Caleb Rees (1883–1970) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

school inspector A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compulsor ...

for over forty years and a writer on educational and ecclesiastical topics.

Life

He was born at "Esgairordd", in Whitchurch, Pembrokeshire, the son of Jacob and Mary Rees. His career started after the 'crucible years' of legislation establishing universal education in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

and his major achievements coincided with the period when LEAs had taken control of all schools following their creation by the

Education Act 1902 The Education Act 1902 ( 2 Edw. 7 c. 42), also known as the Balfour Act, was a highly controversial Act of Parliament that set the pattern of elementary education in England and Wales for four decades. It was brought to Parliament by a Conservat ...

. It was as a beneficiary of the earlier 1889 Intermediate Education Act, pre-dating similar legislation in England by a dozen years, that he received his education at Port Talbot Intermediate School and from which he won a scholarship to

University College In a number of countries, a university college is a college institution that provides tertiary education but does not have full or independent university status. A university college is often part of a larger university. The precise usage varies ...

in 1899. He matriculated with first class honours in 1902 winning the Gladstone Memorial Prize Rees went on to gain the Withers Prize at the

University of Manchester , mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity , established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univer ...

before returning to Wales as lecturer in education at

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 ...

and gaining an M.A. there in 1909. In 1912 Rees was appointed as one of Her Majesty's inspectors of schools and thereafter spent over forty years in post, responsible initially for Brecon, Monmouth and Newport. Throughout this period he wrote extensively on the theory and practice of education including articles on teaching Welsh in schools. After three years service in the

RNVR The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original Ro ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

he became a leading authority on teacher training as inspector of training colleges and university training departments. Later, as deputy Chief Inspector for Wales, he was an influential national representative advising many governing bodies at county level on a wide range of technical issues. In 1922 he married Dr Laura Powell, Medical Officer to the Welsh Board of Health and they made their home in

Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay Europe Ireland *Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...

. At the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Rees succeeded Sir Robert Webber as M.O.I Director for Wales MOI Chief Information Officer for Wales 1939
/ref> but in 1943, after ill health obliged him to reduce his workload, he moved to

Island House, Laugharne Island House is a Grade II* listed, partly Tudor, sub-medieval townhouse located in Laugharne, Carmarthenshire, in southwest Wales. It sits below the castle between the two mouths by which the River Corran enters the Tâf estuary, known lo ...

. From that ancient building, even in later semi-retirement, he continued to conduct selection interviews for ex-servicemen and graduates seeking entry into the teaching profession and also wrote several works on ecclesiastical history. He was named after his famous great-grandfather Caleb Morris o

where he was himself elected honorary

Deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

and about which he co-authored a history with his brother Stephen in 1959.

References

Sources

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rees, Caleb Welsh non-fiction writers People from Pembrokeshire 20th-century Welsh educators 20th-century Welsh writers 1883 births 1970 deaths People from Carmarthenshire 20th-century British non-fiction writers School inspectors