PENRHYN LECTURE A RESOUNDING SUCCESS

The Pennants of Penrhyn in Jamaica:  Power, Profit and People

The Institute for the Study of Welsh Estates (ISWE) was delighted to co-host this year’s Bangor University Archives and Special Collections Lecture, held on 2nd November 2016.

The annual public lecture exists to showcase the research potential of the rich archival collections held by the University.  This year’s guest speaker was Dr. Marian Gwyn, who completed her PhD at Bangor in 2014 on the subject of ‘The Heritage Industry and the Slave Trade’, focusing on how the transatlantic slave trade can be presented at heritage sites in Wales and England, including at historic houses which had links to plantations in the Americas.  In a powerful presentation, delivered within a packed Eric Sunderland Lecture Theatre at Bangor University, Dr. Gwyn provided a lucid account of the Pennant family’s management of their sugar plantations in Jamaica, linking their involvement to issues of power, politics, profit and people. 

The Penrhyn archive, which provided the foundation for Dr. Gwyn’s research is one of the most comprehensive estate collections in Wales, providing a range of insights into the history of north west Wales – and further afield – from the medieval period through to the 20th century. 

ISWE and the University Archives are committed to working together to unlock the research potential of the collection, which is on the verge of being made fully searchable for the first time thanks to the ‘Sugar and Slate’ cataloguing project which archivist Sarah Vaughan has been working on over recent months.  This initiative has unearthed significant ‘new’ evidence which has the potential to offer fresh perspectives on a range of important themes and issues.

The availability of this new research resource comes at a time when the spotlight is being thrown on various aspects of the heritage pertaining to the Penrhyn estate.  The campaign to secure UNESCO World Heritage Status for the Gwynedd Slate Industry brings together partners who share an interest in recognising the historical significance of the Penrhyn family’s slate quarrying ventures, and its profound impacts on the communities, economy, landscape, infrastructure, built environment and politics of the region.  Simultaneously the National Trust is investing in an important ‘transformation’ project to revolutionise how Penrhyn Castle and its occasionally troubled history is presented to visitors.  The research and archival resources offered by Bangor University will play an important role in the development of both initiatives.

 

 

Publication date: 10 November 2016