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On 5th   April 1859 , 27 men and boys were killed when Neath Chain Colliery was flooded.

If you only buy one book about Snowdon in your lifetime make sure it's this one!

It is clear throughout that the author has enjoyed a peculiarly intimate lifelong relationship with Eryri and never more so than when he recounts his plan for a trip around the mountain in the opening chapter:-

"The late Showell Styles, one of this mountain regions most ardent and articulate devotees, in a charming, knowledgeable,garrulous book,The Mountains of North Wales, proposed that you should do just this as a rapid, minds-eye journey,a girdling of the mountain at a distance of a mile or a mile and a half (no kilometric nonsense for old Showell) more across them. When I started to plan this book, Showells idea grew on me.Why not follow the circuit of the peak not just rapidly and in the minds eye, but lingeringly and in reality?"

Starting out from the Miner's Track the author circumnavigates the mountain describing its many faces as he goes. It quickly becomes clear that he is familiar with every path and rock face along the way, indeed we learn that he has been visiting and climbing Snowdon since he was a boy. But the account never descends into mere personal reminiscence as we are regaled with details about the mountain's topography, wildlife, history and folklore and there are constant allusions to the delights which await in later chapters. It also becomes clear that Jim Perrin enjoys a comprehensive knowledge of the climbing routes to Snowdons summit, a theme which is explored more fully in the books final chapter 'Colonising The Vertical'

Photo Wikimedia Commons: Stemonitis The Snowdon Massif from Glyder Fawr

Chapter Two delves into the rich mythology and folklore which wraps its mantle around Snowdon like an ancient mist. Here we learn about the 'Lady Of The Lake', a story common to both north and south Wales, which hints at early and tragic encounters between Bronze and Iron age cultures. We are also introduced to the 'afanc' of Glaslyn, the giant 'Rhita' and the cave of the hairy man (Ogof y Gwr Blewog ). The account of this 'triad of grotesques' is supplemented with Arthurian legend and tales of Merlin and Dinas Emrys.

The Snowdon massif was the final and most formidable bastion in the concentric array of mountain ranges which guarded the granary of Ynys Mon and the Kingdom of Gwynedd. Its importance as a natural fortress in the cultural consciousness of the Welsh people is discussed in Chapter Three.

Subsequent chapters examine the mountain from the perspectives of antiquaries, cartographers, artists, art historians and modern tourists and local inhabitants. The final chapter deals with rock climbing routes on Snowdon and the history of their discovery and development. It should come as no surprise that Jim Perrin gives us an authoritative account here, since he has written extensively on rock climbing in Britain and with particular reference to the Welsh mountains and Snowdon ( see this page - Jim Perrin search results - for further titles )

Jim Perrin's treatment of these themes is richly detailed and massively engaging throughout.

This is truly 'the story of a mountain'. The next best thing to being there!

Outlaw Jesse James, was shot dead this day, 1882. (Both he and his brother Frank considered themselves Welsh) 

Jesse James was born in Clay County, Missouri on 5 September 1847.  His great-grandfather is believed to have been William James, a Baptist minister from Little Newcastle in Pembrokeshire.

The James brothers' career in crime began in revenge for an attack on the family farm by Union soldiers, with the brothers robbing banks, stagecoaches and trains owned by Northern establishments.

Despite being a feared band of outlaws with a huge bounty offered for their capture, they remained popular in Missouri for their active support of the confederate cause. They were eventually betrayed by members of their own gang because the reward being offered was too large to ignore. Jesse was shot in the back of the head by Bob Ford on 3rd April 1882.

Born this day, 1812 in Tregaron.

Rev. Henry Richard  was a Congregational minister and Member of Parliament who was often referred to as the "Apostle of Peace". He was well known as a promoter of peace and international arbitration, having served as secretary of the Peace Society for forty years. He was also an active supporter of the anti-slavery movement.

Born this day, 1739 in Llandyfrydog, Anglesey (The flower pictured, Daviesia physodes is named after him)

Hugh Davies, botanist and Anglican clergyman . He published a catalogue of the flora of Anglesey, the first volume in which plant names were cross-referenced in the Welsh language with their scientific names.  

Born this day, 1945 in Swansea

Gary Sprake , former Wales soccer international, best remembered as the goalkeeper for Leeds United for more than a decade during which they were a dominant side in the English domestic game.

He was known a brilliant goalkeeper, but occasionally prone to mistakes.  He self-deprecatingly called his autobiography "Careless Hands"  referring to an incident at Anfield, in which he threw the ball into his own net because he changed his mind about rolling the ball out to start an attack and tried to draw the ball back into his body.  "It went over my shoulder right into the net in front of 30,000 people and right in front of the Kop."

The government undertook a census of everyone living in Wales and England on Sunday 2 April 1911 .  The  results of the 1911 census gives  us some interesting insights into what life in Wales was like in those days; 

* The estimated population in Wales in 1911 was 2.42 million people.  Today ’s population in Wales is an estimated 2.97 million people

* Life expectancy was 54 years for women and 50 for men in the UK in 1911. By 2011 life expectancy was 82 for women and 74 for men

* In 1911 43.5% of the Welsh population spoke Welsh; in 1971 this was 28.6%. 

* Approximately 175,000 people worked in the Welsh coal mining industry in 1911 (one tenth of the population). Nowadays less than one percent of the Welsh population work in the mining industry.

For action this day in 1945, Edward Thomas Chapman was awarded the Victoria Cross .

Ted Chapman ( 13 January 1920  –  3 February 2002 ) was born in Pontlottyn in the Rhymney Valley. He became a miner before enlisting in 1940.

'On  2 April 1945 , near the Dortmund-Ems canal, Corporal Chapman halted the enemy advances with his Bren gun, at one time firing the weapon over his shoulder to protect those bringing him ammunition. He was then wounded while trying to rescue his Company Commander, but refused to be hospitalised, instead returning to his section to consolidate the ground that had been gained.'  

The Falklands War began this day in 1982.

The Falklands War began when Argentine forces invaded and occupied the Falkland Islands and South Georgia. The British government sent a naval task force to retake the islands.

The Welsh Guards   formed  part of the Task Force and on 7 June they were on board the Sir Galahad,  waiting to be landed at Bluff Cove when they came under attack. On the Sir Galahad, there were 48 dead, 32 of whom were Welsh Guards. There were also many wounded, many suffering from horrendous burns, the best known being Simon Weston.  

M archer Lord, Walter de Lacy of Ewyas Lacy, is said to have fallen from a ladder to his death on this day 1084 while inspecting the nearly finished work at St Peter’s Church in Hereford.

Ewyas  was possibly an early Welsh kingdom which existed around the time of the Roman withdrawal from Britain in the 5th century.  

Before the Norman conquest, Ewyas was beyond the reach of Anglo-Saxon administration. After 1066 Walter de Lacy was sent into Wales alongside William Fitzosbern, Earl of Hereford, and annexed the borderlands, defeating the people of Brycheiniog and Gwent. Part of Ewyas went to the de Lacy family who built castles to defend their territory.   Ecclesiastically, all but one of the parishes in Ewyas remained in the Diocese of St David until 1852 when they were transferred to the Diocese of Hereford.

On 1st  April 1977 ,  Richard Booth, a local second-hand bookshop owner, declared Hay-on-Wye to be an 'independent kingdom' with himself as its king and his horse as prime minister.

The publicity stunt subsequently developed the town into a favourite destination  for second-hand book lovers and venue for a literary festival  which draws  80,000 visitors over ten days over the Whitsun bank holiday  each year.  

The Welsh coal strike of 1898 commenced on 1st  April. 

The Welsh coal strike of 1898 was an industrial dispute which began as a campaign by the colliers to remove the sliding scale payment system, which linked colliers' salaries to the price of coal on the open market. The miners argued that the scale could be abused by traders and mine owners to the detriment of the workers.

The strike quickly turned into a lockout which would last for six months and resulted in a failure to remove the contentious sliding scale and also saw the end of Mabon's day, the  first Monday  of the month holiday, which had previously awarded to the miners.  The strike is seen as an important landmark in Welsh history and was instrumental in the rise of trade unionism in South Wales and the foundation of the South Wales Miners' Federation.

Today  is the feast day of Saint Tewdrig 

Saint Tewdrig,  was the grandson of King Nynniaw of Gwent and ruled Gwent in the early 7th century. In later life, he abdicated  and became a hermit at Din-Teyryn (Tintern). Soon afterward, however, in around 630, the Saxons invaded Gwent, so Tewdrig decided to come out of retirement and take up his sword once more to defend the church. The Saxon menace was defeated, but  Tewdrig was wounded in the Battle of Pont-y-Saeson.

His wounds were cleaned at a miraculous spring, now known as St.Tewdrig's  Well, where  he died. His son, King Meurig, built a church on the spot and enshrined his father's body there. The place became known as Merthyr-Teyryn (Mathern, near Chepstow) after the Martyred King.  

Born this day, 1943 in Derby (both of his parents were Welsh)

Dafydd Wigley , a former MP, Welsh Assembly Member and leader of Plaid Cymru. In 1974, he became one of Plaid Cymru's first MPs to be elected to the House of Commons and  in  2010  he was granted a peerage and took his seat in the House of Lords as Baron Wigley of Caernarfon.

Did a Welshman invent the wheel? 

Astonishing new evidence is emerging that a Welshman may be associated with perhaps one of the most important inventions in the development of humankind.

The name of Madfor Myles, a Celtic tribal leader who lived in what is now Mid Wales has been put forward as the first known user of the axled wheel. Carbon dating of the shaped timber found in a bogland area in the Brecon Beacons makes it the earliest use of such a wheel anywhere on the planet. It is likely that it was used on carts used to transport agricultural equipment and produce between the hendref, the tribe's permanent lowland settlement where they would spend the winter and the hafod, the highland pasture, that the tribe would use during the summer months.

Further evidence revolves around the name given to the device, Madfor's mother is thought to have descended from the Wheelan tribe of Ireland, so it would not be too far-fetched to suggest that it was originally called a wheelan, in her honour, which was shortened to wheel over the years.

On 1st  April 1859,  the Corris Railway opened.   

The Corris Railway is a narrow gauge railway initially built to transport slate to be shipped from the Dyfi estuary. When in the 1860's the line ceased to deliver direct to shipping, a passenger service flourished, using adapted wagons, and for the rest of the nineteenth century, the Railway developed  a substantial  tourist traffic.

The railway continued to run its own successful bus services and tourist routes (picture shows Corris Railway charabancs on the Grand Tour passing Talyllyn c 1907) until in 1930 the Great Western Railway purchased the line and soon afterwards it became one of the first to be closed by the newly-nationalised British Railways.  A preservation society was formed in 1966, initially opening a museum and then a short section of line between Corris and Maespoeth, which was re-opened to passengers in 2002. The railway now operates as a tourist attraction.

On 1st  April 1974 , The Local Government Act 1972 came into effect, reorganising local government areas and incorporating the area of Monmouthshire as part of Wales. 

The historic county of Monmouthshire was formed from the Welsh Marches by the Laws in Wales Act 1535.  The Second Laws in Wales Act of 1542 enumerated the counties of Wales and omitted Monmouthshire.  This led to confusion as to whether the county was part of Wales or not. Since the changes in April 1974  the area has been placed unequivocally  in Wales.

Born this day 1948, in Nantyffyllon

J.J. Williams ,  former  Wales  and Lions rugby international who played a significant role in the 1974 test series against South Africa, scoring two tries in each of the second and third tests.This performance earned him the title "The Welsh Whippet".  He was also an outstanding track athlete, representing Wales in the Commonwealth Games in 1970 and becoming Welsh sprint champion in 1971. 

On 1st  April 2007 , prescription charges were abolished for NHS patients in Wales. 

The NHS, founded in 1948, was intended to provide an entirely free health service for everyone. However, the increasing cost prompted the introduction of prescription charges in 1952 causing the resignation of several prominent ministers, including Aneurin Bevan, who had introduced the National Health Service, and Harold Wilson, the future Prime Minister. 

In 1965, under Harold Wilson, Labour abolished prescription charges, but restored them in  June 1968 , with exemptions for old and young people, those on benefits, and people with chronic diseases.