Iorwerth Cyfeiliog Peate (27 February 1901 – 19 October 1982) was a Welsh poet and scholar, best known as the founder, along with

Cyril Fox Sir Cyril Fred Fox (16 December 1882 – 15 January 1967) was an English archaeologist and museum director. Fox became keeper of archaeology at the National Museum of Wales, and subsequently served as director from 1926 to 1948. Many of his m ...

, of

St Fagans National Museum of History St Fagans National Museum of History ( ; ), commonly referred to as St Fagans after the village where it is located, is an open-air museum in St Fagans, Cardiff, Wales, chronicling the historical lifestyle, culture, and architecture of the Wels ...

. Iorwerth Cyfeiliog Peate was born on 27 February 1901 in

Llanbrynmair Llanbrynmair or Llanbryn-mair () is a village, Community (Wales), community and electoral ward in Montgomeryshire, Powys, Wales on the A470 road between Caersws and Machynlleth. In 2011, it had a population of 920. Description The community inc ...

, Montgomeryshire, the son of George Howard and Elizabeth Peate (née Thomas). His father and grandfather were carpenters. He attended Llanbryn-Mair Elementary School and

Machynlleth Machynlleth () is a market town, community and electoral ward in Powys, Wales and within the historic boundaries of Montgomeryshire. It is in the Dyfi Valley at the intersection of the A487 and the A489 roads. At the 2001 Census it had a po ...

Grammar School, and in 1918 entered the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth (now

Aberystwyth University Aberystwyth University () is a Public university, public Research university, research university in Aberystwyth, Wales. Aberystwyth was a founding member institution of the former federal University of Wales. The university has over 8,000 stude ...

). Peate's interest in folk studies and anthropology was kindled when studying Colonial History and Geography at Aberystwyth under professor

Herbert John Fleure Herbert John Fleure, (6 June 1877 – 1 July 1969) was a British zoologist and geographer. He was secretary of the Geographical Association, editor of ''Geography'', and president of the Cambrian Archaeological Association (1924–25), Roy ...

and writer T. Gwynn Jones. Peate received an M.A. in 1924 for a dissertation on the anthropology, dialect and folklore of the people living in the Dyfi valley. While studying at Aberystwyth, Peate won university prizes for his poetry and for his participation in the

eisteddfod In Welsh culture, an ''eisteddfod'' is an institution and festival with several ranked competitions, including in poetry and music. The term ''eisteddfod'', which is formed from the Welsh morphemes: , meaning 'sit', and , meaning 'be', means, a ...

. Peate began his career by lecturing in rural

Ceredigion Ceredigion (), historically Cardiganshire (, ), is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the West Wales, west of Wales. It borders Gwynedd across the River Dyfi, Dyfi estuary to the north, Powys to the east, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire t ...

and Meirioneth, before being appointed in 1927 to catalogue the

National Museum of Wales National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

' folk collections. Inspired by the open-air museums of Scandinavia, Peate had a vision of recreating this style of attraction for Welsh life and culture. His initial attempts were challenged by those outside and inside the academic world. Work on the museum commenced in 1946, in the grounds of

St Fagans Castle St Fagans Castle () is an Elizabethan mansion in St Fagans, Cardiff, Wales, dating from the late 16th century. The house and remaining medieval fortifications are Grade I listed. The grounds of St Fagans Castle now contain St Fagans National Mu ...

on the outskirts of Cardiff donated by the

Earl of Plymouth Earl of Plymouth is a title that has been created three times: twice in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. History The first creation was in 1675 for Charles FitzCharles, one of the dozens of illegitimate ...

. The museum opened in 1948 as the Welsh Folk Museum, and it is now the

. Peate was Keeper-in-Charge (later Curator) of the museum from its opening until 1971. Peate published work on the study of folk life in both English and Welsh, and wrote a regular review column for the Welsh-language newspaper '' Y Cymro''. He was a pacifist who registered as a

conscientious objector A conscientious objector is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of conscience or religion. The term has also been extended to objecting to working for the military–indu ...

in 1941 and believed in a monoglot Welsh-speaking Wales. Peate was a judge for the

National Eisteddfod The National Eisteddfod of Wales ( Welsh: ') is the largest of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales. Its eight days of competitions and performances are considered the largest music and poetry festival in Europe. Competito ...

for a number of years. Peate received a number of honours over his life. He was awarded an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

by both the

National University of Ireland The National University of Ireland (NUI) () is a federal university system of ''constituent universities'' (previously called '' constituent colleges'') and ''recognised colleges'' set up under the Irish Universities Act 1908, and signifi ...

and the

University of Wales The University of Wales () is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff – the university was the first universit ...

. He declined a 1963 New Years honour appointment as an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE). In 1929 Peate married Nansi (Ann) Davies (1900–1986), whom he had met when they were students at Aberystwyth. They had one son. They lived in Rhiwbina Garden Village in Cardiff, where there is a

blue plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom, and certain other countries and territories, to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving a ...

in his honour. The ashes of Peate and of his wife Nansi are buried in the grounds of Pen Rhiw Unitarian chapel in St Fagans National Museum of History.

Published works

* ''Gyda'r wawr'' (1923) * ''Guide to the Collection of Welsh Bygones'' (1929) * ''Cymru a'i phob'' (1931) * ''Y crefftwr yng Nghymru'' (1933) * ''Guide to the Collection Illustrating Welsh Folk Crafts and Industries'' (1935) * ''Welsh Society and Eisteddfod Medals and Relics'' (1938) * ''The Welsh House: a Study in Folk Culture'' (1940) * ''Diwylliant gwerin Cymru'' (1942) * ''Clock and Watch Makers in Wales'' (1945) * ''Canu Chwarter Canrif'' (1957) * ''Tradition and Folk Life: a Welsh View'' (1972) * ''Diwylliant Gwerin Cymru'' (1975) * ''Rhwng Dau Fyd'' (1976) * ''Personau'' (1982)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peate, Iorwerth 1901 births 1982 deaths 20th-century Welsh poets Alumni of Aberystwyth University People from Montgomeryshire Welsh conscientious objectors Welsh-language writers