Sugar and Slate, but some still hate…

The Penrhyn Estate has a long and complex history. It starts with the early 13th century Prince of Gwynedd rewarding loyal supporters (Ednyfed Fychan and his sons) with large tracts of land throughout North Wales. Son Goronwy ab Edyfed received the promontory (or penrhyn in Welsh) east of Bangor and, capitalising on political opportunities and judicious marriages, his early 15th century decendants found themselves in possession of a large estate and fortified manor house.

Fortunes ebbed and flowed but in the second half of the 18th century part of the estate was purchased by John and Henry Pennant, sons of Edward Pennant of Clarenden, in Jamaica. As you can imagine, cash flow improved dramatically on the back of the Pennant’s sugar plantations and their slaves, and the remainder of the estate was rapidly acquired as well. The manor house was remodelled and farming practices, including tree planting and new buidlings to provide shelter, plus drainage and manuring, revolutionised the estate farms. Terroir has yet to find any details of the capital expenditure required to undertake this work, or what impact the improvements had on the tennants’ rent. The Pennants also invested heavily in what came to be known as the enormous Bethesda slate quarry, a few miles south of the Castle. Again, considerable capital investment in infrastructure is recorded but nothing on rates of pay for the quarrymen.

The fairy tale castle on the outside:

And on the inside:

The death knell was post war (WWII this time) death duties, which saw the Castle and estate pass to the Inland Revenue who transferred it to the National Trust.

But as you may have gathered, this blog isn’t really about the architecture and landscape of Penrhyn Castle, but about the society which the Castle represented over the centuries and what it says to us today.

Along with many other guardians of our heritage, the National Trust is engaging with communities and individuals to acknowledge, understand and interpret the heritage and history of the enslaved communities who created so much wealth for the British Empire and who, unwittingly, contributed to the creation of so many buildings and landscapes which were once the homes and preserves of the few but which are now visited by the many. The panels in the Penrhyn Castle dining room (see photograph above right) are part of one such project and in this example, the English panel reads:

Let’s think beyond the box.

Lock it. Hide it. Shelve it.

Darkness conceals the light which exposes

Questions flowing through the cracks in the corners.

But should we not also be asking about the plight of the working communities of Britain who were also used to create wealth for the very heart of the British Empire? These were not enslaved people, but these were British workers who had few choices or means of embracing an alternative lifestyle.

Looking through the National Trust Guide to Penrhyn Castle, we canot help asking who made the hand knotted Axminster ‘Turkey’ runner which adorned the Keep Passage? Whose skills were honed in Asia and then transferred to Devon and under what circumstances? Could the workers afford fuel for heating or shoes for their children? The original carpet was replaced by a machine woven Axminster in 1987. Was the machinist paid the equivalent of what is now known as the minimum or the living wage?

This issue is particularly relevant to Penrhyn. Remember the Penrhyn Quarry? In 1865, the local quarrymen attempted to form a Union but the movement was quickly nipped in the bud by Lord Penrhyn. By 1874, however, the North Wales Quarrymen’s Union was officially established and, after a short strike, was recognised at Penrhyn Quarry. Relationships deteriorated, however, with a major strike in 1896-7 and a calamitous strike/lock out from 1900 to 1903. As usual, the issues appear to be complex and included falling production, reduced profits, paternalistic attitudes hardening to ‘taking a firm line’ (National Trust Guide Book), Union rights, and workers pay and working conditions. The results were disastrous, ripped the community apart, and created all the ills which only poverty can bring (for further details see https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/penrhyn-castle/features/penrhyn-castle-and-the-great-penrhyn-quarry-strike-1900-03 and many other websites).

No one who was involved in the strike is left today, but that has not eliminated the impact on the local community. Terroir visited the Castle but, despite the change of ownership, our Welsh companions would not enter a property which represented such terrible damage to the local community. Following further enquiries, we realise that this attitude is still widespread.

‘Hate’ is a strong word, but so is the damage which has so often been inflicted on local communities by landlords and employers and which continues to hurt some 120 years later. Hence Terroir’s reworking of the old ‘sugar and spice’ rhyme.

Sugar and Slate, but some still hate…

How do we heal the wounds?