Emrys Hughes
Encyclopedia
Emrys Hughes was a Welsh Labour
politician, best known for being the biographer and son-in-law of Keir Hardie
, the Scottish
Labour politician.
Hughes was born in Tonypandy
, Wales, the son of the Reverend J. R. Hughes. He was educated at Abercynon
Council School, Mountain Ash Secondary School and City of Leeds
Training College, and became a teacher by profession. In the First World War he was imprisoned as a conscientious objector
. In 1924, he married Nan Hardie, the daughter of Keir Hardie. He also became editor of the socialist journal Forward.
On 7 February 1946 Hughes stood in the South Ayrshire
(Scotland) by-election, following the death of the sitting Member of Parliament
(MP) Alexander Sloan
. He was elected as the constituency's Member of Parliament
, and re-elected in the general elections of 1950, 1951, 1955, 1959, 1964, and 1966. A left-winger, he was frequently at odds with the leadership of the Labour Party and twice had the whip
withdrawn, between November 1954 and April 1955 (over German rearmament), and between March 1961 and May 1963 (over nuclear weapons).
On 14 July 1966 Gwynfor Evans
(Plaid Cymru
) won Carmarthen
from Labour in a by-election. As a fellow pacifist and member of the Peace Pledge Union
, he was shown around the House of Commons by Emrys Hughes; on pointing out the Welsh table in the Commons' tea room, Hughes warned him, "You’d better not sit down there, your name’s mud among that lot." http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,60-1579591,00.html
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
politician, best known for being the biographer and son-in-law of Keir Hardie
Keir Hardie
James Keir Hardie, Sr. , was a Scottish socialist and labour leader, and was the first Independent Labour Member of Parliament elected to the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
, the Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
Labour politician.
Hughes was born in Tonypandy
Tonypandy
Tonypandy is a town in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales, lying in the Rhondda Fawr Valley. A former industrial coal mining town, today Tonypandy is best known as the site of the Tonypandy Riots....
, Wales, the son of the Reverend J. R. Hughes. He was educated at Abercynon
Abercynon
Abercynon is a small village in the Cynon Valley in Mid Glamorgan, Wales. The unitary authority is now known as Rhondda Cynon Taff. It is composed of the village of Abercynon itself,Carnetown,Glancynon,Park View and Pontcynon. However, in recent years the sign to show motorists they are entering...
Council School, Mountain Ash Secondary School and City of Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
Training College, and became a teacher by profession. In the First World War he was imprisoned as a conscientious objector
Conscientious objector
A conscientious objector is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, and/or religion....
. In 1924, he married Nan Hardie, the daughter of Keir Hardie. He also became editor of the socialist journal Forward.
On 7 February 1946 Hughes stood in the South Ayrshire
South Ayrshire (UK Parliament constituency)
South Ayrshire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1868 until 1983, when it was abolished...
(Scotland) by-election, following the death of the sitting Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) Alexander Sloan
Alexander Sloan
Alexander Sloan was Labour MP for South Ayrshire, in Scotland, until his death.His successor was Emrys Hughes.His great-great-granddaughter, Katy Clark, is also a Labour MP.-References:...
. He was elected as the constituency's Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
, and re-elected in the general elections of 1950, 1951, 1955, 1959, 1964, and 1966. A left-winger, he was frequently at odds with the leadership of the Labour Party and twice had the whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
withdrawn, between November 1954 and April 1955 (over German rearmament), and between March 1961 and May 1963 (over nuclear weapons).
On 14 July 1966 Gwynfor Evans
Gwynfor Evans
Dr Richard Gwynfor Evans , was a Welsh politician, lawyer and author. President of Plaid Cymru for thirty six years, he was the first Member of Parliament to represent Plaid Cymru at Westminster ....
(Plaid Cymru
Plaid Cymru
' is a political party in Wales. It advocates the establishment of an independent Welsh state within the European Union. was formed in 1925 and won its first seat in 1966...
) won Carmarthen
Carmarthen (UK Parliament constituency)
Carmarthen was the name of a parliamentary constituency in Wales which returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom between 1542 and 1997...
from Labour in a by-election. As a fellow pacifist and member of the Peace Pledge Union
Peace Pledge Union
The Peace Pledge Union is a British pacifist non-governmental organization. It is open to everyone who can sign the PPU pledge: "I renounce war, and am therefore determined not to support any kind of war...
, he was shown around the House of Commons by Emrys Hughes; on pointing out the Welsh table in the Commons' tea room, Hughes warned him, "You’d better not sit down there, your name’s mud among that lot." http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,60-1579591,00.html
Selected works
- Winston ChurchillWinston ChurchillSir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
. British Bulldog: His Career in War and Peace, Exposition Books, 1955. ASIN:B0006ATSO8 (first published in 1950) - Keir Hardie, Allen & UnwinAllen & UnwinAllen & Unwin, formerly a major British publishing house, is now an independent book publisher and distributor based in Australia. The Australian directors have been the sole owners of the Allen & Unwin name since effecting a management buy out at the time the UK parent company, Unwin Hyman, was...
, 1956. ASIN:B0006DBKFK - Emrys Hughes, M.P. on POLARIS and the ARMS RACE, Housmans, 1961. ASIN:B003Z94NXI
- MacMillanHarold MacmillanMaurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC was Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 January 1957 to 18 October 1963....
: Portrait of a Politician, Allen & UnwinAllen & UnwinAllen & Unwin, formerly a major British publishing house, is now an independent book publisher and distributor based in Australia. The Australian directors have been the sole owners of the Allen & Unwin name since effecting a management buy out at the time the UK parent company, Unwin Hyman, was...
, 1962. ISBN 9780049230132 - Sydney SilvermanSydney SilvermanSamuel Sydney Silverman was a British Labour politician and vocal opponent of capital punishment.-Early life:...
- Rebel in Parliament, C Skilton, 1969. ASIN:B001KIB9T2