important symbol  in the coat of arms  is chosen to signify industry and to represent the proud industrial history of the new Borough of Merthyr Tydfil. The daggers on either side of her head are meant to indicate the martyrdom and to remind us of how Tydfil met her death and that her life was a sacrifice to God.

The motto on the coat of arms- ‘Nid Cadarn ond Brodyrdde’ is taken from an Old Welsh manuscript, ‘The Sayings of the Wise’ and means ‘Not force but Fellowship’.  There is nothing so strong as the bonds of brotherhood. This reflects the strength of Trade Union feeling and the strong political traditions here.

The Borough’s Seal incorporates the Coat of Arms and has three circles, each with individual illustrations, Morlais Castle (the ancient links with Norman Lords), Trevithick’s engine (the innovations and inventions pioneered here) and a blast furnace (the industrial nature of Merthyr Tydfil).

The Borough Seal. © Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales