1946 in Wales explained

This article is about the particular significance of the year 1946 to Wales and its people.

Incumbents

• Archbishop of Wales – David Prosser, Bishop of St David's
• Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales – Crwys

Events

• 12 July – The Coal Industry Nationalisation Act is passed by Parliament.
• August
  • Arthur Horner becomes General Secretary of the National Union of Mineworkers.
  • Stocks of captured Nazi German bombs filled with Tabun (nerve agent) begin to be transferred from Llanberis to open storage at RAF Llandwrog.
• November – The highest ever temperature for this month in the UK is recorded at Prestatyn: 71 °F (21.7 °C).
• December – George Isaacs inaugurates the first Remploy factory, in Bridgend, with the aim of offering work to disabled ex-servicemen.^[1]
• 26 December – A serious collapse at Bryn Eglwys slate mine near Abergynolwyn causes its closure.
• A pneumoconiosis research unit is established at Llandough Hospital near Cardiff, in recognition of the damage being caused to miners' health.

Arts and literature

• In the absence of a Prince of Wales, The Princess Elizabeth, heir presumptive to the throne, is admitted to the Gorsedd.^[2]

Awards

• National Eisteddfod of Wales (held in Mountain Ash)
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair – Geraint Bowen
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown – Rhydwen Williams
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal – Dafydd Jenkins

New books

In Welsh

• Pennar Davies – Cinio'r Cythraul
• Albert Evans-Jones (Cynan) – Ffarwel Weledig
• Thomas Rowland Hughes – Chwalfa
• John Gwilym Jones – Y Goeden Erin

In English

• Caradoc Evans – The Earth Gives All and Takes All^[3]
• Emyr Humphreys – Little Kingdom
• Dylan Thomas – Deaths and Entrances^[4]
• Gwyn Thomas – The Dark Philosophers^[5]

Music

• 15 April – The Welsh National Opera makes its debut, at the Prince of Wales Theatre, Cardiff, with a double bill of Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci, with almost all the singers being amateurs.
• Daniel Jones – Scenes from the Mabinogion

Film

• London Town featuring Tessie O'Shea^[6]

Broadcasting

• June – The BBC's regional director for Wales tells Welsh MPs that there is "not enough talent... to sustain a full continuous programme".^[7]

Sport

• Boxing – Wales stages its first-ever world title fight, in which lightweight Ronnie James is defeated by Ike Williams.

Births

• 10 January – Terry Cobner, rugby player^[8]
• 15 January – Roger Davis, cricketer
• 31 January – Bobby Windsor, rugby player^[9]
• 20 February – Mike Roberts, Wales and British Lion rugby player
• 21 March – Timothy Dalton, actor^[10]
• 2 April – Dai Llewellyn, socialite (died 2009)^[11]
• 5 April – Russell Davies, journalist and broadcaster
• 13 April – Della Jones, mezzo-soprano
• 19 May – Androw Bennett, writer
• 6 June – Hywel Francis, politician and historian (died 2021)
• 14 June – Glyn Berry, diplomat
• 6 August – Ron Davies, politician^[12]
• 12 August – Andrew McNeillie, poet and literary editor
• 3 October – Richie Morgan, professional footballer and manager
• 18 October – Dafydd Elis-Thomas, politician^[13]
• 30 October – Chris Slade, rock drummer
• 26 November – Brian Hibbard, actor and singer (died 2012)
• 27 November – Kim Howells, politician^[14]
• 6 December – Martin Moore-Bick, judge
• 9 December – Mervyn Davies, rugby player (died 2012)^[15]
• date unknown – Tony Curtis, poet

Deaths

• 8 January – Dion Fortune, writer, 55^[16]
• 23 January – William Evans, Wales dual code international rugby player, 62
• 25 April (in London) – Arthur Jenkins, MP for Pontypool, 64
• 14 March – Reg Thomas, athlete, 39 (air crash)^[17]
• 16 April – Jack Jenkins, footballer, 54^[18]
• 25 April – Arthur Jenkins, politician, 64
• 25 May – Ernest Rhys ("Mr Everyman"), writer, 86^[19]
• 1 June – Arthur Griffith-Boscawen, politician, 80^[20]
• 10 June – Humphrey Jones, footballer, 83
• 18 June – Thomas Llewellyn Jones, businessman and politician in Australia, 74^[21]
• 4 July – Taffy O'Callaghan, footballer, 39
• 15 July – William Cope, 1st Baron Cope, politician, 75
• 20 July – Richard Thomas Evans, politician, 55/56
• 8 August – Miriam Kate Williams ("Vulcana"), strongwoman, 72
• 12 August – Alfred Augustus Mathews, vicar and Wales international rugby player, 82
• 25 August – Tudor Edwards, thoracic surgeon, 56^[22]
• 26 August – Ruth Herbert Lewis, social reformer and collector of Welsh folk songs, 74^[23]
• 15 October – David Percy Davies, newspaper editor,^[24]
• 4 November – Bill Morris, Wales international rugby player, 77
• 5 November – Thomas Scott-Ellis, 8th Baron Howard de Walden, author and patron of the arts in Wales, 66^[25]
• 24 November – Sydney Nicholls, Wales rugby international player, 78
• 6 December – Charles Stanton MP, politician^[26]
• date unknown
  • William Egan, footballer, 73 or 74
  • Morris Williams, publisher, husband and collaborator of Kate Roberts, 46^[27]
  • Ianto Davies, rugby player, ?48

See also

• 1946 in Northern Ireland

Notes and References

1. Book: Rehabilitation in Great Britain. 1947. British Information Services, Reference Division. 15.
2. Book: National Library of Wales. Annual Report – Presented by the Council to the Court of Governors . 1955. The Library.
3. Book: George Watson. The New Cambridge Bibliography of English Literature. 2 July 1971. CUP Archive. 303–. GGKEY:64CF45KC7C0.
4. Book: J. C. Bittenbender. Gale Researcher Guide for: Dylan Thomas: The Natural and the Supernatural. Gale, Cengage Learning. 978-1-5358-5139-8. 8.
5. Book: Gwyn Thomas. The Dark Philosophers. 23 December 2005. Summersdale Publishers Limited. 978-1-84839-717-0. 3.
6. Book: K. Donnelly. British Film Music and Film Musicals. 16 August 2007. Palgrave Macmillan UK. 978-0-230-59774-7. 107.
7. Book: Asa Briggs. The History of Broadcasting in the United Kingdom: Volume IV: Sound and Vision. 1995. OUP Oxford. 978-0-19-212967-3. 92.
8. Book: Peter Jackson. Lions of Wales: A Celebration of Welsh Rugby Legends. 1998. Mainstream. 978-1-84018-026-8. 210.
9. Book: Chris Schoeman. Legends of the Ball: Rugby's Greatest Players Chosen by Willie John McBride, Frik Du Preez, David Compese. 2007. CJS Books. 978-0-620-36962-6. 132.
10. Book: Peter M. Gareffa. Ann Evory. Newsmakers. 1988. Gale Research. 9780810322035.
11. News: Sir Dai Llewellyn dies aged 62. 14 January 2009. 14 January 2009. The Times. Kaya . Burgess . London.
12. Book: Charles Roger Dod. Robert Phipps Dod. Dod's Parliamentary Companion. 2000. Dod's Parliamentary Companion, Limited. 518. 9780905702285.
13. Book: Charles Roger Dod. Vacher Dod Publishing, Limited. Robert Phipps Dod. Dod's Parliamentary Companion. 2005. Dod's Parliamentary Companion, Limited. 567. 9780905702513.
14. Book: Valerie Passmore. Dod's Parliamentary Companion: Guide to the General Election, 2005. 2005. Dod's Parliamentary Companion Limited. 978-0-905702-57-5. 195.
15. Web site: Mervyn Davies obituary. 16 March 2012. Paul Rees. The Guardian. 21 September 2019.
16. Book: Knight, Gareth . Dion Fortune and the Inner Light . 2000 . Thoth Publications . Loughborough . 978-1-870450-45-4 . 293.
17. Web site: Squadron Leader Reginald Heber Thomas. CWGC. 29 June 2023.
18. Book: Tim . Carder . Roger . Harris . Albion A–Z: A Who's Who of Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. . Goldstone Books . Hove . 1997 . 125–126 . 978-0-9521337-1-1.
19. Book: Terry Seymour. A Printing History of Everyman's Library 1906-1982. 2011. AuthorHouse. 978-1-4678-7014-6. 263.
20. Book: Michael Stenton. Stephen Lees. Who's who of British members of parliament: a biographical dictionary of the House of Commons, based on annual volumes of Dod's 'parliamentary companion' and other sources. 1981. Harvester Press. 9780855273255.
21. News: Family Notices. . . Brisbane . 19 June 1946 . 11 April 2015 . 10 . National Library of Australia.
22. 7 September 1946. A. Tudor Edwards, M.D. M. Ch. F.R.C.S.. Br Med J. en. 2. 4470. 346–. 10.1136/bmj.2.4470.346-c. 2054255. 0007-1447. Wakeley. C. P. G..
23. Web site: Lewis, Lady Ruth (1871-1946), a pioneering collector of Welsh folk-songs, and advocate of educational, religious, temperance and philanthropic bodies. Evan David Jones. Welsh Biography Online. National Library of Wales. 5 November 2020.
24. Web site: DAVIES, David Percy. Who Was Who.
25. Book: Charles Kidd. Christine Shaw. Debrett's Peerage & Baronetage 2008. 24 June 2008. Debrett's. 978-1-870520-80-5. 344.
26. 2-STAN-BUT-1873. Stanton, Charles Butt (1873-1946), M.P. for the Merthyr and Aberdare constituency, 1915-1922. Huw Morris-Jones . 29 June 2023.
27. Book: The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales. University of Wales Press. 2008. 9780708319536. 768.