Remembering 'Our Boys : Aberystwyth War Memorial and the YMCA

Although the Armistice was signed on 11th November 1918, in the Palace of Versailles, in the spring of 1919, the leaders of the Great Powers were still deep in the negotiations that would officially end the First World War. 

In Aberystwyth, a public meeting was convened in the Town Hall (now the town’s library) at 8pm on Tuesday 27^th May 1919.  The meeting was being held to agree to collect donations for a town war memorial, similar to those going up in towns and villages all over Britain, to commemorate the dead, and provide buildings for the YMCA/YWCA (Young Men’s/Women’s Christian Association) to provide a social space for the living. Although it was widely felt that there should be a permanent reminder of the sacrifice of ‘Our Boys’ and to teach future generations about the horrors of war, the turnout was poor, so it had to be adjourned until a larger group could be gathered on 6^th June.

The first Aberystwyth War Memorial Committee had been formed in 1917 to debate whether there should be something to mark those that had, and were, dying or something to reward those returning from the war. By 1919, a second committee had been formed to replace this one and it agreed to do both by raising £10,000. Both projects were to be completed from a united appeal for subscriptions. They struggled to find a single building to contain the YMCA/YWCA, as they envisioned two wings (with each gender segregated) built around a central hall. However, they did not reach the target. Total subscriptions reached £5,865 11s 8d, with almost £3,000 going to the buildings and the rest set aside for the memorial.

Originally, a Welsh sculptor, Professor James Harvard Thomas, was commissioned to design the memorial but he died before work began. His replacement, Professor Mario Rutelli (of the Palermo Academy of Art) was hired, with the additional commission to design the statue of the then Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII) in front of the Old College. This is the only statue of him left in the world. His proposal was estimated to cost almost double that available for the memorial, so a renewed funding drive was called, which proved to be successful.

In 1921, the Presidents of the YWCA and YMCA symbolically took possession of the keys to new premises, on North Parade and Chalybeate Road, from the mayor in the town hall. This was on the understanding that a women’s club would be open to all, regardless of social background, religion, occupation, etc., for their recreation, rest, and to enable them to socialise. Both would be sold later in the century.

The memorial was built between 1921-23, with a bronze winged figure on top representing Victory, and a figure at the base symbolising humanity emerging from the war. It carries the inscription ‘Dros Ryddid’ (‘For Freedom’) and ‘Greater Love for no man than this…’. With 111 names of men of the First World War, and 78 of men and women from the Second World War, it is one of the largest war memorials in Britain.

Aberystwyth War Memorial c. Ceredigion Musuem

Blog by Ewan Lawry, project volunteer

Bibliography:

Councillor Richard Rowlands papers, National Library of Wales

Ceredigion Museum Collection @  https://pilgrim.ceredigion.gov.uk/