What is the importance of Aberowen in the novel, Fall of Giants?

Aberowen is a small coal-mining town in Wales that is inhabited by mostly miners and their families. The land is owned by Earl Fitzherbert and his family, but the mine itself is managed by a company called the Celtic Mineral. This is also where the Williams family lives and where Ethel and Billy learn to proactively fight for what they believe in. Just outside Aberowen is Fitz’ estate where Ethel spends the first quarter of the book and conceives Lloyd. Furthermore, this is where Fitz hosts a party for the king on the same day that an explosion takes place due to subpar safety standards and lack of equipment. This is also where one of the major strikes in the novel takes place as the workers protest the loss of widow’s homes; a strike that only disperses after more Russian workers are brought in as strikebreakers.