The Merthyr Rising was the violent climax to many years of simmering unrest among the large working class population of Merthyr Tydfil and the surrounding area. The coal miners and others who worked for William Crawshay took to the streets, protesting against the lowering of their wages and general unemployment. For the first time in the world the red flag of revolution was flown. Twenty-six people were arrested and put on trial for taking part in the revolt. Several were sentenced to terms of imprisonment, others sentenced to penal transportation to Australia, and two were sentenced to death by hanging - Lewsyn yr Heliwr (known as Lewis Lewis) for robbery and Dic Penderyn (known as Richard Lewis) for stabbing a soldier in the leg with a seized bayonet.
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