This article is about the particular significance of the year 1949 to Wales and its people.
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| See also: | List of years in Wales Timeline of Welsh history
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Incumbents
edit- Archbishop of Wales
- David Prosser, Bishop of St David's (retired)
- John Morgan, Bishop of Llandaff (elected)[1]
- Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales – Wil Ifan
Events
edit- Easter - Urdd Gobaith Cymru holds its first "Celtic camp".[2]
- April - The government decides to establish an Advisory Council for Wales.[3]
- 20 May - Council for Wales and Monmouthshire first meets, with Huw T. Edwards as its first chairman.[4]
- 12 June - Britain’s first all-world Muslim conference is held in Cardiff.
- 21 September
- The first comprehensive school in Wales is opened in Holyhead, Anglesey.[5]
- A meteorite falls through the roof of the Prince Llewelyn Hotel, Beddgelert.[6]
- John Morgan is enthroned as Archbishop of Wales.[1]
- 4 November - Cwmbran is designated as the first New Town in Wales under powers of the New Towns Act 1946.[7]
- 26 December - The Gwyn Nicholls memorial gates at Cardiff Arms Park are officially opened.[8]
- date unknown
- Closure of the granite quarry at Llanbedrog, the last in the town.
- Sale of Bron-y-garth, Porthmadog, ancestral home of Sir Lewis Casson.
- Bodnant Garden is donated to the National Trust.[9]
- Meteorologist David Brunt is knighted.
- Gwynfor Evans is elected to Merionethshire County Council.[10]
- Jack Jones spends three months in the USA promoting the Moral Re-Armament Movement.
Arts and literature
edit- May - Dylan and Caitlin Thomas settle at the Boat House, Laugharne.
- Geraint Evans stars in The Marriage of Figaro at Covent Garden.
- Huw Menai is granted a civil list pension.
Awards
edit- National Eisteddfod of Wales (held in Dolgellau)
- National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair - Roland Jones, "Y Graig"[11]
- National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown - John Tudor James, "Meirionnydd"[12]
- National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal - withheld[13]
New books
editEnglish language
edit- Dannie Abse - After Every Green Thing[14]
- Stan Awbery - Labour's Early Struggles in Swansea
- David James Davies - Towards an Economic Democracy
- Cledwyn Hughes - A Wanderer in North Wales
- Arthur Leach - Charles Norris of Tenby and Waterwynch
- Gordon Macdonald, 1st Baron Macdonald of Gwaenysgor - Newfoundland at the Cross Roads
- Thomas Mardy-Jones - Character, Coal and Corn – the Roots of British Power[15]
- Bertrand Russell - Authority and the Individual[16]
- Gwyn Thomas - All Things Betray Thee[17]
Welsh language
edit- Aneirin Talfan Davies - Gwyr Llen
- Richard Davies (Isgarn) - Caniadau Isgarn (posthumously published)[18]
- John Daniel Vernon Lewis - Bydd melys fy myfyrdod: detholiad o lyfr y Salmau[19]
- Kate Roberts - Stryd y Glep[20]
- Louie Myfanwy Thomas
- as Jane Ann Jones - Y bryniau pell[21]
- as Ffanni Llwyd - Diwrnod yw ein bywyd (submitted to National Eisteddfod; published 1954)
- William Nantlais Williams - Emynau'r daith
Music
edit- Ivor Novello - King's Rhapsody[22]
- Grace Williams - Fantasia on Welsh Nursery Tunes - first recording, made by London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Mansel Thomas (first recording of any work by a female Welsh composer)
Film
edit- Blue Scar, starring Kenneth Griffith and Rachel Thomas[23]
- The Last Days of Dolwyn, starring Emlyn Williams, Richard Burton and Hugh Griffith
- Yr Etifeddiaeth (The Heritage), documentary by Geoff Charles and John Roberts Williams, depicting traditional ways of life in rural North Wales, with narration by Cynan; the first film to be made in the Welsh language
- The Fruitful Year, a promotional film about Wales, commissioned by the Post Office National Savings
- The Road to Yesterday, travelogue made for troops serving abroad
Broadcasting
edit- January - Glyn Griffiths writes: "It would be advisable now for Wales to weigh in with its campaign of aggravation and persuasion to get a Welsh Radio Corporation."[24]
Sport
edit- Football - John Charles joins Leeds United
- Netball - The Welsh team plays its first international matches, against Scotland and England
- Rugby Union
- 26 March - France beats Wales 5–3 at the Stade Colombes in Paris
- 26 December - Rhys Gabe officially opens the Gwyn Nicholls Memorial Gates at Cardiff Arms Park.[25]
- Steeplechasing - The first Welsh Grand National to be run at Chepstow Racecourse is won by Dick Francis riding Fighting Line.
Births
edit- 1 January - Sue Jones-Davies, actress, singer and local politician
- 7 February - Martin Daunton, historian and academic
- 2 March - J. P. R. Williams, rugby player[26] (died 2024)
- 5 March - Mike Gwilym, actor
- 9 March - Neil Hamilton, politician
- 22 March - John Toshack, footballer and football manager[27]
- 14 April - Dennis Bryon, rock drummer (died 2024)
- 22 May
- Ieuan Wyn Jones AM, politician[28]
- Derek Quinnell, rugby player[29]
- 5 June - Ken Follett, novelist[30]
- 11 June - Tom Pryce, racing driver (killed in racing accident 1977)[31]
- 14 June - Alan Evans, darts player (died 1999)
- 23 June - Hilary Boyd, novelist
- 16 July - Angharad Rees, actress (died 2012)[32]
- 15 August - Richard Deacon, sculptor and academic
- 25 August (in Oxford) - Martin Amis, novelist[33]
- 24 October - Nick Ainger, politician
- 29 October - Alun Ffred Jones AM, politician
- 18 November - William Graham AM, politician
- 15 December (in Epsom) - Jane Hutt AM, politician[34]
- date unknown
- Anthony O'Donnell, actor
- M. J. Trow, writer
Deaths
edit- 20 January - Artie Moore, wireless operator (born 1887)[35]
- 21 January
- J. H. Thomas, politician, 72[36]
- Rowley Thomas, Wales international rugby player, 85
- 7 March - T. Gwynn Jones ("Tir-na-Nog"), poet and journalist, 77
- 20 April - Sir Evan Davies Jones, 1st Baronet, civil engineer and politician, 90[37]
- 21 April - Sir Alfred Thomas Davies, civil servant, 88
- 27 April - Evan Morgan, 2nd Viscount Tredegar, poet and occulist, 55
- 1 May - Horace Lyne, Wales international rugby player and WRU president, 88[38]
- 3 May - David John Tawe Jones, composer, 64
- 8 May - Abel J. Jones, teacher, writer and public servant
- 6 June - Walter E. Rees, Secretary of the Welsh Rugby Union, 86
- 3 July - William McCutcheon, Wales international rugby player, 78/79[39]
- 23 July - John Bodvan Anwyl (Bodfan), lexicographer, 74[40]
- 10 August - William Jones Williams, public servant, 86
- 26 August - Edgar Chappell, sociologist, 70[41]
- 1 September - Dr Teddy Morgan, Welsh international rugby player, 69
- 24 October - T. Rowland Hughes, author, 46
- 9 November - William Dowell, Wales dual code rugby international, 64
- 16 December - George Maitland Lloyd Davies, pacifist politician, 59[42]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Mary Gwendoline Ellis. "Morgan, John (1886-1957), Archbishop of Wales". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
- ^ National Library of Wales (1947). Annual Report - National Library of Wales. p. 16.
- ^ Corfe, Robert (2009). Land of the Olympians: papers from the enlightened far north. Bury St. Edmunds: Arena. p. 95. ISBN 9781906791179.
- ^ Great Britain. Council for Wales and Monmouthshire (1950). A Memorandum by the Council on Its Activities. H.M. Stationery Office.
- ^ Jonny Muir (15 January 2014). The UK's County Tops: Reaching the top of 91 historic counties. Cicerone Press. p. 99. ISBN 978-1-84965-963-5.
- ^ Grady, Monica M (2000). Catalogue of Meteorites Reference Book with CD-ROM. Cambridge University Press. p. 95. ISBN 9780521663038.
- ^ "Cwmbran Regeneration". Torfaen County Borough Council. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
- ^ "Key - Gwyn Nicholls Memorial Gates 1949". Cardiff Rugby Museum. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ Tony Russell (15 March 2015). The Finest Gardens in Wales. Amberley Publishing Limited. p. 27. ISBN 978-1-4456-4137-9.
- ^ Lawrence Goldman (7 March 2013). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography 2005-2008. OUP Oxford. p. 355. ISBN 978-0-19-967154-0.
- ^ "Winners of the Chair". National Eisteddfod of Wales. 17 November 2019.
- ^ "Winners of the Crown". National Eisteddfod of Wales. 17 November 2019.
- ^ "Winners of the Prose Medal". National Eisteddfod of Wales. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
- ^ Dannie Abse (1949). After Every Green Thing. Hutchinson.
- ^ John Graham Jones. "Mardy-Jones, Thomas Isaac (1879-1970), economist and politician". Welsh Biography Online. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 19 October 2019.
- ^ Kenneth Blackwell; Harry Ruja; Sheila Turcon (2 September 2003). A Bibliography of Bertrand Russell: I. Separate Publications II. Serial Publications III. Indexes. Routledge. p. 188. ISBN 978-1-134-81890-7.
- ^ David James (6 October 2015). The Cambridge Companion to British Fiction, 1945-2010. Cambridge University Press. p. 31. ISBN 978-1-107-04023-6.
- ^ William Llewelyn Davies. "DAVIES, RICHARD ('Isgarn'; 1887-1947), farmer-shepherd and poet". Welsh Biography Online. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
- ^ Llyfr y Salmau: Cyfieithiad Cymraeg o'r Llyfr Cyntaf, sef Salmau I-XLI, gyda nodiadau ar y testun Hebraeg. Gwasg John Penry. 1967. p. 117.
- ^ Kate Roberts (1949). Stryd y glep: Stori hir fer ar ffurf dyddiadur. Digwydd stori yn un o'r blynyddoedd yn union o flaen rhyfel 1939-45. Gwasg Gee.
- ^ Meic Stephens (23 September 1998). The new companion to the literature of Wales. University of Wales Press. p. 719. ISBN 978-0-7083-1383-1.
- ^ Simon Callow (3 August 2012). "Ivor Novello, master of the musical". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
- ^ "Blue Scar (1949)". Screenonline. British Film Institute. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
- ^ Asa Briggs (1995). The History of Broadcasting in the United Kingdom: Volume IV: Sound and Vision. OUP Oxford. pp. 106–. ISBN 978-0-19-212967-3.
- ^ Dai Smith; Gareth Williams (1 January 1980). Fields of Praise: The Official History of the Welsh Rugby Union, 1881-1981. University of Wales Press. p. 129. ISBN 978-0-7083-0766-3.
- ^ G. L. Hough (1 January 1989). Chambers dates. Chambers. p. 57. ISBN 978-0-550-11831-8.
- ^ John Toshack (12 November 2018). Toshack's Way: My Journey Through Football. deCoubertin Books. p. 23. ISBN 978-1-909245-71-6.
- ^ Who's Who in European Politics. Bowker-Saur. December 1990. p. 323. ISBN 978-0-86291-911-5.
- ^ Peter Jackson (1998). Lions of Wales: A Celebration of Welsh Rugby Legends. Mainstream. p. 214. ISBN 978-1-84018-026-8.
- ^ Carlos Ramet (1999). Ken Follett: The Transformation of a Writer. Popular Press. p. 9. ISBN 978-0-87972-798-7.
- ^ Peter Jackson (6 October 2011). Triumph and Tragedy: Welsh Sporting Legends. Mainstream Publishing. p. 61. ISBN 978-1-78057-174-4.
- ^ "Poldark actress Angharad Rees dies from cancer". BBC News. 21 July 2012. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
- ^ David Scott Kastan (2006). The Oxford Encyclopedia of British Literature. Oxford University Press. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-19-516921-8.
- ^ "UK: Wales: AMs". BBC News. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
- ^ "Welcome". Artie Moore Amateur Radio Society. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
- ^ Williamson, Philip (2004). "Thomas, James Henry". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 54. Oxford University Press. pp. 342–3. ISBN 0-19-861404-7.
- ^ William Llewelyn Davies. "Jones, Sir Evan Davies (1859-1949), 1st baronet, of Pentower, Fishguard, civil engineer, Lord Lieutenant of Pembrokeshire". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
- ^ Dai Smith; Gareth Williams (1 January 1980). Fields of Praise: The Official History of the Welsh Rugby Union, 1881-1981. University of Wales Press. p. 310. ISBN 978-0-7083-0766-3.
- ^ "Death details at freebmd.org.uk". freebmd.org.uk. 31 December 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
- ^ Thomas Herbert Parry-Williams. "Anwyl, John Bodvan ('Bodfan'; 1875-1949), minister (Congl.), lexicographer, and author". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
- ^ William Llewelyn Davies. "Chappell, Edgar Leyshon (1879-1949), sociologist, a pioneer of town and village redevelopment, and writer". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
- ^ John Ellis Meredith. "Davies, George Maitland Lloyd (1880-1949), Calvinistic Methodist minister and apostle of peace". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 22 September 2019.