Aberfan wives say visit ‘came at the right time’ after disaster

Denise Morgan and Gloria Davies, members of the Aberfan Wives group, told the PA news agency the monarch had made “quite a bond” with the mining village.

The women had been invited to Cardiff Castle as the King and Queen Consort met military personnel and faith leaders during a reception as part of their final engagement in Wales on Friday.

Addressing the late Queen’s connection to Aberfan, Ms Morgan said: “In terms of the Queen, she visited Aberfan just after the disaster and four other times after that, I believe – each one for a different reason.

“We were fortunate to meet her on a number of occasions and I think throughout the years she has made quite a bond with Aberfan, particularly with the parents.”

Commenting on what the Queen meant to her, Ms Morgan told PA: “I thought she was a wonderful Queen.

“Looking at the footage now, she smiled every time. Even in the photographs, she’s always smiling.

“She made a pledge to be our Queen all those years ago and I really think she kept to that commitment, even up until two days before she died.

“To actually meet the Prime Minister and work almost up until the last, it’s a fine testament to her.”

Asked about the Queen’s reaction to the Aberfan disaster, Ms Morgan said: “I don’t think she came as the Queen, I think she came as a mother too.

“Because she looked around and she could see the devastation and the look on people’s faces.

“I really do believe she came as a mother that day, to sympathise and empathise with the terrible tragedy that happened in Aberfan.”

Ms Davies added: “Everyone who was saying ‘she didn’t come to Aberfan’ – she came at the right time, she came at the right time.

“I think that’s shared by the whole of Aberfan.”