'The Appeal 1923-24: The Remarkable story of the Welsh Women's Peace Petition' - Edited by Jenny Mathers & Mererid Hopwood

This fascinating bilingual book edited by Jenny Mathers and Mererid Hopwood, shares the amazing story of a 7 mile long, hundred-year-old Peace Petition which was signed by almost 400,000 Welsh women and was sent to America.  This is the true story of women from every background who challenged authority.

On the 5th of April, 2023, a hundred-year-old Peace Petition was returned to Wales, marking the centenary of a women-led, Welsh anti-war effort. Since 1923, the petition had been preserved and exhibited by the National Museum of American History, in Washington DC. Its journey began when a group of women from Wales determined to undertake a campaign for world peace, five years after the horrors of the First World War had shattered Europe.

The chest and petition arrived at the National Library of Wales to a warm welcome by the people involved in the Women’s Peace Petition Partnership, who have worked over many years to bring it back home. The return of the Petition signals the first step in making it accessible to the people of Wales. Over the next year, the petition will be catalogued, digitised, and opened to the public to crowdsource its transcription, with exhibitions at the National Library of Wales, Amgueddfa Cymru – St Fagans and Wrecsam Museum.