1888 in Wales
Encyclopedia
This article is about the particular significance of the year 1888 to Wales
and its people
.
— held at Wrexham
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and its people
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
.
Incumbents
- Prince of WalesPrince of WalesPrince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...
— The Prince Albert EdwardEdward VII of the United KingdomEdward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
, son of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom - Princess of WalesPrincess of WalesPrincess of Wales is a British courtesy title held by the wife of The Prince of Wales since the first "English" Prince of Wales in 1283.Although there have been considerably more than ten male heirs to the throne, there have been only ten Princesses of Wales. The majority of Princes of Wales...
— Alexandra of DenmarkAlexandra of DenmarkAlexandra of Denmark was the wife of Edward VII of the United Kingdom... - ArchdruidArchdruidThe Archdruid is the title used by the presiding official of the Gorsedd.The Archdruid presides over the most important ceremonies at the National Eisteddfod of Wales including the Crowning of the Bard, The Award of the Prose Medal and Chairing of the Bard. From 1932 only former winners of the...
of the National Eisteddfod of WalesNational Eisteddfod of WalesThe National Eisteddfod of Wales is the most important of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales.- Organisation :...
— Clwydfardd
Events
- May — Owen Glynne JonesOwen Glynne Jones150px|thumb|Portrait and signature of Owen Glynne Jones from his book Rock-climbing in the English Lake DistrictOwen Glynne Jones was a Welsh rock-climber and mountaineer...
climbs Cadair IdrisCadair IdrisCadair Idris or Cader Idris is a mountain in Gwynedd, Wales that lies at the southern end of the Snowdonia National Park. The peak, which is one of the most popular in Wales for walkers and hikers, is composed largely of Ordovician igneous rocks, with classic glacial erosion features such as...
by the east ridge of the Cyfrwy. - 13 May — The young Beatrix PotterBeatrix PotterHelen Beatrix Potter was an English author, illustrator, natural scientist and conservationist best known for her imaginative children’s books featuring animals such as those in The Tale of Peter Rabbit which celebrated the British landscape and country life.Born into a privileged Unitarian...
records a trip to MachynllethMachynllethMachynlleth is a market town in Powys, Wales. It is in the Dyfi Valley at the intersection of the A487 and the A489 roads.Machynlleth was the seat of Owain Glyndŵr's Welsh Parliament in 1404, and as such claims to be the "ancient capital of Wales". However, it has never held any official...
in her diary. - 14 May — Five miners are killed in an accident at the Aber Colliery, PorthPorthPorth is a town and a community in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales, lying in the Rhondda Valley and is regarded as the gateway to the Rhondda Fawr and Rhondda Fach valleys because both valleys meet at Porth...
, Rhondda. - 5 October — Five sailors are drowned at Colwyn BayColwyn Bay- Demography :Prior to local government reorganisation on 1 April 1974 Colwyn Bay was a municipal borough with a population of c.25,000, but in 1974 this designation disappeared leaving five separate parishes, known as communities in Wales, of which the one bearing the name Colwyn Bay encompassed...
while returning to their ship by boat. - University of Wales, Bangor, opens its agricultureAgricultureAgriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
department — the first in a British university. - The Welsh Parliamentary Liberal Party is formed.
- Opening of the Dowlais steelworks at East Moors, CardiffCardiffCardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
. - Henry Morton StanleyHenry Morton StanleySir Henry Morton Stanley, GCB, born John Rowlands , was a Welsh journalist and explorer famous for his exploration of Africa and his search for David Livingstone. Upon finding Livingstone, Stanley allegedly uttered the now-famous greeting, "Dr...
"discovers" Lake EdwardLake EdwardLake Edward or Edward Nyanza is the smallest of the African Great Lakes. It is located in the western Great Rift Valley, on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, with its northern shore a few kilometres south of the Equator...
and names it after the Prince of Wales. - R. J. Lloyd Price opens a whiskyWhiskyWhisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Different grains are used for different varieties, including barley, malted barley, rye, malted rye, wheat, and corn...
distillery at FrongochFrongochThe village of Frongoch is located in Gwynedd, Wales. It lies close to the market town of Bala, on the A4212 road in north Wales.It was the home of the Frongoch internment camp, used to hold German prisoners-of-war during First World War, and then Irish Republican prisoners from the 1916...
. - Llantwit Major Roman VillaLlantwit Major Roman VillaThe Llantwit Major Roman Villa was a Roman L-shaped courtyard villa located at what is now Caermead, immediately north of the town of Llantwit Major in the Welsh county of South Glamorgan....
is discovered. - A Welsh Presbyterian Chapel opens in Charing Cross RoadCharing Cross RoadCharing Cross Road is a street in central London running immediately north of St Martin-in-the-Fields to St Giles Circus and then becomes Tottenham Court Road...
, London.
Awards
National Eisteddfod of WalesNational Eisteddfod of Wales
The National Eisteddfod of Wales is the most important of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales.- Organisation :...
— held at Wrexham
Wrexham
Wrexham is a town in Wales. It is the administrative centre of the wider Wrexham County Borough, and the largest town in North Wales, located in the east of the region. It is situated between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley close to the border with Cheshire, England...
- Chair — Thomas Tudno Jones
- Crown — Howell Elvet LewisHowell Elvet LewisHowell Elvet Lewis CH known by his bardic name Elfed , independent minister, hymn-writer, and poet served as Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales from 1924 to 1928.-Early life:...
New books
- Daniel OwenDaniel OwenDaniel Owen was a Welsh novelist, generally regarded as the foremost Welsh-language novelist of the 19th century.-Early life:...
— Y Siswrn - J. Rhys — Lectures of the Origin and Growth of Religion as Illustrated by Celtic
Sport
- CricketCricketCricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
— Glamorgan County Cricket ClubGlamorgan County Cricket ClubGlamorgan County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Glamorgan aka Glamorganshire . Glamorgan CCC is the only Welsh first-class cricket club. Glamorgan CCC have won the English County...
founded. - GolfGolfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
— TenbyTenbyTenby is a walled seaside town in Pembrokeshire, South West Wales, lying on Carmarthen Bay.Notable features of Tenby include of sandy beaches; the 13th century medieval town walls, including the Five Arches barbican gatehouse ; 15th century St...
Links becomes the first golf course in Wales. The first competition held by the club is held on 25 October over 9 holes and is won by Mr T A Rees - Rugby unionRugby unionRugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
- Briton Ferry RFCBriton Ferry RFCBriton Ferry Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the village of Briton Ferry, South Wales. Although rugby was played in the area prior to 1888, it wasn't until the merger of several smaller local teams the Briton Ferry RFC was formed. The original team was bolstered by many steel workers...
, Builth Wells RFCBuilth Wells RFCBuilth Wells Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in Builth Wells. Today, Builth Wells RFC plays in the Welsh Rugby Union, Division One West League. Builth Wells RFC are a feeder club for Cardiff Blues....
, Llantrisant RFCLlantrisant RFCLlantrisant Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in Llantrisant in the county of Rhondda Cynon Taff. Llantrisant RFC plays in the Welsh Rugby Union, Division One East League and is a feeder club for the Cardiff Blues....
, Newbridge RFCNewbridge RFCNewbridge RFC are a Welsh rugby union club based in Newbridge, Caerphilly in South Wales. Newbridge RFC was formed in 1888 and gained admission to the WRU in 1911...
and Tonna RFCTonna RFCTonna Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the village of Tonna, Wales, UK. Tonna RFC is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Ospreys..-History:...
are founded. - Willie ThomasWillie ThomasWilliam 'Willie' Henry Thomas was a Welsh international rugby union player who played club rugby for Llanelli and London Welsh. He was capped eleven times for Wales and captained the team on two occasions. In 1888, Thomas was chosen to tour New Zealand and Australia as part of the first British...
is the only Welsh international to take part in the first overseas tour1888 British Lions tour to New Zealand and AustraliaThe 1888 British Isles tour to New Zealand and Australia was a series of rugby union games played by an unofficial British team against invitational teams in New Zealand and Australia...
by a British rugby union team. - WalesWales national rugby union teamThe Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
win their first international game against Scotland, during the 1888 Home Nations Championship1888 Home Nations ChampionshipThe 1888 Home Nations Championship was the sixth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Three matches were played between 4 February and 10 March. It was contested by Ireland, Scotland and Wales. England was excluded from the Championship due to their refusal to join the...
. - Wales face their first international opposition, the New Zealand Native football team. Wales win by a goal to nil.
- Briton Ferry RFC
Births
- February — Grace Wynne Griffiths, novelist (died 1963)
- 14 May — Nansi RichardsNansi RichardsNansi Richards Jones of Penybontfawr, Oswestry, was a Welsh harpist, sometimes known as the “Queen of the Harp”....
, harpist (died 1979) - 21 May — William CoveWilliam CoveWilliam George Cove was a British politician. He served as a Labour Party Member of Parliament from 1923 to 1959....
, politician (died 1963) - 24 May — Howell LewisHowell LewisHowell Lewis was a Welsh international rugby union wing who played club rugby for Swansea Rugby Football Club and was capped for Wales on four occasions...
, Wales international rugby player (died 1971) - 16 August — T. E. LawrenceT. E. LawrenceLieutenant Colonel Thomas Edward Lawrence, CB, DSO , known professionally as T. E. Lawrence, was a British Army officer renowned especially for his liaison role during the Arab Revolt against Ottoman Turkish rule of 1916–18...
, writer and war hero (died 1935) - 5 September — Rhys Hopkin MorrisRhys Hopkin MorrisSir Rhys Hopkin Morris was a Welsh Liberal politician who was a Member of Parliament from 1923–1932 and from 1945–1956....
, politician (died 1956) - 19 October — Peter FreemanPeter Freeman (politician)Peter Freeman was a Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom.-Biography:He was elected as Member of Parliament for Brecon and Radnorshire at the 1929 general election, defeating the Conservative MP Walter D'Arcy Hall by only 187 votes...
, politician (died 1956) - 27 November — Ezer GriffithsEzer GriffithsEzer Griffiths OBE, FRS was a Welsh physicist most noted for his work on the insulation properties of metals, heat transference, evaporation and refrigiration....
, physicist (died 1962) - 29 December — Reg PlummerReg Plummer (rugby player)Reg Plummer was a Welsh international, rugby union wing who played club rugby for Newport and invitational rugby with both the Barbarians and Crawshays RFC...
, Wales and British Lion rugby union player (died 1953)
Deaths
- 23 February — Evan Davies (Myfyr Morganwg), poet and archdruid, 87
- 29 February — Thomas Price, Baptist minister and author, 67
- 22 March — Henry RobertsonHenry RobertsonHenry Robertson was a Scottish industrialist and Liberal Party politician.-Career:Robertson came to Wales to pursue his industrial interests...
, Scottish engineer and founder of Brymbo Steel Works, 72 - 2 August — David Davies (Dewi Emlyn), poet, 70
- 20 August — Henry RichardHenry RichardRev. Henry Richard MP , "the Apostle of Peace", was a Congregational minister and Welsh Member of Parliament, 1868-88. The son of the Rev...
, politician and peace campaigner, 76 - date unknown — John Evans (Y Bardd Cocos), poet