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Home » Protest and Politics » Riots and demonstrations » Riots (other)

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  • Crawshay Bailey, who owned the Nantyglo ironworks with his brother Joseph during the early 19th century, erected this fortified round tower in 1816. It was built to provide a safe haven for the ironmasters if their workers revolted against them.
Round tower built by the iron master, Crawshay Bailey, at Nantyglo, 1816 [image 1 of 3]
  • This painting, produced by the Welsh artist, Penry Williams, when he was just 14 years old, shows the militia trying to restore order during the strike of 1816. At the time of this strike, relations between ironmasters and workers were at a very low ebb. The working day was hard and long and the mines were hot and dangerous places in which to work. Wages had been slashed at a time when the price of food was rising sharply. With hungry families to feed and no money in their pockets, workers were driven to desperate measures. The 1816 strike started at Tredegar ironworks as groups of men marched out towards Merthyr, stopping all the furnaces on the way. As the rioters approached Dowlais, they were confronted by special constables, shots were fired, and Mary Morgan, the wife of the engineman at Penydarren steel works, was injured. The crowd were furious and the constables fled to a place of safety. The rioters went on to take over the ironworks in which they worked. These were worrying times for the ironmasters. John Guest, owner of Dowlais Works, barricaded himself in his home while William Crawshay II, owner of Cyfarthfa Ironworks, took to the hills, taking refuge in a farmhouse! In the end, troops were brought in to subdue the rioters and this painting captures that moment, showing the militia, with bayonets fixed, dispersing the crowd, while onlookers point at the scene. The ironmasters agreed not to reduce wages any further, peace was eventually restored, and employers were more wary in future of introducing wage cuts. The painting brought Penry Williams to the attention of William Crawshay, who became the first great industrialist to patronize the young artist. Williams went on to paint a series of watercolours depicting Cyfarthfa ironworks as well as the new Crawshay home, Cyfarthfa Castle.
'Merthyr Riots', by Penry Williams, 1816
  • This wood engraving of the riot in Mold was published in 'The Illustrated London News' in June 1869. The trouble in the town began after two coal miners were sentenced to prison for attacking the manager of Leeswood Green Colliery in the nearby village of Leeswood (Coed-llai). The relationship between the colliers and John Young, the manager of the pit, had not been a happy one and had deteriorated greatly in the weeks which led to the disturbance. The miners were greatly aggrieved by the decisions and arrogant attitude of the manager: Young, an Englishman from Durham, prohibited the colliers from speaking Welsh underground and on 17 May 1869 he announced that their wages would be cut. The colliers were greatly angered by this decision and following a meeting which was held at the pit head two days later, a number of the men attacked John Young before frog-marching him unceremoniously to the police station at Pontblyddyn. Seven colliers were arrested and were ordered to stand trial at Mold Magistrates Court on 2 June 1869. They were all found guilty and the two alleged ringleaders, Ismael Jones and John Jones, were sentenced to a month's hard labour. Not unexpectedly, the court case had attracted a great deal of attention in the area and a large crowd had started to assemble to hear the verdict. Aware of the problems that could arise, the Chief Constable of Flintshire had already ensured the services of constables from all parts of the county, and had asked for the assistance of soldiers from Chester earlier that morning. However, as the authorities attempted to transport the two prisoners from the court to the railway station, where a train was waiting to take them to the gaol at Flint Castle, the crowd reacted angrily and threw stones and other missiles at the officers. The soldiers fired shots into the crowd, killing four people. Soon afterwards, the crowd began to disperse and by the following morning, the streets were empty. Although he was to strenously deny the connection, the first novel written by Daniel Owen, the Mold-born novelist and tailor, is largely based on the events which occurred in the town in the summer of 1869. The novel, 'Rhys Lewis', was first published in monthly instalments in the Calvinistic Methodist journal, 'Y Drysorfa', between 1882 and 1884. Further reading: Jenny and Mike Griffiths, 'The Mold Tragedy of 1869' (Gwasg Carreg Gwalch, Llanrwst, 2001).
'The Riot at Mold, Flintshire', 1869 (wood engraving)
  • The period between 1908 and 1914 was known as 'The Great Unrest' as Britain experienced a number of major industrial conflicts during this time. In Wales, coal miners employed at the Cambrian Combine Collieries went on strike, clashing with troops at Tonypandy in 1910, while a strike by the seamen of Cardiff in 1911 led to attacks on members of the town's Chinese community. During the summer of 1911 a national railway strike brought chaos to many parts of the country and troops were called in to keep the trains running. On Thursday, 17 August, strikers at Llanelli held up the trains at one of the level crossings in the town. The following day, when troops were called to clear the line, events got out of hand, the Riot Act was read, shots were fired, and two innocent men (Leonard Worsell and John John) were killed. Later that day, a crowd attacked the house and business premises of one of the magistrates who had been present at the earlier incident. At about the same time, railway trucks carrying detonators were set on fire, causing an explosion which killed four people and injured many others. This photograph shows members of the Lancashire Regiment camping outside Llanelli during the strike. Further reading: John Edwards, 'Remembrance of a Riot: the story of the Llanelli Railway Strike Riots of 1911' (Llanelli Borough Council, 1988).
Troops camped near Llanelli during the Railway Strike, 1911
  • The period between 1908 and 1914 was known as 'The Great Unrest' as Britain experienced a number of major industrial conflicts during this time. In Wales, coal miners employed at the Cambrian Combine Collieries went on strike, clashing with troops at Tonypandy in 1910, while a strike by the seamen of Cardiff in 1911 led to attacks on members of the town's Chinese community. During the summer of 1911 a national railway strike brought chaos to many parts of the country and troops were called in to keep the trains running. On Thursday, 17 August, strikers at Llanelli held up the trains at one of the level crossings in the town. The following day, when troops were called to clear the line, events got out of hand, the Riot Act was read, shots were fired, and two innocent men (Leonard Worsell and John John) were killed. Later that day, a crowd attacked the house and business premises of one of the magistrates who had been present at the earlier incident. At about the same time, railway trucks carrying detonators were set on fire, causing an explosion which killed four people and injured many others. This photograph shows a soldier shaving at the Lancashire Regiment's camp outside Llanelli during the strike. Further reading: John Edwards, 'Remembrance of a Riot: the story of the Llanelli Railway Strike Riots of 1911' (Llanelli Borough Council, 1988).
Soldiers camped near Llanelli during the Railway Strike, 1911
  • Funeral of the two young men, namely Leonard Worsell and John John, who were shot down by soldiers at Llanelli during the Railway Strike Riots of 1911. The period between 1908 and 1914 was known as 'The Great Unrest' as Britain experienced a number of major industrial conflicts during this time. In Wales, coal miners employed at the Cambrian Combine Collieries went on strike, clashing with troops at Tonypandy in 1910, while a strike by the seamen of Cardiff in 1911 led to attacks on members of the town's Chinese community. During the summer of 1911 a national railway strike brought chaos to many parts of the country and troops were called in to keep the trains running. On Thursday, 17 August, strikers at Llanelli held up the trains at one of the level crossings in the town. The following day, when troops were called to clear the line, events got out of hand, the Riot Act was read, shots were fired, and two innocent men (Leonard Worsell and John John) were killed. Later that day, a crowd attacked the house and business premises of one of the magistrates who had been present at the earlier incident. At about the same time, railway trucks carrying detonators were set on fire, causing an explosion which killed four people and injured many others. Further reading: John Edwards, 'Remembrance of a Riot: the story of the Llanelli Railway Strike Riots of 1911' (Llanelli Borough Council, 1988).
Funeral of two men killed at Llanelli during the 1911 Railway Strike