History

Erected l920; unveiled on 10th July. Sculpture by Sir W Goscombe John, cast by A B Burton, Founder of Thames Ditton. Born Griffith Rhys Jones in l834 he became known as Caradog after the enormous success of the 'Cor Caradog' at Aberfan in l854. He was trained as a blacksmith (his father was an engineer at the Llwydcoed Ironworks) and it is said that people came for music lessons in his smithy during the meal breaks at the collieries. In l858 he became conductor of the Aberdare United choir, in l870 founded a male voice choir at Treorchy where he had moved to become a publican and in l872 and l873 he conducted the South Wales Choral Union (Cor Mawr) to victory in the Crystal Palace competition. These latter achievements have earned 'Caradog' the place as one of Wales' greatest choral conductors. He died in l897.

Exterior

Pre-cast stone square pedestal with chamfered corners and raised inscribed panels. Bronze standing statue of 'Caradog' as if conducting. At his back a coat is draped over a three-legged stool with tassels to the seat. A violin leans against it to the right, in a reference to the fact that he also played the violin; the absence of a bow is said to allude to the story that he used a silk handkerchief instead of a bow.

Reasons for Listing

Group value

External Links

• Cadwr Listing
• Wikidata Q29489462

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Hampshire: Winchester and the North (The Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Devon (Pevsner Buildings of England)
• 
  Department for Communities Listed Historic Buildings of Northern Ireland: Information Guide for the 2nd Survey of Historic Buildings
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  Yorkshire West Riding: Sheffield and the South (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Norfolk 1: Norwich and North-East: Norwich and North-east v. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Huddersfield in 50 Buildings