Monumental Welsh Women - 5 statues of 5 women

Make history with us and Help Monumental Welsh Women raise money for the first five statues of real Welsh women in Wales.

Help us achieve our mission by donating to our fundraiser which will be used to erect 5 statues to 5 historical Welsh women in 5 locations around Wales in the next 5 years - to honour the remarkable achievements of women who have contributed so much to our country over the centuries, but whose stories have been overlooked or forgotten.

As Marian Wright Edelman said, ‘You can’t be what you can’t see’. In Wales, there was, until recently, not one single public statue commemorating the achievements of real Welsh Women. Welsh girls can’t see what they could be. We are starting to change this. 

In her recent book, Invisible Women, Caroline Criado Perez said, ‘I wasn’t being shown women I could look up to …I wasn’t being taught about female politicians, female activists, female writers, artists, lawyers, CEOs. All the people I was taught to admire were men, and so in my head power, influence and ambition equated with maleness.’ 

Our Mission is to normalise female ambition and success by celebrating and commemorating the achievements of great Welsh Women and inspiring the next generation of great Welsh women, with statues of women in Welsh public spaces. 

In January 2019, the BBC, working with Monumental Welsh Women, hosted a public vote to decide which of 5 Welsh Hidden Heroines should be immortalised as the first statue in Wales of a real Welsh woman. Betty Campbell, the first black headmistress in Wales, won the vote and a statue in her honour was unveiled in Central Square, Cardiff, a stone’s throw away from her community in Bute Town in September 2021. World renowned artist, Eve Shepherd, was commissioned to produce the statue which is already an iconic feature of Cardiff City centre.

Thanks to the generosity of our kind supporters, we raised all of the money required for the statue of Betty Campbell. We have since unveiled our second statue or Elaine Morgan, the writer, screenwriter and anthropologist, in Mountain Ash. The statue, created by Emma Rodgers, is a beautiful sculpture which perfectly captures Elaine's spirit and achievements. It was unveiled in March 2022.

In June 2023, we unveiled the fourth statue - of Sarah Jane Rees - Cranogwen - in Llangrannog, created by Sebastien Boyesen and in September 2024, Lady Rhondda was unveiled in Newport, a beautiful sculpture created by Jane Robbins.

We now only have one statue left to create - a statue of social reformer and campaigner for women's rights, Elizabeth Andrews, which will be erected near her home town of Hirwaun next year.

All of their biographies can be seen on www.monumentalwelshwomen.org .

We have raised over £500,000 so far and already have £40,000 pledged for the statue of Elizabeth Andrews. We need another £40,000 to complete our project!  Please help us.

Monumental Welsh Women is established as a company limited by guarantee - a non profit organisation established by a group of Welsh women to achieve the objective set out above. The directors of the Company are Helen Molyneux, Cerith Mathias, Elin Pinnell and Kath Roberts. They are supported by a group of members who oversee the management of the projects and the fundraising activity.

Our mission is to erect 5 statues to 5 historical Welsh women in 5 locations around Wales in the next 5 years. Please help us by donating to our fundraising. If you would like more information about the project, please contact us through www.monumentalwelshwomen.org

Helpwch Monumental Welsh Women i godi arian ar gyfer y pum cerflun cyntaf o fenywod Cymraeg go iawn yng Nghymru. 

Helpwch ni drwy gyfrannu i’n ymgyrch i godi 5 cerflun o 5 menyw ysbrydoledig Cymraeg mewn 5 lleoliad led-led Cymru yn y 5 mlynedd nesaf. Rydyn ni am anrhydeddu llwyddiannau rhyfeddol y menywod sydd wedi cyfrannu cymaint i hanes Cymru dros y blynyddoedd, ond mae eu hanesion wedi eu hanwybyddu neu eu hanghofio.

Fel y dywedodd Marian Wright Edelman, ‘Ni allwch fod yr hyn na allwch ei weld’. Yng Nghymru, tan yn ddiweddar, nid oedd un cerflun cyhoeddus yn bodiloi oedd yn dathlu llwyddiannau menyw go iawn o Gymru. Ni all merched Cymru weld beth allen nhw fod. Rydym yn dechrau newid hyn. Yn ei llyfr diweddar, ‘Invisible Women’, dywedodd Caroline Criado Perez, ‘Doeddwn i ddim yn gweld menywod y gallwn i edrych i fyny atynt … doeddwn i ddim yn cael fy nysgu am wleidyddion benywaidd, ymgyrchwyr benywaidd, awduron benywaidd, artistiaid, cyfreithwyr, Prif Weithredwyr. Roedd yr holl bobl y cefais fy nysgu i’w hedmygu yn ddynion, ac felly yn fy mhen roedd grym, dylanwad ac uchelgais yn cyfateb i wrywdod.’

Ein nod yw normaleiddio llwyddiant benywaidd trwy ddathlu a choffau llwyddiannau menywod Cymraeg gwych ac ysbrydoli’r genhedlaeth nesaf o ferched Cymraeg gwych, gyda cherfluniau o fenywod mewn mannau cyhoeddus Cymru.. Ym mis Ionawr 2019, cynhaliodd y BBC, ar y cyd â Monumental Welsh Women, bleidlais gyhoeddus i benderfynu pa un o’r 5 Menywod Mawreddog o Gymru ddylai fod y cerflun cyntaf yng Nghymru o Gymraes go iawn. Betty Campbell, prifathrawes ddu gyntaf Cymru, enillodd y bleidlais a dadorchuddiwyd cerflun er anrhydedd iddi yn Sgwâr Canolog, Caerdydd, dafliad carreg i ffwrdd o’i chymuned yn Nhre Biwt, ym mis Medi 2021. Comisiynwyd yr artist byd-enwog, Eve Shepherd i gynhyrchu'r cerflun sydd eisoes yn nodwedd eiconig o ganol dinas Caerdydd. Diolch i gefnogaeth ein cefnogwyr caredig, fe wnaethom godi’r holl arian oedd ei angen ar gyfer y cerflun o Betty Campbell. . Mae Monumental Welsh Women wedi’i sefydlu fel cwmni cyfyngedig trwy warant – sefydliad di-elw a sefydlwyd gan grŵp o fenywod Cymraeg i gyflawni’r amcan a nodir uchod. Cyfarwyddwyr y Cwmni yw Helen Molyneux, Cerith Mathias, Elin Pinnell a Kath Roberts. Cânt eu cefnogi gan grŵp o aelodau sy'n goruchwylio rheolaeth y prosiectau a'r gweithgareddau codi arian. Ein nod yw codi 5 cerflun o 5 menyw ysbrydoledig Cymraeg mewn 5 lleoliad led-led Cymru yn y 5 mlynedd nesaf.. Helpwch ni drwy gyfrannu at ein gweithgareddau codi arian. Os hoffech ragor o wybodaeth am y prosiect, cysylltwch â ni drwy www.monumentalwelshwomen.org