The Project Gutenberg eBook of A Biographical Sketch of some of the Most Eminent Individuals which the Principality of Wales has produced since the Reformation
Title: A Biographical Sketch of some of the Most Eminent Individuals which the Principality of Wales has produced since the Reformation
Author: Robert Williams
Release date: March 15, 2012 [eBook #39152]
Language: English
Credits: Transcribed from the 1836 H. Hughes edition by David Price
Transcribed from the 1836 H. Hughes edition by David Price, email ccx074@pglaf.org
A
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH
OF SOME OF
THE MOST EMINENT INDIVIDUALS
WHICH
THE PRINCIPALITY OF WALES
HAS PRODUCED SINCE THE
REFORMATION.
BY
The Rev. ROBERT WILLIAMS, M.A.,
AUTHOR OF AN HISTORICAL ACCOUNT OF CONWAY CASTLE.
(To whom the Cymmvodorion awarded a Silver Medal in 1831).
WITH AN ADDENDA,
CONTAINING
MEMOIRS OF DR. WILLIAM OWEN PUGHE,
RICHARD LLWYD, THE ANTIQUARIAN, BARDD
NANTGLYN,
BARDD CLOFF, AND SEVERAL OTHERS, DERIVED
FROM
VARIOUS AUTHENTICATED SOURCES.
LONDON:
H. HUGHES, 15, ST. MARTIN’S-LE-GRAND.
1836.
METCALFF,
PRINTERS,
5 GROCERS’ HALL COURT,
POULTRY.
TO THE PUBLIC.
The object of this little work, is, to show to the English reader, that Wales has produced a number of highly talented and distinguished individuals; and the publication might be greatly extended, were it deemed prudent to add the names of those learned men who are still among us.
The publisher will feel obliged for any additional names, which will be inserted in a future edition.
Mr. Williams’s portion may be
had printed in Welsh.
Price one shilling.
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES,
ETC.
William Baxter was born in Wales in the year 1650. In his eighteenth year he was sent to Harrow School, when he could speak no other language but Welsh; he, however, soon acquired English, and triumphantly overcame all these disadvantages, and at the age of twenty-nine he commenced author, with the publication of his “Analogia Linguæ Latinæ.” He afterwards was appointed master of the Mercer’s School, in London. He soon made himself known as an excellent philologist and antiquary, by several learned works, and more particularly his Horace and his Dictionary of British Antiquities, entitled “Glossarium Antiquitatum Britannicarum,” in which he attempted, from his knowledge of the British language, to determine geography by etymology. He died in 1723.
Lewis Bayly, an eminent prelate, was a native of Caermarthen, and studied at Oxford. He was appointed chaplain to Henry Prince of Wales, son of James the First, to whom he dedicated a religious work, entitled the “Practice of Piety,” which has passed through a vast number of editions. He was rector of St. Matthew’s church, in London, and afterwards bishop of Bangor; and died in 1631. His son,
Thomas Bayly was educated for the church at Cambridge; and during the civil war he resided at Ragland Castle, as chaplain to the Marquis of Worcester; after the surrender of which he travelled on the Continent; and on his return to England he published his “Certamen Religiosum, or a Conference between King Charles the First and Marquis of Worcester, concerning religion, in Ragland Castle, Anno 1646,” which he is supposed to have written to justify his embracing the Roman Catholic religion. He also published the “Royal Charter granted to Kings,” for which he was committed to Newgate. He also published another work, entitled “Herba parietis.” Having made his escape from prison, he died in France in 1659.
Morris Clynog was a native of Caernarvonshire, and was educated at Cambridge, where he graduated L.L.B. He was appointed rector of Corwen sinecure in 1556, and became a prebendary of York, and an officer in the Prerogative Court, under Cardinal Pole, archbishop of Canterbury, and he was nominated to succeed Dr. William Glynn in the bishopric of Bangor; but the queen dying before he was consecrated, he fled beyond sea, and going to Rome he became, some years after, the first rector of the English hospital there, after it was converted into a college for English students, where he became much noted for his partiality to his countrymen of Wales, which always caused a great faction between the Welsh and English students resident there.
Thomas Coke, the eminent missionary, was the son of a surgeon at Brecon, in South Wales, where he was born in the year 1747. He was educated at the College school at that town, and in due time he was entered a Gentleman Commoner of Jesus College, Oxford. He took the degree of L.L.D. in 1775; and becoming acquainted with Wesley, he supported his opinions with great zeal. He commenced his labours as a missionary in North America in 1784, where he remained for several years in great popularity with the Methodists; but his advocating the cause of the negroes, and his opposition to the inhuman traffic in slaves, brought upon him the indignation of the Americans, and he was obliged to leave the country with precipitancy, and it was with great difficulty that he escaped to England. He afterwards made nine voyages as a missionary to the West Indies with great success, which must be attributed to his pious zeal and learning, which he has left several works to prove. His character has always been greatly extolled for the judgment which he exhibited in very trying periods, and for the amiableness of his disposition. He died on his voyage to the East Indies in 1814.
Francis Davies, D.D., an eminent and pious prelate, was a native of Wales, and was born in the year 1604. After an academical education, he entered the church; he received various preferment, and in 1660 he was appointed archdeacon of Llandaff. In 1667 he was raised to the bishopric of the same diocese; and died in 1674.
John Davies, D.D., the celebrated Welsh antiquary and learned divine, was born at Llanverras, in Denbighshire, and was educated at Ruthin School, under Bishop Parry. He was entered at Jesus College, Oxford, in 1589, where he graduated. In 1608, he removed to Lincoln College, and took his Doctor’s degree in 1616. Having been appointed chaplain to Bishop Parry, he was made canon of St. Asaph by him; and in 1604, he was presented to the rectory of Mallwyd, and subsequently to those of Llan yn Mowddy and Darowen; and in 1617 to the prebend of Llannfydd, and subsequently to Llanvor sinecure. His character was held in high estimation in Oxford for his proficiency in the Greek and Hebrew languages: a most exact critic, and an indefatigable searcher of antiquities. His celebrated works are “Antiquæ Linguæ Britannicæ Rudimenta,” 8vo., 1621, and “Dictionarium Britannico-Latinum, and Latino-Britannicum,” which was published in London, 1632, folio. At the end of his dictionary is a good collection of Welsh proverbs. He died in May, 1644, and was buried in the church of Mallwydd, Meirionethshire.
Miles Davies was a native of Whitford, near Holywell, in Flintshire. He was originally intended for the church, but from some unknown cause he left his native country, and went to London, where he subscribed himself barrister at law. Here he commenced author, and published three volumes of his “Athenæ Britannicæ,” in 1715, which contain much curious and valuable knowledge. Very little is now known of his history, but he is supposed to have been unfortunate in his later career as a literary character. It is uncertain when his death took place.
Richard Davies, D.D., was the son of David ap Gronw, and was born in Denbighshire, and educated at New Inn Hall, Oxford. Having entered the church, he became vicar of Burnham, and rector of Maids-morton, Buckinghamshire, which preferment he was deprived of in Queen Mary’s reign, for being married; and he consequently retired to the Continent. On the accession of Queen Elizabeth he returned home, and was raised by her to the bishopric of St. Asaph, in 1559, from whence he was translated to the see of St. David’s in 1561. This eminent prelate was a man of great learning, and he was employed, with others, in translating the Bible into English, and he translated all from the beginning of Joshua to the end of Samuel. He also translated part of the New Testament into Welsh, particularly some of the Epistles. He published also some other works. He died at the Episcopal Palace of Abergwyli, Caermarthenshire, in 1581.
Thomas Davies, D.D., Bishop of St. Asaph, was a native of Llanbeder, near Aberconwy, Caernarvonshire, where he was born about the year 1515. He received his academical education at St. John’s College, Cambridge. He became rector of his native parish, and was also made archdeacon of St. Asaph, and chancellor of Bangor. In 1561 he was advanced to the bishopric of St. Asaph, where he continued to his death, which took place in 1573. He was a very pious and charitable person, and founded a scholarship in Queen’s College, Cambridge. He bequeathed also considerable sums of money for other pious uses.
Walter Devereux, Earl of Essex, the father of the unfortunate favourite of Queen Elizabeth, was born in Caermarthenshire in the year 1540, and succeeded his grandfather in the titles of Viscount Hereford and Lord Ferrers. His joining the Earl of Lincoln with a body of troops against the rebels who rose in the North, recommended him to the favour of Queen Elizabeth, who created him Earl of Essex in 1572, and made him a Knight of the Garter. He was afterwards appointed governor of Ulster in Ireland; and his death, which was supposed to have been hastened by poison, by his enemy the Earl of Leicester, took place in Dublin in 1576, leaving the character of a brave soldier, loyal subject, and disinterested patriot.
David Dolben was born at Segrwyd, near Denbigh, in 1581. He was educated at St. John’s College, Cambridge, where he proceeded regularly through his degrees to that of doctor. He became a prebendary of St. Asaph, and vicar of Hackney, in Middlesex; and in 1631 he was raised to the bishopric of Bangor. He died two years after his promotion, in London, and was buried in Hackney church.
William Edwards, one of the most wonderful examples of self-taught genius, was a native of Glamorganshire, where he was born at Eglwysilan, in 1719. At an early age he attracted notice by the neatness of his workmanship, in building walls on his father’s farm; and gradually he arrived at the building of houses and larger structures. Having given great satisfaction to all his employers, he undertook, in 1746, to build a bridge over the river Tav, which was executed and greatly admired; at the end of two years and a half it was destroyed by a tremendous flood, which carried it away: he immediately commenced a new one, which however was likewise a failure. The third was completed in 1755, and remains a splendid monument of his talent, and is one of the most beautiful in the world; its span is 140 feet; and it exceeds the famed Rialto of Venice, which was supposed to be the largest arch in the world, by 42 feet. He devised several important improvements in the art of bridge building, and the success of his last bridge over the Tav introduced him to public notice; and he was employed to build numerous other bridges in South Wales. He died in 1789. It is rather singular that his son and grandson were equally possessed of the same taste and architectural talent.
Thomas Edwards, better known by his familiar appellation of Twm o’r Nant, was born at Nant, near Denbigh, in the year 1739. He received but a poor education in his youth, and was brought up to no regular trade, but worked as a labourer; his genius however showed itself at an early age, and he gave proofs of his Awen in the composition of a peculiar species of dramatic writing, known in Wales by the name of “Interludes,” which were very common there in the last century. They appear to bear some analogy to the New Comedy of the Athenians, where he satirizes living persons under fictitious names; and although there are numerous examples of low scurrility and satire, yet they abound with fine strokes of genuine wit, and excellent poetry. He possessed a command of language, and was a good writer when he pleased; a neat specimen of which exists in his Autobiography, in Welsh. He spent his life in various parts of Wales, in different occupations, although he esteemed the acting of his Interludes not the least profitable. He generally bore a part in the exhibiting of his compositions, and gained considerable profit by selling printed copies of them, which he hawked about the country himself. Some of his poetry on various subjects has been published, and two portraits of him. He was a man of great muscular power; and he died in 1810, in the seventy-first year of his age.
John Evans, D.D., was born at Wrexham, in Denbighshire, in 1680. He was an eminent Dissenting divine, and graduated both at Edinburgh and Aberdeen; he was the author of several most excellent sermons on the Christian Temper, which have been admired by divines of every denomination. He for some years was the minister of the congregation of Independents in Petty France, having succeeded Dr. Williams; he was also lecturer for some time at Saddlers’ Hall; and he died of dropsy in 1732.
John Evans, D.D., was born in Llanarmon, Denbighshire. He received his education at Jesus College, Oxford, where he proceeded through his degrees. Having taken orders, he obtained the living of Llanaelhaiarn, in Carnarvonshire, and in 1701 he was promoted to the bishopric of Bangor, and he was translated thence to the bishopric of Meath, in Ireland, in 1715.
Evan Evans, an eminent divine and poet, better known among his countrymen by the bardic appellation of Ienan Brydydd Hir, was born at Cynhawdrev in Cardiganshire, in the year 1730. He received his education at the grammar school of Ystrad-meurug in the same county, whence he removed to Oxford, and was entered at Merton College in 1751. After leaving college he officiated as curate at several places; and applied himself with great diligence to the cultivation of Welsh literature, and employed his leisure time in transcribing ancient manuscripts; for which purpose he visited most of the libraries in Wales, where manuscripts were known to exist. In the pursuit of his literary labours he for some time enjoyed the patronage of Sir Watkin W. Wynne, and Dr. Warren, Bishop of Bangor. He received an annuity of 20l. from Paul Panton, Esq., of Plasgwyn, in Anglesea, on condition that all his manuscripts should on his death become his property; and in consequence, the whole collection, amounting to a hundred volumes, was deposited in Plasgwyn Library, where they still remain. He published two volumes of Welsh sermons, and was the author of an English poem, entitled the “Love of our Country;” but his chief work which ranked him high as an antiquary and critic, was a volume of Welsh poems with Latin translations, prefaced by a learned “Dissertatio de Bardis.” The Welsh poems in this volume furnished Gray with matter for some of his most beautiful poetry. Mr. Evans was a man of excellent disposition, and great abilities as a Welsh scholar, but for some reason he never obtained any preferment in the church. He served in succession the curacies of Towyn in Meirion, Llanberis, and Llanllechid in Caernarvonshire. He died suddenly at the place of his birth, in August, 1789.
Richard Fenton, well known as the author of a “Historical Tour through Pembrokeshire;” was born in Wales, and was for several years an eminent member of the Welsh bar. He was also author of other works which were published anonymously, of which “A Tour in search of Genealogy,” and “The Memoirs of an Old Wig,” were highly esteemed as works of great interest, and abounding in wit and anecdote. He was a particular friend of Garrick, Goldsmith, Glover, and other great wits of the day. He translated also the works of Athenæus, which were never published. He died at an advanced age in November, 1821.
John Gambold was born at Haverfordwest about the year 1706. He received a liberal education, and was entered at Christ Church, Oxford, where he took his degree of Master of Arts in 1734. He was presented to the living of Stanton Harcourt by Archbishop Secker in 1738, which he resigned ten years after, from motives of conscience, having become a convert to the opinions of Zinzerdorf, an account of whose life and character he published. He was appointed by the Moravians one of their bishops, of whom he had become a distinguished member in 1754. While at Oxford, he was the author of a “Sacred Drama,” which was published in 1740, on the subject of the martyrdom of Saint Ignatius; and he superintended an edition of the Greek Testament at the Clarendon press; he translated also a History of Greenland from the Dutch, besides several sermons and other productions. He was a man of blameless morals, deep erudition, and sincere piety; and he was greatly beloved for the amiableness of his manners. He died at Haverfordwest in 1771. He was author of a “Welsh Grammar,” and an able critic in the language.
William Glynn, D.D., was born in 1504, at Malltraeth in Anglesea, and educated at Cambridge, where he became Master of Queen’s College. In 1549, he was presented to the living of St. Martin’s-le-grand, London; and in 1551 he was made rector of his native parish of Heneglwys, and in 1555 he was promoted to the episcopal see of Bangor, where he died in 1558, in the fifty-fourth year of his age. Fuller, in his Worthies of Wales, gives a high character of this excellent bishop; and he was a man of great natural abilities and learning, and strictly attentive to the duties of his high station.
Edmund Griffith, D.D., was a native of Lleyn in Caernarvonshire, where he was born in 1570. He was educated at Brazen-nose College, Oxford, whence he removed to Jesus College, where he graduated. In 1599, he obtained the rectory of Llandwrog, and the following year he was made canon of Bangor; and after other preferments he was made dean of the same diocese in 1613, and he was promoted to the bishopric in 1633. His death took place in the year 1637.
Elizabeth Griffith, who has distinguished herself in the literary world by several productions, was a native of Wales; she married an Irish gentleman of the name of Richard Griffith, and little is known of her except her works. She first published “Letters of Henry and Frances,” which is supposed to contain the genuine correspondence of herself and her husband before, and for some time after their marriage. She was the author of several dramas, novels, and several other productions, which obtained various success. She died in 1793.
George Griffith, D.D., was born at Penrhyn, Caernarvonshire, in 1601. He was educated at Westminster School, from whence he was elected student of Christ Church, Oxford, in 1619, where he became an eminent tutor and preacher. He was appointed chaplain to Bishop John Owens, and was by him presented to the rectory of Llanvechain, Montgomeryshire, which he subsequently left for Llanymynech, and he also had the rectory of Llandrinio. In 1631, he was made a canon of St. Asaph. On the commencement of the civil war, he lost his preferment on account of his attachment to the royal cause, to which he rendered good service; but on the Restoration he was rewarded, and raised to the bishopric of St. Asaph. In a convocation of the clergy in 1662, he was an active member in drawing up the Act of Uniformity, and making several alterations in the Liturgy; and he is supposed to have written the form for the baptism of those of riper years. He was also author of some Plain Discourses on the Lord’s Supper. He died in 1666.
John Gwillim was born of an ancient Welsh family in Herefordshire, in 1565. He was educated at Brazen-nose College, Oxford, and became a member of the Herald’s College, London, in which he obtained the appointment of Rouge Croix Pursuivant, in 1617, which was owing to the appearance of his famous work, the “Display of Heraldry,” which first appeared in 1610, and has since gone through several other editions. His death took place in 1621.
Matthew Gwinne, M.D., was an eminent physician, and was the first professor of medicine on Sir Thomas Gresham’s foundation. The exact year of his birth is uncertain, but he was born in London of Welsh parents; and he received his education at Merchant Tailors’ School, whence he removed to St. John’s, Oxford, of which college he became a fellow. He composed a Masque, which recommended him to King James the First, before whom it was performed in Oxford; and he rose higher in that monarch’s favour by an essay which he wrote against tobacco. He was the author of various other poems and prose works. He died in 1627.
John Hanmer, a member of the ancient family of the same name, living at Hanmer, in Flintshire, was educated at the University of Oxford, where he obtained a fellowship in All Souls College. He subsequently became a prebendary of Worcester, and rector of Bingham, Nottinghamshire. He was appointed chaplain to King James the First, who nominated him bishop of St. Asaph in 1623. He died at Pentre-pont, near Oswestry, in 1629; and bequeathed several sums of money for charitable purposes.
Sir Thomas Hanmer, Baronet, was born in 1676, and succeeded to the title and estates of his uncle Sir John Hanmer, in Flintshire. He was educated at Westminster School, and Christ Church, Oxford. He commenced his parliamentary career in the representation of the county of Suffolk; and in 1713, he was elected speaker of the House of Commons, which honourable office he held until the end of his parliamentary life, which from its commencement lasted upwards of thirty years. He then withdrew altogether from public life, and turned his attention to literature; he published an elegant edition of Shakspeare in six volumes, quarto, which was printed at Oxford in 1744; and he liberally presented the copyright to the University. He died at his seat in Suffolk in 1746.
Howell Harris was born at Trevecka, in Brecknockshire, in 1714. His parents were in humble circumstances, but they contrived to give him a classical education, and kept him at school until he was eighteen, when his father dying, he was obliged to support himself by giving instruction to a few boys in the neighbourhood, intending at a proper time to enter the established church. In 1735, he went to Oxford, and was entered at St. Mary Hall, where he did not remain to complete his studies. In 1739, he began to traverse Wales, preaching in the open fields and streets according to the tenets which Whitfield was spreading in England, and gaining numerous converts every day. The sect which he introduced is still very great in Wales, and after spending seventeen years in spreading his doctrine, he came to reside permanently at his native town of Trevecka. After an active life, he died in the year 1773.
John ap Henry was born in Wales in 1559, and was a celebrated character at that period, better known by his assumed title of Martin Marprelate. He was entered at Peterhouse, Cambridge, where he took the degree of B.A. in 1584; he afterwards removed to Oxford, where he graduated M.A.; he preached frequently in both Universities, and gained great reputation, and he afterwards became a notorious Puritan. His embracing the principles of the Brownists, rendered him obnoxious to a vindictive government, to the cruelty of which he afterwards fell a victim. He was prosecuted for some libellous pamphlets which could not be proved against him; and afterwards he was most illegally tried and condemned on a charge of denying the sovereign’s authority, for which he was accordingly executed. He was a man of great talent and learning, but his productions are chiefly political tracts which related to that period.
Matthew Henry was the son of Philip Henry, an eminent Nonconformist, and he was born at Broad Oak, in Flintshire, in the year 1663. He was early instructed by his father in the Latin, Greek, and Hebrew languages, in which he made great proficiency, and being originally intended for the bar, he was entered at Gray’s Inn; but his great predilection for divinity induced him to leave that profession, and for twenty-five years he was the zealous pastor of a Dissenting congregation in Chester. In 1702, he removed to Hackney, where he paid the most sedulous attention to the duties of his ministry; he remained there until his death, which took place in 1714, of a stroke of apoplexy. His numerous works are a proof of his deep learning, and he enjoyed great popularity both as an author and a preacher; his chief work is an Exposition of the Bible, in five volumes, folio, which has gone through numerous editions.
Edward Herbert, Lord Herbert of Cherbury, eminent for his character and writings, was the son of Richard Herbert, Esq., of a very ancient family, and was born at Montgomery Castle, in North Wales, in 1581. His proficiency was so great in his early education that he was entered at University College, Oxford, at the age of twelve. In 1600, he came to London, and being introduced at court, he became a Knight of the Bath soon after the accession of James the First. After spending his time in visiting various courts of Europe, and serving for some time under the Prince of Orange in the Low Countries, in 1614, he was sent on an embassy to the court of France; and having been recalled, he was sent ambassador a second time, and while there he printed at Paris his famous book “De veritate prout distinguitur a Revelatione.” In 1625, he returned home, and was created an Irish Peer, and afterwards an English Baron. He afterwards retired from public life, and upon the breaking out of the civil war, he joined the parliamentary party, but he soon quitted it, and joined the royal cause, and consequently he was a great sufferer in his estate. He died in London, in 1648, and was buried in St. Giles’s-in-the-fields. He wrote the Memoirs of his own Life, which were not published until the year 1764, by Lord Oxford. The character of this distinguished nobleman was brave, generous, and disinterested.
George Herbert, younger brother of Lord Herbert, distinguished himself as a poet and divine; he also was born at Montgomery Castle, in 1593. He was educated at Westminster School, and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he obtained a fellowship; and in 1619, he was chosen public orator. Having taken orders, he applied himself with great assiduity to the duties of his profession, and the first benefice which he received was a prebend in the diocese of Lincoln, and the parish church connected with it was rebuilt mostly at his own expense. He subsequently obtained the rectory of Bemerton, near Salisbury. His death took place in February, 1633. He published the “Country Parson,” and he was the author of the “Temple,” which contains poems on sacred subjects, besides other minor pieces.
James Howel, the author of the popular and interesting “Epistolæ Hoelianæ,” was the son of a clergyman, and born in Caermarthenshire, in 1596. He took his degree of bachelor of arts in Jesus College, Oxford, in 1613. When he left the University, he was appointed, through the interest of Sir Robert Mansel, to superintend a patent glass manufactory in London, which had been established by some men of rank. In 1619, he commenced a tour on the Continent in the service of his employers, and during the three years that he continued abroad, he visited Holland, Spain, France, and Italy; in Venice he engaged some workmen for his manufactory, for the Venetians were at that time very famous for their skill in casting plate-glass. Soon after his return to England he was elected fellow of Jesus College, and travelled abroad again with the son of Lord Altham. He afterwards had the office of secretary to Lord Scrope, then president of the North, and was elected member of parliament for Richmond, and subsequently he was appointed secretary to the English Ambassador, the Earl of Leicester, in Denmark. In 1640, he was made clerk of the council, which he did not long retain by reason of Cromwell’s usurpation. His works are numerous, and he was the first who held the office of Historiographer, which he obtained on the Restoration. He died in 1666.
William Hughes, D.D., was a native of Caernarvonshire, and was educated partly at Oxford, whence he removed to Christ’s College, Cambridge. He was chaplain to the Duke of Norfolk, and he took his degrees of divinity in Oxford, having been incorporated from Cambridge. He was afterwards rector of Llysfaen in Caernarvonshire, and in 1573, he was consecrated Bishop of St. Asaph. He died in 1600.
Humphrey Humphreys, D.D., was born at Penrhyn-dau-draeth, Merionethshire, in 1648. He received his education at the free grammar schools of Oswestry and Bangor, and in 1665, he was admitted a member of Jesus College, Oxford, where he obtained a scholarship, and afterwards a fellowship; he proceeded regularly through his degrees, and became rector of Llanvrothen, which he left in 1672 for the living of Trawsfynydd. Having been made a canon of Bangor, he was installed dean of the same cathedral in 1680, and in 1689, he was raised to the bishopric, from which he was translated to the see of Hereford in 1701. His death took place in 1712. He was a person of excellent virtues during the whole course of his life, and an example of piety, and strictly attentive to the duties of his high station.
George, Lord Jefferies, Baron Wem, was the son of John Jefferies, Esq., of Acton, in Denbighshire, where he was born in the beginning of the seventeenth century. He received his education at Shrewsbury School, and Westminster, and was entered at the Middle Temple to study law. His father’s family being large, his allowance was consequently very scanty, but his industry and ingenuity supplied all deficiencies. On commencing his professional career, he was made a citizen of London through the interest of a relation; and he was subsequently chosen recorder of the corporation. This high station recommended him to the notice of the court, and furthered his advancement. He was appointed successively a Welsh Judge, and Chief Justice of Chester, and created a baronet. Having been appointed Chief Justice of the King’s Bench, he was employed to prosecute the adherents of the Duke of Monmouth, which office he executed with great cruelty, and for his zeal in this service he was rewarded by the vindictive and cold-hearted James with the post of Lord High Chancellor. It is acknowledged, however, that he showed himself an able and impartial judge in cases which were not connected with politics. On the accession of William the Third, he was committed to the Tower, where he died in April, 1689. He was succeeded in his title and estates by his only son, whose daughter was married to Earl Pomfret; and after his death, she presented the noble collection, known by the name of Pomfret marbles, to the University of Oxford.
William Lleyn was a very celebrated Welsh bard, and flourished in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. He was a native of Llangain in Lleyn, in Caernarvonshire. He excelled all the bards of his time in sublimity of thought and poetic fire, and was much admired for the sprightliness of his wit. His compositions are remarkable for grave sentences, and maxims of policy and wisdom. He had a poetical contest with Owain Gwynedd, a contemporary bard, which is still extant, besides several other pieces which have never been published. He died at Oswestry.
David Jenkins was born at Hensol, in Glamorganshire, in 1586. He was educated at Edmund Hall, Oxford, and entered at Gray’s Inn. Being called to the bar, he was subsequently made a Welsh Judge, and continued in this office until he was taken prisoner by the parliamentary forces at Hereford, and imprisoned in the Tower of London. Having rendered himself obnoxious to the parliament, in consequence of his having condemned, when judge, several who had taken arms against the King, he was brought before the House of Commons; whose authority he denied, and called the whole assembly a den of thieves; being provoked by this language, they voted him guilty of high treason, and sentenced him to be hanged; on which he undauntedly observed that he would suffer with the Bible under one arm and Magna Charta under the other. He escaped however this punishment, but was fined 1,000l. for contempt, and his estates were confiscated. He was committed to Newgate, where he remained until the Restoration; but it does not appear that he obtained any reward for his courage and fidelity from the forgetful Charles. He died in 1667, at Cambridge.
Sir Leoline Jenkins, L.L.D., was born in 1623, at Llantrisaint, in the county of Glamorgan, and was educated at Jesus College, Oxford. When the civil war broke out, he took arms for the King, and upon the failure of the royal cause he left the kingdom. On the Restoration he returned to Jesus College, and was elected fellow, and in 1661, he became the principal. He was afterwards admitted an advocate at Doctors’ Commons; and with other eminent civilians he was appointed to review the maritime laws, and to compile a body of rules for the adjudication of prizes, which became the standard of the Court of Admiralty. He was made judge of the same court in 1665, and in 1668, of the Prerogative Court in Canterbury. He was likewise sent on an embassy to the Dutch. On his return he was chosen member for the University of Oxford, sworn of the privy council, and appointed secretary of state, which office he resigned in 1684. On the accession of James, he was again elected member for Oxford, but was prevented by ill health from sitting in that parliament, and died in 1685. His letters and papers were collected and published by W. Wynne, in two folio volumes; and all his estate was bequeathed by him for charitable uses, and chiefly to Jesus College.
Thomas Johnes was born of an ancient Welsh family in Ludlow, in 1748. He was educated at Eton, and Jesus College, Oxford, where he proceeded to his Master’s degree. He was the proprietor of the estate of Havod, in Cardiganshire, where he built a splendid mansion, and occupied himself there in planting trees, and otherwise improving his property. He also devoted himself to literary pursuits, the fruits of which are elegant editions of the “Chronicles of Froissart and Monstrelet,” and several other works, all of which he himself translated from the French, and printed at his own establishment at Havod. He first obtained a seat in parliament for the borough of Cardigan, and afterwards for the county of Radnor; he was likewise auditor for Wales, and colonel of the Caermarthenshire militia. In 1807, his library, consisting of the finest typographical productions, and containing a number of valuable Welsh manuscripts, was burnt in a fire which nearly destroyed the whole house. He died in 1816.
Edward Jones, D.D., was born near the town of Montgomery, and was educated at Westminster School, whence he was elected to Trinity College, Cambridge, where he was chosen fellow in 1667. He became master of Kilkenny College, and dean of Lismore, in Ireland, and was made bishop of Cloyne, and in 1692 he was translated to the see of St. Asaph. His translation to this diocese was entirely owing to his being a native of the country. He died at Westminster in 1703.
[For an account of Edward Jones, Bardd y Brenin,—see Addenda.]
Owen Jones, the distinguished Welsh antiquary, whose name will be ever associated with the Welsh language, was born in Llanvihangel Glyn-y-myvyr, Denbighshire, in 1741. In early life he removed to London, and entered the employment of an eminent furrier, whom he eventually succeeded. Being enthusiastically interested in the antiquities of his native country, he devoted a great portion of his time to the collecting of Welsh manuscripts; and the result of his disinterested patriotism has been the publication of the “Archaiology of Wales,” in three volumes, entirely at his own expense. He also procured transcripts of ancient Welsh poetry, amounting to fifty volumes, quarto, which invaluable collection is now deposited in the Cymmrodorion Library, in London. He published the works of the famous poet, Davydd ap Gwilym, and also “Dihewyd y Cristion.” In 1772, Mr. Jones, formed the Gwyneddigion Society, for the purpose of patronizing the Bards of Wales, and promoting the study of the Welsh language; and this excellent society annually offers prize medals, and other rewards for compositions on various subjects. After a most useful and active life, this amiable man, whose zeal was only equalled by his private worth, died at his house in Thames-street, London, September, 1814, in the seventy-third year of his age.
Inigo Jones, whose proper name was Ynyr, which in his travels in Italy, he Italianized into Inigo, was born at Llanrwst, Denbighshire, about the year 1572. Being originally destined for a mechanical employment, he emerged from obscurity by dint of talent, which recommended him to the Earl of Pembroke, a great patron of the fine arts, who also supplied him with the means of visiting Italy, for the purpose of studying landscape painting. While at Venice, the works of Paladio inspired him with a taste for architecture, in the practice of which he arrived at unrivalled excellence. His reputation recommended him to the notice of Christiern the Fourth, King of Denmark, who bestowed on him the post of first architect. Having returned to England, he was appointed architect to the Queen, and Prince Henry, and afterwards to the Board of Works. His acknowledged taste in classical architecture obtained for him sufficient employment from court, and many of the nobility and gentry, so that he realized a handsome fortune. Many proofs exist of the elegant taste of this great architect; and he was also commissioner for the repairing of St. Paul’s Cathedral, all of which was ruined by the great fire; but it was subsequently rebuilt after Jones’s original design. During the civil war he was forced to pay a fine on account of his known attachment to the royal family; and being distressed at the ruin of the royal cause, and worn down with suffering and old age, he died in July, 1652. He was a good geometrician, and well skilled in various branches of literature and science; but as an author he only published a curious treatise, to attempt to prove that Stonehenge was a Roman temple.
John Jones, L.L.D., an eminent divine and philologist, was a native of Caermarthenshire. He was educated at the Dissenting College of Hackney; and he became tutor in several Dissenting academies successively in Wales and England. He finally settled in London, where he spent his time in editing his numerous works; among the most popular of which are his “Greek and English Lexicon,” and his “Grammar,” both Greek and Latin, besides other works on education; and he likewise was held in great esteem as a private tutor. He died in London in 1827.
William Jones, an eminent mathematician, was born in the Isle of Anglesey in 1680. At a very early age he applied himself diligently to the study of mathematics; and in his twenty-second year he published a “Compendium of the Art of Navigation,” which was much approved of. He began his career in teaching these sciences on board of a man-of-war; and he was present at the capture of Vigo. On his return to England, he gave instructions in the mathematics in London, and having attracted the notice of some influential men, he was appointed by Lord Hardwicke secretary of the peace. He enjoyed the friendship of the great mathematicians and writers of the age, among whom were Newton, Halley, Head, and Dr. Johnson. He was member of the Royal Society, and then vice-president. He was author of several valuable papers on mathematics, which were published in the Philosophical Transactions. He died of a polypus in the heart in July, 1749.
Sir William Jones, the celebrated oriental scholar, was the son of the subject of the preceding article, and was born in London, September, 1746. He received his early education at Harrow School, where he was sent in his eighth year. He very soon attracted the notice of the masters by his splendid genius; and in 1764, he was entered at University College, Oxford. While here, he supported, at his own expense, a native of Aleppo, for the purpose of acquiring the true pronunciation of the Arabic. And having undertaken the office of tutor to Lord Althorpe, he went with him to the German Spa, where he perfected himself in the German language; and on his return, he distinguished himself by translating the “Life of Nadir Shah” into French, which language he wrote with much elegance. He obtained a college fellowship, and afterwards entered himself as a law student in the Temple. In 1772, he published some poems, and in the same year was elected a fellow of the Royal Society; and in 1774, he was called to the bar; about two years after, he was made commissioner of bankrupts. In the mean time, he published several works, chiefly in oriental literature, which excited the admiration of the world; and at the same time he was advancing rapidly in professional reputation. In an election for the University of Oxford he offered himself as a candidate, where, however, though respectably supported, he did not succeed. On the accession of the Shelburne administration, he obtained what had long been the summit of his ambition—the appointment of Judge in the Supreme Court of Judicature in Bengal, to which he was nominated in 1783, and received the honour of knighthood. He married Miss Shipley, the daughter of the Bishop of St. Asaph; and in the same year he arrived at Calcutta. While in India, he wrote numerous translations from the Hindostanee, and formed there a society, similar to the Royal Society of London, of which he was chosen the first president. He next undertook to compile a complete digest of the Hindoo and Mohammedan laws, which was not however completed by him. In 1794, he was seized with an inflammation of the liver, and died on the 27th of April, in the forty-eighth year of his age. Few men have died more respected and lamented than Sir William Jones: his genius and profound learning had attracted the praise of all; and as a linguist, he has not been surpassed, for he knew no less than twenty-nine languages, and most of them critically. All his works were collected and published by his widow, in six volumes, quarto.
Lloyd, Lord Kenyon, was born in Gredington, Flintshire, in 1732. He was the second son of a gentleman of independent fortune, and was originally intended to be brought up as a solicitor, and he was under the instruction of an eminent lawyer at Nantwich. In consequence of the death of an elder brother, he was entered at the Middle Temple, and after being called to the bar, he attended various circuits before he obtained any practice, which caused him to despair of succeeding in his profession, and think of applying himself to divinity, and taking orders. Active attention, however, and indefatigable industry, brought him at length to notice and extensive practice. He confined himself afterwards entirely to the Court of Chancery, where he obtained the most distinguished celebrity, although he ranked high as a common lawyer. He conducted the defence of Lord George Gordon, when he was tried for high treason. In 1780 he was appointed Lord Chief Justice of Chester, and he twice filled the office of Attorney-general. On the death of Sir John Sewell, he accepted the office of Master of the Rolls, and in 1788 he succeeded Lord Mansfield as Lord Chief Justice of the King’s Bench, where he gave the greatest satisfaction by his integrity and able administration of justice. He died in 1802, in his seventieth year.
David Lloyd, L.L.D., was born at Llanidloes, Montgomeryshire, in the year 1603. He was entered at the age of fourteen at All Soul’s College, Oxford, where he afterwards became a fellow. Having taken orders, he obtained the rectory of Trevdraeth, in Anglesea, in 1641, which he resigned on his presentation to Llangynhaval in the following year, and became successively vicar of Llanvair, in Dyfryn Clwyd, and warden of Ruthin, and prebendary of Chester; out of all of which he was ejected after the breaking out of the civil war, and for his loyalty he was a great sufferer. On the accession of Charles the Second, he was restored to his benefices, and promoted to the deanery of St. Asaph in 1660. He was esteemed an ingenious man, and a good poet; and he published several pieces which were prized for their wit. He died at Ruthin in September, 1663.
David Lloyd, M.A., was born at Trawsvynydd, Merionethshire, in 1635, and educated at Ruthin School. He removed thence to Oriel College, Oxford, where he graduated, and obtained a college living. He subsequently retired to Wales, where he was appointed chaplain to Bishop Barrow, who, besides other preferment, gave him a canonry in the diocese of St. Asaph. He was afterwards vicar of Northop, where he resided for several years; he published several works, of which the principal are “Worthies of the World,” 1665, octavo; “Memories of Statesmen and Favourites of England,” octavo. He was zealous and industrious in the discharge of his clerical duties, and esteemed by all for his charitable disposition. On finding his health decaying, he retired to the place of his nativity, where he died in 1691.
Henry Lloyd was the son of a clergyman in Wales, where he was born in 1729. His early education he received from his father, who instructed him in the classics and mathematics. Being intended for the army, he went abroad, and was at the battle of Fontenoy; he afterwards travelled in Germany, and resided in Austria for some years, where he was appointed aid-de-camp to Marshal Lascy, and received higher promotion. In 1760 he commanded a large detachment of cavalry and infantry, which was destined to observe the motions of the Prussians. He executed this service with great success; but soon after, for some reason, he threw up his commission in disgust. He was next employed by the King of Prussia, and served in two campaigns until the peace. On the breaking out of the war between the Turks and Russians, he offered his services to Catherine the Second, who made him a major-general, and he greatly distinguished himself at the seige of Silistria in 1774, and subsequently he had the command of 30,000 men in the war with Sweden. After his return to England, he published several works on military tactics, which are highly thought of, and placed him in a high rank as a military writer. He died at Huy, in the Netherlands, in 1783.
Hugh Lloyd, D.D., was a native of South Wales, where he was born in the year 1589, and having been brought up for the church, and having received an University education, he became rector of Llangatoc, in Breconshire, and archdeacon of St. David’s. In 1660 he was advanced to the bishopric of Llandav, where he continued until his death, which took place in 1667, and he was buried in his cathedral.
Humffrey Lloyd, D.D., was born in 1610, at Trawsvynydd, Merionethshire. He received an academical education; and having taken orders, he became in time, a prebendary of York, and vicar of Rhiwabon, in Denbighshire, and likewise a prebendary of Chester; out of which he was ejected in the great rebellion; but living to be restored in 1660, he was made canon of St. Asaph the following year, and in 1667 dean of the same cathedral; in 1673 he was raised to the bishopric of Bangor. He was a great benefactor to his cathedral, and greatly increased the revenues of his see. He died in 1688.
John Lloyd, D.D., was a native of Caermarthenshire, where he was born in 1638. He was entered at Merton College, Oxford, whence he removed to Jesus College, where he graduated, and of which in time he became prebendary. He also discharged the office of vice-chancellor in that University with great satisfaction, and was held in high esteem for his piety and learning. In 1686 he was promoted to the bishopric of St. David’s, but by reason of ill health he removed to Oxford, and died at Jesus College in 1687.
Nicholas Lloyd, an eminent divine, and philological writer, was born in Flintshire in 1634. He received his education at Winchester School, and Wadham College, Oxford, where he obtained a fellowship. He was for some years rector of Newington Butts, near London, to which he had been appointed by the Bishop of Worcester, to whom he was chaplain. He died there in 1680. He published an excellent and highly esteemed “Historical and Geographical Dictionary,” in Latin, which has been the basis of many similar compilations.
William Lloyd, D.D., an eminent prelate, was the son of the Rev. Richard Lloyd, Rector of Tilehurst, Berks, who came from Henblas, in Anglesea, and was born at his father’s living in 1627. At the early age of eleven he was entered at Oriel College, Oxford, whence he removed to New College, and subsequently to Jesus College, where he became successively a scholar and fellow. Having taken orders in 1648, he was presented to the rectory of Bradfield, Berks, in 1654, which he afterwards resigned. He was appointed chaplain to Charles the Second, and prebendary of Salisbury, then rector of St. Mary’s, in Reading, and archdeacon of Merioneth; four years after, he was made dean of Bangor. After various other preferment, he was advanced to the bishopric of St. Asaph in 1680. He was one of the seven bishops who were committed to the Tower for subscribing and presenting a petition to King James, deprecating his assumed power of suspending the laws against popery. Bishop Lloyd having heartily concurred in the Revolution, was appointed lord almoner to King William, and in 1692 he was translated to Lichfield and Coventry, and thence in 1699 to Worcester. His writings, which relate to history and divinity are greatly prized, and are distinguished for the learning and acute judgment exhibited in them. He died in 1717.
William Lloyd, D.D., was a native of Wales, and was educated at St. John’s College, Cambridge, and graduated there. Having taken orders, he obtained various preferment, and in 1675 he was made bishop of Llandaff, from whence he was translated to Peterborough in 1679, and thence in 1685 to the see of Norwich, out of which he was ejected for not taking the oath to King William and Queen Mary. He retired to Hammersmith, near London, where he died in 1710.
Edward Llwyd, M.A., an eminent British antiquary and naturalist, was a native of Cardiganshire, where he was born about 1670. At the age of seventeen, he was entered at Jesus College, Oxford, where he graduated. He succeeded Dr. Plot, the keeper of the Ashmolean Museum, and applied himself with great diligence to the study of the language of the early Britons, and for that purpose he travelled in the countries where it still remained. After having visited Ireland, Scotland, Cornwall, and Bretagne, and making himself perfect in the various dialects, he published the results of his accurate observations in the “Archæologia Britannica,” which was the first volume of a series on a great plan, which he did not live to carry on; and his death taking place before the ample materials which he had provided were properly arranged for the press, the whole of his manuscripts were sold to Sir Thomas Sebright, but not before Jesus College and the University had refused to purchase them. They subsequently came to the possession of Colonel Johnes, of Havod, and were mostly burnt in the fire which nearly destroyed that gentleman’s mansion. He died in 1709. He was also author of “Lithophylacii Britannici Ichnographia,” and a catalogue of the manuscripts in the Ashmolean Museum, besides several papers published in the Philosophical Transactions.
Humfrey Lloyd, M.A., a learned antiquary and historian, was born in the town of Denbigh in 1527. He was entered a gentleman commoner of Brazen-nose College, Oxford, where he graduated in 1551, and studied medicine. He returned to his native place, where he practised his profession, and also represented it in parliament. He was highly esteemed by Camden, and the geographer Ortelius, to whom he addressed his “Commentarioli Britannicæ descriptionis fragmentum,” published at Cologne in 1572. He also translated Caradog of Llancarvan’s “History of Cambria,” which was edited by Dr. Powel, in 1584, quarto, and he was author of a letter “De Monâ Druidum Insulâ antiquitati suæ restitutâ.” He died in 1568.
Christopher Love, an eminent Presbyterian divine, was born at Caerdiff, in 1618. He was originally intended for trade, and was apprenticed in London; but his father was persuaded afterwards to give him an University education, and accordingly he was entered at New-Inn Hall, Oxford, where he proceeded in due order to his degrees of bachelor and master of arts, and entered the church. Upon his refusal to subscribe to the canons which were enjoined by Archbishop Laud, he was expelled the congregation of masters. Upon the establishment of the Presbyterian government, he was ordained to preach at St. Mary’s, Aldermanbury; and he was one of the commissioners appointed by parliament at the treaty of Uxbridge. He was one of the London ministers who signed a declaration against putting the King to death, and subsequently he took an active share in a conspiracy to place Charles the Second on the throne, which was detected by the vigilance of Cromwell; and Mr. Love was tried, and beheaded on Tower-hill in August, 1651.
Richard Lucas, D.D., an excellent divine, and classical scholar, was born at Presteign, Radnorshire, in 1648. He received an University education at Jesus College, Oxford, where he graduated. In 1683 he was elected by the parishioners to the lectureship of St. Olave’s, Southwark, and the vicarage of St. Stephen’s, Coleman-street. He obtained afterwards a stall in Westminster, which he held for nineteen years. His writings consist of sermons and various other theological works.
Francis Mansel was the third son of Sir Francis Mansel, of Muddlescomb, Caermarthenshire, where he was born in 1588. He was educated at Hereford School, and Jesus College, Oxford. He became a fellow of All Souls, and in 1620 he was elected principal of Jesus College. He was ejected from his office at the parliamentary visitation in 1648, and he retired to Wales, where he assisted the royal cause with his greatest exertions, and consequently exposed himself to the persecutions of the parliamentary party. He was a very great benefactor to his college, and considerably increased its revenues, and he obtained besides for it a valuable library. He died in May, 1665.
Henry Maurice, D.D., an eminently learned and talented divine, was born in 1648, at Llangristiolus, in Anglesea. He was sent to Jesus College, Oxford, in his sixteenth year, where his abilities and great merit recommended him to the notice of the principal, Sir Leoline Jenkins, who made him a scholar of the college, and afterwards fellow. When Sir Leoline was sent on an embassy to Cologne, he appointed Mr. Maurice to be his chaplain, in which station he gave the greatest satisfaction by his diligent attention to his duties; and on his return to England, he became acquainted with Dr. Lloyd, afterwards bishop of St. Asaph, who recommended him to Archbishop Sancroft, and he was appointed his chaplain, and soon after rector of Newington, and prebendary of Chichester. He published some treatises against popery; and in 1691 he was elected Lady Margaret’s professor of divinity in Oxford. He died suddenly in 1693, at Newington. It was observed when Dr. Maurice was appointed chaplain to the Archbishop, that several of the highest offices in church and state had been filled by Welshmen. Dr. Dolben was Archbishop of York, Dr. Lloyd Bishop of St. Asaph, Sir George Jefferies Lord Chancellor, Sir Leoline Jenkins Secretary of State, Sir Thomas Jones Lord Chief Justice, Sir John Trevor Master of the Rolls, and Sir William Williams Speaker of the House of Commons.
Thomas Maurice, the celebrated orientalist, was a member of a respectable Welsh family. On the death of his father, who had been a master in Christ’s Hospital for twenty-six years, Thomas, the eldest of six children, was admitted on the foundation there, but he was afterwards removed to various seminaries in the country for the benefit of his health; the last of which was the celebrated one of Dr. Parr’s, at Stanmore-hill. At the age of nineteen he was entered at St. John’s College, Oxford, whence he subsequently removed to University College, and here he commenced author at an early period, by publishing a translation of “Sophaclis Ædipus Tyrannus,” which gained him great credit; this was soon followed by some other pieces of verse and prose. On taking orders, he obtained the curacy of Woodford, in Essex, and afterwards he purchased a chaplaincy in the ninety-seventh regiment. In 1783 he commenced the arduous undertaking of his “History of India,” the various volumes of which appeared successively at different times—the last in 1804. He was presented by Earl Spencer to the vicarage of Wormleighton, in Warwickshire, in 1799; and the appointment of assistant librarian to the British Museum was also bestowed upon him; and in 1804 he was presented to the living of Cudham, Kent, by the Lord Chancellor. He died at his rooms in the Museum, March 30th, 1824. Besides his great works on India, he was the author of numerous poems, dissertations, and other miscellanies, all of which ranked him high as a literary character.
Rowland Meyrick, L.L.D., was born at Bodorgan, in Anglesea, in 1505. He was educated at Oxford, where he subsequently became principal of New-Inn Hall; and after holding various preferments, he was advanced to the bishopric of Bangor in 1559, where he died in 1565.
Sir Hugh Middleton, well known as the maker of the New River, London, was the son of Richard Middleton, Esq., governor of Denbigh Castle, under Edward the Sixth, Mary, and Elizabeth. Having settled in London as a goldsmith, he made several successful speculations in some mines in Cardiganshire, and became an alderman. Observing the scarcity of good water in London, he took entirely upon himself to supply the metropolis with a stream of pure water; for the corporation, with all its wealth, conceiving the undertaking to be too difficult, refused to have any share in it. He, however, patriotically persevered; and after almost the ruin of his own fortune, he succeeded in obtaining assistance from the King for a share, and it was completed. The water was let in before an immense concourse on Michaelmas-day, in 1613. He was knighted, and in 1622 he was created a baronet. His death took place in 1631.
Robert Morgan, D.D., was born at Llandysilio, Montgomeryshire, in 1608. He was entered at Jesus College, and thence he removed to St. John’s College, Cambridge, where he graduated. Having taken orders, he became chaplain to Bishop Dolben, who preferred him, in 1632, to the vicarage of Llanwnog, Montgomeryshire, and rectory of Llangynhaval. He was afterwards prebendary of Chester, vicar of Llanvair, Denbighshire, and rector of Trevdraeth, and Llandyvnan, in Anglesea; out of all which he was ejected during the usurpation of Cromwell, during which he was a great sufferer for his loyalty. In 1660 he was restored to his benefices, and was promoted to the archdeaconry of Meirioneth; and in 1666 he was raised to the bishopric of Bangor. He died in 1673, and was buried in his cathedral, which had been greatly improved at his cost.
William Morgan, D.D., the first translator of the Bible into the Welsh language, was born at Penmachno, Caernarvonshire, and was educated at St. John’s College, Cambridge. He was vicar of Welsh-pool, in Montgomeryshire, and obtained other preferment. Having occasion to go to London to see Archbishop Whitgift, his grace conceived a high opinion of his abilities, and appointed him his chaplain. At the Archbishop’s desire, he undertook a translation of the Bible into Welsh, which was published in 1588, black letter, folio. The New Testament was only corrected by him from a translation by William Salusbury, a Denbighshire gentleman, who first published the Epistles and Gospels for the whole year, in Edward the Sixth’s time. Queen Elizabeth rewarded Dr. Morgan with the bishopric of Llandaff, in 1595, and he was translated to the see of St. Asaph in 1601. He died in 1604.
Hugh Morris, one of the first of Welsh poets, was born at Pont-y-Meibion, in Denbighshire, in the year 1622. Being a younger son, he was apprenticed by his father, who was a respectable freeholder, to a tanner in Flintshire. He did not carry on his trade, but lived a life of retirement in the cultivation of his talent for poetry, of which he has left us splendid memorial. The productions of his pen are numerous; and these valuable poems have been patriotically collected and published by an eminent Welsh scholar and divine, in two volumes. Hugh Morris, on the breaking out of the civil war, was a stanch friend to royalty, and he exerted all the powers of his pen in its support, and there is no doubt but that his writings had great influence over the minds of the common people, ever attached to poetry. His satirical poems, where he lashes the religious cant and vile hypocrisy of the times, are unequalled for the keen wit and cutting irony, which he handles in so masterly a manner. He was universally esteemed for his great abilities and excellent character, and always exercised his influence in behalf of justice and benevolence, and in the furtherance of religion. He died at the place of his birth in 1709, in the eighty-seventh year of his age.
Lewis Morris, an eminent poet and antiquary, was born in the Isle of Anglesea in the year 1702. In his youth he received but a slender education; but, however, he and three other brothers, through self-instruction, and cultivation of their natural talent, became eminent characters in various branches of knowledge and science. He was chiefly employed in the service of government; and in 1737 he was appointed by the admiralty to survey the coast of Wales, which he accomplished with great satisfaction, and an account of it was published in 1748. At the same period he had the appointment of the surveyorship of the crown lands in Wales, and in 1750 he had the additional offices of superintendent and agent of the King’s mines in the principality. He was a very good poet in his native language, and several of his productions have been published. As an antiquary he was eminently skilful, and it is greatly to be lamented that a valuable work entitled “Celtic Remains,” which he left in manuscript, has never been sent to the press, as his acute and learned remarks would be a great addition to illustrate our national antiquities. He collected about eighty volumes of Welsh manuscripts, which are now deposited in the Welsh School Library, in London. He died in 1765, in Cardiganshire.
Goronwy Owen, A.M., was born about the year 1722, at Llanvair Mathavarn Eithav, in Anglesea. His parents being in a humble condition, were not able to bestow upon him a proper education in his youth, but his great abilities and industry overcame every obstacle. He was at a respectable seminary at Pwllheli, where he became second master, and from thence he removed to Oxford. He was ordained deacon in 1745, and for a short time he held the curacy of his native parish, where he enjoyed great happiness among his friends and early acquaintances. He was obliged to resign this, to make room for a friend of the bishop’s chaplain, who had appointed him to it, and this took place with the bishop’s sanction. He next removed to the neighbourhood of Oswestry, and soon after he was appointed curate of Oswestry. In the year 1748, he became curate of Donington, in Shropshire, where he kept also a school in order to add to his small income, and support an increasing family. Here he composed “Cowydd y Varn,” one of his most celebrated pieces; and what portion of time he could spare from the drudgery of school-keeping, he spent in the study of Hebrew, Arabic, Syriac, and Chaldee. In 1733 he removed to the curacy of Watton, in Lancashire. His great desire was to obtain even the smallest preferment in any part of his native country, but he was disappointed and neglected; and in 1755 he resigned his curacy and went to London, where his countrymen had an intention of building a Welsh church, and to which he was to be appointed minister. When this plan did not succeed, he became curate of Northold, where he remained two years, when an offer was made to him of preferment in America; and by the assistance of the Cymmrodorion in London, he crossed the Atlantic, to St. Andrew’s, in Virginia; here he settled for some time, but afterwards removed to New Brunswick, and from thence to Williamsburg. The time of his death is not well known. This talented man was one of the greatest poets that ever appeared among the Welsh, and his poetical works were printed, with other productions, in a volume, under the title of “Diddanwch Teuluaidd.”
Henry Owen, an eminent divine and philologist, was the son of a gentleman of fortune, in Merionethshire, where he was born, at Tanygader, in 1716. He was educated at Ruthin Grammar school, from whence he removed to Jesus College, Oxford. He originally intended to practise physic, but entered into orders, and after various preferment, he became rector of St. Olave, Hart-street, London, and vicar of Edmonton, Middlesex. His numerous works consist chiefly of theological subjects, and he edited “Xenophon’s Memorabilia,” “Critical Disquisitions,” and “Critica Sacra, or Hebrew Criticism.” He also furnished several papers to the “Archaiologia.” His death took place in 1795.
John Owen, the celebrated epigrammatist, was a native of Caernarvonshire. He was educated at Winchester School, and New College, Oxford, where he graduated L.L.D., and became a fellow. He afterwards held the mastership of a grammar-school, near Monmouth, whence he removed to a similar situation in Warwick. While here, he distinguished himself by his skill in Latin poetry, and more particularly epigrams. This talent, however, did great harm, for he was struck out of the will of a rich uncle for his satirical epigrams on the church of Rome. He died in 1622, and he was buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral, at the expense of Archbishop Williams, by whom he was supported in the latter part of his life. His epigrams have been several times reprinted, both in England, and on the Continent; they are justly admired for their wit and purity of language.
John Owen, D.D., the most eminent of Nonconformist divines in this country, was descended of a respectable family in North Wales, though born at Stadham, in Oxfordshire, in 1616, of which place his father, a native of Wales, was vicar. He was educated at Queen’s College, Oxford, where he was supported by a rich uncle, living in North Wales; but who, being a royalist, was offended at his nephew’s principles, and died without leaving him anything. On the breaking out of the civil war, he sided with the parliament, and became a Presbyterian in his religious opinions; and his display of Arminianism, which was published in 1642, so recommended him to the prevailing party, that he was presented to the living of Fordham, in Essex, and subsequently by the Earl of Warwick, at the request of the parishioners, to that of Coggeshall, in the same county. Having now acquired great celebrity, and become acquainted with General Fairfax during the seige of Colchester, he was appointed to preach at Whitehall the day after the execution of Charles the First. He soon after became a favourite with Cromwell, whom he accompanied on his expeditions to Ireland and Scotland; and in 1651 he was appointed to the deanery of Christ Church, Oxford, on which appointment he received his doctor’s degree, and in 1652, Cromwell being chancellor, Owen was made his vice-chancellor, which office he held for five years. On the death of his patron, the Protector, he was deprived of his office and deanery, through the influence of the Presbyterian party, whom he had offended by adopting the Independent mode of worship, which he thought more conformable to the New Testament; and he published his reasons for thinking so, in two volumes, quarto. On the Restoration, his merit was so highly appreciated, that Lord Clarendon offered him immediate preferment if he would conform, which he respectfully declined. This eminent man died at Ealing, Middlesex, in 1683. His works, which are of high Calvinistic principles, are very numerous, amounting to seven folio, twenty quarto, and thirty octavo volumes.
John Owens, D.D., was the son of Owen Owens, of Bodsilin, in Caernarvonshire, the last archdeacon of Anglesea. He was born at Burton Latimers, Northamptonshire, where his father was rector, and was educated at Jesus College, Cambridge, of which he became a fellow, and succeeded to his father’s living in 1618. He was appointed chaplain to Charles the First, when he was Prince of Wales, who, on the supposition that he was a Welshman, which he was in every respect excepting the place of his nativity, preferred him to the bishopric of St. Asaph in 1629. This excellent prelate was distinguished for his incomparable skill in the Welsh language, and for his pious zeal in promoting the good of his diocese. He was the first who established there preaching in Welsh, and laid out great sums of money in new building and beautifying several parts of his cathedral, and especially in the erection of an organ. Upon the breaking out of the civil war, he was a great and extraordinary sufferer; and he died near St. Asaph, 1651, and was buried under the episcopal throne, when the church was used as a stable for horses and oxen. He was author of “Herod and Pontius Pilate reconciled.”