This article is about the particular significance of the year 1939 to Wales and its people.
See also other events of 1939 and the list of years in Wales. This article is about the country. ... The Welsh (Cymry) are an ethnic group or nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language, which is a Celtic language. ... 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full year calendar). ... This page indexes the individual year in Wales pages. ...

Incumbents

• Prince of Wales - vacant
• Princess of Wales - vacant
• Archbishop of Wales - Charles Alfred Howell Green
• Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales - Crwys

The Prince of Wales Feathers. This Heraldic badge of the Heir Apparent is derived from the ostrich feathers borne by Edward, the Black Prince. ... Camilla Mountbatten-Windsor, the current Princess of Wales. ... The Province of Wales in the Anglican Communion was created in 1920, as the Church in Wales, independent from the Church of England (of which the four Welsh dioceses had previously been part). ... Charles Alfred Howell Green (1864-1944) was the first bishop of the newly established diocese of Monmouth (1921-1928) and subsequently Bishop of Bangor (1928-1944) during which time he also served as Archbishop of Wales (1934-1944). ... Druid can refer to: a priest of the religion of the ancient Celts, see Druidry. ... The Eisteddfod (from Welsh eistedd, to sit; plural is eisteddfodau) is a Welsh festival of literature, music, and song. ... William Williams (1875 - January 13, 1968), better known by his bardic name of Crwys, was a Welsh poet and served as Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales from 1939 to 1949. ...

Events

• 1 June - The submarine HMS Thetis sinks during trials in Red Wharf Bay, Anglesey. 99 men are lost.
• The Urdd establishes the first-ever Welsh-medium primary school, at Aberystwyth.
• De Havilland opens an aircraft factory at Broughton in north-east Wales.
• The first war-time evacuees arrive in Wales.
• A government report shows that seven of the thirteen Welsh counties have the highest incidence of tuberculosis in the whole of England and Wales.
• Aneurin Bevan is temporarily expelled from the Labour Party.
• George Maitland Lloyd Davies becomes President of the pacifist group Heddychwyr Cymru.

June 1 is the 152nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (153rd in leap years), with 213 days remaining. ... HMS Thetis (N25) was a Group 1 T-class submarine of the Royal Navy which sank on 1 June 1939 with the loss of 99 lives. ... Welsh redirects here, and this article describes the Welsh language. ... Primary or elementary education is the first years of formal, structured education that occurs during childhood. ... Aberystwyth (IPA: , South Welsh: ) (in English: Mouth of the Ystwyth) is a historic market town, administrative centre and holiday resort within Ceredigion, Wales. ... Until 1920, Geoffrey de Havillands de Havilland Aircraft Company had been known as Airco, where he was owner and chief designer. ... Tuberculosis (abbreviated as TB for Tubercle Bacillus) is a common and deadly infectious disease caused by the mycobacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis or Mycobacterium bovis, which most commonly affects the lungs (pulmonary TB) but can also affect the central nervous system, lymphatic system, circulatory system, genitourinary system, bones, joints, and even the... A statue of Bevan in Cardiff. ...

Arts and literature

• August - For the first time ever, both chair and crown are withheld at the National Eisteddfod.
• John Roberts Williams becomes editor of Y Cymro.

Awards

• National Eisteddfod of Wales (held in Denbigh
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair - withheld
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown - withheld
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal - John Gwilym Jones

The Eisteddfod (from Welsh eistedd, to sit; plural is eisteddfodau) is a Welsh festival of literature, music, and song. ... This is about a town in Wales. ...

New books

• D. Gwenallt Jones - Ysgubau'r Awen
• Richard Llewellyn - How Green Was My Valley
• Moelona - Ffynnonlloyw
• Howard Spring - Heaven Lies About Us

Gwenallt (1899-1968) (bardic name of David James Jones) was one of the most important literary figures in the Welsh language. ... Richard Llewellyn (real name Richard David Vivian Llewellyn Lloyd) (December 8, 1906 - November 30, 1983) was a British novelist. ... How Green Was My Valley is a novel of 1939, by Richard Llewellyn. ... Howard Spring (1889-1965) was a Welsh author. ...

Music

• Ivor Novello - The Dancing Years
• Grace Williams - Four Illustrations for the Legend of Rhiannon

Ivor Novello David Ivor Davies (January 15, 1893 – March 6, 1951), better known as Ivor Novello, was a Welsh composer, singer and actor who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the early 20th century. ... The Dancing Years was one of the most popular musicals by Ivor Novello. ... Grace Mary Williams (February 19, 1906 - February 10, 1977) was a Welsh composer. ...

Film

• Ray Milland stars in Hotel Imperial and Beau Geste.

––§ Ray Milland in The Lost Weekend Ray Milland (January 3, 1905 – March 10, 1986) was a successful Welsh actor and director who worked primarily in the United States. ... Beau Geste is one of the most re-made stories of all time, with three movie versions released in 1926, 1939, and 1966, as well as a television mini-series in 1982 and a 1977 parody, the aptly named The Last Remake of Beau Geste starring Marty Feldman and Michael...

Welsh language film

• Efaciwis a Ricriwtio (World War II propaganda film)

Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

Broadcasting

Sports

Births

• 11 January - Phil Williams, politician
• 1 February - Cynog Dafis, politician
• 8 March - Robert Tear, operatic tenor
• 16 March - Ken Morgans, footballer
• 29 March - Ronnie Williams, actor and comedian
• 8 June - Norman Davies, historian
• 17 June - Donald Anderson, Baron Anderson of Swansea, politician
• 29 September - Rhodri Morgan, First Minister of Wales
• date unknown - Iris Gower, novelist

January 11 is the 11th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Dr Phil Williams (January 11, 1939 - June 10, 2003) was a Welsh politician and scientist. ... February 1 is the 32nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Cynog Glyndwr Dafis (born 1939) is a Welsh politician and member of the Plaid Cymru party. ... March 8 is the 67th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (68th in leap years). ... Robert Tear (born March 8, 1939) is a Welsh tenor. ... March 16 is the 75th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (76th in leap years). ... Kenneth Ken Morgans was born in South Wales in 1939. ... March 29 is the 88th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (89th in leap years). ... Ronnie Williams (Ronald Clive Williams) (March 29, 1939 - December 28, 1997), was a Welsh actor and comedian. ... June 8 is the 159th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (160th in leap years), with 206 days remaining. ... Norman Davies, Warsaw (Poland), October 7, 2004 Norman Davies (born June 8, 1939 in Bolton, Lancashire) is an English historian of Welsh descent, noted for his publications on the history of Poland, Europe and the British Isles. ... June 17 is the 168th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (169th in leap years), with 197 days remaining. ... Donald Anderson, Baron Anderson of Swansea, PC, DL (b. ... September 29 is the 272nd day of the year (273rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Rhodri Morgan, pictured while on an eve of poll visit during the National Assembly of Wales election in 2003. ... Iris Gower is a popular Swansea-based novelist. ...

Deaths

• January 27 - Lewis Jones, miners' leader and novelist
• March 24 - Gwyn Nicholls, rugby player
• April 23 - Morgan Jones, sitting MP for Llanelli
• April 29 - Timothy Rees, Bishop of Llandaff
• June 14 - Ivor Guest, 1st Viscount Wimborne, politician
• June 29 - Henry Stuart Jones, academic
• September 18 - Gwen John, artist
• September 21 - Sir John Lynn-Thomas, surgeon
• September 26 - Leif Jones, politician
• December 2 - Llewelyn Powys, writer
• date unknown - Gwenllian Morgan, local politician