May Day - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia May Day occurs on May 1 and refers to any of several public holidays. [1] In many countries, May Day is synonymous with International Workers' Day, ...en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_Day - 55k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this
.
Red flag - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The plain red flag is often used at communist or far-left rallies and has been used as temporary flags of nations that have had a socialist revolution. ...en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_flag - 47k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this
.
RED MAY REMINDER, on 28 May 1871 The Paris Commune falls, see previous post. Forty years previous workers in area of Pentre Penderyn and Hirwaun were about to rise up in what becomes known as the Merthyr Rising. On 31 May 1831, Merthyr Chartist Thomas Llywelyn comes to Hirwaun, the previous day he had spoke at an huge Chartist Rally at Twyn y Waun Common. He was hoping to hold a similar Chartist Reform rally on Hirwaun Common under a White Reform flag, however militant workers more concerned with ''natural justice'' than ''political reform'' had other ideas. The ''natural justice'' radicals as Lewis Lewis, Dic Penderyn and others however, had their own plans and after seizing the white reform flag, they sacrificed a calf (local tradition speaks of a lamb) and bathed the white Reform flag in it's blood. This Red Flag became their Flag of Liberty over tyranny and would lead them forward seeking ''natural justice'' from the oppression and exploitation of Iron Masters and their lackeys. By 1 June, the workers had established ''Armed Positions'' in the ''Barrios'' of Heolygerrig and Cefn Coed, by 2 June marching on Merthyr, the militant workers and their radical leaders soon raised up the populace in revolt - WELSH INSURRECTION 1831.
.
The next day outside the Castle Hotel in centre of Merthyr, a large crowd had gathered and at about 12 Noon, Soldiers guarding a meeting of Iron Masters and Town Bourgeoisie opened fire. When the smoke had cleared some 28 people lay dead, this should be a date made more known and annually commemorated as the 3 Mehefin 1831 Merthyr Massacre. Over the years since, particularly in our own contemporary times there has been much focus on the matter of Dic Penderyn, a Martyr yes, but it is now more accepted that he did stab the Scots Soldier Donald Black. It has become a matter of a rather misguided ''Political Correctness'' to focus on Dic Penderyn and ignore Workers Hero, Lewsyn yr Heliwr who has been generally condemned to the shadows of Welsh History. Further, largelly ignored and forgotten is the heinous and murderous crime of the Merthyr Massacre that took place on 3 June 1831. See previous posts and note in particular my calling for fitting 31 May and 3 May memorials and annual commemorations. For reasons stated in previous post, I cannot do much myself this year but I hope others will, there are annual events in Merthyr organised by the Dic Penderyn Society, so it would only be a short step to also gather at site of the 3 June Massacre to say a few words in remembrance and lay flowers for the 28 people shot by the soldiers that day. Do note the terrible massacre of Communards following fall of Paris Commune of 1871, the French state carried out vicious revenge on the insurrectionists, excellent histories on web about these events. Idea/Suggestion: Why not have Merthyr link with Monmarte district of Paris which was main area of the Paris Commune of 1871, someone in Merthyr, why not suggest to your Town council. Do let me know if this idea moves forward, see link >>>Montmartre - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Montmartre is a hill which is 130 metres high, and also the name of the surrounding district, in the north of Paris in the 18th arrondissement, ...en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montmartre - 45k - Cached - Similar pages - Note this
.
Other than this I would like myself to focus more here on how to mark occasion of 31 May 1831, regards remembering rising up of the Red Flag on Hirwaun Common. I have said much about possibilities in this connection in previous posts. So here I am going to focus on another possibility, if there is no official commemorative gatherings. Quite simply but only if there has been a prolonged period of good sunny weather to dry the common. You could organise your own RED FLAG 1831 RAMBLES on Hirwaun Common, even have RED FLAG 1831 PICNICS at some suitable locations on the Common. Do consult maps on the web for foot paths, of which there are a few and they are marked, you may also want to contact the nearest Ramblers group or/and Tourism Information Office for further Information. Do dress for the occasion and wear good walking shoes, and take flasks of Soup and food of course. If your visiting Hirwaun, note it has a number of Inns plus a god cafe, I believe there are restaurants in the area too. If intending to organise a larger commemorative gathering, I have noted in previous posts best place to hold such with car parking space close by, if however those who wish to park in Hirwaun itself, note you can walk or march from the town to the common (see google maps). Hope that's helpful, have a good day with purpose to promote this important date and event in Welsh History.
.
Below I make further tribute to the Hirwaun Red Flag, by posting up unpublished fotos of my attending closure of Tower Colliery earlier this year. Very windy day.
.
Below I make further tribute to the Hirwaun Red Flag, by posting up unpublished fotos of my attending closure of Tower Colliery earlier this year. Very windy day.
.
.
Indirectly connected to above is later Chartist History, not least of 1839 Newport Rising and 1848 "Year of Liberty" aka "Spring of Nations", of which 2008 is 160th Anniversary. 1848 is also of course important in Welsh History regards the infamouse Blue Books which is very much connected to events of 1848 and 1839 in a number of ways. I shall be dealing with all these matters in a number of post features in The Welsh Patriot blog at http://welshpatriot.blogspot.com/ about mid May, certainly before I go over to France for the Paris Commune 1871 Commemoration 2008. At moment just want to touch on a recent controversy that came out of recent pre election PLAID (Cymru) conference in Newport. At this Conference PLAID M.P. Adam Price presented Plaid members with a ''Chartist Flag'', in fact it was a Green, Red and White Welsh Republican Flag, first used by the WRM 1949 - 1959, a version of which I have made for 1797 Garreg Wasted Commemorative purpose and occaisionally I have raised it at Anti - Monarchist protests. The Chartist flags, were either in first place (1830's) a white Flag and by 1848, they had adopted a Chartist Republican flag which was a Green, Blue and White Flag, as pictured above.
.
.
Adam Price went on to claim that Chartism was a PLAID legacy, this caused Welsh Labour to respond by saying it was "their legacy", and I must agree with them, as to why see previous posts in this blog's earlier posts. Suffice to say here, that Chartism does lead to British constitutional reform, rise of British Trade Unionism and eventually the very British Labour Part.y. Adam Price went on to describe what his ''Chartist Tri-Colour'' meant, what the Green, Red and White stood for, I want argue with that description, sounds OK to me. But If anyone of a patriotic mind wants to lay claim to a true historical Welsh Flag of Liberty then it must be the 1831 RED FLAG.
.
Same to regards these events of our 19th century history associated with both popular struggle and the the rise of what Proff Gwyn Alf called ''Primative Socialism'', then it is the event that took place on Hirwaun Common on 31 May 1831. Not least in this connection our Political Hero to lay claim to would be Lewis Lewis, Lewsyn yr Heliwr the ''Primative Rebel'' and Radical Revolutionary Worker hero and not Thomas Llywelyn, the Political Reformer. He, if I remember correctly did a ''runner'' during Merthyr's Red Week and took no part in this Welsh Insurrection.
.
In all this connection coming up in future posts, I shall explore further Welsh Chartism history and Rebecca's Rural Revolt, begging answers to the questions why do we remember Rebecca but tend to ignore the Scotch Cattle? then why do we remember Dic Penderyn as a Martyr but not Edward Morgan? Then what about Sir Thomas Phillpot, Lord Mayor of Newport in 1839, who ordered the Soldiers to fire on the workers, but in 1848 becomes defender of the Welsh against the ''Shame of the Blue Books''. Ironically, Sir Thomas Phillpot and the Llanover Circle as proto Political Cultural Nationalists are more of a PLAID Legacy, true? yes! In recent times, Newport Tories have declared Sir Thomas Phillpot their hero whilst condemning the Welsh Left's Chartist Leader John Frost. Then there's that "Man from the Alamo" and the matter of John Humphries disagreeing with Ifor Wilkes on their separate interpretations of the 1939 Newport Insurrection. Such are the many confusions, contradictions and convolutions of Welsh History, myself I say take what you like and run with it, if the shoe fits and why not. So Adam Price did nothing particularly mistaken or wrong, nor more so than most Politicians and even historians when it comes to interpreting history, I could give you loads of examples in any History not least our own.
.
Next flag to rise up is the one of ''Peasants Rural Revolt'' on Mynydd Bach, Ceredigion on some suitable and appropriate anniversary date. I will keep you informed and provide information on posts on history of Peasant revolts and land wars, in the past and present, keep viewing this blog. Plus I got to get around to making this flag as well, no one else will? will you? The more the merrier for making good impact on Mynydd Bach, I spose it in a little way kind of as some contemporary present signifigance regards the Nationalist Rural Revolt in the North (& West?) mostly and ironically from within Plaid Cymru much due to the consequences of it's coalition with Labour in the Welsh Assembly. Such is Welsh Politics, getting as Confusing, Contradictary and Convoluting as Welsh History.
.
G.Gruffydd.
