Arrive at Cardigan at 2pm on the last Saturday in April and you will be greeted by a unique sight. Crowds will be lining the streets, everyone will know each other, there will be perfect specimens of all types of horses, and vintage vehicles and farm machinery will be chugging their way along the roads. So what is going on?
Barley Saturday, Parade of Stallions, Cardigan, West Wales
On the last Saturday in April in Cardigan, an event takes place that has been a focal point of the local calendar since the latter half of the 19th century. Horses hooves pound the streets of the town, and the smell of diesel and vintage machinery fills the air, as people line both sides of the pavements in their hundreds. While many traditional events have died out over the years, one has remained stoically as an important part of the culture and history of Cardigan and the surrounding area, never failing in its ability to pull in the masses from the communities around Cardigan.
With its long history, the Barley Saturday Parade is a constant, and has only bowed out a handful of times for events beyond anyone’s control. This iconic local event has been a permanent fixture for as long as any living person can remember except for a sporadic period between the second world war and the 1960s, when the use of horses on local farms was in decline, more recently stepping aside only during times of national crisis, like the outbreak of the foot and mouth disease, which prohibited the movement of livestock, and the coronavirus pandemic.
The event, which takes place on the 30th April this year, for the first time since the start of the pandemic, has its roots in a hiring fair which had been held in late April in Cardigan since the mid 19th century. Local farmers from the surrounding area would come to Cardigan to hire workers and inspect stallions that are put out to stud, however by the end of the 19th century, the fair had gradually become a stallion fair, with horses becoming the main attraction. Originally called the Parade of Stallions, the day is known as Barley Saturday now, and gets its name from the fact that it has always been held on the day in April by which time the seasons crop of barley should have been sown.
At 11.30am on the last Saturday of April, the judging of various horse competitions commences, and, once the presentations have been made, the crowds gather and line the streets of Cardigan town to watch the horses make their way through the town, followed by all sorts of vehicles from a by gone era. Cars, milk floats, tractors, carriages, and buses from local companies that many a spectator on the side of the road can probably remember travelling on to school or town.
The parade of the town begins at the school fields and makes its way along Feidr Fair, around the castle wall, and up the High Street. Beginning at approximately 2pm, people throng both sides of the road, so you need to get there in good time to get the best view of these beautiful horses in their show-best, groomed and preened to the nines.
For more information on Barley Saturday, see www.facebook.com/SadwrnBarlysBarleySaturday or call 01239 841524
With thanks to
Glen Johnson www.glen-johnson.co.uk
Dyfed Shire Horse Farm www.dyfed-shires.co.uk
