0:00:02 > 0:00:06Travelling from London to Wales in search of her ancestry
0:00:06 > 0:00:08is Alex Jones, presenter of...
0:00:08 > 0:00:10# One
0:00:10 > 0:00:11# One... #
0:00:11 > 0:00:13Hello and welcome to the One Show.
0:00:13 > 0:00:17Beginning her career on S4C, the girl from Ammanford, West Wales,
0:00:17 > 0:00:20has taken on every imaginable challenge.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23From the dance floor of Strictly Come Dancing,
0:00:23 > 0:00:27to hanging on a sheer cliff for Sport Relief,
0:00:27 > 0:00:29Alex is not afraid to get stuck in,
0:00:29 > 0:00:33displaying sheer courage, which she hopes to find in her own ancestry.
0:00:33 > 0:00:36As a family, we are pretty determined. Mum especially.
0:00:36 > 0:00:39But I'm thinking maybe going back through different generations,
0:00:39 > 0:00:41maybe that's where I've got it from.
0:00:41 > 0:00:44Because if I decide to embark on a project,
0:00:44 > 0:00:47I have to see it through right to the end.
0:00:47 > 0:00:49And it'd be quite interesting to see
0:00:49 > 0:00:52whether that's something that's come down from perhaps generations.
0:00:52 > 0:00:55So now Alex Jones is Coming Home.
0:00:57 > 0:01:01On this journey, Alex discovers some wayward ancestors...
0:01:01 > 0:01:03So, in the time that he'd been away,
0:01:03 > 0:01:07- so his brother-in-law had basically taken everything?- Yep.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11..learns the price of loyalty to the Crown.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15- £1,000 fine!- You wouldn't like to pay this today.- No!
0:01:15 > 0:01:16Well, think of it then.
0:01:17 > 0:01:21And in trying to prove her family's connection to the sport of kings,
0:01:21 > 0:01:23is overcome with emotion.
0:01:24 > 0:01:26That's amazing.
0:01:26 > 0:01:28Oh!
0:01:29 > 0:01:34Alex's journey begins in the town of Llanelli in West Wales.
0:01:34 > 0:01:36As she will shortly discover,
0:01:36 > 0:01:40it was home to generations of her ancestors who lived and worked here.
0:01:41 > 0:01:45She is heading for a visit to one of the town's oldest buildings -
0:01:45 > 0:01:46Llanelly House.
0:01:46 > 0:01:50A recently restored early 18th-century Georgian town house.
0:01:51 > 0:01:53It's here in this grand building
0:01:53 > 0:01:57that she has arranged to meet with genealogist Mike Churchill Jones.
0:01:58 > 0:02:01- Hi, Alex.- Hiya, Mike. - Welcome to Llanelly House.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03Thank you very much.
0:02:03 > 0:02:06We've got many reasons, thanks to your ancestors, to be in Llanelli.
0:02:06 > 0:02:09And we've been researching your family tree.
0:02:09 > 0:02:12And this is what we've come up with.
0:02:12 > 0:02:14You can help us turn it over.
0:02:14 > 0:02:18- Oh, my God! There's quite a lot, isn't there?- There are quite a few.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23Straightaway, there's a wonderful surprise for Alex,
0:02:23 > 0:02:29Mike has traced her family ancestry in West Wales back over 350 years.
0:02:29 > 0:02:31And the longest line is going back
0:02:31 > 0:02:33to your eight-times great-grandfather,
0:02:33 > 0:02:34Edward Mainwaring.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37- 1642?!- Yeah, around about then.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40Mike, you've been working on this for a long time, haven't you?
0:02:41 > 0:02:43As Alex will later learn,
0:02:43 > 0:02:48the Mainwarings were a prestigious family here in Wales.
0:02:48 > 0:02:49- This is very Welsh then.- Very Welsh.
0:02:49 > 0:02:52I thought that would be the case, really.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57Well, the tree is not entirely Welsh, one of Alex's
0:02:57 > 0:03:01ancestors married a Herman Johnson, who was a sailor from Finland,
0:03:01 > 0:03:04whose story Mike has also been researching.
0:03:04 > 0:03:08There's also another story that Alex would very much like to be able to
0:03:08 > 0:03:12prove, that her great-great grandfather,
0:03:12 > 0:03:15Henry Hughes, was a professional horse jockey.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18But what Mike has discovered is something very different.
0:03:20 > 0:03:21- Henry Hughes.- Mm-hmm.
0:03:21 > 0:03:23He was your second great grandfather.
0:03:23 > 0:03:25He was born in Haverfordwest in Pembrokeshire.
0:03:25 > 0:03:29- And he died just up the road, in 1950, in Llanelli.- OK.
0:03:29 > 0:03:31He was a collier and a doubler in the tinworks.
0:03:34 > 0:03:37This was not really the news Alex was hoping to hear,
0:03:37 > 0:03:40but Mike will continue his investigations.
0:03:44 > 0:03:47Alex is off to learn something of a man of the church.
0:03:47 > 0:03:50The family tree showed Alex's eight-times great-grandfather,
0:03:50 > 0:03:52Edward Mainwaring.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56And she is here to learn something of his father, Roger Mainwaring,
0:03:56 > 0:04:00who lived in the 17th century under the reign of this man,
0:04:00 > 0:04:01King Charles I.
0:04:02 > 0:04:03Hiya, Gerald.
0:04:03 > 0:04:06Historian and author Gerald Morgan has been busy researching
0:04:06 > 0:04:08the Mainwaring family,
0:04:08 > 0:04:12and it appears Alex's nine-times great-grandfather, Roger Mainwaring,
0:04:12 > 0:04:15held high office, in fact, he was a...
0:04:15 > 0:04:18- Bishop?! - You are descended from a bishop.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21- Wow!- How did that happen? - Now, that's a shock.
0:04:21 > 0:04:25I knew there was miners and butchers and farmers, but not a bishop.
0:04:25 > 0:04:28Well, he became a friend of the King.
0:04:28 > 0:04:30He was a vicar in London.
0:04:30 > 0:04:35He was invited to preach before the King and to publish his sermons.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38Three times he preached these sermons
0:04:38 > 0:04:43saying to people that the King had every right to tax them
0:04:43 > 0:04:46without the consent of Parliament,
0:04:46 > 0:04:49that because he was King, essentially,
0:04:49 > 0:04:51he could do what he liked.
0:04:51 > 0:04:54- Parliament was furious. - I'm sure they were.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59Whilst Roger Mainwaring may have been encouraged by King Charles I
0:04:59 > 0:05:01to write these sermons,
0:05:01 > 0:05:05it was initially a fearless act to defy Parliament and back the King.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10There's no doubt that the King had told Roger to get these
0:05:10 > 0:05:14sermons printed. He wanted to make this publicity.
0:05:14 > 0:05:16But when he saw that he'd set Parliament off,
0:05:16 > 0:05:19and that Parliament was outraged,
0:05:19 > 0:05:21he withdrew a little and said,
0:05:21 > 0:05:23"Well, this is going too far. This is going too far."
0:05:23 > 0:05:26- I'm going to get into trouble here. - Yes.
0:05:26 > 0:05:32And so, Roger was thrown into prison by Parliament.
0:05:32 > 0:05:35He was brought before the House of Lords,
0:05:35 > 0:05:37and then the House of Commons,
0:05:37 > 0:05:41to apologise for what he'd done. And he had to do this on his knees.
0:05:41 > 0:05:43I'm not going to ask you to get on your knees.
0:05:43 > 0:05:47- It's a bit confined here. - And we're not in the House of Lords.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51But I'd like you to read this part of the apology that he had to
0:05:51 > 0:05:54make to the Lords and to the House of Commons.
0:05:54 > 0:05:55Wow!
0:05:55 > 0:05:58So, he said, "I do here, in all sorrow of heart
0:05:58 > 0:06:02"and true repentance, acknowledge the many errors and indiscretions which
0:06:02 > 0:06:06"I have committed in preaching and publishing those two sermons of mine.
0:06:06 > 0:06:10"I do, from the bottom of my heart, crave pardon of God, the King,
0:06:10 > 0:06:12"and His Honourable House, the Church,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15"and this Commonwealth in particular."
0:06:15 > 0:06:19That was pretty humiliating, but on top of that, £1,000 fine.
0:06:19 > 0:06:23- £1,000 fine?!- You wouldn't like to pay this today.- No!
0:06:23 > 0:06:25Well, think of it then.
0:06:25 > 0:06:28But, of course, as soon as Parliament broke up,
0:06:28 > 0:06:31the King issued a pardon for Roger Mainwaring.
0:06:31 > 0:06:35And gave him additional offices in the church,
0:06:35 > 0:06:37in addition to what he had.
0:06:37 > 0:06:42But Charles I's pardon of Roger Mainwaring would not last.
0:06:42 > 0:06:46Bad news comes. 1640, Parliament is recalled.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50The King can no longer survive without the help of Parliament.
0:06:50 > 0:06:53But Parliament is no longer willing to help him.
0:06:53 > 0:06:56And the first thing they do is to throw Roger Mainwaring
0:06:56 > 0:06:59back into prison, where he'd spent time before.
0:06:59 > 0:07:03He's stripped of his offices. He's no longer bishop.
0:07:03 > 0:07:07For his support of King Charles I and the Royalist cause,
0:07:07 > 0:07:10Roger Mainwaring had paid a heavy price.
0:07:10 > 0:07:13He lives a pretty rotten life. He was living in poverty.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16He was only able to survive with the help of friends.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19So when he lived in poverty then, where was he at that point?
0:07:19 > 0:07:22As far as I know, he was in Carmarthen with his family.
0:07:22 > 0:07:24With friends and family there.
0:07:24 > 0:07:26And the family of Mainwaring, as I'm sure you know,
0:07:26 > 0:07:29hung on in West Wales until the present day.
0:07:29 > 0:07:31- This is a very common name, isn't it, Mainwaring?- Yes.
0:07:31 > 0:07:35Oh, it's one of those names that is just as Welsh as Jones or Davis.
0:07:35 > 0:07:37That's right.
0:07:37 > 0:07:41And in 1653, as the Civil War had come to an end
0:07:41 > 0:07:45and Parliament was victorious, he died in Carmarthen
0:07:45 > 0:07:49and was buried in Brecon, but he was given a place of honour
0:07:49 > 0:07:52because he was an ex-bishop at least,
0:07:52 > 0:07:55in being buried close to the high altar
0:07:55 > 0:07:57in what was Brecon Priory church
0:07:57 > 0:07:58and it's now the cathedral.
0:08:00 > 0:08:04Alex's story now moves forward over 200 years.
0:08:04 > 0:08:08This specially restored cottage is typical of rural Carmarthenshire
0:08:08 > 0:08:12and gives a flavour of domestic life in 19th-century Wales.
0:08:13 > 0:08:17And it's to the domestic life of Herman Johnson and Ann Brabyn,
0:08:17 > 0:08:21Alex's four-times great-aunt and uncle that the story now turns.
0:08:23 > 0:08:26Herman was a sailor from Finland who gave up his homeland
0:08:26 > 0:08:28for a life at sea.
0:08:28 > 0:08:32Records show that Herman and Ann set up home and furnished it
0:08:32 > 0:08:35at a cost of £69 11s.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39On his return from a sea voyage in 1896,
0:08:39 > 0:08:43Herman received news from home concerning Ann,
0:08:43 > 0:08:46as historian Hedd Ladd Lewis can reveal to Alex.
0:08:48 > 0:08:52"He received a letter telling him that his wife had died." Oh!
0:08:52 > 0:08:54- On June 6th.- Yeah.
0:08:54 > 0:08:58- So while he was out at sea, he lost Ann Brabyn then?- Yes.
0:08:58 > 0:09:00So he had lost his wife.
0:09:00 > 0:09:02She'd passed away,
0:09:02 > 0:09:07and not only does he return to Llanelli to find that his wife has
0:09:07 > 0:09:13passed away, but he also returns to find that he is minus his house
0:09:13 > 0:09:17and minus his personal possessions.
0:09:17 > 0:09:19But what had happened then?
0:09:20 > 0:09:24Whilst Herman was still at sea, and a long way from home,
0:09:24 > 0:09:27Ann's two brothers decided to help themselves
0:09:27 > 0:09:29to the contents of their home.
0:09:29 > 0:09:33But what happened when Herman eventually made it back to Llanelli?
0:09:34 > 0:09:37"So Johnson went at once to his brother-in-law's at Llanelli
0:09:37 > 0:09:39"and found that the two Brabyns
0:09:39 > 0:09:42"had entered into possession of his own goods.
0:09:42 > 0:09:44"Even his trunk had been broken into
0:09:44 > 0:09:46"in which were two insurance policies,
0:09:46 > 0:09:49"both on the life of William Brabyn, the premiums of which had been
0:09:49 > 0:09:53"paid by plaintiff, and also the lease of his house."
0:09:53 > 0:09:55So in the time that he had been away,
0:09:55 > 0:09:59- so his brother-in-law had basically taken everything?- Yeah.
0:09:59 > 0:10:04Now then, the two brother-in-laws were living in Herman Johnson's
0:10:04 > 0:10:06house with Ann.
0:10:08 > 0:10:12- And Ann had passed away.- Right. - Herman was away at sea.
0:10:13 > 0:10:19And during that time then, of course, the two brothers had broken
0:10:19 > 0:10:24into his trunk and they had also removed several items of furniture.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27- Well, the little rascals! - Now then. Oh, yes.
0:10:27 > 0:10:32The case would eventually come to court, to the Glamorgan Assizes
0:10:32 > 0:10:35where Ann Brabyn's brothers tried to defend their actions.
0:10:35 > 0:10:41The brothers being questioned in court and asking why
0:10:41 > 0:10:43they had broken into Johnson's trunk,
0:10:43 > 0:10:46- and this is part of the reply.- OK.
0:10:46 > 0:10:49"Brother Nicholas said he broke into Johnson's trunk to see
0:10:49 > 0:10:52"if he could find any money to pay his wife's funeral expenses,"
0:10:52 > 0:10:54- which makes sense, doesn't it?- Yes.
0:10:54 > 0:10:59"And he took out the other articles to place them in a place of safety."
0:10:59 > 0:11:00Hm, dodgy.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03"The idea of a man breaking open a trunk in his own house and given
0:11:03 > 0:11:07"the goods in it to his neighbours to take care of so they might be..."
0:11:08 > 0:11:11In inverted commas, "..in a place of safety was rather rich
0:11:11 > 0:11:14"and the judge and court laughed loud and long."
0:11:14 > 0:11:17- Well, yes, it doesn't hold much water, does it?- No, it doesn't.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20But the interesting thing here is that the judge laughed.
0:11:21 > 0:11:25The judge rightly found the Brabyn brothers guilty.
0:11:25 > 0:11:27Obviously, it had amused the whole community,
0:11:27 > 0:11:29so there's a very sad part to it.
0:11:29 > 0:11:33But there is also a sort of an amusing side to the story as well...
0:11:33 > 0:11:35Absolutely.
0:11:35 > 0:11:38..when you look at the reaction of the judge and the court.
0:11:38 > 0:11:40But it's all right for the judge laughing.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42He probably had a house and possessions
0:11:42 > 0:11:44- and a trunk that was closed.- Exactly.
0:11:53 > 0:11:57Now, Alex is at Ffos Las racecourse, just outside Llanelli.
0:11:58 > 0:11:59She's here on the trail
0:11:59 > 0:12:02of her great-great-grandfather Henry Hughes,
0:12:02 > 0:12:06someone she always believed to be a professional jockey,
0:12:07 > 0:12:10But why is proving this story so important to her?
0:12:13 > 0:12:16It's because of her grandfather, Denzil,
0:12:16 > 0:12:18now 88 and currently not in the best of health.
0:12:19 > 0:12:21This was Denzil as a young man.
0:12:23 > 0:12:28But earlier still in his life, aged just six, his father died.
0:12:28 > 0:12:30And it was his grandfather, Henry Hughes,
0:12:30 > 0:12:34that Denzil turned to, as Alex explains.
0:12:37 > 0:12:40He didn't know his dad because he died at such a young age,
0:12:40 > 0:12:44so he put a lot of weight into what his grandfather used to do.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46He was the only man that he had a sense of.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51Growing up, Denzil had been told by his grandfather Henry
0:12:51 > 0:12:53that he had been a horse racing jockey,
0:12:53 > 0:12:56something Alex would dearly love to prove.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00So Alex is hoping Mike has some good news.
0:13:01 > 0:13:05Henry's 1891 marriage certificate showed he was a collier
0:13:05 > 0:13:07in the pits of South Wales,
0:13:07 > 0:13:11but ten years later, the census reveals a different story.
0:13:12 > 0:13:18What the 1901 census tells us that N Henry Hughes was...
0:13:20 > 0:13:23Horse jockey grooms master.
0:13:23 > 0:13:24Wow!
0:13:25 > 0:13:30So just as Henry had always said, he was a professional jockey
0:13:30 > 0:13:31and grooms man.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35Mike has even found evidence of one of his races.
0:13:35 > 0:13:39First of all, this is the Weatherby's annual calendar
0:13:39 > 0:13:43- for jockeys, steeplechase jockeys. - Right, OK.- 1894.
0:13:43 > 0:13:47And if you read down the list, you will find Henry Hughes.
0:13:48 > 0:13:52- So this answers a lot of questions for me.- That's fantastic.- Yeah.
0:13:53 > 0:13:58- Wow.- I can also show you that he was in fact entered in races.
0:13:58 > 0:14:02- We found him in a few races. The year was 1896.- OK.
0:14:02 > 0:14:07The course was Plumpton. It was Friday, January 31.
0:14:07 > 0:14:13- We find him down here. He was on a horse called Moglet.- Yes.
0:14:13 > 0:14:15And he finished...
0:14:15 > 0:14:17- second.- Second, brilliant.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21- So he was a proper jockey competing. - A bona fide jockey, yeah.
0:14:21 > 0:14:23That's amazing.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25I mean, I wonder really where he would have trained, you know?
0:14:25 > 0:14:28Between working at the colliery and then going into horses,
0:14:28 > 0:14:29cos he must have been pretty good
0:14:29 > 0:14:32to be able to compete in races like this.
0:14:32 > 0:14:35Alex's grandfather was not well enough to come to the racetrack
0:14:35 > 0:14:38today to share this story with his granddaughter,
0:14:38 > 0:14:41but clearly Alex is looking forward to telling him.
0:14:41 > 0:14:45I can't wait to pop over there and see my grandfather
0:14:45 > 0:14:48and just tell him exactly what happened.
0:14:48 > 0:14:49He'll be thrilled.
0:14:50 > 0:14:55Henry Hughes lived a long life, dying only in 1950.
0:14:55 > 0:14:59And clearly, Alex's grandfather knew him very well.
0:14:59 > 0:15:01And there was another story he shared with him -
0:15:01 > 0:15:04that whilst working as a groom for the Anthony family
0:15:04 > 0:15:08here in Carmarthenshire, he helped them to train a local horse
0:15:08 > 0:15:12called Glenside who would later go on to win the Grand National.
0:15:12 > 0:15:14But was there really a horse called Glenside
0:15:14 > 0:15:17who won this prestigious race?
0:15:17 > 0:15:21If anyone can help, it's Grand National historian Jane Clark.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24- Well, first of all, do you know the name of the horse?- Yes.
0:15:24 > 0:15:28- My grandfather has told me many times that it was called Glenside.- Ahh.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31- The horse.- Well, I can tell you something about Glenside.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34First of all, he was a bay gelding.
0:15:34 > 0:15:38- He was foaled in 1902 in Ireland. - Right.
0:15:38 > 0:15:41He was bought by a Mr Harries, who was a Welshman
0:15:41 > 0:15:43from this neck of the woods,
0:15:43 > 0:15:49and he raced Glenside in small steeplechases in Carmarthen
0:15:49 > 0:15:55- and in Tenby, and he won a race in Tenby in 1909.- Right.
0:15:55 > 0:15:58And he was trained on the farm of a family called
0:15:58 > 0:16:00the Anthonys, who were great riders.
0:16:00 > 0:16:05- Jack Anthony, one of them, won three Grand Nationals in fact.- No way!
0:16:05 > 0:16:08But he helped to train the horse and then
0:16:08 > 0:16:11when Glenside had won this race at Tenby,
0:16:11 > 0:16:16he passed to another owner for the princely sum of £150.
0:16:16 > 0:16:18- Wow, that was a lot in those days. - In those days.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20It sounds nothing now.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23So Glenside left the stables here in Wales
0:16:23 > 0:16:26for life under a new owner in England.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29But did he later go on to win the Grand National?
0:16:29 > 0:16:33Jane has managed to unearth a newspaper account of the 1910
0:16:33 > 0:16:36Grand National for Alex to read, and it appears
0:16:36 > 0:16:41even in the pre-race build-up, Glenside was showing good form.
0:16:41 > 0:16:44So this has been written by a journalist in the first person.
0:16:44 > 0:16:49He says, "I contented myself with a modest half-crown on Glenside
0:16:49 > 0:16:53"who, by the way, was the cleanest jumper in the canter past the stands.
0:16:53 > 0:16:57"Every horse except Glenside rapped the top of the hurdle
0:16:57 > 0:16:59"and several bent it over badly.
0:16:59 > 0:17:03"28 magnificent horses mounted by the finest jockeys in the land
0:17:03 > 0:17:06"crowded at the start of this perilous 4.5 miles,
0:17:06 > 0:17:07"and at the first jump,
0:17:07 > 0:17:10"they were awaited by ambulances for man and beast.
0:17:10 > 0:17:12"Very prudent, very proper,
0:17:12 > 0:17:16"very necessary in this wonderful race for gold." Oh, that's fantastic.
0:17:16 > 0:17:18It really paints the picture, doesn't it?
0:17:18 > 0:17:22And how did Glenside do then in this particular race?
0:17:22 > 0:17:25- Well, he was doing very well up to a certain point.- Right.
0:17:25 > 0:17:31On the second circuit, his stable companion, he accidentally knocked
0:17:31 > 0:17:33Glenside over and brought him down at the fence onto Becher's.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35Oh, no.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37So he had been going pretty well and hopes were high,
0:17:37 > 0:17:39but they were all dashed, I'm afraid.
0:17:39 > 0:17:42Aw, that's such a shame, isn't it?
0:17:42 > 0:17:45After all that, Jenkinstown was the eventual winner that year.
0:17:45 > 0:17:50- Oh, right. OK. And was Glenside badly injured, or...- No.- ..was he OK?
0:17:50 > 0:17:54- He was fine. His pride hurt, that's all.- Yes.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01So Glenside, it seems, didn't win the Grand National
0:18:01 > 0:18:05as Henry Hughes had claimed, but he was at least a runner
0:18:05 > 0:18:07in this famous race over 100 years ago.
0:18:08 > 0:18:12However, this is not the last chapter in Glenside's story,
0:18:12 > 0:18:14as Alex will later discover.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20Alex is clearly enjoying her homecoming, and has now returned
0:18:20 > 0:18:24to Llanelli where they are staging a big history event in the town.
0:18:24 > 0:18:31Oyez! Alex Jones is in Llanelli researching her family's ancestry.
0:18:35 > 0:18:39Alex is certainly being made to feel right at home.
0:18:39 > 0:18:42But there's not time to linger because next she is off to
0:18:42 > 0:18:47learn something of her grandmother, Eileen Bassett's side of the tree.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50Generations of the Bassetts worshiped here at this chapel
0:18:50 > 0:18:53in the village of Felinfoel, near Llanelli.
0:18:54 > 0:18:58These earlier ancestors may be long gone,
0:18:58 > 0:19:01but records of their lives still remain in the chapel,
0:19:01 > 0:19:05as historian Hedd Ladd Lewis has been finding out.
0:19:07 > 0:19:11And what I have here is the church register.
0:19:11 > 0:19:14If we turn to this particular page here...
0:19:14 > 0:19:18- I can see right at the top there is a Bassett straightaway.- Yeah.
0:19:18 > 0:19:20- Anthony and Catherine.- Mm-hm.
0:19:20 > 0:19:25And Anthony would have been your five-times removed grandfather.
0:19:25 > 0:19:29- Right. Gosh, that's a long time ago. - So 1794.
0:19:31 > 0:19:34This was one of the earliest sites for Welsh nonconformism,
0:19:34 > 0:19:37a movement that split from the established church
0:19:37 > 0:19:40to form self-governing chapels.
0:19:40 > 0:19:42And the Bassetts played a prominent role
0:19:42 > 0:19:44in this Welsh religious revolution.
0:19:44 > 0:19:48Your family has a connection with this particular cause,
0:19:48 > 0:19:51Baptist cause, going right back to the beginnings
0:19:51 > 0:19:54of the Baptist movement in this particular area.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58Yeah, which is a real significant point in history, isn't it?
0:19:58 > 0:20:01Oh, yes, because we know the nonconformist movement
0:20:01 > 0:20:03plays such an important part in Welsh history.
0:20:05 > 0:20:08For generations of Alex's Bassett family,
0:20:08 > 0:20:12this chapel was at the very heart of their community,
0:20:12 > 0:20:15including her three-times great-grandfather, Daniel Bassett.
0:20:18 > 0:20:21- He was well known in the community. He was a mine owner.- Right.
0:20:21 > 0:20:25He owned a colliery and he also owned a public house called
0:20:25 > 0:20:28the Dimpath, which is still in Felinfoel.
0:20:28 > 0:20:30See, being in relation to my grandmother,
0:20:30 > 0:20:33I'm not surprised at any of this because she likes a good time
0:20:33 > 0:20:37so it makes complete sense that her great-grandfather would have a pub.
0:20:39 > 0:20:40As records show,
0:20:40 > 0:20:44unfortunately Daniel Bassett was not afraid to take on a fight
0:20:44 > 0:20:46with the elders of this esteemed chapel.
0:20:49 > 0:20:51If I translate what is written,
0:20:51 > 0:20:58it says that he was asked to leave for taking to law
0:20:58 > 0:21:04the brother Samuel Williams who was the secretary of the church
0:21:04 > 0:21:06for libellous action.
0:21:09 > 0:21:15The bottom line is, is that your great-grandfather,
0:21:15 > 0:21:20three-times removed, was actually removed from the chapel.
0:21:20 > 0:21:22He's noted as "diaelwyd".
0:21:22 > 0:21:25- So he was kicked out? - He was asked to leave, yes.
0:21:25 > 0:21:29- Right.- Because he had taken one of the other members to court.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31He had taken him to law.
0:21:31 > 0:21:35And as a result, he was asked to leave.
0:21:35 > 0:21:39So we have another part of your story here where they're actually...
0:21:39 > 0:21:42- The law does play a part.- Right.
0:21:42 > 0:21:45They're not very well behaved, are they? That side of the family.
0:21:46 > 0:21:50We are not sure exactly why, but it does say here that
0:21:50 > 0:21:57- he obviously had insulted the church secretary.- Right, yes.
0:21:57 > 0:22:03And had obviously a "tafod enllibus".
0:22:03 > 0:22:05- So libel.- Libel.
0:22:05 > 0:22:08He had libelled the church secretary.
0:22:08 > 0:22:10Well, that's not a good person, is it?
0:22:10 > 0:22:13If you're going to pick anybody, don't pick that person.
0:22:13 > 0:22:16- Without a doubt.- And then he was outed from here.- He was out.
0:22:16 > 0:22:20- But he died in 1871.- Right.
0:22:20 > 0:22:23And he is actually buried in the graveyard here...
0:22:23 > 0:22:25- Oh, is he?- ..behind the chapel.
0:22:25 > 0:22:30Because I knew that Mamgu has spoken a lot about Felinfoel and, you know,
0:22:30 > 0:22:33she grew up here being the youngest of 11,
0:22:33 > 0:22:37but I didn't realise that they still had relatives that were buried
0:22:37 > 0:22:40here because as far as I knew,
0:22:40 > 0:22:43they had all moved out into different areas of Llanelli.
0:22:43 > 0:22:46I'm just surprised that he was kicked out, effectively,
0:22:46 > 0:22:48but was still allowed to be buried here.
0:22:48 > 0:22:50He probably owned a plot, you see.
0:22:51 > 0:22:54- He probably owned a plot. - That's the Bassetts - thinking ahead.
0:22:54 > 0:22:57- Planning ahead. - THEY LAUGH
0:23:00 > 0:23:03Now, Alex is unexpectedly heading back to Ffos Las racecourse,
0:23:03 > 0:23:05near Llanelli.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08Earlier, she learnt the story of Glenside,
0:23:08 > 0:23:11and of her great-great-grandfather Henry Hughes' claim
0:23:11 > 0:23:14that this horse, who he had helped to train,
0:23:14 > 0:23:16had gone on to win the Grand National.
0:23:17 > 0:23:21Alex now knows Glenside didn't win this great race in 1910.
0:23:21 > 0:23:25But what became of him after this disappointment?
0:23:25 > 0:23:29Historian Jane Clark has been doggedly researching this story.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34Earlier on, Alex, we were talking about Glenside
0:23:34 > 0:23:37and the 1910 Grand National when he was going pretty well,
0:23:37 > 0:23:41- but then met with that unlucky mishap.- Yes, unfortunate.
0:23:41 > 0:23:44Since running the 1910 Grand National,
0:23:44 > 0:23:46Glenside had lost an eye
0:23:46 > 0:23:49and contracted a serious respiratory condition,
0:23:49 > 0:23:53but still was about to run in the 1911 Grand National.
0:23:54 > 0:23:59Amazingly, 100 years later in 2011, film of this race was unearthed
0:23:59 > 0:24:03which Alex can now view for the very first time.
0:24:03 > 0:24:08We have managed to get hold of some footage of the 1911 Grand National,
0:24:08 > 0:24:10- which is very, very, very rare. - Right.
0:24:10 > 0:24:12It was sold at auction
0:24:12 > 0:24:15and the person who bought it wasn't sure what it was until we sort of
0:24:15 > 0:24:17unearthed it and found out
0:24:17 > 0:24:19- that Glenside ran in the 1911 race as well.- No way!
0:24:19 > 0:24:21Oh, gosh, we've got moving footage.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24- So you will be able to actually see. - That is fantastic.
0:24:24 > 0:24:26- Is this what you've got on here?- Yes.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29- So why don't you enjoy it yourself? - Oh, gosh, that is so fantastic.
0:24:29 > 0:24:32Thank you, Jane. Gosh, it's such old footage.
0:24:34 > 0:24:37It gives you a real picture as well of what the Grand National
0:24:37 > 0:24:39would have been like back in those days.
0:24:41 > 0:24:44A newspaper report from that day helps to set the scene
0:24:44 > 0:24:46for this remarkable footage.
0:24:47 > 0:24:51On March 24th, 1911, on a clear spring day,
0:24:51 > 0:24:55A large crowd had gathered early, before 6:00am,
0:24:55 > 0:24:56to watch this great spectacle.
0:24:58 > 0:25:02As the horses paraded in the ring, one of the favourites, Rathnally,
0:25:02 > 0:25:04walked about with confidence.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07Glenside, by contrast, was evidently suffering
0:25:07 > 0:25:09the effects of a recent cough.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14All 26 horses lined up under starter's orders
0:25:14 > 0:25:17and as the crowd cheered, they were off.
0:25:19 > 0:25:21Here they come. Look, they're all coming around.
0:25:24 > 0:25:25- It's fantastic.- There they are.
0:25:25 > 0:25:29You can see them going over Becher's Brook there.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33- Gosh.- You can see quite a few falls as well.- Ooh.
0:25:35 > 0:25:38Despite the good conditions, halfway through the race,
0:25:38 > 0:25:40many of the horses had fallen.
0:25:40 > 0:25:43But amongst those still running were Rathnally,
0:25:43 > 0:25:46and despite his respiratory problems,
0:25:46 > 0:25:49one very determined chestnut horse called Glenside.
0:25:50 > 0:25:5426 runners, and by the start of the second circuit,
0:25:54 > 0:25:57only eight of them were actually standing.
0:25:57 > 0:26:00Oh, it's unbelievable that you have managed to get hold of this footage.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03I don't know if you can see the big hole in one of the fences.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06- One of the horses fell on the first circuit.- Right.
0:26:06 > 0:26:10And then on the second circuit, two horses went for that big gap,
0:26:10 > 0:26:13trying to jump it, and they collided with each other,
0:26:13 > 0:26:15- and both of them came down.- Uff.
0:26:15 > 0:26:17As the race continued, they were yet more fallers.
0:26:17 > 0:26:20Oh, gosh, look, the jockey has been thrown there.
0:26:20 > 0:26:22There's a jockey trying to get back on his horse.
0:26:22 > 0:26:25He's already fallen off it and he's trying to remount.
0:26:25 > 0:26:28Now Glenside is a chestnut horse with a big white face,
0:26:28 > 0:26:30and you can see him.
0:26:30 > 0:26:33- That's Glenside there.- Oh, no!
0:26:33 > 0:26:37Of the horses who lined up at the start, only two were still running -
0:26:37 > 0:26:40Rathnally, a firm favourite described as
0:26:40 > 0:26:42"the fittest horse on the course",
0:26:42 > 0:26:46and leading Glenside, the one-eyed asthmatic chestnut horse.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51Cheered on by the crowds, the finish line was in sight,
0:26:51 > 0:26:54but feverish and spent, his heart beating,
0:26:54 > 0:26:56could Glenside clear the last fence?
0:26:56 > 0:26:58What happened next?
0:27:04 > 0:27:07- He wins the race!- No, he didn't! He didn't win the race!
0:27:07 > 0:27:09That's amazing!
0:27:10 > 0:27:13- Ahh.- Now, you didn't believe that, did you?- No.
0:27:13 > 0:27:19He was the only horse in the whole race not to fall or refuse
0:27:19 > 0:27:20- or be brought down.- Brilliant.
0:27:20 > 0:27:25- 26 runners and only one horse didn't fall.- That's amazing.
0:27:25 > 0:27:28- My grandfather all this time, he was right, look.- Absolutely.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31- So well done, you are a National winner.- That's amazing.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34That is the best news ever. He's going to be so thrilled.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37And the thing was, because his dad died when he was so young,
0:27:37 > 0:27:39you know, his grandfather lived a long life,
0:27:39 > 0:27:42but he sort of fixated on him because he didn't know
0:27:42 > 0:27:45anything about his dad and he would just be over the moon with this news.
0:27:45 > 0:27:47- Oh, well, you've got to dash back and tell him.- Thank you so much.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49That is so precious. Thank you.
0:27:51 > 0:27:54All these stories obviously mean so much to Alex
0:27:54 > 0:27:58because they mean so much to her grandfather, Denzil,
0:27:58 > 0:28:03who in turn had been told this story by his grandfather, Henry Hughes,
0:28:03 > 0:28:05who helped train Glenside.
0:28:06 > 0:28:08Seeing that incredible footage of him
0:28:08 > 0:28:12winning the 1911 Grand National was just the icing on the cake.
0:28:12 > 0:28:15I can't wait to pop over there and see my grandfather
0:28:15 > 0:28:18and just tell him exactly what happened.
0:28:18 > 0:28:19He will be thrilled.
0:28:21 > 0:28:25On this journey, Alex has learnt a huge amount about her ancestry,
0:28:25 > 0:28:27which she's looking forward to sharing with her family.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30I honestly didn't know what to expect when we started out,
0:28:30 > 0:28:33but it has been a journey of discovery.
0:28:33 > 0:28:35I knew nothing about my family,
0:28:35 > 0:28:40so I feel really privileged to have had this information.
0:28:40 > 0:28:44I think a highlight of seeing that footage was just unbelievable,
0:28:44 > 0:28:47and being able to go home and tell my parents
0:28:47 > 0:28:50and my grandparents, more importantly for me,
0:28:50 > 0:28:54about what we found out today will just be something really special.
0:28:54 > 0:28:55So thank you.