The Disestablishment of the Church in Wales

The Cwmamman Parish Magazine for 1913 and 1914 contained several articles regarding the controversial disestablishment and disendowment of the Church in Wales from the Church of England. The articles below illustrate the strength of feeling over the issue.

From the January 1913 edition:

"Address.
On Tuesday, December 3rd, the Rev. Griffith Thomas, Vicar of St. David's, Carmarthen, delivered an Address at the Church Hall on the great question of the day, viz., Disestablishment and Dismemberment of our Church. The attendance was fairly good and of a representative character. We were pleased to see so many of our Nonconformist friends present. They were evidently well satisfied with the address, as no questions were asked. Mr. Thomas, in a convincing speech, proved that the emoluments of the Church were given to her as a religeous body, and not to the nation, and that it is most unjust and unfair to deprive her of her endowments, when indifference and materialism is rampant in our land."

From the February 1913 edition:

"The Proposed Disestablishment and Disendowment of the Welsh Church.

The Four Welsh Bishops have appointed Wednesday, Feb. 12, as a day for humble prayer and intercession on behalf of the Welsh Church, which is in imminent danger of being deprived of the greater part of the endowments given to it by its devoted sons and daughters in bygone days - endowments which it was the intention of the givers should be for ever devoted to the service of God and His Church. The passing into law of the Bill would not only cripple the Church in every Parish, but would also be a serious injury to the cause of religeon in Wales. It is the duty of every true Christian Church to work and pray that the terrible calamity shall not befall our country. The following is a copy of the Bishop's letter:-

From the April 1913 edition:

The April 1913 edition of the Parish Magazine contained and article titled "Mrs. Lloyd George's Mistakes about the Church in Wales." There then followed a point by point examination on the content of what was called "A Crusade Leaflet" by Mrs Lloyd George. The leaflet, which was at the time being "largely circulated", was intended as an attempt to show why Liberals demand disestablishment and disendowment. The article has been transcribed to a seperate webpage due to its size.

From the May 1913 edition:

"A LONDON DEMONSTRATION.

On June 21st next, the Churchmen of London intend to have a protest Demonstration against the Government Spoilation Bill, and they want at least one Representative from each Parish in Wales to join them, and to bring a Parish Banner with them. Will any volunteer to go from Cwmamman? One has already done so. We hope a couple more will join. One from each Church in the Parish should go. We hope they will. Cheap Railway Fares will be obtainable."

Also from the May 1913 edition:

"THE WELSH CHURCH BILL

THE TITHE IN CARMARTHENSHIRE.

If the Welsh Disestablishment and Disendowment Bill becomes law, every penny of tithe in Carmarthenshire will still have to be paid. That part of it which is now devoted to religeous purposes will in future be used for non-religeous purposes, but it will all have to be paid as before.
The total tithe in the county of Carmarthenshire amounts to £17,986 a year. Of this amount more than half (£9, 048 a year) is paid to lay-owners, from whom no service to the people is expected in return, while £288 a year goes to one of the colleges at Oxford. But in return for the part of the tithe (£8,650 a year) which belongs to the Church, the people in every parish are entitled to receive the religeous services and ministrations of the clergy.
This is what the Government Bill does:-it takes away tithe for which work is being done, and leaves untouched the tithe of the lay-owner, for which no work is being done.
Is this fair or reasonable in the eyes of the religeous people of Carmarthenshire?
If the Bill passes into law, the Church will lose its tithe, the lay-owners NONE.
What would the tithe-payers gain? NOTHING.
But the whole of the Rates on the Tithe now paid by the Vicar would be lost."

From the June 1913 edition:

"THE BISHOP AT BRYNAMMAN.

On Tuesday evening, June 10th next, the Bishop of the Diocese is expected to give an address at Brynamman Public Hall on the Disestablishment Bill. The Meeting is to commence at 8pm and the Chair will be taken by Mr Miers, Ynyspenllwch, Clydach. Admission will be by ticket. A few Tickets are Reserved at 1s. each. This money will go towards the expenses which will amount to several pounds. After the Meeting, a Special Train will leave for Garnant and Glanamman. We anticipate a crowded gathering. The Bishop is the greatest living expert on this question. What he does not know about it is not worth knowing. He is truly a giant, and no doubt we shall have the case put clearly, fairly, powerfully and convincingly by him. Let us one and all buckle up and rally round him, and give him the support which he, as a mighty champion of our cause deserves. No one has done more for the old Welsh Church than Bishop Owen. If every Churchman and every Churchwoman had done the one-hundredth part of what he has done so nobly, the venemous Bill Sykes would have been dead, drawn, and quartered long ago. We hope that there will be no cause of complaint for slackness and lukewarmness about this Meeting at Brynamman. The Meeting is a joint one for Cwmamman and Brynamman. If the Meeting will not turn out to be the success it ought to be, the fault will lie upon the Cwmammanites as much as the Brynammanites. But we believe that the gathering will be an unqualified success, for the cause is good, none can do better. The hero of the Meeting is magnificent, and every one who is worth his salt will be there to back him up, and to protest against one of the dirtiest proposals ever made by a Christian Government to rob God of His own."

Also from the June 1913 edition:

"CHURCH DEMONSTRATION IN SWANSEA.

On June 28, the friends of the Church in St. David's and Llandaff Dioceses will congregate at Swansea to protest against the Welsh Church Disestablishment Bill. Some of the leading defenders will speak. The details are not yet known. Every Parish will send a contingent, with a Banner for the Parish. We shall be among them in force from this Parish. We are in the thick of the fight. Now is the time to show of what stuff we are made. Our love for the Church and for justice is being tested. We shall soon call a meeting to make arrangements for going. All hands should be upon deck, and in the midst of all this turmoil, please do not forget to pray daily for the Church of God."

From the July 1913 edition:

"THE SWANSEA DEMONSTRATION

This event came off on Saturday, June 28th, and was a huge success in every sense. It is estimated that there were between 50,000 and 60,000 present in the Park. A good number went from this parish. The sight was a most inspiring one. It would have done Mr McKenna a vast deal of good to see it."

Also from the July 1913 edition:

"THE BISHOP AT BRYNAMMAN

Those who went to Brynamman on Tuesday, June 10th, to hear Bishop Owen speaking on the Disestablishment Bill, had a fine speech. We do not remember ever hearing the Bishop in better form. The speech was really a magnificent one. His arguments were irrefutable. He made mince-meat of the Bill and the defence of its supporters. We believe that the address has done a lot of good in the neighbourhood, not only to Churchpeople, but also to Nonconformists. We long to see the time come when the Church shall be free from these attacks, and love and unity shall rule in our beloved country."

Again from the July 1913 edition:

"WHY?

Two or three years ago the Nonconformist bodies in Wales rejected a proposal to organise themselves separately from the Nonconformist bodies in England, on the ground that it would be against their best interests. Now the Government propose forcibly to separate the Church in Wales from the Church in England.
WHY?
All statistics prove, and no one denies, that (1) The Church in Wales is progressing steadily and continuously; and (2) Other religious bodies (most regrettably) have for some years past been losing ground. Now the Government propose to destroy the conditions under which the Church is progressing, and to take away the endowed income which it is using so satisfactorily. WHY?

Apart from the tithe, which is the property of, and is paid to clergy in Wales, very large sums of tithe are the property of, and are paid to laymen. For instance, the tithe in Carmarthen amounts to £1,050. All this is paid to laymen, except that one of them has to pay £7 a year to one of the Vicars of Carmarthen. The origin of tithe is the same whether it is the property of clergy or laymen, and the title of the clergyman to it is as good as that of the layman. Now the Government propose that every penny of this tithe should still be paid, but that while £1,043 of it should go to the laymen as at present, the £7, which now goes to the Vicar, should be diverted to other and non-religious purposes so soon as the present Vicar dies. WHY?

At Ruthin, Denbighshire, in the year 1590, Gabriel Goodman bought back from two laymen the whole of tithe and glebe for a sum of £12,000 (present values*);
*Transcribers Note: The "present values" here relate to the values in 1913.
the receipt for this is still at Ruthin. He then, by a deed, also still at Ruthin, divided the income among three objects. A first charge was to be the payment of the parish clergyman, "to be a preist or Mynister acording to the Laws and Orders of the Church ofEngland." A second charge, the maintenance of the poor in the almshouse founded by him. A third charge, the support of Ruthin Grammar School. The Government now propose, while leaving the hospital and grammar school in enjoyment of their due income, to divert to other and non-religious purposes every penny given to carry out Gabriel Goodman's chief desire -the provision of a Church of England clergyman in Ruthin. WHY?

WHY is the Church to be dismembered against the wishes of its members and in violation of every principle of religious liberty?

WHY are the conditions under which the Church in Wales is progressing to be overturned?

WHY is tithe to be left to laymen and taken from the Church?

WHY is a religious body which is doing good work to be crippled?

WHY is the cause of religion to be made to suffer?"

From the September 1913 edition:

An extensive article entitled "WOULD DISESTABLISHMENT HELP RE-UNION" addresses more concerns regarding disestablishment, including it's effect on the Irish Church. Due to it's size, the article has been transcribed to a separate webpage.

Thanks to Kevin Madge for allowing me to borrow his 1913-14 edition of the Cwmamman Parish Magazine, which may now be the only one in existance.

Close Page