Evacuees and their host communities in Wales
War looked extremely likely from 1938 onwards, so the government started to plan how to protect people who were vulnerable and needed to be moved from the cities to the countryside. For example, children, pregnant women and people with disabilities were moved to safer areas, known as host areas.
Evacuation began on 1 September 1939, when people were moved to safer areas in the countryside or to areas less likely to be targeted by German bombers. Evacuated children were allocated to host families.
It was a gigantic task as approximately 1.5 million people moved around the country in search of safety in the first wave of evacuation. During the 鈥楶honey War鈥, many evacuees drifted back home only to return once the Blitz started.
In the Rhondda valley, 33,500 evacuees from London, Cardiff and Bristol found shelter in the homes of local people.
The experiences of the evacuees were mixed.
- Many were welcomed and felt a part of the family.
- Some had a better standard of living than before the war.
- Some were mistreated or abused.
- Some experienced bed wetting and nightmares.
- Some were used as unpaid workers.
- Learning a new language - not everyone in Wales spoke English and evacuees from England couldn't speak Welsh at first.
- Some stayed in contact after the war.
