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Short History of
MSWCC
The Midland & South Western Counties Convention of
Beekeepers is undoubtedly the longest-running annual gathering of
beekeepers in Britain. It has its origins in the principles for
organised beekeeping set out in 1873 that led to the formation of
the British Bee Keepers’ Association. There is evidence of
cooperation between neighbouring County activists as early as 1879,
when representatives of Warwickshire and Gloucestershire met at the
Grand Hotel, Birmingham, and resolved ‘that a bee-keepers’
association be formed with the two-fold object of advocating a more
humane and intelligent treatment of the honey-bee, and of bettering
the condition of the cottagers of the United Kingdom by the
encouragement, improvement, and advancement of bee-culture, and that
the association be called “The Midland Counties’ Bee-keepers’
Association”’
It seems that this early attempt at inter-County collaboration
gave way to the development of individual associations and it was
not until 1920 that the Honorary Secretary of Gloucestershire,
Reverend Edward J Bartleet, proposed a “Convention of Bee-keepers
residing in the South Western Counties” and invited Hereford,
Monmouth, Somerset and Worcester Associations to take part. Held in
Gloucester on Tuesday 27th to Thursday 29th July 1920, and attended
by 140 beekeepers from all five counties, this first gathering was
very successful. At the time it was described as “probably the first
general Convention of beekeepers ever held in England” and “an
historic and most successful and helpful (event)”.
No records have been located that explain quite what happened
during the next few years. It seems that Somerset hosted the third
Convention in 1922 but had recently suffered the loss of prominent
members and so may not have enjoyed the experience. They then
withdrew from the Convention leaving the remainder to organise
themselves as the “Four Counties Beekeepers’ Associations”, under
which title a successful convention was held in Monmouth on
Wednesday 3rd and Thursday 4th September 1924. However South
Staffordshire were hosts in 1926 and this involvement of a county
not in the South-West may have stimulated a review. As recorded at
the opening of the proceedings of the first “Meeting of Delegates of
Associations affiliated to the Midland and South-Western Counties
Convention” held at Gloucester on Saturday 3rd December 1927, this
focussed on “the need for a more systematic method of securing the
continuity of the Convention”. From this point on we have an
excellent (although incomplete) record of Conventions. The 1920
Convention had set a high standard and this was evidently maintained
throughout the formative period. Thus we should not be surprised
that the Convention has survived to this day. The only discontinuity
arose from World War 2 and the immediate aftermath (no
conventions1940-1946), and the clash with the 1951 International
Convention.
It is remarkable to see how the arrangements that were
established at the outset have largely persisted through to the
present. The principle that each association takes responsibility in
turn has not changed, and there have only been minor adjustments to
the system by which associations subscribe to the Delegates’
Committee and thus create a financial safety net for all. This
arrangement has ensured that dissent and disruption is contained by
allowing a few associations to leave and others to join. When the
Convention was instituted associations often had two-tier
membership: 2/6 per annum for artisans and cottagers and 5/- for
ordinary members; meeting in the middle of the week must have
excluded all but the most fortunate of the working class. Now
Conventions always take place at weekends although a new trend is to
lay on introductory events for those arriving early on the Friday
afternoon, accommodating the new leisured classes of youthful
elderly beekeepers. In the early days accommodation was arranged in
host county members’ private homes, but eventually more commercial
facilities became the norm.
In 1920 the Reverend J G Digges, writing as editor of the Irish
Beekeepers’ Gazette, predicted that the Convention would “have a
great influence on the future of Beekeeping in England”. Several
County Associations now hold one-day gatherings early in the year,
while the BBKA Spring Convention has grown to be virtually a two-day
event. Perhaps the Central Association weekends at Stratford-on-Avon
are closest to the MSWCC model, but none of these events has quite
the range of lectures, workshops, demonstrations, and visits offered
with communal meals in a residential setting. It may be impossible
to judge the extent to which the model for the Convention has
stimulated other beekeeping institutions, but the MSWCC has lived up
to the earliest expectations. That this short history has been
prepared for the new website shows that the Convention continues to
embrace change and is set fair to achieve its centenary before too
long.
Will Messenger, 9th January
2008
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