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First of all: Westminster House – (Perhaps the shopfitters
are updating their branch too) The Westminster Bank crest can be to the right
of the Abbey National building. Then, Abbey National during one of its most
familiar branding cycles, encourages us all to “get the Abbey Habit”. Our
main Cardiff feature is the visit made to the Branch in 1952 by Martins Bank
Magazine, an unusually short article for a major Branch, but with its usuall
hallmarks of introducing us to the staff, and some kind words to “big up” the
local area. Parochial stuff, as we have come to expect from MB Magazine!
The stronghold of the Marquis of Bute…
  The day before we left for South Wales a
customer at the Liverpool City Office counter told us that he had travelled
extensively in Europe and had seen nothing finer than the Civic Centre at
Cardiff. Liverpool, Manchester,
Leeds, Birmingham and Newcastle please note that in this respect Cardiff has
got them all knocked into a cocked hat. Furthermore, there is nothing finer
in layout and conception in London, in our opinion. The City Hall, the
University, Museum, Technical College, County Council Offices, Law Courts,
and all the rest of the City and County administrative buildings are planned
and conceived on a most impressive scale, and the tree-planted streets, the
flower-filled squares and the adequate space for proper appreciation of the
buildings make a powerful impression on the visitor and remain as a lasting
memory of a city whose inhabitants are obviously very proud of it.
To complete the picture,
there is Cardiff Castle, the stronghold of the Marquis of Bute, built on the ruins
of a Roman fort, the walls of which can still be seen inside, carefully
preserved. Within the grounds is the old Norman Keep, dating back to the 12th
century, while the more modern part, now in the care of Cardiff Corporation,
houses the School of Music. It contains some of the most beautiful and
remarkable rooms we have ever seen in an ancestral home. The Bachelor's Room,
the ball room, library, chapel and various other rooms are shown to visitors,
and the beauty of the ceilings, Spanish, Moorish and so on, the paintings,
pillars of alabaster, jewelled chandeliers and almost everything in the way
of beautiful decoration which money could buy, make the city the custodian of
a treasure house equal to anything of its kind anywhere else in the country,
the royal castles excepted.
Our
branch is just five minutes' walk away from the Civic Centre and the Castle. Mr. W. A. Thompson, the Manager, is an L.
and Y. man who entered the Bank in 1913, serving in the Liverpool District
at Castle Street, Walton, Aintree and at Head Office before his first
appointment as Manager at Torquay in 1938. He was transferred to the London
District in 1946 with the intention of being appointed Manager of a new
branch there, but as difficulties were experienced in getting the necessary
licences and as the management of Cardiff branch fell vacant he was invited
to take this appointment instead and went to South Wales in 1947.
Mr. H. G. Jones, his second man and Pro Manager, has been there since
the branch was opened, apart from war service. His work for the branch has
been most praiseworthy. J. H. Williams is another L. and Y. man from the Manchester District.
The remainder of the staff are local boys and girls: D. C. Bartley, S. M. D.
Ryan, Miss R. D. Francis, Miss A. M. Abbott and Miss E. J. Bickerton. The two
branches can fairly be called outposts and the staffs of both are delighted
to see their colleagues from Head Office whenever they call.
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Taler…
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…neu a
enwo
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Martins Bank is very proud of its Branches in Wales, and especially
of the ability of staff to speak Welsh.
Many customers will of course be Welsh speaking too, and in 1965 yet
another FIRST for Martins
Bank is born out of the needs of those very customers…
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 Through Cardiff branch, the Bank has achieved another 'first'
with the issue of the first bi-lingual cheques in Britain. The cheques,
each printed in both English and Welsh, are drawn on an account opened by
the Urdd Movement for the Urdd National Eisteddfod being held this year in
Cardiff. The movement is a youth organisation founded in 1922 to foster,
among other things, an interest in Wales and its culture, and the Urdd
National Eisteddfod is to the young people of Wales what the National
Eisteddfod is to the adults. Among the Movement's patrons is the Lord
Lieutenant of Glamorgan, Sir Cennydd Traherne, T.D., of our South Western
Board.
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We have yet to find a specimen of one of Martins Bank’s Welsh
bi-lingual cheques.
In the meantime, this is our approximation based on the
design and layout of cheques
printed in Welsh into the 1970s and beyond.
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Cardiff Branch has always gone to extremes to be helpful in
Welsh – In May 1962, when the media needed reassurance that a change of Ł1
note design would not leave people out of pocket, Cardiff Manager Mr K
Harris-Hughes was only to pleased to explain – both in English AND Welsh…
A Manager who is very
much in demand…
  28 May 1962: Mr. K. Harris-Hughes (Manager)
has
recently been in the public eye, as a result of his appearance on television.
He was approached first of all by the producer of the Welsh Television programme ‘Heddiw’
which goes on the air daily at 1.5 p.m., with the request that he allow himself to be
interviewed with a view to allaying any possible fear on the part of the
public that holders
of the old type of Ł1 Bank of England notes might lose their money following the Bank of England
announcement that such notes would not
be legal tender after May 28th. Whilst in the studio
having coffee in the canteen before the start of the programme Mr. Harris-Hughes was approached by the
Director of the Welsh News with the
request that he allow himself to be
interviewed during the Welsh news the
same evening at 6.15 p.m., the interview to be followed by a further interview in English at 6.30 p.m. Mr. Harris-Hughes also had to make a recording at another studio of the B.B.C., for a sound broadcast for the Welsh programme ‘Trem’ which goes out on Tuesday mornings after
the 8 o'clock news. The subject on
this occasion was a tribute to Charles
Evans Hughes, one-time Chief
Justice of the United States and Secretary
of State during the Harding Administration, whose centenary was being
commemorated in the United States by the
issue of a special postage stamp.
Charles Evans Hughes was a first cousin of Mr.
Harris-Hughes's father. The day's work was not yet done,
however, for no sooner had Mr. Harris-Hughes returned to the Bank than the B.B.C.
telephoned to ask whether
their recording unit might visit the Bank to record the interview given earlier in the day for the News broadcast that
evening. A portable recording unit subsequently arrived and Mr. Harris-Hughes was interviewed first
in Welsh and then in
English, both recordings going out later that evening in the Welsh News and News from Wales.
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… and finally: Ask any member
of staff who remembers the days of safe custody, and they will be able to
recall any number of strange and exotic items placed in the vaults of the
local bank branch. Mr Harris Hughes once more takes life in his stride when
the largest silver trophy bowl in the World is lodged at his branch for
safe-keeping…
Urdd National Eisteddfod
 This photograph, taken by
Mr D. J. Stewart, shows Mr K. Harris-Hughes (Manager) in the strongroom of
Cardiff branch with the largest silver trophy bowl in the world. Presented
by Sir David James to the Welsh League of Youth as an inspiration to aim
for the highest achievements, it is valued at Ł2,000, weighs over 1,000 troy ounces and is four feet high on
a mahogany plinth. The trophy was
manufactured by A. Edward Jones Limited, Birmingham silversmiths, from a
Hundredweight sheet of sterling silver rolled by Messrs Johnson &
Matthey, bullion dealers, and the Birmingham Assay Office state that this
is the largest piece of silver they have ever hall-marked in one piece.
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