The Cardiff Book of Days (43 page)

1791:
The death of Sir Herbert Mackworth (MP for Cardiff, 1766-1790), aged 54. ‘His death was occasioned by a thorn breaking in his finger which brought on a violent inflamation and swelling in his hand, no medical assistance being called till a month afterwards.' (
The Gentleman's Magazine
)

1905:
‘The dockland came to a standstill, processions of men, women and children from every part of the city were joined by converging paraders from Tiger Bay – coloured men in turban and fez jangling their tambourines and strumming their banjos and mandolins and joined by hundreds of seamen. Magnates on the coal and shipping exchanges and their staffs joined in the merry-making in the certain knowledge that the honour would further enhance Cardiff's name.' (Radio talk by W.R. Owen, quoted in
Glamorgan Historian
, 1971, recalling the festivities that marked the award to Cardiff of the status of a city)

1909:
The Earl of Plymouth unveiled the equestrian statue of Viscount Tredegar (of Battle of Balaklava fame) in Cathays Park. Unusually, the subject of this honour was not only still alive (he died in 1913) but present for the ceremony. (Stewart Williams,
Cardiff Yesterday
)

1956:
The Minister for Welsh Affairs, Mr Gwilym Lloyd George visited Cardiff to receive the Freedom of the City and to present the formal documents recognising its new status (granted in December 1955) as capital of Wales. Letters Patent from the Queen authorized Cardiff Corporation to modify the city's coat of arms. From now on its heraldic supporters, the mountain goat and the seahorse, would display a gold chain and the royal badge of Wales. Shops, offices and public buildings were brightly decorated for the occasion. The 700 invited guests at the City Hall included the mayors of all the Welsh boroughs, County Council chairmen and Welsh MPs. In his speech Mr Lloyd George recalled being present as a boy when his father received the Freedom of Cardiff in 1908. Gwilym Lloyd George was created Viscount Tenby in 1957. He died in 1967. (Stewart Williams,
Cardiff Yesterday
)

2010:
A spokesman for Corian Tafarn, a private consortium hoping to build a Severn Barrage (
see
October 18th) said that ‘working with the government', they could complete the scheme in twelve years without spending any public money. (
Western Daily Press
)

1876:
Pupil Fred Sandford narrowly escaped drowning in the flooded quarry opposite Penarth Board School. He was rescued by a pupil-teacher. However, six months later the school log-book recorded the deaths of two boys there: ‘William Richards of Plassy Square lost his life on Saturday. His little brother fell into the water. William jumped in to rescue him but both were drowned.' The area was filled in and became Belle Vue bowling-green. (Roy Thorne,
Penarth: A History
, Starling Press, 1975)

1880:
The Foundation Stone of the Free Library, Museum and School of Art & Science was laid by the Mayor, Cllr John McConnochie. Within a cavity in the stone were placed copies of local newspapers and a set of coins. (Stewart Williams,
Cardiff Yesterday
)

1964:
Joe Erskine, formerly British & Empire Heavyweight Champion, was beaten on points by Billy Walker over ten rounds at the White City Stadium in London. Originally from Butetown, he had been an excellent boxer whose skill enabled him to defeat bigger opponents. He held the British title from August 1956 to June 1958. (Wikipedia)

1849:
The Castle Arcade was officially opened by the Mayor of Cardiff, Alderman David Jones. The arcade, running from High Street to Castle Street, was decorated from end to end with bunting and shrubs. It rapidly became a popular place to shop and in 1988 underwent a £500,000 refurbishment. The High Street Arcade was opened between 1880 and 1887 and links with Duke Street Arcade (1902) opposite the Castle. Morgan Arcade, now the best-preserved of Cardiff's arcades, is named after David Morgan who started in business with a gents' outfitters in The Hayes. Its construction radically changed the character of the area, sweeping away what was described as ‘a nest of slums, some picturesque courts and gardens'. Union Buildings, consisting of over thirty dwellings and an inn, was also swept away for this development. The Royal Arcade (1858) still retains some of its original shop-fronts. Cardiff has the highest concentration of Victorian and Edwardian shopping arcades in Britain, much admired in 1952 by John Betjeman (
see
May 19th). (Stewart Williams,
Cardiff Yesterday
/ Wikipedia)

1906:
Cardiff City Hall and the Law Courts were officially opened by the Marquis of Bute. ‘The star of the show is undoubtedly the City Hall,' wrote Simon Jenkins in 2008. ‘This was begun in 1901 with baroque swagger. The exterior drips with sculpture, including Welsh music complimenting poetry, commerce paying court to industry and unity to patriotism. Everywhere are the Latin initials V.C., trumpeting a pride in Villa Cardiff. The interior is more than a match for the exterior.' The City Hall cost £129,000 and the Law Courts, £96,000. (Simon Jenkins,
Wales: Churches, Houses, Castles
, Allen Lane, 2008)

1955:
Cardiff's oldest cinema, the Queen's, closed. It was the first cinema in Cardiff to show the ‘talkies'. (Stewart Williams,
Cardiff Yesterday
)

1981:
The Prince and Princess of Wales visited Cardiff for Princess Diana to receive the Freedom of the City. They were welcomed by the Lord Mayor, Alderman Ron Watkiss, also the long-serving Chief Executive of the Council, Mr Harry Crippin. (Stewart Williams,
Cardiff Yesterday
)

1926:
Goscombe John's statue of Archdeacon James Rice Buckley was unveiled on the Green at Llandaff. James Buckley had given forty-six years of devoted ministry to the cathedral and diocese. He was Vicar of Llandaff from 1878 to 1924 and Archdeacon from 1913. The inscription read ‘A Man He Was To All The Country Dear'. He was a descendent of the Revd James Buckley who came to Llanelli in 1760 and, perhaps unexpectedly for a clergyman, took over a brewery in 1799. This came about because he had married Maria, the daughter of its owner, Henry Buckley who, even more improbably, was a prominent Methodist! Buckley's Brewery was eventually taken over by the Cardiff-based S.A. Brain's but Mr Buckley is commemorated in the name of one of its most popular products, ‘Reverend James'. His portrait now appears on beer-pumps in pubs right across South Wales and beyond. (Stewart Williams,
Cardiff Yesterday
/
www.sabrain.com/beers
)

1147:
Thirty-year-old William FitzRobert, the son of an illegitimate son of King Henry I, succeeded to the title of Earl of Gloucester – which also brought with it the Lordship of Glamorgan and a principal residence at Cardiff Castle. However, in 1158 FitzRobert and his wife Hawise (a daughter of the Earl of Leicester) were captured by Welsh rebel Ifor Bach (Ivor the Short), the Lord of Senghenydd. Ifor was one of his tenants but he believed that the earl was trying to take land which under Welsh law was rightfully his. It is said that Ifor scaled the castle walls and seized William, Hawise and son Robert and held them in the depths of the forest. He refused to release them until William promised to return his lands ‘and a lot more'. FitzRobert died on his 67th birthday (November 23rd 1183) and his name is unknown to most Cardiff people. Ifor Bach has (albeit unwittingly) given his name to a music nightspot in Womanby Street! (William Rees,
Cardiff: A History of the City
, Cardiff Corporation, 1969 / Wikipedia)