Welsh nationalism

Welsh nationalism is the Welsh expression of nationalism, a movement that became popular in nineteenth-century Europe and gradually became a global phenomenon in the twentieth century. It generally seeks independence for Wales within the United Kingdom or outside it.

Twentieth century

Nationalism became a strong factor in twentieth-century Wales, but not as strong as it was amongst the people of eastern Europe, or Ireland. At various times both the Labour Party and the Liberal Party took up the cause of Welsh self-government, but it was with the establishment of Plaid Cymru (=The party of Wales) in 1925 that it gained a distinct voice of its own.

Related Topics:
Labour Party - Liberal Party - Plaid Cymru - 1925

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Perhaps the end of the twentieth century saw the culmination of a hundred and fifty years of Welsh nationalism with the establishment of the National Assembly for Wales in 1999.

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Plaid Cymru

Plaid Cymru was founded in the 1920s by the existing organisations Byddin Ymreolwyr Cymru (a nationalist party of North Wales) and Y Mudiad Cymreig (an underground nationalist movement of South Wales). Plaid Cymru has been increasingly successful in elections since the 1970s and since 1997 has been the second Welsh party in the UK Parliament in terms of the number of Members of Parliament representing the interests of the party.

Related Topics:
Plaid Cymru - 1920 - Byddin Ymreolwyr Cymru - Y Mudiad Cymreig - 1970 - 1997 - UK Parliament - Members of Parliament

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Other nationalist parties and movements

• Cymru Goch (= Red Wales) or, Welsh Socialists. Cymru Goch as the movement was popularly known, was founded in 1987 to fight for a free and socialist Wales. It published the monthly magazine Y Faner Goch (= The Red Flag). In 2003 it became part of Forward Wales.
• Independent Wales (Welsh: Cymru Annibynnol). A political party founded in 2000 by some former members of Plaid Cymru under the leadership of John Humphries, a former journalist and editor of the Western Mail. The party fought the 2003 National Assembly elections by putting up candidates for the regional seats. Shortly after the election they dissolved. The main reason for its existence was unhappiness with the level of Plaid Cymru's commitment to independence.
• Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg (= The Welsh Language Society). Established in 1962 by members of Plaid Cymru, it is a pressure group campaigning for Welsh language rights. It uses non-violent direct action in its campaigning, and sees itself as part of the global resistance movement.
• Cymuned (= Community). A pressure group campaigning for Welsh language rights established in 2001, it mainly concentrates its efforts in the western parts of Wales where Welsh is still a living community language. Also sees itself as part of global movements for the rights of indigenous peoples.
• Cymdeithas Cyfamod y Cymry Rhydd (= The Society of the Covenant of the Free Welsh). Established in 1987, again because of unhappiness with the level of Plaid Cymru's commitment to independence. They achieved notoriety by producing their own Welsh passports.

Violent nationalism

Though mainstream nationalism in Wales has been constitutional, there have been violent movements associated with it.

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In 1952 a small republican movement, Y Gweriniaethwyr (= The Republicans), were the first to use violence when they made an unsuccessful attempt to blow up a pipeline leading from the Claerwen dam in mid Wales to Birmingham.

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In the 1960's two movements were established in protest against the drowning of the Tryweryn valley and the 1969 investiture of Charles Mountbatten-Windsor as Prince of Wales: Mudiad Amddiffyn Cymru (= Welsh Defence Movment, also known as MAC) and the Free Wales Army (also known as FWA). These two movements were responsible for numerous bombing attacks on water pipelines and power lines across Wales. On the eve of the investiture two members of MAC, Alwyn Jones and George Taylor, died as the bomb they were planting on the railway line to be used by the Royal Train exploded.

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The late 1970s and the 1980s saw an organisation calling itself Meibion Glyndwr (= the Sons of Glyndwr) responsible for a spate of arson attacks against holiday homes throughout Wales.

Related Topics:
Meibion Glyndwr - Sons of Glyndwr

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