page_title: John Crichton-Stuart, 2nd Marquess of Bute
section_title: Merthyr Rising
hierarchical_section_title: John Crichton-Stuart, 2nd Marquess of Bute / Politics / South Wales / Merthyr Rising
caption_attribution_description: English: Cyfarthfa Castle, Merthyr Tydfil The iron master's residence Cyfarthfa Castle Cyfarthfa_Castle was built by William Crawshay II in 1824, overlooking the massive Cyfarthfa Iron Works Cyfarthfa_Ironworks below (and see archived photos of the iron works here http://www.alangeorge.co.uk/cyfarthfa_ironworks.htm ). This view shows the main facade of the building, which overlooks the valley to the west. Dominating the scene in medieval fashion with its castellated towers, it's no wonder that during the 1831 Merthyr Rising Merthyr_Rising_1831 the Chartist protesters came to Cyfarthfa Castle to protest their grievances against their main protagonist William Crawshay. In 1909 Cyfarthfa Castle was purchased for £19,700 from the Crawshay family and was opened as a public Museum and Art Gallery in 1910 http://www.merthyr.gov.uk/Home/Leisure+and+Tourism/Libraries/History/Local+Facts/1900+to+1925.htm . The building is currently (2008) home to the Cyfarthfa Castle Museum and Art Gallery http://www.merthyr.gov.uk/Museum/Castle/English/home/ and the Cyfarthfa High School http://www.cyfarthfahigh.merthyr.sch.uk/home.asp .
context_page_description: John Crichton-Stuart, 2nd Marquess of Bute, KT, FRS, styled Lord Mount Stuart between 1794 and 1814, was a wealthy aristocrat and industrialist in Georgian and early Victorian Britain. He developed the coal and iron industries across South Wales and built the Cardiff Docks.
  Bute's father, John, Lord Mount Stuart, died a few months after he was born and as a young child he was brought up first by his mother, the former Lady Elizabeth McDougall-Crichton, and later by his paternal grandfather, John Stuart, 1st Marquess of Bute. He travelled widely across Europe before attending Cambridge University. He contracted an eye condition and remained partially sighted for the rest of his life. Having inherited large estates across Britain, he married his first wife, Lady Maria North, in 1818, and together they lived a relatively secluded life in Mount Stuart House in Scotland, one of Bute's four seats. Bute was dour but industrious, with a flair for land management. He focused his daily routine around extensive correspondence with his estate managers, making biennial tours of his lands around the country. The couple did not conceive any children, and Maria died in 1841.
context_section_description: Bute played a role in the event of the Merthyr Rising, a large, armed industrial protest that occurred in Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales in 1831. 
  Political tensions amongst the working classes in Glamorgan had grown during the 1820s: although wages were impressive by contemporary standards during good years, they deteriorated quickly during depressions, plunging many into destitution; sanitation and health standards in the fast-growing industrial communities were appalling, child mortality rates were extremely high. 1831 saw a severe economic depression, with wages falling quickly and food prices rising, and complaints against the local debt courts and their bailiffs were numerous. Nationally, the electoral reform movement was making considerable protests and protests against the Corn Laws—which kept the prices of food high—were growing. In South Wales, several of the major ironmasters were associated with these movements, promoting reform under the Whig administration voted into power between April and June 1831.
  By late 1830, and certainly by the spring of 1831, trouble in South Wales looked likely and, probably in response, Bute broke from his normal annual plans and in May travelled south from Scotland to Cardiff Castle. With a reform bill looking likely, tensions grew between the different political factions in Glamorganshire and how the potential new parliamentary seats should be shared out, especially between Bute and his conservative allies, Crawshay and Guest. Radical demonstrations occurred in Merthyr Tydfil, one of the largest industrial communities, in May, and the crowd set light to effigies of conservative politicians. Violence broke out and arrests were made on 10 May; the prisoners were released by the angry crowd and the local authorities effectively lost any control of the town. A general insurrection ensued on 30 May.
  Two local magistrates, J. Bruce and Anthony Hill, were stranded in the Castle Inn in Merthyr Tydfil. They swore in around 70 men as special constables, but they were heavily outnumbered by the radical crowds. Bruce wrote an urgent letter to Bute in Cardiff Castle, asking for urgent advice on whether to call in the armed forces, and querying whether the Marquess had readied the Militia for action. Huge crowds marched on the local iron works, stopping production. The messages from Merthyr Tydfil reached Bute that afternoon, who began to assemble the Eastern and Central Yeomanry militia units and transport ready for deployment. Bute paused until the morning, hoping to hear better news, but messengers bought more desperate news from Bruce and Hill, and the Yeomanry were dispatched. Meanwhile, an 80-man unit of the 93rd Foot had arrived in the Castle Inn from Brecon. Bute continued to keep Whitehall informed of the events by letter throughout.
  On the morning of 3 May, the 93rd Foot reached the Castle Inn, where the magistrates had been joined by the established figures of the town, deputised as constables, including the High Sheriff and most of the ironmasters. Outside, the radical crowds had grown to an estimated number of between 7,000 and 10,000. Tensions rose alarmingly and the Riot Act was read in English and Welsh. Violence flared, the crowds attempted to seize the soldiers' weapons and the soldiers responded with volleys of musket fire. The town's working classes exploded in anger and set about searching the region for weapons. A messenger escaped the inn to reach Bute in Cardiff, who set about mobilising all the remaining armed forces he had available. Bute also despatched Lieutenant-Colonel Richard Morgan of the Militia into Merthyr to replace the commander of the 93rd Foot who had been badly injured.
  The men in the Castle Inn retreated to Penydarren House, who were joined by the initial reinforcements from the Yeomanry, bringing the establishment's numbers to around 300, not all of them were armed and able to fight. They faced increasingly well-armed insurgents and Bute became increasingly concerned about the quality of the opposition facing his men. Bute sent spies into the insurgen
caption: Cyfarthfa Castle, scene of part of the Merthyr Rising in 1831
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