A brief history
On 1st February 1904, six agricultural show enthusiasts met at the Lion Royal Hotel, Aberystwyth to consider forming an Agricultural Show Society for the Principality.
A general meeting of supporters, held at the House of Commons on February 26th 1904, endorsed the steps taken by Mr. Loveden Pryse and his colleagues earlier and the Welsh National Agricultural Society was born. Wales was the last of the United Kingdom countries to form such a Society.
The Royal Welsh Show in the 1920's
The first quarter of a century had seen the development of the Society despite the intervention of the war. The sixteenth Show at Cardiff in 1929 attracted an attendance of 36,917.
The next twenty-five years were very fluctuating ones. Beginning In 1930 at Caernarfon, shows were held at Llanelli, Llandrindod Wells, Aberystwyth, Llandudno, Haverfordwest, Abergele, Monmouth and Caernarfon (1939) with attendance's ranging between 22,500 and 39,000, with the exception of the outstanding show of 1925 in Carmarthen that was attended by 52,731. The 1938 Show was a joint one with the Royal Agricultural Society of England and staged in Cardiff .
As a result of the Second World War, no shows were held in the period 1940-46. 1947 was a boom year for shows and the resuscitation of the Royal Welsh at Carmarthen was an enormous success. The Society was privileged to receive a visit from H.R.H, Princess Elizabeth, and the Show attracted a new record crowd of 78,951 and registered a profit of over £12,000. In 1949 the Show staged on Singleton Park , Swansea attracted a total attendance of 102,101 - a record that stood until 1976.
It was in 1960/61 that rising costs and problems of finding sites forced the Society to look hard at the question of a permanent site. The final decision was taken in 1962 to purchase a site. Thanks to the efforts of a special committee in Brecon and Radnor, the money was found and a permanent home was established at Llanelwedd where the first permanent site show was staged in 1963.
The Society is now blessed with many permanent buildings and this is due to the magnificent support received from our Area Advisory Committees and the wonderful backing they received from their County and District Councils. Without this generosity and hard work by hundreds of willing Individuals throughout the Principality this tremendous progress would not have been possible.
Other key dates:
- The Royal Dublin Society was established in 1731
- The Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland was established in 1784
- The Royal Agricultural Society of England was established in 1838
- The first Welsh National Show was staged in Aberystwyth on August 3rd and 4th 1904
A vintage photo of the Llanelwedd Grounds
Look at the detailed history, start with: The early years 1904-1909
THANKS: Historical information on this website is published with the co-operation and kind assistance of W.Dyfrig Davies and Terwyn Davies.
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