1916 in Wales
Encyclopedia
This article is about the particular significance of the year 1916 to Wales
and its people
.
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...
- Edward, Prince of WalesEdward VIII of the United KingdomEdward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Emperor of India, from 20 January to 11 December 1936.Before his accession to the throne, Edward was Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay...
, son of King George V of the United KingdomGeorge V of the United KingdomGeorge V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936.... - 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...
- vacant - 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 :...
- DyfedEvan Rees (Dyfed)Evan Rees , known by the bardic name Dyfed, was a Calvinistic Methodist minister, poet, and Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales.-Early life:...
Events
- 1 January - The Port EynonPort EynonPort Eynon is a village and community in the city and county of Swansea, Wales. The community has its own elected community council...
lifeboat capsizes and three crew members die. - 31 May - 1 June - Hugh Evan-ThomasHugh Evan-ThomasVice Admiral Sir Hugh Evan-Thomas GCB, KCMG, MVO was a British Royal Navy officer.During World War I he commanded the 5th Battle Squadron of the Grand Fleet, flying his flag in HMS Barham, and fought at the Battle of Jutland on 31 May – 1 June 1916.-Background:Evan-Thomas' family came from...
distinguishes himself in the Battle of JutlandBattle of JutlandThe Battle of Jutland was a naval battle between the British Royal Navy's Grand Fleet and the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet during the First World War. The battle was fought on 31 May and 1 June 1916 in the North Sea near Jutland, Denmark. It was the largest naval battle and the only...
; he is later knighted. - 4 July - Royal Welch FusiliersRoyal Welch FusiliersThe Royal Welch Fusiliers was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. It was founded in 1689 to oppose James II and the imminent war with France...
Lieutenant Siegfried SassoonSiegfried SassoonSiegfried Loraine Sassoon CBE MC was an English poet, author and soldier. Decorated for bravery on the Western Front, he became one of the leading poets of the First World War. His poetry both described the horrors of the trenches, and satirised the patriotic pretensions of those who, in Sassoon's...
attacks a German trench single-handed, and records the outcome in his memoirs. - 7-12 July - The 38th (Welsh) Division loses so many men in the Mametz Wood action during the Battle of the Somme that it is unable to re-group for a year.
- 12 July - Railway worker James Dally is awarded the Edward MedalEdward MedalThe Edward Medal is a British civilian decoration which was instituted by Royal Warrant on 13 July 1907 to recognise acts of bravery of miners and quarrymen in endangering their lives to rescue their fellow workers...
by King George VGeorge V of the United KingdomGeorge V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
, for his actions in saving a colleague from falling from the Crumlin Viaduct. - September - Charles Evans HughesCharles Evans HughesCharles Evans Hughes, Sr. was an American statesman, lawyer and Republican politician from New York. He served as the 36th Governor of New York , Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States , United States Secretary of State , a judge on the Court of International Justice , and...
loses narrowly to Woodrow WilsonWoodrow WilsonThomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
in the United States presidential election, 1916United States presidential election, 1916The United States presidential election of 1916 took place while Europe was embroiled in World War I. Public sentiment in the still neutral United States leaned towards the British and French forces, due to the harsh treatment of civilians by the German Army, which had invaded and occupied large...
. - October - 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...
is sent into the desert to report on the Arab nationalist movements. - November - Christopher WilliamsChristopher Williams (Welsh artist)Christopher David Williams was a Welsh artist.He was born in Maesteg, Wales. His father Evan Williams intended him to be a doctor, but he disliked the idea. A visit to the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, in 1892, where he spent some hours in front of Frederick Leighton's "Perseus and Andromeda,"...
visits the scene of the Welsh losses at Mametz WoodMametz woodMametz Wood was the objective of the 38th Division during the First Battle of the Somme. The attack occurred in a Northerly direction over a ridge, focussed on the German positions in the wood between 7 July and 12 July 1916. The attack of the 7 July failed to reach the wood before the men were...
and later paints his famous The Welsh at Mametz Wood at the request of David Lloyd GeorgeDavid Lloyd GeorgeDavid Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM, PC was a British Liberal politician and statesman...
. - 7 December - David Lloyd GeorgeDavid Lloyd GeorgeDavid Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM, PC was a British Liberal politician and statesman...
is the first (and, to date, the only) Welshman to become Prime Minister of the United KingdomPrime Minister of the United KingdomThe Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
. - December
- David Alfred ThomasDavid Alfred ThomasDavid Alfred Thomas, 1st Viscount Rhondda PC , sometimes known as D. A. Thomas, was a Welsh industrialist and Liberal politician...
leaves Parliament and is created Baron Rhondda. He is appointed Chairman of the Local Government Board. - Herbert LewisHerbert LewisSir John Herbert Lewis GBE, PC was a British Liberal politician.-Background and education:Born at Mostyn Quay, Flintshire, Lewis was one of five sons of Enoch Lewis and Elizabeth Roberts. He was educated at McGill University and Exeter College, Oxford.-Political career:Lewis was the first Chairman...
becomes Minister of Education.
- David Alfred Thomas
- The Roman Catholic archdiocese of 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...
is established. - The Royal Laryngologist John Milsom ReesJohn Milsom ReesSir John Milsom Rees, KCVO , was a Welsh surgeon and a specialist in laryngology.He was born at Neath, and studied medicine at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London. After qualifying as an F.R.C.S. at Edinburgh, he obtained a post as surgeon to the Ear, Nose and Throat Department at the Prince of...
is knighted.
Awards
- 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 :...
(held in AberystwythAberystwythAberystwyth is a historic market town, administrative centre and holiday resort within Ceredigion, Wales. Often colloquially known as Aber, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Ystwyth and Rheidol....
)- Chair - J. Ellis Williams
- Crown - withheld
New books
- Llewelyn PowysLlewelyn PowysLlewelyn Powys was a British writer and younger brother of John Cowper Powys and T. F. Powys.-Life:Powys was born in Dorchester, the son of a clergyman, and was educated at Sherborne School and Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. While lecturing in the United States he contracted tuberculosis...
and John Cowper PowysJohn Cowper Powys-Biography:Powys was born in Shirley, Derbyshire, in 1872, the son of the Reverend Charles Francis Powys , who was vicar of Montacute, Somerset for thirty-two years, and Mary Cowper Johnson, a descendent of the poet William Cowper. He came from a family of eleven children, many of whom were also...
- Confessions of Two Brothers - Richard Hughes Williams (Dic Tryfan)Richard Hughes Williams (Dic Tryfan)Richard Hughes Williams , or Dic Tryfan, was a Welsh language writer of short stories, born in Rhosgadfan in the old county of Caernarfonshire , north Wales. Most of his stories are set in the slate-quarrying communities of his native Caernarfonshire...
- Tair Stori Fer
Sport
- BoxingBoxingBoxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
: on 14 February Jimmy WildeJimmy WildeJimmy Wilde , was a Welsh world boxing champion. He was the first official world flyweight champion and was rated by American boxing writer Nat Fleischer, as well as many other professionals and fans including former boxer, trainer, manager and promoter, Charley 'Broadway' Rose, as "the greatest...
wins the British flyweight title at Liverpool.
Births
- 1 May - Glenn FordGlenn FordGlenn Ford was a Canadian-born American actor from Hollywood's Golden Era with a career that spanned seven decades...
, Welsh-Canadian actor (died 2006) - 7 May - Huw WheldonHuw WheldonSir Huw Pyrs Wheldon OBE MC was a BBC broadcaster and executive.Wheldon was born in Prestatyn, Wales and educated at Friars School, Bangor. His father, Sir Wynn Wheldon, was a prominent educationalist, who had been awarded the DSO for gallantry in the First World War...
, broadcaster (died 1986) - 22 May - Rupert DaviesRupert DaviesRupert Davies was a British actor. He remains best known for playing the title role in the BBC's 1960s television adaptation of Maigret, based on the Maigret novels written by Georges Simenon....
, actor (died 1976) - 23 August - Willie DaviesWillie DaviesWillie Davies was a Welsh international dual-code rugby fly half who played rugby union for Swansea and rugby league for Bradford Northern. He won six caps for the Wales rugby union team and nine caps for the Wales rugby league side...
, Wales international rugby union and league player (died 2002) - 29 August - Rhydwen WilliamsRhydwen WilliamsRobert Rhydwenfro Williams, known as Rhydwen Williams , was a Welsh poet, novelist and Baptist minister. His work is mainly written in his native Welsh language, and is noted for adapting the established style and context of Welsh poetry from a rural and bygone age to that of a modern industrial...
, poet, novelist and minister (died 1997) - 13 September - Roald DahlRoald DahlRoald Dahl was a British novelist, short story writer, fighter pilot and screenwriter.Born in Wales to Norwegian parents, he served in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War, in which he became a flying ace and intelligence agent, rising to the rank of Wing Commander...
, novelist (died 1990) - 14 September - Cledwyn HughesCledwyn HughesCledwyn Hughes, Baron Cledwyn of Penrhos, CH, PC, , was a Welsh Labour politician.Born in Holyhead and educated at the Holyhead Grammar School and at the University of Wales, Aberystwyth, he served in the RAFVR in the Second World War. He became a solicitor and a town clerk of Holyhead...
, politician (died 2001)
Deaths
- 14 March - Lou PhillipsLou PhillipsLouis Augustus "Lou" Phillips was a Welsh international scrum-half who played club rugby for Newport. He won four caps for Wales and was a talented amateur golf player.-Rugby career:...
, Wales international rugby player, 38 (killed in action) - 14 April - Charlie PritchardCharlie PritchardCaptain Charlie Pritchard was a Welsh international rugby union player. He was a member of the winning Welsh team who beat the 1905 touring All Blacks. He played club rugby for Newport RFC and county rugby for Monmouthshire.-Rugby career:...
, Wales international rugby player, 32 (killed in action) - 27 June - Sarah Jane ReesSarah Jane ReesSarah Jane Rees , also known by her bardic name of "Cranogwen", was a Welsh teacher, poet, editor and temperance campaigner....
(Cranogwen), writer and temperance activist, 78 - 7 July (killed in action at Mametz)
- Dick ThomasDick ThomasEdward John Richard 'Dick' Thomas was a Welsh international rugby union back who played club rugby for Mountain Ash.-Rugby career:...
, Wales international rugby player, 32 - Johnnie WilliamsJohnnie WilliamsJohnnie Williams was a Welsh international wing who played club rugby for Cardiff Rugby Club. A three times Triple Crown winner, out of seventeen appearances for Wales he was on the losing side only twice....
, Wales international rugby player, 34
- Dick Thomas
- 14 July - David WattsDavid Watts (rugby player)David Watts was a Welsh international rugby union forward who played club rugby for Maesteg. He won four caps for Wales, all in 1914 and may have been awarded more, but his career was cut short by the outbreak of World War I....
Wales international rugby player, 30 (killed in action) - 3 September - Horace ThomasHorace ThomasHorace Wyndham Thomas was a Welsh international rugby union fly-half who played club rugby for Swansea. He won just two caps for Wales, and was one of thirteen Welsh internationals to die in conflict during World War I....
, Wales international rugby player, 26 (killed in action) - 11 September - Thomas Lemuel JamesThomas Lemuel JamesThomas Lemuel James was an American journalist, government official, and banker who served as the United States Postmaster General in 1881.-Early life and family:...
, Welsh-American banker and U.S. Postmaster-General (born 1831) - 28 September (in Bath, Somerset) - Richard Thomas, industrialist, 78
- 7 October - Leigh Richmond RooseLeigh Richmond RooseLeigh Richmond "Dick" Roose, MM, was a Welsh international footballer who kept goal for a number of professional clubs in the Football League between 1901 and 1912. A celebrated amateur at a time when the game was played largely by professionals, Roose was renowned as one of the best players in...
, footballer, 38 (killed in action) - 31 October - John Maclean Rolls, 2nd Baron Llangattock, 46 (killed in action)
- 14 November - William DaviesWilliam Davies (footballer born 1855)William Henry Davies was a Welsh amateur footballer who made four appearances for the Wales national football team in the 1870s and 1880s, and scored his country's first international goal.-Career outside football:...
, footballer, 61