The achievements of Freddie Mathias, the former Glamorgan cricketer, who was decorated during the Great War, are being commemorated by a special display in the CC4 Museum of Welsh Cricket at the Club's headquarters at the SWALEC Stadium.
Mathias was only nineteen years old, and a member of the Royal Flying Corps, when he was awarded the Military Cross in 1918 after successfully undertaking a series of reconnaissance flights over enemy lines in Northern France and Belgium. Educated at Cowbridge School and Clifton College, the youngster joined the Royal Flying Corps as soon as he had left school, and his bravery in flying the two-seater bi-planes over German positions, as well as being engaged in aerial combat with enemy aircraft, led to him being decorated for his actions.
Freddie's Military Cross, plus copies of the aerial photographs he took aboard the bi-planes as well as a host of other military and cricketing items relating to the career of the Glamorgan cricketer, will go on public display for the first-ever time from mid-March in the CC4 Museum of Welsh Cricket thanks to the generosity of Freddie's sons David, Tim (seen in the photograph above) and Roger who live in Birmingham, Lisvane and Teddington respectively.
We are delighted to see our father's treasured items on display at the headquarters of Glamorgan Cricket, said the Mathias family. He really enjoyed playing for the county side, as well as for the Cardiff club, whilst he also represented Wales and the MCC on several occasions during the 1920s.
He never spoke at length about his wartime exploits, but on the few occasions he did, we were enthralled to hear about his time as a young pilot with the Royal Flying Corps. As the nation looks back during the course of the coming year, and remembers the start of the Great War in 1914, we - as a family - are very proud that our father's deeds will be commemorated in this display in the CC4 Museum of Welsh Cricket.
After the War, Freddie went up to Cambridge University before becoming a stockbroker in Cardiff. He made his Glamorgan debut in 1922, and in all, played on 28 occasions for the Welsh county until 1930. He also played rugby for Glamorgan Wanderers and was a noted golfer, especially with Radyr Golf Club.
This is the first of a series of special displays in the CC4 Museum of Welsh Cricket as Glamorgan County Cricket Club remembers the actions of their cricketers who fought for King and Country during the two World Wars. With the centenary of the start of the Great War taking place during August 2014, as well as the 70th anniversary of the Normandy Landings, the Club will also be putting further material on public display for the first-ever time, with a series of objects relating to the life and times of Maurice Turnbull, the man who led Glamorgan between 1930 and 1939 before being killed in Northern France in early August 1944.