Mystery at Port Eynon

 Everyone likes a good mystery. During 2020, during the first national lockdown, I wrote blogs when bay wasn’t being published. I would look at interesting newspaper articles and found one published in The Cambrian Daily Leader on 7 December 1914 (below centre). It was about the last veteran of the Indian Mutiny being buried at St Cattwg Church (below left) in Port Eynon.

So, who was this veteran?  The Indian Mutiny, or Sepoy Mutiny or Indian Rebellion of 1857 (1857-58) was the widespread rebellion against British rule in India which was started by Indian troops (sepoys) in the service of the English East India Company.

The rebellion erupted into other mutinies around Northern and Central India. The rebel-lion posed a considerable threat to the British power in the region.

At the conclusion of the Indian Mutiny, the British had victory, resulting in the creation of the British Raj, from the former East India Company. Lands were either returned to their former owners or confiscated by the British Crown.

Later in 2020 when restrictions were lifted my mother and I went searching for the said grave dated 1914. The graveyard of St Cattwg isn’t that big, and the graves are mainly from several well-known Gower families. Sadly, we didn’t have much luck and that’s where the story would have ended until this year, when on a visit to Gower I met Parish Warden, Mr. H Dunthorne and I mentioned to him about this veteran of which he had no knowledge.

With his help and after he’d carried out some research he shared with me his findings.

There was a funeral in September 1914 of 84-year-old Silvanus Bevan (headstone at St Cattwg above right). Silvanus died at his residence in Overton. There was no information to his ever being in the army.

Mr. Dunthorne carried out research on the Wales Newspaper Online website, and this was the result…

There was a funeral during the December 1914. The Cambrian Daily Leader published an article on 3 December “Mutiny Veteran’s Death” (below). Giving us an account of John Clarke, an ex-Sergeant of the 8th King’s Royal Regiment, who served during the Mutiny, who died at his residence in Lime Street, Gorseinon, on the 1 December. The following day, there was a further article “Mutiny Veteran”, not only does this article give us a photograph of John Clarke, (right) but it also gives further de-tails that John was a Deacon, of three places of worship – Tabernacle (Penclawdd); Libanus and Tabernacle (Gorseinon). The latter was founded by John. John was buried (right) at Kings-bridge cemetery, Gorseinon.

So, it seems to be the case that the journalist made a mistake in his reporting, and that they shouldn’t have cited Port Eynon. Mystery solved.

Copyright - The Bay Magazine, September 2023

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