Carmarthenshire Enlightenment Tour

A driving tour, starting in Llanddowror and ending in Llandyfaelog, discovering the churches linked to rapid improvement in literacy across Wales during the European ‘Age of Enlightenment’.

In the 18th century the school teacher and priest Griffith Jones started training teachers at his home in Llanddowror so that they could spend two to three months each in different parishes teaching children from poor rural families how to read. The concept of ‘Circulating Charity Schools’ spread rapidly, and within a few decades Wales had become one of Europe’s most literate nations.

Griffith Jones found that if he taught in Welsh, children and adults could learn to read sufficiently independently in just two or three months. For reading materials he used the bible, a church catechism and the book of common prayer.

Many other people played roles in this remarkable story, including the indefatigable Madam Bevan and Peter Williams, whose affordable version of the Bible ensured there was Welsh reading material in most Welsh homes.

The schools also raised the Welsh language’s status, influenced church liturgy, helped the Welsh printing industry’s development and unintentionally reinforced what later became the Welsh Presbyterian church.

This trail was developed by the Carmarthenshire Antiquarian Society and HistoryPoints

At each location a QR code connects your phone to a web page about that location.

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