The History, Culture, and Practice of Droving
This was the title of the talk given to a packed Pembridge Parish Hall by Mark Davis, a resident of Brecon and ambassador for the Brecon Beacons National Park. For those unable to attend the event here is a summary of Mark’s talk.
Droving is the driving of livestock to market. It reached its peak between 1700 and 1850 and was dominated by the Welsh drovers who brought animals to English markets as far afield as London, Kent, East Anglia, and the Midlands.
It was not for the faint hearted as conditions were rugged. Yet for those with stamina, who could endure unpredictable weather, and the ever-present danger of robbery and violence, it was a lucrative trade and one which opened wider horizons.
History
The origins of droving have military roots. The Roman army was fed by livestock driven along with them and locals often paid their tax in the form of cattle collected on the way. During wars in France Henry V ordered the drovers to deliver their livestock to the Cinque Ports to keep his army fed.
The Normans introduced livestock markets to England, Smithfield in London being a popular destination for drovers.
The growth of cities fed the demand for meat and Welsh farmers were only too happy to send their stock to the lucrative English markets. Irish farmers got in on the act too, travelling through Wales, until 1666 when Irish imported meat was banned.
By the mid-19th century, the railways made transportation from farm to station a shorter journey. As the railways crept into Wales, fewer farmers used the drovers, preferring the speed of the railway which was easier on the animals.
The practice of droving
There were two seasons;- February to May, when the drovers could get keen prices at the farm gate as animals had been fed all winter, and September to November in time for the Christmas markets.
A typical drove would include 500 cattle, 1,000 sheep, geese and turkeys, and Welsh ponies. At 2 miles per hour the ½ mile long train could cover 15 – 20 miles a day. The journey might take 3-5 weeks, depending upon the terrain. Once at market the lead drover, or porthmon in Welsh, would spend another 2-3 weeks negotiating sales before returning home. If his negotiations had gone well, he might sell his Welsh pony and take the stagecoach. If they had gone badly, he might have to walk.
Animal welfare
The Welsh Black cattle and the Welsh Mountain sheep were favoured breeds as they were hardy and could endure the long journey, grazing on the way, then led to pasture in England for fattening before going to market.
It was essential that the animals were kept in good condition. To avoid them going lame a blacksmith accompanied the drove to shoe the cattle with cues. Cregrina and Llandovery were major centres for shoeing and the Welsh place name Tir Cue means shoeing place and is a legacy of droving.
The drovers made boots for the sheep. The geese and turkeys were driven through bitumen and then through grit to make a hard pad for their feet.
Animal welfare also determined the route which the drovers could take. It was essential to have access to drinking water and pasture and each night’ s resting place needed to be somewhere secure.
Often a lead drover would ride ahead to scout out suitable routes and stopping places. They were on the lookout for potential ambushes by footpads and highwaymen and so would avoid forests and woods, preferring open country with a vantage point. The open ground of Hergest Ridge was a popular route for this reason.
Fear of being attacked led others to join the drovers on their journeys as there was greater safety in numbers. Farmers might send their sons and daughters to the cities to seek work, other travellers would join their throng. Important documents and money were sent with the drovers making them a bigger target for robbery and many were killed in the process.
For their protection the drovers took dogs with them. Corgis, which are adept at biting legs and getting out of the way of their victim, were used to keep the cattle in check, Welsh sheep dogs fulfilled the same purpose with the sheep. Wolfhounds were taken as guard dogs. Once they reached market the dogs would be sent back home, often carrying messages and surplus kit. They simply retraced their steps unaccompanied.
Commercial Considerations
Some drovers earned a reputation for dishonesty. There was plenty of opportunity for them to defraud a farmer by taking his stock with a promise to pay on the return journey for him to never see the money. But it’s believed that most were men of honour and would pay their debts. To engender trust in the practice lead drovers became licensed and would wear a metal plate on the shoulder with a licence number, like licenced taxi drivers today.
The practice of droving was a major spur to the development of banking. A system of tokens grew up which became the foundation of promissory notes, the forerunners of the cheque book. Banks were established to support droving including Wilkins Bank, the Bank of the Black Ox, the Bank of the Black Sheep. In Llandovery Daffyd Jones set up the Bank of the Black Horse which became Lloyds Bank. The museum in Llandovery includes a great number of droving artefacts.
Droving routes
Apart from the need to find secure pasture and drinking water, the drovers’ routes needed to take other factors into consideration. River crossings had to be carefully planned. Many bridges included tolls to be avoided. Sometimes the drovers would build a bridge over a narrow river or stream if this gave a more direct route.
There was a ferry used to transport animals across the Wye. Disaster struck when the cattle panicked and capsized the boat. The drovers survived by hanging on to the bullocks’ tales. As the cattle swam across, they reached safety, but the ferryman drowned
Boggy ground was an obstacle, and cattle could not traverse steep slopes. Toll roads and villages were avoided as the noise, smells and mess created by hundreds of cattle and sheep weren’t welcome unless the drovers were staying there and spending money. Sometimes, in their eagerness to seek a direct route, drovers would smash down fences and hedges which made them unpopular.
At the end of the day a village or friendly farm would be sought for the night. Grazing for the animals was essential and was charged at a halfpenny a head. The men needed food and beer. One such place which provided both was the Rhydspence Inn. Rhyd meaning river crossing and pense referring to the halfpenny charge.
Navigating the route by church towers and the shape of the landscape was supplemented by a system of planting three Scots pines at strategic points. These evergreens had a distinctive shape and are seen today as a marker of a droving route. Other tell-tale signs are street names and pubs. The Drover’s Arms or Drover’s Inn is an obvious give away but so too pubs like the former Cow Inn in Abergavenny.
Locally, Builth Wells and Llandrindod Wells en route to Kington were important staging posts with the Forest Inn on the road to Builth being a stopover point. The Kin in Kington is thought to be derived from the word kine ,an old word for cattle mentioned in the Bible, underlining the importance of Kington as a market. The Stagg Inn at Titley may also have provided shelter as it is at the convergence of two major droving routes.
Mark’s talk was very well received by those of us lucky enough to secure a ticket. If you’re interested to find out more the museum at Llandovery is worth a visit and there are many books on droving which, in the 18th and 19th centuries, would have been a common sight in these parts.
Kay Ingram
Further reading
Elias T (2018) On the Trail of the Welsh Drovers Steptoes Publishing
Evans I (20080 Hard Road to London , Steptoes Publisihing
Godwin F & Toulson S (1997) The Drovers’ Roads of Wales, Wilkwood house Ltd, London
Hindle P (2001) Roads & Tracks for Historians, Butler & Tanner , London
Moore-Colyer R Welsh Cattle Drovers , Bath Press Ltd, Bath
Smith W (2013) Drovers’ Roads of the Middle Marches, Logaston Press, Eardisley
Toulson S ( 2005) The Drovers, Shire Publications, Princes Risborough, Bucks
Plumley G. Drovers’ Routes the Ancient Trails from Farm to Market, Country Life
