Tryweryn: The man who bombed a dam to save his village

In the summertime of 1955 the radical of Capel Celyn, a rural, Welsh-speaking colony successful northbound Wales, learnt their location had been earmarked arsenic the tract of a caller reservoir to supply drinking h2o for Liverpool.

This would mean each location successful the colony adjacent Bala, Gwynedd, being destroyed and each the residents being forced to determination elsewhere.

For 9 years aft the announcement, the villagers fought to prevention their homes, with protests and marches done the streets of Liverpool.

With the aboriginal of the colony looking bleak, 3 men decided to instrumentality matters into their ain hands.

"It was thing that needed to beryllium done and it didn't look anyone other was going to bash it truthful it was near to america to bash it," said Owain Williams, 60 years on.

"Do you beryllium backmost astatine location watching telly, oregon bash you spell retired successful the snowfall and bash thing for your country?

While the dam was inactive nether operation successful aboriginal 1963, farmer's lad Mr Williams, Aberystwyth pupil Emyr Llewelyn, erstwhile RAF subject policeman John Albert Jones formed Mudiad Amddiffyn Cymru - the Movement for the Defence of Wales.

On the nighttime of 9 February 1963, they travelled done blizzard conditions to works a 5lb (2.3kg) weaponry which destroyed an energy transformer connected the tract astatine 03:15 the pursuing morning.

Emyr Llewelyn was aboriginal sentenced to 12 months successful situation for the attack.

On the time of Llewelyn's conviction, Williams and Jones blew up a pylon astatine Gellilydan adjacent Trawsfynydd successful Gwynedd.

They were some caught and Williams was fixed a one-year situation condemnation portion Jones received 3 years connected probation.

The colony could not beryllium saved - 2 years aboriginal Capel Celyn was flooded, forcing 70 radical to permission their homes.

Its 12 houses, school, chapel and station bureau disappeared nether water.

The communicative of the drowning of Capel Celyn fuelled the nationalist cause, with 'Cofiwch Dryweryn' ('Remember Tryweryn') graffiti popping up crossed Wales.

'Cofiwch Dryweryn' hoodies and different merchandise are worn by immoderate successful Wales arsenic a awesome of Welsh nationalist pride.

To some, Williams is simply a transgression who risked lives. To others, helium is seen arsenic a state combatant and a hero.

"We didn't acceptable retired to beryllium glorified," said Mr Williams.

"At the beginning, we got tons of disapproval from radical and tons of nasty things were said to us, not truthful overmuch to our faces but down our backs certainly, and we had to grip that.

"It's not casual to spell to prison. It's not a choice."

When asked wherefore helium chose unit and actions that endangered lives, helium said: "I'm not blessed with the usage of the word unit due to the fact that unit was being utilized against radical successful Capel Celyn."

He said for the villagers, losing their homes, school, chapel, and having their relatives' remains moved from the graveyard was hugely traumatic.

"Some of them died of existent breached hearts, but no-one talks astir that," helium said.

"The lone regret I person is [it was] affecting my ain family, due to the fact that I had small children astatine the clip and yet my matrimony broke up which caused suffering for my children.

"They were insulted astatine school, shouting things [like] 'your begetter is simply a blah blah blah' and that's not bully astatine immoderate time, of course. Maybe I person regrets successful that direction."

Hugh Roberts recovered himself giving grounds successful tribunal aft stumbling crossed the bombers connected the evening the weaponry was planted that would spell connected to destruct an energy transformer.

Speaking from the layby wherever helium archetypal saw them adjacent Cwmtirmynach, helium said: "I'd stopped present due to the fact that I couldn't spell immoderate further due to the fact that of the snow."

He said helium saw different car get stuck successful the snowfall truthful went to help.

"There were 3 young men successful the car, saying they were going for the A5 to London," helium said.

"I helped them get the car escaped from the snow, pushed the bonnet, and connected they went."

The adjacent day, erstwhile helium heard astir the bombing helium thought it was imaginable they were involved, and was visited by constabulary aft telling his brag of his concerns.

"The policemen came to prime maine up from Cerrigydrudion, 4 constabulary officers, they were disquieted radical would onslaught me, they got letters threatening me," helium said.

Looking back, helium wishes helium had ne'er been involved.

"I privation I hadn't had seen them, but I didn't person a choice. I was present astatine the incorrect time," helium said.

Elwyn Edwards grew up successful the adjacent colony of Fron-Goch and his household farmed successful Capel Celyn.

He took portion successful protests against the planned reservoir.

Standing beside it, helium is capable to constituent retired wherever his grandfather's location and the colony schoolhouse erstwhile stood.

"It's similar you tin spot done the h2o to my childhood. The roadworthy went up present towards the aged village," helium said, pointing.

"You get utilized to it, but you agelong for what was erstwhile present I suppose."

He said erstwhile the drowning of the colony was announced immoderate section radical were successful support.

"[They] thought it would bring enactment here," helium said.

"Others were against it due to the fact that they were drowning the farms and the h2o was going for free.

"Very mixed, it was, and inactive [is] today."

He besides remembers mixed absorption to the bombings.

"Some were for it, others against it," helium said.

"Wales hadn't woken up to its individuality backmost then. It inactive hasn't but it's amended now."

He believes the drowning of Capel Celyn changed the people of Welsh history.

"It's had a lasting effect connected our nation," helium said.

"I don't deliberation we would person had the Senedd if it wasn't for the drowning of the village. This was the awakening."

Dr Nia Wyn Jones, a lecturer successful History astatine Bangor University, said the flooding of Capel Celyn was "a terribly important moment" for the nationalist cause.

"The information that Tryweryn happened against the wishes of a ample conception of nationalist sentiment successful Wales crystallised the information that Wales was politically powerless," she said.

She described the bombing arsenic "a effect to that powerlessness done nonstop action, amerciable action".

"This was thing that had been advocated successful Welsh nationalist circles earlier but possibly had not captured the nationalist imaginativeness successful the aforesaid way."

She said it had been "politically complicated" for Plaid Cymru, with it having to show a "principled absorption to violence" alongside "support of the Welsh cause".

She said Bala Town Council had not opposed the strategy successful the aforesaid mode that Plaid Cymru and the region assembly did, and implicit clip absorption to Tryweryn "faded distant and became little popular".

She believes the bombing "crystallised fears" for the UK authorities that unless much concessions were offered to Wales successful presumption of the connection and aforesaid governance, determination was a "threat of further unit and of losing electoral dominance successful Wales".

She said successful wider Welsh nine "not everyone was talking astir Tryweryn successful the '50s and '60s".

"There were bigger things connected a batch of people's plates," she said.

She believes since devolution determination had been "more of a willingness to see the complexities successful the Tryweryn narrative".

"There's much of a aforesaid assurance successful Wales to look critically astatine our history... Welsh governmental powerlessness, the disappearance of the language, possibly they don't consciousness rather arsenic existential now."