To be honest, the definitive medium-form blog on this crew has already been written, at welshnot.com. There’s lots of other good stuff on Welsh history and politics there too, as well as a blogroll of even more Welsh blogs and bloggers. But, as you’re here , have an executive summary:
The Scotch Cattle were a large number (we don’t know how many, but it’s somewhere in the thousands) – of men in the mining valleys of south-eastern Wales during the 1820, 1830s and early 1840s. They used disciplined and imaginative ‘rough music’ techniques of physical force resistance against mineowners, blacklegs, bailiffs and truck shop owners.
They posted anonymous warning on the walls of the offenders house, often written in animal blood. If notice was not taken, a terrifying mob dressed in animals skins or petticoats would appear, blowing horns, faces blacked with coal dust, deep in the night, to rough them up, and smash windows and selected possessions. Once the victim was sufficiently chastened, the mob would leave a red bull’s head painted upon the door as they made their exit.
It’s unfortunate that this was the era just before photography, because it’d be great to have an idea of the artistic techniques of Nineteenth century rebellion. And (given that this was a noisy mob raid intended to terrify and impress) I want that mob to have included vituoso artists vauntingly proud of their technical skills and the frequency, daring and distinctiveness of their tagging. I want the people the Scotch Cattle targeted to have had their door stolen the day after because of the artistic brilliance the visit finished with.