Hanes/ History
Ploughing is one of the oldest crafts of the countryside, going back many thousands of years and made reference to in several books of the Bible. Initially made of little more than a stick being pulled by man through the soil in which to make a channel or groove for seed to be sown in.
The system did not change much down the centuries until the invention of steel which totally changed the concept of plough making. Cast steel shares and mouldboards were introduced in the mid nineteenth century and during this period great strides were made in perfecting ploughs so that deeper and wider furrows could be turned to produce more soil so that better crops could be grown. It was also during this period that ploughing competitions were born and spread rapidly throughout the British Isles. For approximately one hundred years ploughing matches were local parish affairs with horse drawn ploughs turning grassland throughout the winter months. By 1950 tractor ploughing had come to the fore, and with no transport readily available, competitors wished to spread their wings and do battle with ploughmen throughout the land. With this in mind National and International ploughing contests were introduced. From 1958 until the present day Wales has held an annual Championship for both ploughing and hedge laying. We are all therefore most grateful to the Radnor Valley Ploughing Society for making it all possible.
A. Ellis Davies
The system did not change much down the centuries until the invention of steel which totally changed the concept of plough making. Cast steel shares and mouldboards were introduced in the mid nineteenth century and during this period great strides were made in perfecting ploughs so that deeper and wider furrows could be turned to produce more soil so that better crops could be grown. It was also during this period that ploughing competitions were born and spread rapidly throughout the British Isles. For approximately one hundred years ploughing matches were local parish affairs with horse drawn ploughs turning grassland throughout the winter months. By 1950 tractor ploughing had come to the fore, and with no transport readily available, competitors wished to spread their wings and do battle with ploughmen throughout the land. With this in mind National and International ploughing contests were introduced. From 1958 until the present day Wales has held an annual Championship for both ploughing and hedge laying. We are all therefore most grateful to the Radnor Valley Ploughing Society for making it all possible.
A. Ellis Davies
