Tredegar - Home of the NHS
The home of the NHS
It is a big claim, but our beloved National Health Service has its roots here in Tredegar.
Aneurin Bevan MP who introduced the National Health Service in 1948 in his role as Minister for Health and Housing.
He was born in Tredegar to a miner and a seamstress. His stammer hindered his education, and he left school at 13 to work alongside his father in the mine. Whilst he didn’t love school, he adored reading.
His role as a trade union official with the South Wales Miners’ Federation, taught him how to debate and win the argument. This was enhanced by a scholarship to the Central Labour College in London, sponsored by the Federation. There, he spent two years studying economics, politics and history.
Living in Tredegar he saw how the Tredegar Workman’s Medical Aid Society ensured medical aid for the members and families, free at the point of delivery. When he was given the opportunity to create a health service for the UK, he turned back to his roots for inspiration.
Tredegar - Home of the NHS
Stop 1 - The Aneurin Bevan Memorial Stones mark the spot where Aneurin Bevan, Labour MP and architect of the National Health Service, addressed his constituents and the world.
Stop 2 - The Sirhowy Ironworks were first established in 1778. Between 1794 and 1818, they were operated by William Borrow, Rev. Matthew Monkhouse and Richard Fothergill. A visit here gives an insight into the industrial story of the Valleys.
Stop 3 - Bedwellty House and Park are intimately linked with the early social history of Industrial Wales. Its relevance continued when the house and park were given to the people of Tredegar and consequently became a centre of the Labour movement in Wales. You can visit the Council Chamber where Aneurin Bevan started his pollical career.
Stop 4 - This Tredegar Medical Aid Society Heritage Centre tells the story of how Aneurin Bevan MP used the society as the blueprint for rolling out free healthcare for everyone when he ‘Tredegarised’ the UK. The building was the headquarters for the Tredegar Medical Aid Society.
Stop 5 - The Tredegar Local Heritage Museum has a varied collection of artefacts reflecting the industry and life of this important iron making town.
A Tour guide can bring these and lots of other sites in and around Tredegar to life. Here are 2 walks that help you explore the area.
- The Aneurin Bevan Heritage Trail is awalking and car trail in Tredegar, the birthplace of Aneurin Bevan 1897-1960,Labour Member of Parliament for Ebbw Vale 1929-1960.
- In the footsteps of Nye - Aneurin Bevan loved to walk across the moors above Trefil, a limestone quarrying community on the northern edge of his constituency and the highest village in Wales. You can follow in the footsteps of this visionary and principled man, through a landscape packed with myth and legend, on this walk to his favourite view.
You could also take a trip to the Cefn Golau Cholera Cemetery, a reminder of how important health is. Set on the bleak mountainside to the west of Tredegar this is one of the most evocative sites in the south Wales valleys. Here rest the mortal remains of at least two hundred people, victims of the "King of Terrors" – cholera.
Tredegar - Home of the NHS
Bedwellty House and Park are intimately linked with the early social history of Industrial Wales. Its relevance continued when the house and park were given to the people of Tredegar and consequently became a centre of the Labour movement in Wales. You can visit the Council Chamber where Aneurin Bevan started his political career.
The Aneurin Bevan Memorial Stones mark the spot where Aneurin Bevan, Labour MP and architect of the National Health Service, addressed his constituents and the world.
The Sirhowy Ironworks were first established in 1778. Between 1794 and 1818, they were operated by William Borrow, Rev. Matthew Monkhouse and Richard Fothergill. A visit here gives an insight into the industrial story of the Valleys.
The Tredegar Medical Aid Society Heritage Centre tells the story of how Aneurin Bevan MP used the society as the blueprint for rolling out free healthcare for everyone when he ‘Tredegarised’ the UK. The building was the headquarters for the Tredegar Medical Aid Society.
The Tredegar Local Heritage Museum has a variedcollection of artefacts reflecting the industry and life of this important ironmaking town.
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