Archives Wales at the Eisteddfod and Beyond
Archives are for everyone and on your doorstep! They connect us to our shared past, tell compelling personal and collective stories in our present, and preserve records for future generations.
Join us at this year’s Eisteddfod and at Cardigan Castle for events and an exhibition celebrating Welsh archives and the treasures they contain.
Eisteddfod Panel, Saturday 8 August, 3-3.45pm, Societies 1
Interested in learning more about how to explore your local and family histories? Join Archives and Records Council Wales (ARCW) and our panel for a showcase of some exciting examples of archival records available and for a discussion on how you can get involved at a local and community level.
We’re delighted to be joined on the panel by colleagues from Ceredigion Archives (Mair Humphries), Pembrokeshire Archives (Claire Orr) and Dyfed Family History Society (Phil Davies). The panel will be chaired by Alan Vaughan Hughes, Head of Special Collections and Archives, Cardiff University.
Pafiliwn / Pavilion ’76 Exhibition, Cardigan Castle, 1-31 August
Can you remember the dust?! It’s been 50 years since the dramatic 1976 Eisteddfod, remembered as the ‘Dust Eisteddfod’ after a long hot summer.
Join us at Cardigan Castle this August for a free exhibition remembering the 800th Eisteddfod, Cardigan’s dramatic ‘Dust Eisteddfod’ of 1976. Come and see original archive footage from the ’76 Eisteddfod alongside photos, memorabilia and other groovy ‘70s gems from archives across Wales, co-organised by Cardigan Castle, Ceredigion Archives, Pembrokeshire Archives, Archives Wales and the Wales Broadcast Archive, National Library of Wales.
Ceredigion Archives has curated a set of twenty striking images for the display. 10 remember the dramatic Eisteddfod of 1976, from the proclamation ceremony onwards, whilst ten panels evoke other sights of the 1970s – for everyone who remembers life then, this will be a treat of recollection. For everyone else it will be a revelation!
There will also be picture folders with more 1970s material and some evocative objects and books from the time, to enjoy at your leisure. Pick up a free copy of the fully illustrated (and fun) ‘ABC of Archives’ to find out more about the rich diversity of collections available to see at Ceredigion Archives.
Visitors will also have the chance to view three films from the Wales Broadcast Archive, including:
- BBC Wales’ coverage of the controversial chairing ceremony, in which Alan Llwyd begrudgingly accepts the chair after the original winner Dic Jones was deemed to be ineligible.
- The 1976 film of the J R Evans Children’s Pageant ‘a Oes Heddwch’, where children from Aberaeron, Llambed and Aberteifi secondary schools recreate the first Eisteddfod in 1176, provided by ITV Wales.
- The documentary A Celtic Celebration, offering a behind the scenes look at the preparations and celebrations of the 800th Eisteddfod in 1976, produced by Revel Guest.
Many thanks to BBC Wales, ITV Wales and TransAltantic Films for making it possible to share these wonderful films.
The castle and exhibition are open 10am to 4pm daily. Entrance to the castle is ticketed but the exhibition – held in the Pavilion in the Castle grounds – is free to enter.
Archives Wales at Cardigan Castle, 7 August, 11am – 2pm
Emma and James from the Archives Wales Alive project will have a stall as part of a special event at Cardigan Castle from 11am – 2pm on Friday 7 August, which showcases physical and digital opportunities to get involved with Welsh archives.
The award-winning Crowd Cymru project will be on hand to show you how to get involved on their pioneering bilingual crowdsourcing platform, where over 120 volunteers have helped to make items from Welsh archives easier to search and discover online.
We’ll also be joined by the Wales Broadcast Archive, who will introduce visitors to film, television and radio from over 100 years of broadcasting in Wales. Free and open to all!
Funders and Partners
All this summer’s events have been supported by the Welsh Government’s Priorities for Culture fund as part of Archives Wales Alive: Breathing life into historical records. The aim of this project is to showcase the collections held by archive services in Wales, introducing them to new audiences that may not have previously engaged with archive services.
Pafiliwn / Pavilion ’76 has been made possible by the generous support of many individuals and organisations, who have helped with images and items for display. Our thanks go to:
Archives and Records Council Wales; BBC Wales; ITV Wales; TransAltantic Films; the family of the Late Huw Emanuel; Ceredigion Museum; Cardigan and Teifyside Advertiser; Western Telegraph; Clebran; Sainsburys; A.D. Evans, photographer; Emyr Rhys Evans, photographer; Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion; Julie John; Cleif Harpwood; Glen Johnson; Meinir Thomas; Richard Ireland; Gwenda Rudge; Tamzin Craine; Helen Palmer; Jewson Cardigan.