An end of war wedding - Enid Jones and Glanville Griffiths

 Enid Jones 1926-2003

Our mum, Enid Jones, was born in Merthyr Tydfil in 1927 to Watkin and Gertrude Jones. The family moved to Aberystwyth when Watkin got a job with the Ministry of Labour. At the start of World War II in September 1939, Enid was 12 and lived with her parents in Lisburne Terrace, along with her older brother Howel and her younger sister Pamela. She attended Ardwyn School. Despite her secondary school education taking place while Aberystwyth was at war, she had many fond memories of her time at Ardwyn where the teachers were determined that the pupils should not miss out if this was at all possible. Enid played netball and hockey, played the piano and took part in the school’s Gilbert and Sullivan productions. She was also a very diligent pupil, winning a book of Tennyson poems for her form prize 1939- 40.

 

One of Enid’s best friends at school was Sylvia Ingold, an evacuee whose Father was the eminent chemist Christopher Ingold who was evacuated to Aberystwyth with the chemistry department of the University of London.

Enid’s brother, Howel Jones, joined the merchant navy in 1939 at the age of only 15 and received a medal for his service. It is hard to believe that at only 15 and still a child he was expected to face such dangers.  Like many others, our grandparents would have had many sleepless nights, worrying about their loved ones. It was a hard life and merchant seamen faced many dangers, especially during the Battle of the Atlantic. The efforts of Howel and the other merchant seamen were essential in keeping vital supplies getting through to the UK. Howel survived the war and continued his career in the merchant navy.

Our grandfather Watkin Jones, who was a veteran of World War I, was an air raid warden during the war. He was known as a larger than life character and we can imagine him relishing this new challenge.  The Jones family had an evacuee living with them during the war and our mum had many stories and happy memories of their time together. She used to say that our grandmother got so exasperated with the children squabbling over who got the largest piece of pudding that she resorted to measuring it out with a ruler. Mum did say that they never went hungry. She also mentioned that it was often very cold during the wartime winters and they would often wear their coats round the house.

The residents of Aberystwyth were greatly relieved when the war in Europe ended in 1945 and the residents of Lisburne terrace enthusiastically celebrated the event.

 

VE Day party in Lisburne Terrace

At the end of the war Enid was introduced to Glanville Griffiths, our dad, a demobbed soldier from Aberystwyth. They married in 1947 at Holy Trinity Church and were together for 53 years until Glanville’s death in May 2000.

Glanville Talbot Griffiths 1914-2000

Our dad, Glanville Talbot Griffiths (known as Glan) was born in Ferndale, the fifth out of six boys.  In 1926 he moved to Aberystwyth when his parents, John and Mary Ann Griffiths took over the Castle Hotel. This was a pivotal event in his life and he developed an intense affection for Aberystwyth which he never lost. He had very fond memories of his time at Ardwyn School where he won the Daniel Thomas Service and Leadership Prize in 1933 and 1934 and was head prefect in 1933 and 1934.

The outbreak of World War II was a challenging time for the people of Aberystwyth and it must have been very hard for our grandmother, not long widowed and being the mother of six boys. After the death of our grandfather shortly before the war in 1938, Beynon and Lucy Griffiths, Glan’s brother and sister in law, took over the running of the Castle Hotel. Despite most of the work during the war being done by Lucy, when Beynon enlisted in the Royal Artillery, the 1939 register classifies Lucy’s role as ‘unpaid domestic duties.” The register also shows that there were many workers from the Ministry of Labour staying at the Castle Hotel.

 

Beynon Griffiths 1904-1958

Glan left the safety of Aberystwyth to fight in North Africa and Italy. As a family, we don’t know a lot about the fighting because he talked very little about it, although he did talk about the people he met and the places he saw. We know that he joined the Royal Welsh Fusiliers and did some of his training on the Brecon Beacons. 

 

Glanville looking very proud in his uniform

At some point during the war, he was transferred into the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers - ‘the skins’ His explanation for being in an Irish regiment was that Welsh soldiers were considered a better fit for an Irish regiment because English and Irish soldiers would spend more time fighting each other than the Germans: possibly true! The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers became part of the Battle Axe Division, a specially selected assault division formed in preparation for Operation Torch, the Anglo-American landing in North Africa and later an important part of the Allied invasion of Italy. The symbol of this division was the Battle Axe and the family still have Glan’s formation badge (below).

 

We know that he took part in the capture of a hilltop village in Sicily called Centuripe. His picture was taken, along with three other soldiers, looking out over the recently captured town. This picture appeared in the London Illustrated News in 1943 and has subsequently been used in several books. Apparently, sales of the London Illustrated News in Aberystwyth increased very suddenly! Our dad, Glan Griffiths, is the soldier nearest to the camera. The formation badge can be seen on his shoulder. We are very proud of his efforts during the war encapsulated by this picture. 

 

Glan Griffiths in the capture of Centuripe

We have been able to find out more about Dad’s war time experiences by reading the regiment diaries which log day by day events. It is fascinating to learn more of his experiences. From these diaries we learnt that he went to hospital with tonsillitis, became an Intelligence Officer and was promoted to captain. He also received a mention for controlling military traffic in the narrow winding passes that dominated the Sicilian terrain.

In 1944, back in Aberystwyth, his mother Mary died and because he was away fighting, he didn’t find out until afterwards, the news following him round. He often recounted his sadness at being unable to attend the funeral. Mary Ann Griffiths was a member of Bethell Baptist Church where the funeral service took place and she is buried alongside her husband in Aberystwyth Cemetery, Llanbadarn Road.

Funeral notice of Glans' mother, Mary Ann Griffiths

At the end of the war, Glan returned to Aberystwyth to resume civilian life. He lived with his brother Tom, sister in law Phyllis and his much loved nephew Roger in their house on the Prom. It was on his return to Aberystwyth that he met our mum, Enid Jones. We only found out shortly before he died that he was introduced to Enid through her father Watkin Jones who worked for the Ministry of Labour and played a part in helping demobbed soldiers settle back into civilian life. They married at Holy Trinity Church Aberystwyth in 1947 and moved to Cardiff. Aberystwyth always held a very special place in his heart and he visited most years. As a family we still try to do this and Aberystwyth is very special to us too.

 

Glanville Talbot Griffiths

Blog by Val Walker, John Griffiths and Philip Griffiths

All images belong to the Walker and Griffiths families