Born on this day 1882 in Eglwys Rhos, Caernarfonshire,

Harold Lowe, who was Fifth Officer on RMS Titanic when she sank in April 1911. He was described by survivors as 'the real hero of the Titanic' for his role in the evacuation. He was the only officer to return to the ship to search for survivors. He also rescued a sinking lifeboat and towed another boat to safety.

On his return to Barmouth, 1,300 people attended a reception held in his honour and he was presented with a commemorative gold watch. He served in the Royal Navy Reserve during the First World War and saw service in Vladivostok during the Russian Revolution and Civil War.  During World War II he served as an Air Raid Warden until his death in 1944.  

Born on this day 1815 at Court, near Fishguard,

John Bowen - Anglican bishop in Sierra Leone, West Africa.

Bowen had travelled widely and had fought for the militia in Canada, before attending Trinity College, Dublin.  He joined the church and whilst a curate became involved with the Church Missionary Society, who sent him to the Middle East, where he learned Arabic. In 1857, he was consecrated bishop of Sierra Leone, where, after initially recovering from recurring attacks of yellow fever, he died of Malignant fever.  

On 21st November 1953 Cardiff Rugby Club beat the New Zealand All Blacks 8-3.

Bleddyn Williams, the club captain, had toured New Zealand with the British Lions in 1950 and resolved to make their heavier pack run and tire.

Cardiff scored first, with Sid Judd crashing over for a try converted by Gwyn Rowlands.  A magnificent penalty goal from R. A. Jarden followed, from a range of 45 yards, with Gwyn Rowlands scoring a second try. 

The “Western Mail ‘ on Monday 23rd November 1953 pronounced : “We do not think that the passing of the years will ever dim for us the gleam and glory of the historic encounter at the Cardiff Arms Park on Saturday, or tarnish the memory of Cliff Morgan’s darting and swooping across the turf and skimming past every obstacle like a swift at play. There was greatness in that clash of bone and sinew wherein the impenetrable object that was the Cardiff pack successfully withstood the supposedly irresistible force of the New Zealand ‘terrible eight’."  

Born on this day 1914 in Swansea

Charles Fisher -  journalist, writer, poet and adventurer, was the last surviving member of the Kardomah gang, a literary and artistic circle in Swansea in the 1930's, which included Dylan Thomas, Vernon Watkins and Daniel Jones.

Fisher went to school with Dylan Thomas and on leaving, they both become journalists for the South Wales Evening Post.

During World War II, Fisher was active for British Intelligence in France and later wrote for Reuters, the South Wales Evening Post and the BBC.

After attending Dylan Thomas's funeral in 1953, Fisher emigrated to Canada, where he became a Hansard reporter in the Canadian House of Commons. He travelled widely in Spain and became an accomplished flamenco guitar player. In the 80's and 90's he met experimental composer and artist, Oool Fjolkunnigr, with whom he collaborated musically and artistically and travelled  extensively in India, Indonesia and Tonga.

His poetry The Locust Years, was published in 1988 and he completed a memoir, Adios Granada, recalling his life with Romani people in Spain.

He died, aged 91, in Bangkok.

Born on this day 1912 in Rhos on Sea, Denbighshire

Wilf Wooller, who is acclaimed as one of the greatest all-round sportsmen that Wales has ever produced.

Wooller won his first Welsh rugby cap while still a pupil at Rydal School in Colwyn Bay and played his last game of county cricket for Glamorgan aged nearly 50.  In between he scored a hat-trick for Cardiff City FC, represented his country at squash and served as an England cricket test selector.  Wooller's achievements over four decades were remarkable, considering that he also spent years as a prisoner of war at the Changi camp in Singapore, during World War II.

He spent 36 years as secretary and then president of Glamorgan County Cricket Club, he reported on rugby and cricket for a London newspaper and presented the BBC's Welsh Sports Parade programme in the 1960s.

Additionally, he played in Wales' first rugby win over England at Twickenham in 1933 and captained Glamorgan to its first County Championship in 1948. InDecember 1935 he also contributed to one of only three Welsh wins over the All Blacks.  

Born on this day 1928 in Corris, Snowdonia,

John Disley - Olympic bronze medalist and co-founder of the London Marathon.

Disley had never seen an athletics track until he went to Loughborough College in 1946. During  the 1950s, he was Wales’ most successful athlete and Britain’s first world-class steeplechaser.  He set four British records and won a bronze medal at the 1952 Olympic Games in Helsinki. He became the first Welshman to be voted British Athlete of the Year and also won the Welsh Sports Personality of the Year award in 1955.

Disley was the leading pioneer of Orienteering in the UK and broke the record for the traverse of the Welsh 3000 foot peaks, later becoming President of the Snowdonia Society.  He was also one of the founders of the London Marathon and is a member of the Welsh Sports Hall of Fame.

For his actions on 20 November 1917 during World War I, Captain Richard William Leslie Wain  of Penarth was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.

Despite being seriously injured he attacked an enemy position in Cambrai, France, capturing it and taking prisoners. His actions enabled the infantry, which had been impeded by machine gun fire, to advance. He was killed while continuing to fire on the retreating enemy.

Welsh was spoken officially at the European Union for the first time on 19 November 2008 when Wales' Culture Minister Alun Ffred Jones spoke in Welsh to the Council of Ministers at Brussels.  His first words in Welsh to the Council of Ministers were: "Diolch madam llywydd (thank you madam chair) ..."

Although Welsh was not added to the list of the EU's 23 official languages, the union gave the go-ahead for the language to be used in speeches at the Council of Ministers if translators are present.  All European legislation is also to be translated into Welsh and anyone wanting to correspond with major EU bodies in Welsh can do so.  

Born on this day in 1892 in Rowen in the Conwy valley, Caernarfonshire: Huw Thomas Edwards, one of Wales’ most iconic figures. He declined an invitation to be knighted at the Investiture of the Prince of Wales at Caernarfon Castle in July 1969.

Huw Tom, as he was known, started work aged 14 at the Penmaenmawr slate quarry. He ran away to South Wales to work in the coal mines of the Rhondda Valley and was at Tonypandy at the time of the 1911 strike. 

Edwards was seriously wounded during the First World War but returned to work in the coal mines and slate quarries where he set up branches of a trade union and the Labour Party. A respected and influential figure, he was chosen as the first chairman of the Council of Wales and Monmouthshire in 1949.  During his nine years in the post, he collaborated on reports on devolution and on depopulation in rural Wales. He resigned in 1958 as a protest against the failure of the Macmillan government to appoint a Secretary of State for Wales.

Edwards chaired the Welsh Tourist Board, the Flintshire Education Committee and the Clwyd and Deeside Hospital Board. He was also the president of Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg (the Welsh Language Society) and was described during this time as “the unofficial Prime Minister of Wales”. 

 On 19th November 1936, King Edward VIII visited the derelict Dowlais Iron and Steel Works, commenting that "These works brought all these people here. Something should be done to get them at work again."  

 At the time of his visit  King Edward VIII was a popular figure and his comments on unemployment increased his popularity with working people and irritated Stanley Baldwin’s government.  However after his abdication and visit to Berlin to meet Hitler, his sympathies with the Nazi regime became evident and his popularity waned dramatically.  

Born on this day 1929 in Llansamlet, Swansea

Jack Kelsey- a former soccer international and world-class goalkeeper who played for Wales and Arsenal. Kelsey played for Wales 41 times, including the 1958 World Cup in which Wales reached the quarter-finals, before being defeated by Brazil.  His opponents were so impressed by his performance that they nicknamed him "the cat with magnetic paws".  

The Welsh Pony and Cob Museum was opened at Bronaeron on 19th November 2010.

The Welsh Mountain Pony evolved from the semi-feral, hardy pre-Roman Celtic pony. 

The first literary reference to them is in the laws of Hywel Dda, written in 930, where their speed, agility and strength are acknowledged. They would have been used primarily for farming and forestry. In 1485, Welsh horsemen, riding ancestors of the modern Welsh Cob, supported Henry Tudor in gaining the English throne.

The breeds as they are known today were established by the late 15th century after the Crusaders returned with Arabian stallions from the Middle East to breed with the local horses.

In a bid to improve the overall quality of British horses, King Henry VIII ordered the destruction of all stallions under 15 hands and all mares under 13 hands in the Breed of Horses Act 1535.  However, the Welsh breeds escaped the slaughter because of the remoteness of rural Wales and a partial repeal by Queen Elizabeth I in 1566.

Before the car, the Welsh Cob was a vital means of transport for doctors and tradesmen and were commonly used in coal mines, both above and below ground. They were also in demand in the United States, with large numbers being exported.

Born on this day 1936 in Gibbon, Nebraska, U.S.A

Richard Alva Cavett (Dick Cavett) - an American talk show host who was greatly influenced in the literary arts by his grandfather, a baptist preacher from Wales.

His career in entertainment began as an amateur actor and magician. He wrote successfully for Johnny Carsons and Jack Parr before establishing himself as an erudite talk-show host. Such was his reputation that he attracted guests who did not usually appear on talk shows, such as Marlon Brando, Laurence Olivier and Katherine Hepburn. Now regarded as an American treasure, Dick Cavett writes regularly for "The New York Times." 

Tasker Watkins (18 November 1918- 9 September 2007) was a soldier,  judge and President of the Welsh Rugby Union.

Watkins won the Victoria Cross for extraordinary bravery in Normandy during WW2, in an attack on an enemy position where his actions as commanding officer saved the lives of at least half of his men. Such was his modesty that he disliked speaking of his heroism, but Graham Henry, the Wales rugby coach, displayed Watkins' citation in the Welsh changing room before international matches to inspire the team, and WRU chairman David Pickering said of Sir Tasker: "He was one of the greatest ever Welshman, who will be remembered as one of our nation's heroes; a man who was an inspiration to so many people" 

After the war, Tasker Watkins studied law, rising to become Presiding Judge of the Wales and Chester Circuit, Lord Justice of Appeal,1983-93, and Deputy Chief Justice of England and Wales from 1988 until he retired in 1993.

He received a knighthood in 1971, with other honours including GBE and Knight of Saint John.

In 2006, he was made a Freeman of the City and County of Cardiff, joining a select group that includes Pope John Paul II, Winston Churchill, David Lloyd George and Nelson Mandela. 

Sir Tasker was an avid supporter of Welsh rugby, becoming president of the WRU to popular acclaim in 1993 and remained an iconic figure at international games until he retired in September 2004.   

David Rees was born in Trelech, Carmarthenshire on the 18th November 1801. He was a great orator and social reformer who campaigned tirelessly against child slavery in the copper works and collieries in the Llanelli area. He was a Congregationalist who was ordained in Llanelli's Capel Als in 1829 and remained a minister until his retirement in 1867. He was also an editor and publisher, striving to improve the education of working class people in Wales. He established schools in the area, notably on Market Street and at Five Roads. 

On 18th November 1840, the paddle steamer 'The City of Bristol' was shipwrecked off the Gower Peninsula. She was washed on to Llangennith sands, where her engines can still be seen at low tide. Twenty seven crew and passengers were drowned, although three bullocks and seventy five pigs managed to swim ashore.

On 18th November 1307, William Tell shot an arrow through an apple on his son's head and launched the struggle for Swiss independence. However, there is a similar legend in Wales that pre-dates this famous tale.

Sometime between 1191 and 1208, Madog ap Gruffydd Maelor, Prince of Powys Fadog, who had been dispossessed of his lands in Breconshire by William de Braose, shot an apple from the head of his youngest son, also called Madog, on the orders of Maud de Braose. 

*  Madog ap Gruffydd Maelor

1191 - Madog succeeded his father as Prince of Powys jointly with his brother Owain and adopted a neutral position between Gwynedd and England.

1197 - On Owain's death, he became sole ruler of the area of Powys between the Afon Rhaeadr and the Afon Tana. This area was named after him, Powys Fadog

1212 - Madog had been close to his cousin Llywelyn ap Iorwerth (Llywelyn the Great), but gradually distanced himself and became an official ally of the English King John.

1215 - Madog settled his differences with Llywelyn ap Iorwerth and allied with him.  

 *  William, of the Norman de Braose dynasty, governed the border counties of Wales under King John, along with his indomitable wife, Maud, who supported his ambitions.

In 1175, William de Braose carried out the Abergavenny Massacre, butchering three Welsh princes and other Welsh leaders to at a Christmas feast at Abergavenny Castle. Unsurprisingly, this act earned him the nickname the "Ogre of Abergavenny".

In 1208, William de Braose quarrelled with King John, making incriminatory comments regarding the murder of King John's nephew Arthur of Brittany. The King confiscated the de Braose holdings, forcing them to flee to Ireland.

1210 de Braose  returned to Wales and allied himself with Llywelyn ap Iorwerth in his rebellion against King John. Maud and her son were captured and starved to death at Corfe Castle in Dorset.

1211 William de Braose died in France, after fleeing there from Walesdisguised as a beggar.  

*  William de Braose was a favourite of King John and at the peak of his power in Wales, was Lord of Gower, Abergavenny, Brecknock, Builth, Radnor, Kington and Glamorgan.  His wife Maud supported his military ambitions and was put her in charge of Hay Castle and is often referred to as the Lady of Hay.

In 1175, William de Braose carried out the Abergavenny Massacre, luring three Welsh princes and other Welsh leaders to their deaths at a Christmas feast at Abergavenny Castle. This resulted in great hostility against him among the Welsh, who named him the "Ogre of Abergavenny".

In 1198, Maud defended Painscastle against a massive Welsh attack led by Gwenwynwyn, Prince of Powys Wenwynwen, until English reinforcements arrived.  Over three thousand Welsh were killed.

In 1208, William de Braose quarrelled with King John and Maud made indiscreet comments regarding the murder of King John's nephew Arthur of Brittany.  The King seized all of their castles and the de Braose's fled to Ireland, 

1210 De Braose returned to Wales and allied himself with Llywelyn ap Iorwerth in his rebellion against King John. Maud and her son were apprehended and imprisoned at Corfe Castle in Dorset, where they both starved to death.

1211, William de Braose died in France, after fleeing there from Wales the previous year, disguised as a beggar.

Llywelyn ap Dafydd, de jure Prince of Gwynedd, died at Bristol Castle in mysterious circumstances in 1287 and was buried in the nearby Dominican church (now known as Quakers Friars, which was later established as a Quaker meeting house on 17th November 1747).

Llywelyn ap Dafydd was the eldest son and heir of Dafydd ap Gruffydd (Prince of Wales 1282-1283). He was probably born around 1267 and it is likely that he accompanied his father during periods of exile in England in the 1270s.  Following the death of his father's brother Llywelyn ap Gruffydd on11 December 1282, Gwynedd was placed in the hands of Dafydd.

January 1283 - Edward I surrounded the heartland of  Wales with a massive army, and Dafydd and his family, including Llywelyn ap Dafydd, moved to safety at Castell y Bere.

April 1283 - Castell y Bere was besieged by over 3,000 men. Dafydd and his family escaped north to Dolbadarn Castle.

May 1283 - They were forced to flee again, to the Welsh royal home in Abergwyngregyn.

22 June 1283 - Dafydd and his younger son Owain ap Dafydd were captured in a secret hiding place in a bog by Bera Mountain and taken to Shrewsbury. Dafydd's wife and seven daughters, together with Prince Llywelyn's baby daughter Gwenllian ferch Llywelyn, were also taken captive.

28 June 1283 - Llywelyn ap Dafydd was captured and escorted to Bristol. Edward triumphantly proclaimed that the last of the "treacherous lineage" of the "turbulent nation", was eliminated.

3rd October 1283 - Dafydd was executed in Shrewsbury.

1287 - Llywelyn ap Dafydd died at Bristol Castle in mysterious circumstances, his burial being paid for by King Edward I.  

Colonel Morgan Morgan, an American pioneer from Glamorganshire, died on 17th November 1766 aged 78 years.  He was thought to have founded the first permanent settlement in present day West Virginia at Cool Spring Farm, arriving in 1731.

Morgan had wealth and a very respectable social standing. Early records list him as a merchant and tailor, and he was also a magistrate.  

Morgan died in Bunker Hill, Berkeley and was buried in the Morgan Chapel Graveyard.  Morgan had eight children, and one of his sons, David Morgan, became an Indian fighter. Francis Harrison Pierpont, governor of Virginia, claimed descent from Colonel Morgan.   

 Giles de Braose, Bishop of Hereford (1200 to 1215) and ally of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth (Llywelyn the Great), died on 17th November 1215 and was buried in Hereford Cathedral.

Giles was the second son of William de Braose, a landholder on the Welsh Marches, who was favoured by King John of England. Giles owed his Bishopric to his father's position with the king and was employed as a 'judge-delegate', or papal representative. He was also involved in resolving the political disputes of the border lands, including a wrangle between King John and Gwenwynwyn ab Owain of Powys, which was resolved in 1204. 

In 1206, John developed a distrust of the de Braoses, which resulted in Giles seeking refuge in France. While there, he joined a group of other English exiles seeking support from King Philip II of France against John. In 1210, Giles' elder brother and mother were starved to death on John's orders, and this prompted Giles to aid Llywelyn ab Iorwerth's efforts in 1212 to make an alliance with King Philip.

Giles returned to England in 1213 and joined the barons opposing John, and colluded with Llywelyn in razing Hugh de Mortimer's castle in Herefordshire. After Llywelyn's revolt in May 1215, the de Braose ancestral lands were restored and the bishop himself took a number of the castles.    

David Emanuel, who was born in Bridgend on 17 November 1952, is a Welsh fashion designer best known for designing the wedding dress worn in 1981 by Diana, Princess of Wales.

David continued to dress Diana, Princess of Wales after her wedding and has also dressed some of the world's most beautiful women, including Joan Collins, Madonna, Shirley Bassey, Faye Dunaway, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Jane Seymour and Elizabeth Taylor.  

Gethin Jenkins (born 17 November 1980 in Llantwit Fardre) is a Wales and British Lions international rugby union player, currently playing for Cardiff Blues. He is the most capped front-row forward for Wales.

Jenkins first played for Wales against Romania in 2002, and in the 2005 Six Nations Championship scored a memorable try against Ireland. In November 2007, he captained Wales for one match against South Africa.

He is one of the few Welsh players to have won three Grand Slams.

November 1886 saw serious flooding throughout Wales causing severe damage;

*  The keeper of the Mumbles lighthouse was swept out to sea and drowned.
*  Trefechan Bridge near Aberystwyth was destroyed.
*  Serious flooding in Aberystwyth saw North Parade under 6 feet of water.   
*  The rivers Mawddach, Dee and Taff all flooded.

Major General Rowland Laugharne, Parliament's commander in South Wales during the English Civil War, was buried on 16th November 1675.

Major General Rowland Laugharne's involvement in The English Civil War:

1642 - Outbreak of Civil War. Haverfordwest, Pembroke and Tenby were held for Parliament.

1643 - The Royalists entered Pembrokeshire and occupied Haverfordwest and Tenby but Pembroke castle held out.  Laugharne, with the assistance of Parliamentary ships from Milford Haven, took the small Royalist garrisons at Stackpole and Trefloyne and recovered Haverfordwest and Tenby. 

1644 - Following the defeat of the Royalists at Marston Moor, Laugharne resumed the offensive. He captured the town and castles of Laugharne and Cardigan.

1645 - Royalists surprised and defeated Laugharne at Newcastle Emlyn, forcing him to withdraw to Pembroke and Tenby. Following the king's defeat at Naseby on 14th June, Laugharne routed the remaining Royalist forces at Colby Moor, Wiston on 1st August. He entered Haverfordwest the following day and took Aberystwyth castle on 12 April 1646. At this stage, all of west Wales was in his hands.

1646 - Laugharne went to the relief of Cardiff castle, where the governor, Edward Pritchard, was under threat from an uprising of the Royalist gentry of the Vale of Glamorgan. In recognition of his gallantry, Laugharne was appointed commander-in-chief of the counties of Pembroke, Cardigan, Carmarthen and Glamorgan.

1648 -  Parliamentarian troops in Wales, who had not been paid and feared that they were about to be disbanded without arrears of pay, staged a rebellion under the command of John Poyer, Rowland Laugharne and Colonel Rice Powell. The rebellion was put down at The Battle of St. Fagans on 8th May 1648. 

1648 - Laugharne retreated with what was left of his army to join Colonel Poyer at Pembroke while Colonel Horton of The New Model Army marched to besiege Tenby Castle. Oliver Cromwell joined Horton to lay siege to Pembroke, forcing Laugharne to surrender on 11 July 1648.

1649  - Laugharne was court-martialled in April and condemned to be executed by firing squad along with the two other rebels, Poyer and Powell. It was decided to execute only one of the rebels, however, and Laugharne was spared.

Laugharne spent most of the 1650s in prison and after the Restoration of the Monarchy was elected MP for Pembroke in the Cavalier Parliament.    

On 16th November 1326, Edward II was captured at Pant-Y-Brad (The Hollow of Treason) near Tonyrefail and imprisoned at Llantrisant Castle.

This was the humiliating end of the disastrous reign of Edward II, who was taken by followers of his estranged wife Isabella of France, who seven weeks earlier had invaded England with her favourite, Roger Mortimer.

Only a small group of men remained with the king at the time of his capture as he had alienated much of his realm, and few were willing to fight for him, not even his household knights. Edward was taken to Kenilworth Castle in Warwickshire in honourable captivity. A few weeks after his capture he abdicated in favour of his fourteen-year-old son Edward III, whose reign began on 25 January 1327.

Griff Rhys Jones was born in Cardiff on 16 November 1953. He is best known for his comedy partnership with Mel Smith.

He first found fame on 'Not the Nine O'Clock News' alongside Rowan Atkinson, Pamela Stephenson and Mel Smith. Smith and Jones continued to work together, developing their own sketch show 'Alas Smith and Jones'. Further series included 'The World According to Smith and Jones', 'Smith and Jones in Small Doses' and 'Smith and Jones'.  Jones has also established himself as a presenter, working on shows such as 'Restoration' and 'The Bookworm'. 

Since 2006 Jones has appeared in the BBC's Three Men in a Boat series with Rory McGrath and Dara Ó Briain.  Rhys Jones also revisited his roots in the village of Ferndale for a 2007 episode of the BBC One series Who Do You Think You Are? In the episode, he detailed early memories of his grandparents' fruit and vegetable shop on the high street and his mother's childhood concert performances at Trerhondda Chapel.  

Today is the feast day of Saint Afan. 

Saint Afan was a Welsh bishop and saint of the 6th century. He was the son of Cedig ab Caredig ab Cunedda, by Tegwedd, daughter of Tegid Foel of Penllyn. He was the founder of LlanafanTrawsgoed in Cardiganshire (Ceredigion) and was buried in Llanafan Fawr in Breconshire, where his tomb still remains as inscribed, "Hic Iacet Sanctus Avans Episcopus." He may have been the third bishop of Llanbadarn. 

Little is known about Afan, and even less is strictly reliable; all that is sure is that he was a bishop in the district of Buallt, or Builth in Mid Wales.  Baring-Gould recounts a tradition that Afan was murdered by Irish pirates (or by Danes) on the banks of the River Chwefri, and that the tomb at Llanafan Fawr marks the site of his martyrdom.   

Little else is known about the life of Saint Afan, although some writers list him as a descendant of the 3rd century British King Cynedda Wledig, making him a cousin of Saint David, and some others even as a relation of a 10th-century bishop, Jeuan, who was killed by Viking invaders.

The church dedicated to him was once a site of pilgrimages, and site of at least one miracle: the Norman nobleman, Philip de Braose was hunting nearby and decided that the church was a suitable place for him and his dogs to spend the night. When he woke at sunrise, his dogs had gone mad and he was blind; he had to grope his way out with his hands. The nobleman never regained his sight, but fought in the Crusades blind, whereupon he was "immediately struck down by a blow from a sword and so ended his life with honour."

Aneurin Bevan  was one of the most important ministers of the post-war Labour government and the chief architect of the National Health Service. 

Born on 15 November 1897 in Tredegar, Bevan was raised in a working class community where he witnessed the hardships caused by disease and poverty.

Leaving school at 13, he worked underground and became active in the trades union before winning a scholarship to study in London. Bevan became one of the leaders of the South Wales miners during the General Strike in 1926, and in 1929, he was elected as Labour MP  for Ebbw Vale. 

During World War Two, Bevan emerged as one of the opposition leaders in the House of Commons, and following the Labour victory in the 1945 general election, was appointed as the minister of health in charge of setting up the National Health Service. On 5 July 1948, the government became responsible for all medical services, with 'free diagnosis and treatment for all'.

In 1951, Bevan became minister of labour but resigned from the government in protest at the introduction of prescription charges for spectacles and dental care. He led the 'Bevanites', the left wing of the Labour Party, for the next five years.

Bevan was elected deputy leader of the Labour Party in 1959, despite suffering from terminal cancer. He passed away on 6 July 1960.  

The Battle of the Winwaed, fought on 15 November 655 (or 654), ended in defeat and death for King Penda of Mercia.

Penda had overthrown the previously dominant Northumbrians at Hatfield Chase in 633, and at the Battle of Maserfield in 642. He subsequently sought to defeat Bernicia, at one point besieging Bamburgh, and entrapping Oswiu, the Bernician leader, at a place called Iudeu (identified with Stirling) in the north of his kingdom. Oswiu sued for peace, and an agreement was reached, but for some reason, the two armies engaged at the River Winwaed. The Northumbrian force would have been outnumbered by the Mercians, but according to Bede, Oswiu prayed before the battle and promised to make his daughter a nun and grant twelve estates for the construction of monasteries if he was victorious. 

According to the Historia Brittonum, Penda's army was weakened by desertion. His ally Cadafael ap Cynfeddw of Gwynedd (thereafter remembered as "Cadomedd" (="battle-shirker")) abandoned him, and Bede says that Aethelwald of Deira withdrew from the battle to await the outcome from a place of safety. Penda was soundly defeated, and both he and his ally, the East Anglian King Aethelhere, were killed. Bede mentions that Penda's head was cut off. 

 Mercia's dominance was destroyed, and Northumbria temporarily restored; Mercia itself was divided, with the north being claimed by Oswiu and the south being acceded to Penda's Christian son Peada. 

The battle marked the demise of Anglo-Saxon paganism. After Penda's death, Mercia was converted, and all subsequent kings (including Penda's sons Peada, Wulfhere and Æthelred) were Christian.  

Petula Clark, whose mother was Welsh, was born on 15 November 1932. She visited her grandparents in Merthyr Tydfil frequently as a child, learned to speak Welsh and sang in their chapel.

Since making her first movie in 1944, Petula has appeared in over thirty films. Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, she was a regular guest on radio shows, and made her first television appearance in the 1940s, hosting her own television series. She was very popular in France and became a star throughout Europe. The single 'Downtown' launched Petula's American career and earned her a Grammy Award in 1964. Throughout the 1960s, she released numerous charts hits, starred in musicals and appeared frequently on TV. She remains a popular performing artist aged over 80.  

Today is the feast day of Saint Mechell.

He founded the 6th-century monastery of Llanfechell on Anglesey, where he is supposedly buried. He was reputedly Breton by birth, the son of Echwys ab Gwyn Gohoew. Many miracles are attributed to him, including resurrecting a giant and converting him to Christianity, turning thieves to stone while blinding and then curing the leader, who in gratitude gifted Mechell with land on which to found a monastery. The extent of the land was to be demarked by the route taken by a released hare, which under divine guidance marked the full extent of what is now the parish of Llanfechell.

The birth of Barry Docks.

Work began on the new dock at Barry on 14 November 1884which opened for trade in 1889. Later, further docks were added and by 1903 exports had risen to over nine million tons. By 1913, Barry had become the largest coal exporting port in the country. 

The docks gave rise to many subsidiary business enterprises, from repair yards and cold storage facilities to flour mills and shipping agents. Even when a worldwide depression in the 1920s  began to decimate the Welsh coal trade, there were still more than fifty companies trading out of Barry docks. Eventually, the collapse of the Welsh coal trade left Barry and its docks redundant. The arrival of the Geest Company in 1959, importing bananas from the West Indies, provided a temporary reprieve, but when the company withdrew in the 1980s, the port of Barry went into terminal decline.

Today, the old waterfront has been redeveloped, like many other dockland areas. Parts of the old docks have been used as locations for TV shows like Doctor Who and Torchwood and, of course, the television series Gavin and Stacey was set and filmed in Barry.

In November 1908 The North and South Wales Bank was absorbed into the London City and Midland Bank, bringing an end to independent banking in Wales.   

Between 1780 and 1908 many towns in Wales would have had their own bank, local enterprises run and backed by local investors. They issued their own notes redeemable either at the bank itself, at another bank with which it had a mutual agreement or exchanged for a Bank of England note. The banks were linked to the trade or economy of their area, for example, the Aberystwyth & Tregaron Bank was known as 'Banc y Ddafad Ddu' or 'Bank of the Black Sheep'. 

Many Welsh banks collapsed in the 1820s and 30s in the wake of national events like the South Sea Bubble. Others were taken over by larger institutions so that by the beginning of the 20th century there were no freestanding Welsh banks.  

Today is the birthday of Charles 'Prince of Wales' - but at the age when most seek to retire, Charles has yet to start the job he was born to do. 

Heir to the throne since he was three years old, Charles is now a pensioner, and like thousands of others claims his pension - but will be donating it to an unnamed charity which supports the elderly.  The Prince is entitled to the state benefit because he paid National Insurance contributions whilst in the Navy in the 1970s and made voluntary contributions later. 

A king in waiting for more than 60 years, he has carried out countless royal engagements over the decades, undertaking 480 in the UK and 112 overseas in 2012 alone.  The Prince is the oldest heir to the throne for almost 300 years and the longest serving heir to the throne in recorded UK history.

Today is the feast day of Saint Dyfrig 

Born at Madley on the River Wye, he was one of the prominent Celtic saints in the 7th century. He was believed to be the son of Eurddil of Ergyng, which is now part of modern Herefordshire.

He was known as a scholar and founded a college at Henllan (Hentland in Herefordshire) which was attended by many noted scholars, including St Illtud.  Dyfrig was later chosen to be the first Bishop of Llandaff. Eventually, Dyfrig retired to Bardsey Island with his disciples, where he lived as a hermit until his death in about 612. His remains were later interred at Llandaff, in a tomb before the Lady Altar in 'the old monastery' which later became the cathedral church. 

The Texaco oil refinery in Pembroke went back into full production on 14th November 1994 after a massive explosion ripped through the plant, causing millions of pounds worth of damage. 

At around 13:00 on 24 July 1994, Twenty-six people were injured on 24th July of that year when an explosion devastated the plant. The shockwave damaged properties within 10 miles of the plant and the blast was heard 40 miles away. Shortly before the explosion, a lightning storm in the area had caused disturbances, with a subsequent fire taking several hours to extinguish. Fire appliances were drafted in from Swansea and Cardiff with more than 130 firefighters assisting.