Beti Rhys (2 April 1907 – 5 April 2003) was a Welsh

bookseller Bookselling is the commercial trading of books which is the retail and distribution end of the publishing process. People who engage in bookselling are called booksellers, bookdealers, bookpeople, bookmen, or bookwomen. The founding of librari ...

and author who promoted literature in the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language family, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut P ...

South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

in the 1950s and 1960s. Educated at the

Howell's School, Llandaff , image = Ysgol Howell, Llandaf 01.JPG , image_size = , caption = , coordinates = , motto = Nurturing Excellence , established = 1860 , closed = , type = Independent day school , rel ...

, where a policy was enacted to bar anyone from speaking Welsh, she began her career teaching the language in schools. In 1950 Rhys began a bookshop specialising in books in Welsh and university textbooks in

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

. The shop was successful academically, financially and socially and attracted many notable Welsh individuals. After retiring in 1968, she travelled the world, wrote two books on the subject and a biography on Evan Rees, the Archdruid of Wales.

Biography

Beti Rhys was born on 2 April 1907 in

Port Talbot Port Talbot (, ) is a town and community in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, situated on the east side of Swansea Bay, approximately from Swansea. The Port Talbot Steelworks covers a large area of land which dominates the south ...

Glamorgan , HQ = Cardiff , Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974) , Origin= , Code = GLA , CodeName = Chapman code , Replace = * West Glamorgan * Mid Glamorgan * South Glamorgan , Motto ...

. She was the daughter of J.E. Rhys, a Presbyterian minister, and his wife. Rhys had one sister, Neilan. She was educated at the

, which she resented due to its policy of barring any person from speaking the

; Rhys was described by one member of staff as "dirty Welsh". The experience failed to dissuade her and she went on to read Welsh at

University College, Cardiff , latin_name = , image_name = Shield of the University of Cardiff.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms of Cardiff University , motto = cy, Gwirionedd, Undod a Chytgord , mottoeng = Truth, Unity and Concord , established = 1 ...

(now Cardiff University). Rhys began her career teaching Welsh at multiple schools before settling at the Pentre Secondary School in the

Rhondda Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley ( cy, Cwm Rhondda ), is a former coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fawr valley ('' ...

. In 1950 Rhys borrowed money from friends of hers to begin a bookshop specialising in books published in the Welsh language and university textbooks at the

Castle Arcade The Castle Arcade is a shopping arcade in Cardiff, South Wales. Started in 1887, it runs south from opposite Cardiff Castle, and then turns east to exit on the High Street, north of St Mary Street, in the Castle Quarter. One of the longer ...

shopping building in

. During that era, books published in the Welsh language were scarce with a close following and the opening of her shop expanded their reach further south in Wales. According to Rhys' obituarist in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', the shop became "a focal point for the Welsh literati". Soon after its opening she obtained contracts to deliver textbooks to various Welsh educational institutions. Rhys had regular customers in

Idris Foster Sir Idris Llewelyn Foster (23 July 1911 – 18 June 1984) was a Welsh scholar and Jesus Professor of Celtic at the University of Oxford from 1947 until 1978. He was born in Carneddi, Bethesda, Caernarfonshire, Wales, and studied Latin and Welsh ...

, the professor of Celtic Studies at

Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship St ...

, the poets

Waldo Williams Waldo Goronwy Williams (30 September 1904 – 20 May 1971) was one of the leading Welsh-language poets of the 20th century. He was also a notable Christian pacifist, anti-war campaigner, and Welsh nationalist. He is often referred to by his fir ...

and

Dylan Thomas Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer whose works include the poems "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "And death shall have no dominion", as well as the "play for voices" ''Under ...

Saunders Lewis Saunders Lewis (born John Saunders Lewis) (15 October 1893 – 1 September 1985) was a Welsh politician, poet, dramatist, Medievalist, and literary critic. He was a prominent Welsh nationalist, supporter of Welsh independence and was a co-found ...

, the co-founder of the political party

Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom. Plaid wa ...

, the historian John Davies, the politician

Neil Kinnock Neil Gordon Kinnock, Baron Kinnock (born 28 March 1942) is a British former politician. As a member of the Labour Party, he served as a Member of Parliament from 1970 until 1995, first for Bedwellty and then for Islwyn. He was the Leader of ...

and his wife Glenys Parry. The shop made an academic, financial and social success, and she soon opened a second shop in Park Place, Cardiff, which her sister managed. Rhys also advised students who struggled academically. A doctor from Kuwait held a positive review of her swift service, and he persuaded his hospital in his home country to order all of its works from her store. She sold her shops in 1968, so that she could retire to

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth () is a university and seaside town as well as a community in Ceredigion, Wales. Located in the historic county of Cardiganshire, means "the mouth of the Ystwyth". Aberystwyth University has been a major educational location in ...

and travel. Rhys traveled to China via a cargo boat, the

Trans-Siberian Railway The Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR; , , ) connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway line in the world. It runs from the city of Moscow in the west to the city of Vladivostok in the ea ...

to reach Russia, a bus to India, visited the Americas by the

Greyhound Lines Greyhound Lines, Inc. (commonly known as simply Greyhound) operates the largest intercity bus service in North America, including Greyhound Mexico. It also operates charter bus services, Amtrak Thruway services, commuter bus services, and pac ...

, and all of Africa. She wrote two books about her travels, ''Crwydro'r Byd'' (Travelling the World), and ''I'r India a thu hwnt'' (To India and Beyond) in 1995. Rhys wrote a biography about her great uncle, Evan Rees, the Archdruid of Wales from 1905 to 1923. She later returned to Cardiff, and went into a nursing home. She died on 5 April 2003.

Personality

Rhys was described by her obituarist in ''The Times'' as a "Champion of Welsh" and an "indomitable Welsh woman".

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhys, Beti 1907 births 2003 deaths 20th-century Welsh writers 20th-century Welsh women writers 21st-century Welsh people 21st-century Welsh women People from Port Talbot People educated at Howell's School Llandaff Alumni of Cardiff University Welsh-language writers Welsh non-fiction writers Welsh travel writers British women travel writers Welsh booksellers Welsh biographers British women biographers 20th-century Welsh businesspeople