About the Author

Elisabeth Inglis-Jones (1900-1994) published her first novel "Starved Fields "in 1929, which caused something of a scandal because its picture of Cardiganshire life showed the men, at least, as drunken brutes. It was followed by five more novels, but in her later years she turned to local history and biography. Sally Roberts Jones is a poet, historian and critic. Born in London to a Welsh family and educated at UCNW, Bangor, she trained as a librarian, moving to Port Talbot as Reference Librarian in 1967.

Reviews

Crumbling Pageant is the story of Catherine Jones and her obsession with the decaying Morfa mansion. The house was once splendid, now its owners, the Morys family are almost bankrupt and Morfa is crumbling away in the woods. Catherine dreams of restoring it to its original glory, and in pursuit of her dream neglects everything else, even her own children.

The Joneses are a farming family, but Catherine`s father has become a doctor. His wife is an Englishwoman, once a governess. The girl herself moves sometimes uneasily between the chapel-going Joneses and the local gentry wives. She becomes friends with Richard Morys, but he wants to make his way in the world elsewhere, so Catherine marries his uncouth half-brother Erasmus. As mistress of Morfa she uses her inheritance to restore the estate, even trying to mould her children, Lucian and Louise to the same purpose. Meanwhile Richard Morys has become a successful industrialist, learning the lesson of concern for his workers.

Then there is a banking crisis. Catherine loses her income and Lucian steps in, working to repair the damage his mother`s neglect has caused her tenants. Catherine is left alone, back in her childhood home, a grey-haired woman standing in an empty road.

Elisabeth Inglis-Jones was an important writer of fiction and local history and biography.

There is a strong link between Crumbling Pageant and the Hafod estate. Elisabeth Inglis-Jones's story of Hafod has rarely been out of print since it was first published. Although the house has gone, the grounds are being restored and are open to visitors.
*Honno*