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156-748: The Brecknockshire Militia , later the Royal Brecknockshire Rifles , was an auxiliary regiment reorganised from earlier precursor units in the Welsh county of Brecknockshire during the 17th Century. Primarily intended for home defence, it served in Britain and Ireland through all Britain's major wars. After a series of shortlived mergers it was finally amalgamated into the Royal South Wales Borderers Militia in 1876. This regiment's title and headquarters at Brecon were adopted in 1881 when

312-419: A Labour dominance of Welsh politics that continued into the 21st century. After economic growth in the first two decades of the 20th century, Wales's staple industries endured a prolonged slump from the early 1920s to the late 1930s, leading to widespread unemployment and poverty. For the first time in centuries, the population of Wales went into decline; unemployment reduced only with the production demands of

468-665: A Light Company. From June 1798 the Monmouth & Brecon Militia were stationed at Bristol for the next three years. In an attempt to have as many men as possible under arms for home defence in order to release regulars, in 1796 the Government created the Supplementary Militia, a compulsory levy of men to be trained for 20 days a year in their spare time, and to be incorporated in the Regular Militia in emergency. Brecon's new quota

624-421: A Welsh constituency at Westminster. Yet by 1906, industrial dissension and political militancy had begun to undermine Liberal consensus in the southern coalfields. In 1916, David Lloyd George became the first Welshman to become Prime Minister of Britain. In December 1918, Lloyd George was re-elected as the head of a Conservative-dominated coalition government, and his poor handling of the 1919 coal miners' strike

780-572: A division alongside regular troops while providing a reserve in case of French invasion of South East England. In 1781 it was with the Monmouthshire and other regiments under the command of Lt-Gen Gage, and in 1782 it was part of a brigade including the Merionethshire and Pembrokeshire Militia regiments and Sir John Leicester's Dragoons, all commanded by Lt-Col Colby of the Pembrokes. By the end of

936-710: A feat with neither precedent nor successor." Owain Gwynedd (1100–1170) of the Aberffraw line was the first Welsh ruler to use the title princeps Wallensium (prince of the Welsh), a title of substance given his victory on the Berwyn range , according to Davies. During this time, between 1053 and 1063, Wales lacked any internal strife and was at peace. Within four years of the Battle of Hastings (1066), England had been completely subjugated by

1092-463: A field near Brecon 'where they were drawn up to exercise, and made several close and laudable firings'. The 1697 militia returns showed that Brecknock and Radnorshire had a combined Regiment of Foot 505 strong under Col Edward Price and a Troop of 48 Horse under Capt Sir Edward Williams. Generally the militia declined in the long peace after the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. Jacobites were numerous amongst

1248-669: A legal unit in its own right, although it remains part of the single jurisdiction of England and Wales . The Senedd has the authority to draft and approve laws outside of the UK Parliamentary system to meet the specific needs of Wales. Under powers approved by a referendum held in March 2011, it is empowered to pass primary legislation, at the time referred to as an Act of the National Assembly for Wales but now known as an Act of Senedd Cymru in relation to twenty subjects listed in

1404-542: A lieutenant. In most cases, units which refer to platoon sized elements as troops refer to company-sized elements as squadrons and battalion-sized elements as regiments (regiments in the RAA use the term ' battery ' for company-sized elements). Privates in the Royal Australian Armoured Corps and SASR hold the rank "trooper", however this is not the case for any other corps or units, which use the term troops . In

1560-554: A national force or 'Perfect Militia' answering to the king rather than local control. The Brecknock Trained Bands of 1638 consisted of 300 men, 180 armed with muskets and 120 ' Corslets ' (body armour, signifying pikemen ). They also mustered 30 horse. Brecknockshire was ordered to send 200 men overland to Newcastle upon Tyne for the Second Bishops' War of 1640. However, substitution was rife and many of those sent on this unpopular service would have been untrained replacements. Many of

1716-410: A particularly altruistic type of dedicated worker. Traditionally, troops refers to the soldiers in a military. A cavalry soldier of private rank is called a " trooper " in many Commonwealth armies (abbreviated "Tpr", not to be confused with "trouper"). A related sense of the term, troops refers to members of the military collectively, as in "the troops"; see Troop (disambiguation) . Today,

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1872-474: A rapid expansion of Wales's population. Two-thirds of the population live in South Wales , including Cardiff, Swansea , Newport , and the nearby valleys . The eastern region of North Wales has about a sixth of the overall population, with Wrexham being the largest northern city. The remaining parts of Wales are sparsely populated . Since decline of the country's traditional extractive and heavy industries,

2028-458: A series of castles: Beaumaris , Caernarfon , Harlech and Conwy . His son, the future Edward II , was born at Caernarfon in 1284. He became the first English prince of Wales in 1301, which at the time provided an income from northwest Wales known as the Principality of Wales . After the failed revolt in 1294–1295 of Madog ap Llywelyn – who styled himself Prince of Wales in

2184-533: A strength of 23 officers, 36 sergeants and 747 ORs. However, during 1805 a large number of officers and ORs volunteered for the regulars, with the regiment supplying a draft of 111 men in April, of which three officers and 81 men joined the 35th Foot . (Lord Arthur Somerset had already transferred to the 7th Foot ) The Royal Monmouth & Brecon left Lewes on 12 October 1805, and after staying at Blatchington until Christmas, it went to Horsham until 3 February 1806, when it

2340-600: A system of government with a separate executive, the Welsh Government, drawn from and accountable to the legislature, the National Assembly. Following a successful referendum in 2011, the National Assembly was empowered to make laws, known as Acts of the Assembly, on all matters in devolved subject areas, without requiring the UK Parliament's approval of legislative competence. It also gained powers to raise taxes. In May 2020,

2496-558: A troop is defined differently in different armed forces. In the Australian Army a troop is the equivalent of a platoon sized element in units of certain corps, those being: The SASR is the only unit in the Royal Australian Infantry Corps to use the term troop to refer to its platoon-size elements. SASR troops are also unusual as they are commanded by a captain—most troop or platoon-sized elements are commanded by

2652-519: A varying degree and (since 2011) Welsh is the only official ( de jure ) language in any part of Great Britain. Wales is a country that is part of the sovereign state of the United Kingdom. ISO 3166-2:GB formerly defined Wales as a principality, with England and Scotland defined as countries and Northern Ireland as a province. However, this definition was raised in the Welsh Assembly in 2010 and

2808-571: A victory for the Celtic Britons at Badon Hill against the Saxons, which was attributed to Arthur by Nennius . Having lost much of what is now the West Midlands to Mercia in the 6th and early 7th centuries, a resurgent late-7th-century Powys checked Mercian advances. Æthelbald of Mercia , looking to defend recently acquired lands, had built Wat's Dyke . According to Davies, this had been with

2964-590: Is Cymry , and Cymru is the Welsh name for Wales. These words (both of which are pronounced [ˈkəm.rɨ] ) are descended from the Brythonic word combrogi , meaning "fellow-countrymen", and probably came into use before the 7th century. In literature, they could be spelt Kymry or Cymry , regardless of whether it referred to the people or their homeland. The Latinised forms of these names, Cambrian , Cambric and Cambria , survive as names such as

3120-510: Is a generally mountainous country on the western side of central southern Great Britain. It is about 170 miles (270 km) north to south. The oft-quoted " size of Wales " is about 20,779 km (8,023 sq mi). Wales is bordered by England to the east and by sea in all other directions: the Irish Sea to the north and west, St George's Channel and the Celtic Sea to the southwest and

3276-480: Is coal mining which became the industry synonymous with Wales and its people. Initially, coal seams were exploited to provide energy for local metal industries but, with the opening of canal systems and later the railways, Welsh coal mining saw an explosion in demand. As the South Wales Coalfield was exploited, Cardiff, Swansea, Penarth and Barry grew as world exporters of coal. By its height in 1913, Wales

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3432-457: Is described as a country rather than a principality.' In the House of Commons – the 650-member lower house of the UK Parliament – there are 32 members of Parliament (MPs) who represent Welsh constituencies . At the 2024 general election , 27 Labour and Labour Co-op MPs were elected, along with 4 Plaid Cymru MPs and 1 Liberal Democrat MP from Wales. The Wales Office is a department of

3588-605: Is employed in Wales, of which the most major step was the formation of the Senedd (Welsh Parliament, formerly the National Assembly for Wales) in 1998, responsible for a range of devolved policy matters . At the dawn of the Industrial Revolution , development of the mining and metallurgical industries transformed the country from an agricultural society into an industrial one; the South Wales Coalfield 's exploitation caused

3744-535: Is part of the United Kingdom . It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the east , the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic Sea to the south-west. As of 2021 , it had a population of 3.2 million. It has a total area of 21,218 square kilometres (8,192 sq mi) and over 2,700 kilometres (1,680 mi) of coastline . It is largely mountainous with its higher peaks in

3900-511: Is typically the case for the dismounted reconnaissance troop (DRT) of a RSTA squadron , in which an infantry company-sized element is part of a cavalry-branched squadron. In the United States, state police forces are often regionally divided into troops. This usage came from these organizations modelling themselves on the US Army, and especially the older cavalry units. For this same reason

4056-506: The Aberffraw dynasty from Gwynedd and Powys and then codified Welsh law in the 940s. Gruffydd ap Llywelyn was the only ruler to unite all of Wales under his rule, described by one chronicler after his death as king of Wales . In 1055 Gruffydd ap Llywelyn killed his rival Gruffydd ap Rhydderch in battle and recaptured Deheubarth . Originally king of Gwynedd, by 1057 he was ruler of Wales and had annexed parts of England around

4212-506: The 1st Foot Guards , 51st Foot , Royal Waggon Train and other units. By 1 April 1814 the regiment's strength was 387, then a further officer and 27 men left on 7 April 1814, mainly for the 51st Foot. Napoleon abdicated on 6 April, and militia recruitment was suspended on 16 April. However, Ireland was still in a disturbed state and the regiment's outlying detachments were engaged in a number of skirmishes, with several men being killed. Napoleon's escape from Elba early in 1815, leading to

4368-425: The Bristol Channel to the south. Wales has about 1,680 miles (2,700 km) of coastline (along the mean high water mark), including the mainland, Anglesey , and Holyhead . Over 50 islands lie off the Welsh mainland, the largest being Anglesey, in the north-west. Troop Troops is often used to refer to the other members of one's company or cause, but because of its military connotations, it conveys

4524-689: The British Army the definition of a troop varies by corps . Other Army corps do not use the term. In the Royal Marines , a troop is the equivalent to an Army platoon; a carryover from the organisation of the British Commandos in World War II. In the Canadian Army , a troop is the equivalent of a platoon within the armoured, artillery, engineer, and signals branches. Two to four troops comprise

4680-528: The Cambrian Mountains and the Cambrian geological period. Wales has been inhabited by modern humans for at least 29,000 years. Continuous human habitation dates from the end of the last ice age , between 12,000 and 10,000  years before present (BP) , when Mesolithic hunter-gatherers from Central Europe began to migrate to Great Britain. At that time, sea levels were much lower than today. Wales

4836-707: The Cardwell Reforms a mobilisation scheme began to appear in the Army List from December 1875. This assigned places in an order of battle to Militia units serving Regular units in an 'Active Army' and a 'Garrison Army'. The Royal Brecon Rifles' assigned war station was with the Garrison Army in the Pembroke defences. In August 1876 the regiment was amalgamated once more, this time with the Royal Radnor Rifles to form

Royal Brecknockshire Militia - Misplaced Pages Continue

4992-630: The Council of State . At the same time the term 'Trained Band' began to disappear in most counties. Under the Commonwealth and Protectorate the militia received pay when called out, and operated alongside the New Model Army to control the country. By 1651 the militias of the South Welsh counties appear to have been combined, with the 'South Wales Militia' being ordered to rendezvous at Gloucester to hold

5148-648: The Fifteen Tribes of Wales . The 400-year period following the collapse of Roman rule is the most difficult to interpret in the history of Wales. After the Roman departure in AD 410, much of the lowlands of Britain to the east and south-east was overrun by various Germanic peoples , commonly known as Anglo-Saxons. Some have theorized that the cultural dominance of the Anglo-Saxons was due to apartheid-like social conditions in which

5304-711: The Government of Wales Act 2006 such as health and education. Through this primary legislation, the Welsh Government can then also enact more specific subordinate legislation . Wales is served by four regional police forces: Dyfed-Powys Police , Gwent Police , North Wales Police , and South Wales Police . There are five prisons in Wales : four in the southern half of the country, and one in Wrexham . Wales has no women's prisons: female inmates are imprisoned in England. Wales

5460-655: The Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 . Distinctive Welsh politics developed in the 19th century. Welsh Liberalism , exemplified in the early 20th century by David Lloyd George , was displaced by the growth of socialism and the Labour Party . Welsh national feeling grew over the century: a nationalist party, Plaid Cymru , was formed in 1925, and the Welsh Language Society in 1962. A governing system of Welsh devolution

5616-506: The Netherlands . The men were given three days' 'conduct money' to get to Chester or Bristol , the main ports of embarkation for Ireland. Conduct money was recovered from the government, but replacing the weapons issued to the levies from the militia armouries was a heavy cost on the counties. With the passing of the threat of invasion, the trained bands declined in the early 17th Century. Later, King Charles I attempted to reform them into

5772-665: The Norfolk Militia who were guarding French prisoners-of-war . The march took 20 days to complete. In November the unit was relieved by the 2nd Norfolk Militia and returned to its own county for the winter. In May 1761 the Brecknockshires were ordered to Bristol to relieve the Monmouthshire Militia . On arrival they were immediately ordered to continue their march to Bideford in North Devon , to guard French prisoners. In

5928-548: The Normans . William I of England established a series of lordships, allocated to his most powerful warriors, along the Welsh border, their boundaries fixed only to the east (where they met other feudal properties inside England). Starting in the 1070s, these lords began conquering land in southern and eastern Wales, west of the River Wye . The frontier region, and any English-held lordships in Wales, became known as Marchia Wallie ,

6084-544: The Penmachno Document – and the rising of Llywelyn Bren (1316), the last uprising was led by Owain Glyndŵr , against Henry IV of England . In 1404, Owain was crowned prince of Wales in the presence of emissaries from France, Spain (Castille) and Scotland. Glyndŵr went on to hold parliamentary assemblies at several Welsh towns, including a Welsh parliament ( Welsh : senedd ) at Machynlleth . The rebellion

6240-545: The Royal South Wales Borderers Militia (remaining a rifle regiment), with its headquarters at Brecon. The Childers Reforms took Cardwell's reforms further, with the linked battalions forming single regiments from 1 July 1881. The Royal Monmouth Light Infantry had been converted into a unit of the Royal Engineers in 1877, so the Royal South Wales Borderers became the senior militia battalion (3rd Bn), while

6396-645: The Second World War . The war saw Welsh servicemen and women fight in all major theatres, with some 15,000 of them killed. Bombing raids brought high loss of life as the German Air Force targeted the docks at Swansea , Cardiff and Pembroke . After 1943, 10 per cent of Welsh conscripts aged 18 were sent to work in the coal mines, where there were labour shortages; they became known as Bevin Boys . Pacifist numbers during both World Wars were fairly low, especially in

Royal Brecknockshire Militia - Misplaced Pages Continue

6552-626: The Shire levy was long established in England and was extended to Wales. King Henry VIII called a 'Great Muster' in 1539, which showed 2015 men available for service in the Lordship of Brecknock (including the town of Brecon and the Lordship of Crickhowell ). The legal basis of the militia was updated by two acts of 1557 covering musters ( 4 & 5 Ph. & M. c. 3) and the maintenance of horses and armour ( 4 & 5 Ph. & M. c. 2). The county militia

6708-661: The South Wales Borderers (SWB) was formed as the local regiment of the Regular Army . The battalion saw active service during the Second Boer War . It became at Special Reserve battalion of the SWB and trained thousands of recruits for the fighting battalions of the regiment during World War I . After 1921 the militia had only a shadowy existence until its final abolition in 1953. The universal obligation to military service in

6864-635: The Trained Bands , who were mustered for regular training. It was these men who were called out during the Spanish Armada crisis of 1588. In the 16th Century little distinction was made between the militia and the troops levied by the counties for overseas expeditions. However, the counties usually conscripted the unemployed and criminals rather than send the trained bandsmen. Between 1585 and 1602 Brecknockshire supplied 825 men for service in Ireland and 30 for

7020-507: The Volunteers and mounted Yeomanry . In April 1793 a wave of rioting occurred in the West of England and militia units were sent there, including the Monmouth & Brecon, which was ordered to march from Newbury to Wells, Somerset . On 30 May two companies were ordered to Shepton Mallet to aid the civil authorities. Two further companies were sent, then in June all four were sent to Warminster in Wiltshire to escort prisoners-of-war to Bath, Somerset before returning to Wells. Towards

7176-463: The Welsh Marches , in which the Marcher lords were subject to neither English nor Welsh law . The extent of the March varied as the fortunes of the Marcher lords and the Welsh princes ebbed and flowed. Owain Gwynedd 's grandson Llywelyn Fawr (the Great, 1173–1240), received the fealty of other Welsh lords in 1216 at the council at Aberdyfi , becoming in effect the first prince of Wales . His grandson Llywelyn ap Gruffudd secured

7332-403: The conquest of Wales by King Edward I of England was completed by 1283, though Owain Glyndŵr led the Welsh Revolt against English rule in the early 15th century, and briefly re-established an independent Welsh state with its own national parliament ( Welsh : senedd ). In the 16th century the whole of Wales was annexed by England and incorporated within the English legal system under

7488-412: The north and west , with a total of 538,300 Welsh speakers across the entire country. Wales has four UNESCO world heritage sites , of which three are in the north. The English words "Wales" and "Welsh" derive from the same Old English root (singular Wealh , plural Wēalas ), a descendant of Proto-Germanic * Walhaz , which was itself derived from the name of the Gauls known to

7644-410: The public sector , light and service industries, and tourism play major roles in its economy . Agriculture in Wales is largely livestock-based, making Wales a net exporter of animal produce, contributing towards national agricultural self-sufficiency . Both Welsh and English are official languages . A majority of the population of Wales speaks English. Welsh is the dominant language in parts of

7800-455: The 13 years the Royal Monmouth & Brecon Militia had been embodied it had supplied over 3000 recruits to the regular army. After Waterloo there was another long peace. Although officers continued to be commissioned into the militia and ballots were still held until 1831, the regiments were rarely assembled for training and the permanent staffs of sergeants and drummers were progressively reduced. The combined Royal Monmouth & Brecon Militia

7956-507: The 18th century, lawyers, doctors, estate agents and government officials formed a bourgeoisie with sizeable houses. In the late 18th century, slate quarrying began to expand rapidly, most notably in North Wales. The Penrhyn quarry , opened in 1770 by Richard Pennant, 1st Baron Penrhyn , was employing 15,000 men by the late 19th century, and along with Dinorwic quarry , it dominated the Welsh slate trade. Although slate quarrying has been described as "the most Welsh of Welsh industries", it

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8112-414: The Boer Commandants Wessels and Pretorius surrendered to Maj Jones. On 21 July Methuen forced Olifant's Nek, guarded by 900 Boers with two pom-pom guns , but did not have enough cavalry to prevent them escaping. Wales – in Europe  (green & dark grey) – in the United Kingdom  (green) Wales ( Welsh : Cymru [ˈkəmrɨ] ) is a country that

8268-541: The Britons were at a disadvantage. By AD 500 the land that would become Wales had divided into a number of kingdoms free from Anglo-Saxon rule. The kingdoms of Gwynedd , Powys , Dyfed , Caredigion , Morgannwg , the Ystrad Tywi , and Gwent emerged as independent Welsh successor states . Archaeological evidence, in the Low Countries and what was to become England, shows early Anglo-Saxon migration to Great Britain reversed between 500 and 550, which concurs with Frankish chronicles. John Davies notes this as consistent with

8424-415: The COs of the Royal Brecon and Royal Cardigan continued as joint lieutenant-colonels commandant. The mergers were abandoned in 1867 and the Royal Brecon Rifles regained its independence. The Militia Reserve introduced in 1867 consisted of present and former militiamen who undertook to serve overseas in case of war. Under the 'Localisation of the Forces' scheme introduced by the Cardwell Reforms of 1872,

8580-413: The Carmarthen and Hereford Militia. The duties included boat and hospital guards round Gosport and Haslar , guarding prisoners-of-war, and manning Fort Blockhouse . In November the encampment broke up, with the Monmouth & Brecons going into Haslar Barracks for the winter. Following the Duke of Beaufort's death, his son the Marquess of Worcester succeeded as 6th Duke , and was promoted to colonel of

8736-427: The Celtic languages arrived in Britain around 600 BCE. The Brythonic languages ceased to be spoken in England and were replaced by the English language, a Germanic language which arrived in Wales around the end of the eighth century due to the defeat of the Kingdom of Powys . The Bible translations into Welsh and the Protestant Reformation , which encouraged use of the vernacular in religious services, helped

8892-418: The Empire. Further Roman influence came through the spread of Christianity, which gained many followers when Christians were allowed to worship freely; state persecution ceased in the 4th century, as a result of Constantine the Great issuing an edict of toleration in 313. Early historians, including the 6th-century cleric Gildas , have noted 383 as a significant point in Welsh history. In that year,

9048-471: The English Crown, separate from England but under the same monarch. The king ruled directly in two areas: the Statute divided the north and delegated administrative duties to the Justice of Chester and Justiciar of North Wales , and further south in western Wales the King's authority was delegated to the Justiciar of South Wales . The existing royal lordships of Montgomery and Builth Wells remained unchanged. To maintain his dominance, Edward constructed

9204-572: The Late Bronze Age as part of a maritime trading-networked culture that included other Celtic nations . This "Atlantic-Celtic" view is opposed by others who hold that the Celtic languages derive their origins from the more easterly Hallstatt culture . By the time of the Roman invasion of Britain the area of modern Wales had been divided among the tribes of the Deceangli (north-east), Ordovices (north-west), Demetae (south-west), Silures (south-east), and Cornovii (east). The Roman conquest of Wales began in AD 48 and took 30 years to complete;

9360-549: The Left Half (LH) battalion later went to Boshof and Right Half (RH) under Maj Jones went to Windsorton Road, Dronfield. On 4 April LH occupied Frankfort Pass while RH move to Lieuwfontein guarding the Kimberley–Boshof road. On 12 May the battalion concentrated at Boshof, and then 300 men under Maj Jones (including the Mounted infantry (MI) section that had been formed under Capt Gunter) joined 9th Brigade of Lt-Gen Lord Methuen's 1st Division and marched to Hoopstad . Gunter's MI occupied Bloemhof , capturing much ammunition, and

9516-399: The Militia Reserve was mobilised to reinforce them, and many militia units were called out to replace them for home defence. The 3rd Bn SWB was embodied 23 January 1900. The battalion volunteered for overseas service and embarked with 26 officers and 709 ORs under the command of Lt-Col C. Healy. It arrived at Cape Town on 8 March 1900 and proceeded to Newton Camp, Kimberley . Headquarters and

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9672-423: The Monmouth & Brecon Militia on 26 October 1803. The Earl of Abergavenny retired on ground of ill-health and Sir Samuel Brudenell Fludyer, 2nd Baronet succeeded him as Lt-Col on 1 July 1805. In April 1804, in company with 11 other Welsh Militia regiments, the Monmouth & Brecons were granted the title 'Royal'. The regiment shared Haslar Barracks with the Glamorgan , Hereford and Merioneth Militia, providing

9828-403: The National Assembly was renamed "Senedd Cymru" or "the Welsh Parliament", commonly known as the Senedd in both English and Welsh. Devolved areas of responsibility include agriculture, economic development, education, health, housing, local government, social services, tourism, transport and the Welsh language. The Welsh Government also promotes Welsh interests abroad. By tradition, Welsh Law

9984-499: The Norsemen occupying Northumbria to conquer the north. This alliance later broke down and Anarawd came to an agreement with Alfred , king of Wessex , with whom he fought against the west Welsh. According to Annales Cambriae , in 894, "Anarawd came with the Angles and laid waste to Ceredigion and Ystrad Tywi ." The southern and eastern parts of Great Britain lost to English settlement became known in Welsh as Lloegyr (Modern Welsh Lloegr ), which may have referred to

10140-399: The Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, they were supplemented from 1808 by the Local Militia, which were part-time and only to be used within their own districts. These were raised to counter the declining numbers of Volunteers, and if their ranks could not be filled voluntarily the Militia Ballot was employed. Many of the remaining Volunteer units transferred en masse to the Local Militia, and

10296-494: The Roman general Magnus Maximus , or Macsen Wledig, stripped Britain of troops to launch a successful bid for imperial power, continuing to rule Britain from Gaul as emperor, and transferring power to local leaders. The earliest Welsh genealogies cite Maximus as the founder of several royal dynasties, and as the father of the Welsh Nation. He is given as the ancestor of a Welsh king on the Pillar of Eliseg , erected nearly 500 years after he left Britain, and he figures in lists of

10452-682: The Romans as Volcae . This term was later used to refer indiscriminately to inhabitants of the Western Roman Empire . Anglo-Saxons came to use the term to refer to the Britons in particular; the plural form Wēalas evolved into the name for their territory, Wales. Historically in Britain , the words were not restricted to modern Wales or to the Welsh but were used to refer to anything that Anglo-Saxons associated with Britons, including other non-Germanic territories in Britain (e.g. Cornwall ) and places in Anglo-Saxon territory associated with Britons (e.g. Walworth in County Durham and Walton in West Yorkshire). The modern Welsh name for themselves

10608-440: The Romans, Caerwent , is in south east Wales. Both Caerwent and Carmarthen , also in southern Wales, became Roman civitates . Wales had a rich mineral wealth. The Romans used their engineering technology to extract large amounts of gold, copper, and lead, as well as lesser amounts of zinc and silver. No significant industries were located in Wales in this time; this was largely a matter of circumstance as Wales had none of

10764-466: The Royal Cardigan Rifles were replaced by the Royal Montgomeryshire Rifles , which became the 4th Bn. The 24th Foot, which had been casually assigned to a Welsh region, became the South Wales Borderers , unusually taking the title of one of its militia battalions. The militia battalions could not transfer their 'Royal' titles and Rifles uniforms, however. At the start of the Second Boer War in 1899, most regular army battalions were sent to South Africa,

10920-581: The Royal Monmouth & Brecon accepted this liability. After Irish militia units had arrived to join the Bristol garrison, the regiment embarked on 17 July 1813. The Duke of Beaufort remained behind because of his parliamentary duties. The regiment reached Dublin on 23 July and marched out to Tullamore , arriving on 27 July. From Tullamore a number of small detachments were stationed in surrounding towns. The men were subjected to 'frequent insults', and regimental orders issued in August instructed sentries: 'If any person or persons approach at Night to ask Questions,

11076-431: The Second World War, which was seen as a fight against fascism . Plaid Cymru was formed in 1925, seeking greater autonomy or independence from the rest of the UK. The term " England and Wales " became common for describing the area to which English law applied, and in 1955 Cardiff was proclaimed as Wales's capital. Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg (The Welsh Language Society) was formed in 1962, in response to fears that

11232-657: The UK government responsible for Wales, whose minister, the Secretary of State for Wales (Welsh secretary), sits in the UK cabinet . Wales has a devolved , unicameral legislature known as the Senedd (Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament) which holds devolved powers from the UK Parliament via a reserved powers model. For the purposes of local government , Wales has been divided into 22 council areas since 1996. These "principal areas" are responsible for

11388-606: The Welsh Militia, but they did not show their hands during the Risings of 1715 and 1745 , and bloodshed was avoided. Under threat of French invasion during the Seven Years' War a series of Militia Acts from 1757 re-established county militia regiments, the men being conscripted by means of parish ballots (paid substitutes were permitted) to serve for three years. There was a property qualification for officers, who were commissioned by

11544-541: The Welsh counties were small, and were grouped together under the direction of the Lord President of the Council of Wales . As Lord President, Henry Somerset, 1st Duke of Beaufort carried out a tour of inspection of the Welsh militia in 1684, when the Brecknockshire Militia consisted of one troop of horse under a Captain , and a regiment of five Foot Companies commanded by a Colonel . Beaufort reviewed them in

11700-611: The agreement of king Elisedd ap Gwylog of Powys, as this boundary, extending north from the valley of the River Severn to the Dee estuary, gave him Oswestry . Another theory, after carbon dating placed the dyke's existence 300 years earlier, is that it was built by the post-Roman rulers of Wroxeter . King Offa of Mercia seems to have continued this initiative when he created a larger earthwork, now known as Offa's Dyke ( Clawdd Offa ). Davies wrote of Cyril Fox 's study of Offa's Dyke: "In

11856-413: The border. He ruled Wales with no internal battles. His territories were again divided into the traditional kingdoms. John Davies states that Gruffydd was "the only Welsh king ever to rule over the entire territory of Wales... Thus, from about 1057 until his death in 1063, the whole of Wales recognised the kingship of Gruffydd ap Llywelyn . For about seven brief years, Wales was one, under one ruler,

12012-756: The city during the Worcester campaign . After the Restoration of the Monarchy , the Militia was re-established by the Militia Act 1661 under the control of the king's lords lieutenant, the men to be selected by ballot. This was popularly seen as the 'Constitutional Force' to counterbalance a 'Standing Army' tainted by association with the New Model Army that had supported Cromwell's military dictatorship. The militia forces in

12168-530: The companies proceeded to Fort Monckton at Gosport , Hampshire, but by July the regiment was at Colchester Barracks in Essex . Peace negotiations were now under way, and in November the regiment was ordered back to Brecon and Monmouth. It was disembodied in April 1802 after the signature of the Treaty of Amiens . The Peace of Amiens was short-lived and the warrant to call out the Monmouth & Brecon Militia once more

12324-576: The counties failed to meet their quotas). Training was for 56 days on enlistment, then for 21–28 days per year, during which the men received full army pay. Under the Act, militia units could be embodied by Royal Proclamation for full-time home defence service in three circumstances: The Brecon-based regiment was revived as the Royal Brecknock Rifles ; Lt-Col Watkins remained in command, with Capt Dickinson promoted to major and second-in-commend; several of

12480-553: The county armouries for their own full-time troops. Most of Wales was under Royalist control for much of the war, and was a recruiting ground for the King's armies. However, the Brecknock 'County Troop ' of horse under Lieutenant-Colonel Jefferies was mustered at Crickhowell in 1645. Once Parliament had established full control in 1648 it passed new Militia Acts that replaced lords lieutenant with county commissioners appointed by Parliament or

12636-418: The creation of a Welsh assembly with an 80 per cent majority. In 1997, a second referendum on the same issue secured a very narrow majority (50.3 per cent). The National Assembly for Wales ( Cynulliad Cenedlaethol Cymru ) was set up in 1999 (under the Government of Wales Act 1998 ) with the power to determine how Wales's central government budget is spent and administered, although the UK Parliament reserved

12792-491: The dominant source of wealth. The emerging industrial period saw the development of copper smelting in the Swansea area. With access to local coal deposits and a harbour that connected it with Cornwall's copper mines in the south and the large copper deposits at Parys Mountain on Anglesey, Swansea developed into the world's major centre for non-ferrous metal smelting in the 19th century. The second metal industry to expand in Wales

12948-616: The end of June first one and then a second company were sent to Taunton to suppress riots. They were relieved by the Montgomeryshire Militia on 11 July and proceeded to Shepton Mallet. On 30 September the four companies at Wells were sent to Bristol for riot duty until mid-October when they were relieved by the Cornwall Militia and returned to Wells, with one company detached at Glastonbury . The battalion remained in Somerset for

13104-454: The end of the 1960s, the policy of bringing businesses into disadvantaged areas of Wales through financial incentives had proven very successful in diversifying the industrial economy. This policy, begun in 1934, was enhanced by the construction of industrial estates and improvements in transport communications, most notably the M4 motorway linking south Wales directly to London. It was believed that

13260-479: The end of the year. The disembodied units were kept up to strength by means of the ballot over subsequent years, but were rarely assembled for training. The American War of Independence broke out in 1775, and by 1778 Britain was threatened with invasion by the Americans' allies, France and Spain. The militia were embodied for garrison duty and coastal defence. In the summer of 1780 the Brecknockshires formed part of

13416-460: The first written evidence of the use of Cymru and y Cymry is found in a praise poem to Cadwallon ap Cadfan ( Moliant Cadwallon , by Afan Ferddig ) c.  633 . In Armes Prydein , believed to be written around 930–942, the words Cymry and Cymro are used as often as 15 times. However, from the Anglo-Saxon settlement onwards, the people gradually begin to adopt

13572-450: The forests to establish pasture and to cultivate the land, developed new technologies such as ceramics and textile production, and built cromlechs such as Pentre Ifan , Bryn Celli Ddu , and Parc Cwm long cairn between about 5,800 BP and 5,500 BP. Over the following centuries they assimilated immigrants and adopted ideas from Bronze Age and Iron Age Celtic cultures. Some historians, such as John T. Koch , consider Wales in

13728-448: The foundations for stable economic growth had been firmly established in Wales during this period, but this was shown to be optimistic after the recession of the early 1980s saw the collapse of much of the manufacturing base that had been built over the preceding forty years. The Welsh Language Act 1967 repealed a section of the Wales and Berwick Act and thus "Wales" was no longer part of

13884-717: The highest court of first instance as well as an appellate court . The three divisions are the Court of Appeal , the High Court of Justice , and the Crown Court . Minor cases are heard by magistrates' courts or the County Court . In 2007 the Wales and Cheshire Region (known as the Wales and Cheshire Circuit before 2005) came to an end when Cheshire was attached to the North-Western England Region. From that point, Wales became

14040-409: The increased diversity of the Welsh economy. Population growth however outpaced economic growth and the standard of living dropped. Prior to the Industrial Revolution in Wales , there were small-scale industries scattered throughout Wales. These ranged from those connected to agriculture, such as milling and the manufacture of woollen textiles , through to mining and quarrying. Agriculture remained

14196-573: The intention of recognizing that the River Wye and its traffic belonged to the kingdom of Gwent." However, Fox's interpretations of both the length and purpose of the Dyke have been questioned by more recent research. In 853, the Vikings raided Anglesey , but in 856, Rhodri Mawr defeated and killed their leader, Gorm. The Celtic Britons of Wales made peace with the Vikings and Anarawd ap Rhodri allied with

14352-519: The kingdom of Mercia originally and which came to refer to England as a whole. The Germanic tribes who now dominated these lands were invariably called Saeson , meaning " Saxons ". The Anglo-Saxons called the Romano-British * Walha , meaning 'Romanised foreigner' or 'stranger'. The Welsh continued to call themselves Brythoniaid (Brythons or Britons) well into the Middle Ages , though

14508-508: The language might soon die out. Nationalist sentiment grew following the flooding of the Tryweryn valley in 1965 to create a reservoir to supply water to the English city of Liverpool . Although 35 of the 36 Welsh MPs voted against the bill (one abstained), Parliament passed the bill and the village of Capel Celyn was submerged, highlighting Wales's powerlessness in her own affairs in the face of

14664-419: The language survive after Welsh elites abandoned it in favour of English in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Successive Welsh Language Acts, in 1942, 1967 and 1993 , improved the legal status of Welsh. The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 modernised the 1993 Welsh Language Act and gave Welsh an official status in Wales for the first time, a major landmark for the language. The Measure also created

14820-676: The large garrison of Plymouth. On 12 August there was a serious riot brought on by a quarrel at a 'disorderly house' in the Dock area between some of the Brecknockshire Militia and the two black musicians of the Somerset Militia band. A large mob formed and the Somersets armed with bayonets and assisted by the Herefordshire Militia attempted to storm the Brecknocks' lines, despite the efforts of

14976-527: The large number English people living in Wales. After the Senedd and Elections (Wales) Act 2020 , the National Assembly was renamed " Senedd Cymru " in Welsh and the "Welsh Parliament" in English, which was seen as a better reflection of the body's expanded legislative powers. The Welsh language ( Welsh : Cymraeg ) is an Indo-European language of the Celtic family ; the most closely related languages are Cornish and Breton . Most linguists believe that

15132-500: The law making powers of the National Assembly it is now able to make laws, known as Acts of the Assembly, on all matters in devolved subject areas, without needing the UK Parliament's agreement. In the 2016 referendum , Wales voted in support of leaving the European Union, although demographic differences became evident. According to Danny Dorling , professor of geography at Oxford University, votes for Leave may have been boosted by

15288-507: The legal definition of England. This essentially defined Wales as a separate entity legally (but within the UK), for the first time since before the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 which defined Wales as a part of the Kingdom of England. The Welsh Language Act 1967 also expanded areas where use of Welsh was permitted, including in some legal situations. In a referendum in 1979 , Wales voted against

15444-455: The legal system of England and Wales since 1536. English law is regarded as a common law system, with no major codification of the law and legal precedents are binding as opposed to persuasive. The court system is headed by the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom which is the highest court of appeal in the land for criminal and civil cases. The Senior Courts of England and Wales is

15600-421: The lord lieutenant. An adjutant and drill sergeants were to be provided to each regiment from the Regular Army , and arms and accoutrements would be supplied when the county had secured 60 per cent of its quota of recruits. Brecknockshire was given a quota of 160 men to raise. Some of the Welsh counties were slow to complete their regiments: the problem was less with the other ranks (ORs) raised by ballot than

15756-463: The main elements of a squadron. In the United States Army , in the cavalry branch, a troop is the equivalent unit to the infantry company, commanded by a captain and consisting of three or four platoons, and are called a troop within a regiment. Companies were renamed troops in 1883. In some instances, an infantry company may be titled as a "troop" due to its presence in a cavalry squadron; this

15912-583: The male population. Of these, roughly 35,000 were killed, with particularly heavy losses of Welsh forces at Mametz Wood on the Somme and the Battle of Passchendaele . The first quarter of the 20th century also saw a shift in the political landscape of Wales. Since 1865, the Liberal Party had held a parliamentary majority in Wales and, following the general election of 1906 , only one non-Liberal Member of Parliament, Keir Hardie of Merthyr Tydfil , represented

16068-564: The military, and after a number of complaints from him the Duke of Beaufort ordered that all music and drums should be discontinued during morning and evening church services, later extended to a ban throughout Bristol. In October the regiment was marched out to Tetbury and Wotton-under-Edge while elections were being held in Bristol. Sir John Fludyer resigned his commission in August 1812 and Maj Thomas Lewis

16224-536: The militia were brigaded with their local regular and volunteer battalions on 1 April 1873. For the Royal Brecon Rifles this was in Sub-District No 25 (Counties of Cardigan, Radnor, Brecon and Monmouth) with the following units: Because there had been no regular regiment affiliated with these counties, the 2nd Warwickshire was arbitrarily assigned. The Brigade Depot was established at Brecon. The affiliation

16380-480: The name Cymry over Brythoniad . From 800 onwards, a series of dynastic marriages led to Rhodri Mawr 's ( r. 844–77) inheritance of Gwynedd and Powys . His sons founded the three dynasties of Aberffraw for Gwynedd , Dinefwr for Deheubarth and Mathrafal for Powys . Rhodri 's grandson Hywel Dda (r. 900–50) founded Deheubarth out of his maternal and paternal inheritances of Dyfed and Seisyllwg in 930, ousted

16536-471: The necessary materials in suitable combination, and the forested, mountainous countryside was not amenable to industrialisation. Latin became the official language of Wales, though the people continued to speak in Brythonic. While Romanisation was far from complete, the upper classes came to consider themselves Roman, particularly after the ruling of 212 that granted Roman citizenship to all free men throughout

16692-538: The new officers had served in the Regular Army.< War having broken out with Russia in 1854 and an expeditionary force sent to the Crimea , the militia began to be called out for home defence. The Royal Brecknock Rifles were embodied at the beginning of 1855 but remained at Brecon until the end of the war. Lieutenant-Col Watkins retired on 30 August 1860 and was appointed the regiment's first Honorary Colonel ; Maj Dickinson

16848-445: The north and central areas, including Snowdon ( Yr Wyddfa ), its highest summit. The country lies within the north temperate zone and has a changeable, maritime climate . Its capital and largest city is Cardiff . A distinct Welsh culture emerged among the Celtic Britons after the Roman withdrawal from Britain in the 5th century, and Wales was briefly united under Gruffydd ap Llywelyn in 1055. After over 200 years of war,

17004-555: The numerical superiority of English MPs in Parliament. Separatist groupings, such as the Free Wales Army and Mudiad Amddiffyn Cymru were formed, conducting campaigns from 1963. Prior to the investiture of Charles in 1969, these groups were responsible for a number of bomb attacks on infrastructure. At a by-election in 1966, Gwynfor Evans won the parliamentary seat of Carmarthen , Plaid Cymru's first Parliamentary seat. By

17160-610: The occupation lasted over 300 years. The campaigns of conquest were opposed by two native tribes: the Silures and the Ordovices . Caractacus or Caradog , leader of the Ordovices, had initial success in resisting Roman invasions of north Wales but was eventually defeated. Roman rule in Wales was a military occupation, save for the southern coastal region of south Wales , where there is a legacy of Romanisation. The only town in Wales founded by

17316-445: The officers. The mob surged towards Stoke Church, where the picquet guard of the 97th Foot was ordered to fire, killing two and wounding nine. This and the persuasion of the officers quelled the trouble. In Sumer 1781 and spring 1782 the Brecknockshires were at Coxheath Camp near Maidstone in Kent . This was the army's largest training camp, where the militia were exercised as part of

17472-525: The planning of it, there was a degree of consultation with the kings of Powys and Gwent. On the Long Mountain near Trelystan , the dyke veers to the east, leaving the fertile slopes in the hands of the Welsh; near Rhiwabon , it was designed to ensure that Cadell ap Brochwel retained possession of the Fortress of Penygadden." And, for Gwent, Offa had the dyke built "on the eastern crest of the gorge, clearly with

17628-717: The post of Welsh Language Commissioner , replacing the Welsh Language Board. Following the referendum in 2011, the Official Languages Act became the first Welsh law to be created in 600 years, according to the First Minister at the time, Carwyn Jones . This law was passed by Welsh Assembly members (AMs) only and made Welsh an official language of the National Assembly. Starting in the 1960s, many road signs have been replaced by bilingual versions. Various public and private sector bodies have adopted bilingualism to

17784-518: The provision of all local government services. Following devolution in 1997, the Government of Wales Act 1998 created a Welsh devolved assembly, the National Assembly for Wales , with the power to determine how Wales's central government budget is spent and administered. Eight years later, the Government of Wales Act 2006 reformed the National Assembly for Wales and allowed further powers to be granted to it more easily. The Act also created

17940-423: The recognition of the title Prince of Wales from Henry III with the Treaty of Montgomery in 1267. Subsequent disputes, including the imprisonment of Llywelyn 's wife Eleanor , culminated in the first invasion by King Edward I of England . As a result of military defeat, the Treaty of Aberconwy exacted Llywelyn 's fealty to England in 1277. Peace was short-lived, and, with the 1282 Edwardian conquest ,

18096-444: The recruiting parties having brought in 400 men. However, training and discipline were poor, with drunkenness and desertion rife. There was also Black market trading with the prisoners-of-war the regiment were guarding at Stapleton Prison . Nevertheless, with the encouragement of the Duke of Beaufort the regiment supplied 169 volunteers to the regulars, and the recruiting parties had to go back to Brecon and Monmouth. On 6 November 1810

18252-519: The regiment marched out of Bristol to Berry Head in Devon, where fortifications protected the naval anchorage of Torbay . In the summer of 1811 a proportion of the men were granted leave to help at harvest time. On 29 August the regiment marched to Pendennis Castle in Cornwall , resting for two weeks at Truro en route . It returned to Bristol on 24 June 1812. The Dean of Bristol had a well-known dislike of

18408-408: The regiment moved out to Brighton between June and August 1797. While at Brighton there was a mutiny in the regiment, the men demanding money instead of their bread and meat rations; this was quelled after a series of courts-martial . In October the regiment went to Eastbourne and then on to Worthing . About now the regiment was expanded from six to nine companies, including a Grenadier Company and

18564-403: The reply must be "Stand Off I am loaded",' though the colonel expressed confidence that his men would not fire 'unless compelled to do so in their own Personal Defence or to Protect property which may be intrusted to their charge'. Although the war was coming to an end, large numbers of volunteers were still required for the regular army and on 8 January 1814 four officers and 149 ORs left to join

18720-497: The rest were disbanded. Instructors were provided by the Regular Militia. The Loyal Brecknock Volunteers had been formed on 28 September 1803 as the 1st, 2nd (or Wyeside) and 3rd Battalions. These were replaced by two regiments each of eight companies, both headquartered at Brecon: The local Militia was stood down in 1815 and disbanded in 1816. In 1811 an Act of Parliament allowed English and Welsh militia units to serve in Ireland, and

18876-406: The right to set limits on its powers. The Government of Wales Act 2006 (c 32) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the National Assembly for Wales and allows further powers to be granted to it more easily. The Act creates a system of government with a separate executive drawn from and accountable to the legislature. Following a successful referendum in 2011 on extending

19032-399: The rule of the Welsh princes permanently ended. With Llywelyn 's death and his brother prince Dafydd 's execution, the few remaining Welsh lords did homage to Edward I of England . The Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284 provided the constitutional basis for a post-conquest government of the Principality of North Wales from 1284 until 1535/36. It defined Wales as "annexed and united" to

19188-644: The ruler. Other than in the Marches , where March law was imposed by the Marcher Lords, Welsh Law remained in force in Wales until the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284. Edward I of England annexed the Principality of Wales following the death of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd , and Welsh Law was replaced for criminal cases under the Statute. Marcher Law and Welsh Law (for civil cases) remained in force until Henry VIII of England annexed

19344-476: The same guards as before. It was relieved by the 2nd Bn King's German Legion on 11 March 1804 and crossed to Portsmouth , where it was accommodated in Portsea Barracks with a detachment at Fort Cumberland . On 11 May it marched out to Chichester , later moving to Blatchington. On 26 October it moved on to Lewes, where it was stationed for a year. When the regiment left Portsmouth it had been recruited up to

19500-400: The short Waterloo campaign meant that the planned disembodiment of the militia was suspended. The Royal Monmouth & Brecon Militia remained at Tullamore, though time-expired men were allowed to go home. The regiment marched out of Tullamore on 12 September, reaching Carrick-on-Suir on 18 September. In November it sailed for Bristol, and was disembodied at Monmouth on 6 January 1816. During

19656-507: The shortage of men qualified to be officers, even after the requirements were lowered for Welsh counties. Nevertheless, the Brecknock 'corps' (it was too small to class as a regiment) was formed and received its arms on 6 December 1759. It was embodied for permanent service on 29 January 1760 under the command of Col Sir Edward Williams, 5th Baronet . In July 1760 the Brecknockshires were moved from Abergavenny to Yarmouth in Norfolk to relieve

19812-485: The soldiers objected to serving under Roman Catholic officers, including Henry O'Brien and John Fitzgerald among the captains conducting the Brecknock contingent to Newcastle. Control of the militia was one of the areas of dispute between Charles I and Parliament that led to the English Civil War . When open war broke out between the King and Parliament, neither side made much use of the trained bands beyond securing

19968-536: The story of Cantre'r Gwaelod 's drowning and tales in the Mabinogion , of the waters between Wales and Ireland being narrower and shallower, may be distant folk memories of this time. Neolithic colonists integrated with the indigenous people, gradually changing their lifestyles from a nomadic life of hunting and gathering, to become settled farmers about 6,000 BP – the Neolithic Revolution . They cleared

20124-561: The summer of 1761 the Brecknockshires were stationed at Barnstaple in North Devon, where the main duty was again to guard prisoners-of-war and provide escorts when they were moved between Barnstaple and Plymouth . In October the Brecknock unit marched in company with the Carmarthenshire and Denbighshire Militia from Barnstaple back to Bideford to relieve the 1st Devon Militia , which had been carrying out similar duties. Later that month

20280-815: The summer. Winter quarters for 1795–6 were to be at Devizes in Wiltshire, but it soon moved to Lymington in Hampshire , allegedly because Lt-Col Lord Abergavenny did not like the cold lodgings of Devizes for his wife. The whole regiment was accommodated in Lymington Barracks (except for a few days in May when it was marched out to Eling Barracks during elections in Lymington) until the summer of 1796, which it spent at Barham Downs Camp in Kent . After winter quarters in Lewes , Sussex ,

20436-425: The then Counsel General for Wales , John Griffiths , stated, 'Principality is a misnomer and that Wales should properly be referred to as a country.' In 2011, ISO 3166-2:GB was updated and the term 'principality' was replaced with 'country'. UK Government toponymic guidelines state that, 'though there is a Prince of Wales, this role is deemed to be titular rather than exerting executive authority, and therefore Wales

20592-444: The throne of England from Richard III of England in 1485, uniting England and Wales under one royal house. The last remnants of Celtic-tradition Welsh law were abolished and replaced by English law by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 during the reign of Henry VII's son, Henry VIII . In the legal jurisdiction of England and Wales , Wales became unified with the kingdom of England; the " Principality of Wales " began to refer to

20748-621: The unit was relieved by the North Gloucestershire Militia and went home to Brecon for the winter. In June 1762 the Brecknockshires and Monmouthshires were again quartered at Pilmouth, Barnstaple, to guard the French prisoners, but in August the Brecknockshires moved to Plymouth. In September they marched back to their own county. By now the war was coming to an end, and the militia were ordered to call in their detachments and quarter their men conveniently for disembodiment, which followed at

20904-498: The whole country, though it remained a "principality" only in a ceremonial sense. The Marcher lordships were abolished, and Wales began electing members of the Westminster parliament. In 1536 Wales had around 278,000 inhabitants, which increased to around 360,000 by 1620. This was primarily due to rural settlement, where animal farming was central to the Welsh economy. Increase in trade and increased economic stability occurred due to

21060-565: The whole of Wales under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 (often referred to as the Acts of Union of 1536 and 1543), after which English law applied to the whole of Wales. The Wales and Berwick Act 1746 provided that all laws that applied to England would automatically apply to Wales (and the Anglo-Scottish border town of Berwick ) unless the law explicitly stated otherwise; this Act was repealed with regard to Wales in 1967. English law has been

21216-480: The winter. In May 1794 the whole battalion marched to camp at Maker heights overlooking Plymouth Sound as part of a militia brigade. It remained there during the summer months, and then in November was sent to winter quarters across Devonshire, with two companies at Honiton , two at Ottery St Mary and two at Topsham . By April 1795 the battalion was spread further, with companies at Axminster , Exmouth and Sidmouth as well. In May it returned to Maker Camp for

21372-425: The work of the embodiment and amalgamation fell to the Duke's eldest son, the Marquess of Worcester , who was commissioned as Major on 1 February; Lt-Col the Earl of Abergavenny was not appointed until 5 April. On 21 February the Brecknockshire contingent was ordered to proceed to Newbury, Berkshire , on 4 March, where the amalgamation was carried out. At the time the actual strength of the 'incorporated battalion'

21528-496: The year a peace treaty had been agreed and the war was coming to an end, so warrants to disembody the militia were issued on 28 February 1783. From 1784 to 1792 the militia ballot was used to keep up militia numbers and the regiments were assembled for their 28 days' annual peacetime training, but to save money only two-thirds of the men were actually mustered each year. The militia was already being called out when Revolutionary France declared war on Britain on 1 February 1793. It

21684-426: The year the Monmouth and Brecon was reduced to six companies once more, many of the men having been persuaded to volunteer for the Regular Army. By 1802 Brecon's militia quota had been reduced to 204 men and Monmouth's to 280. From Bristol the regiment was redeployed across the Welsh Borders: by April 1801 two companies were at Shrewsbury , two at Kidderminster , and one each at Much Wenlock and Bridgnorth . In May

21840-401: Was Capt J.D. Dickinson, a wounded veteran of the First Anglo-Afghan War with the 2nd Foot . The Militia of the United Kingdom was revived by the Militia Act 1852 , enacted during a renewed period of international tension. As before, units were raised and administered on a county basis, and filled by voluntary enlistment (although conscription by means of the Militia Ballot might be used if

21996-408: Was a key factor in destroying support for the Liberal party in south Wales. The industrial workers of Wales began shifting towards the Labour Party . When in 1908 the Miners' Federation of Great Britain became affiliated to the Labour Party, the four Labour candidates sponsored by miners were all elected as MPs. By 1922, half the Welsh seats at Westminster were held by Labour politicians—the start of

22152-628: Was broken up in 1820 and the Royal Brecknock Militia and Royal Monmouthshire Militia continued as separate regiments. Major Francis Chambre went to the Royal Brecknocks and was promoted to Lt-Col Cmdt on 16 October 1838. His adjutant was Capt Egerton Isaacson, who had first been commissioned into the Monmouth & Brecon Militia in 1812 and had then served with the 52nd Light Infantry in the Peninsula and at Waterloo. John Lloyd Vaughan Watkins , Member of Parliament for Brecon and Lord Lieutenant of Brecknockshire , became Lt-Col Commandant on 16 November 1847. His adjutant, appointed on 7 February 1846,

22308-437: Was compiled during an assembly held at Whitland around 930 by Hywel Dda , king of most of Wales between 942 and his death in 950. The ' law of Hywel Dda ' ( Welsh : Cyfraith Hywel ), as it became known, codified the previously existing folk laws and legal customs that had evolved in Wales over centuries. Welsh Law emphasised the payment of compensation for a crime to the victim, or the victim's kin, rather than punishment by

22464-407: Was decided to combine the Brecknockshire and Monmouthshire militia contingents into a single stronger battalion under the command of Henry Somerset, 5th Duke of Beaufort , Lord Lieutenant of both counties and colonel of the Monmouths since 1771. The regiment was initially designated the 'Brecon & Monmouth' Militia, but this was reversed to Monmouth & Brecon Militia the following year. Much of

22620-442: Was eventually defeated by 1412. Having failed Owain went into hiding and nothing was known of him after 1413. The penal laws against the Welsh of 1401–02 passed by the English parliament made the Welsh second-class citizens. With hopes of independence ended, there were no further wars or rebellions against English colonial rule and the laws remained on the statute books until 1624. Henry Tudor (born in Wales in 1457) seized

22776-405: Was fixed at 340 men and Monmouth's at 360. The Duke of Beaufort and Marquess of Worcester carefully inspected the men selected and rejected many as unfit. The two counties' supplementaries joined the regiment at Eastbourne just before it left for Bristol and formed two additional companies. However, by 1799 the threat of invasion had receded and some of the militia could be stood down. At the end of

22932-453: Was free of glaciers by about 10,250 BP, the warmer climate allowing the area to become heavily wooded. The post-glacial rise in sea level separated Wales and Ireland, forming the Irish Sea . By 8,000 BP the British Peninsula had become an island. By the beginning of the Neolithic ( c.  6,000 BP ) sea levels in the Bristol Channel were still about 33 feet (10 metres) lower than today. The historian John Davies theorised that

23088-436: Was iron smelting, and iron manufacturing became prevalent in both the north and the south of the country. In the north, John Wilkinson 's Ironworks at Bersham was a major centre, while in the south, at Merthyr Tydfil , the ironworks of Dowlais , Cyfarthfa , Plymouth and Penydarren became the most significant hub of iron manufacture in Wales. By the 1820s, south Wales produced 40 per cent of all Britain's pig iron . By

23244-535: Was issued on 18 March 1803. Under the 1802 quotas the regiment was seven companies strong, four from Monmouth and three from Brecon. The Duke of Beaufort, Earl of Abergavenny and Marquess of Worcester were still the three field officers, and the Duke's younger son, Lord Arthur Somerset was commissioned as a captain on 24 June and as major on 5 August. The regiment concentrated at the town of Monmouth and then marched to Winchester in Hampshire. After six weeks there, it moved into camp at Stokes Bay , Gosport, alongside

23400-400: Was not entirely popular: the Town Council of Monmouth was afraid that it would lose business if the Monmouth LI's annual training moved to Brecon. The militia now came under the War Office rather than their county lords lieutenant and battalions had a large cadre of permanent staff (about 30). Around a third of the recruits and many young officers went on to join the Regular Army. Following

23556-411: Was now under the Lord Lieutenant , assisted by the Deputy Lieutenants and Justices of the Peace (JPs). The entry into force of these Acts in 1558 is seen as the starting date for the organised Militia of England and Wales . Although the militia obligation was universal, it was clearly impractical to train and equip every able-bodied man, so after 1572 the practice was to select a proportion of men for

23712-512: Was only 240 out of a combined quota of 400. The French Revolutionary Wars saw a new phase for the English militia: they were embodied for a whole generation, and became regiments of full-time professional soldiers (though restricted to service in the British Isles ), which the regular army increasingly saw as a prime source of recruits. They served in coast defences, manning garrisons, guarding prisoners of war, and for internal security, while their traditional local defence duties were taken over by

23868-445: Was producing almost 61 million tons of coal. Historian Kenneth Morgan described Wales on the eve of the First World War as a "relatively placid, self-confident and successful nation". The output from the coalfields continued to increase, with the Rhondda Valley recording a peak of 9.6 million tons of coal extracted in 1913. The First World War (1914–1918) saw a total of 272,924 Welshmen under arms, representing 21.5 per cent of

24024-442: Was promoted to succeed him as commanding officer. In 1861 the War Office ordered the amalgamation of the small Welsh militia quotas to form larger regiments. The Royal Brecknock Rifles were officially merged with the Royal Cardigan Rifles at Aberystwyth and the Royal Radnor Rifles at Presteigne to form the Royal Cardigan, Brecon & Radnor Rifles . The merger was unpopular: the three contingents never trained together, and

24180-409: Was promoted to succeed him. The Duke of Beaufort was at the time commanding Severn District. In April 1813 a draft of 72 men from the Monmouth & Brecon Militia who had volunteered for the regulars landed in the Peninsula from Bristol, and many of them took part in the Battle of Vittoria still wearing their militia uniforms. While the Regular Militia were the mainstay of national defence during

24336-468: Was stationed at Steyning for four months. On 24 June the regiment returned to Chichester, where it stayed for a year. When the Royal Monmouth & Brecon Militia left Chichester on 17 September 1807, four companies went to Bognor and three to Aldwick . Because the regiment was understrength it sent recruiting parties to Brecon and Monmouth to drum up volunteers. The regiment moved back to Steyning in October. It marched to Bristol on 6 June 1808 689 strong,

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