J. Vyrnwy Morgan
Encyclopedia
Morgan, John Vyrnwy: was a Welsh
Congregationalist minister and author. Usually known as J. Vyrnwy Morgan.
, 21 March 1860, second son of John Morgan. J. Vyrnwy Morgan was admitted a member of Seion Congregational Church
, Cwmafan, at the age of 13. He trained for the ministry at Aberavon Academy, and Memorial College, Brecon
. While in Brecon he met and fell in love with Sarah Edwards, daughter of the minister of Watergate Baptist Chapel, Brecon. They were married in 1884 at Christchurch Congregational Chapel, Oswestry
. They were to have four surviving children, three sons and a daughter.
Morgan was ordained in 1884, and took charge of the Congregational mission at Llanwddyn, where he ministered to the villagers and the workmen engaged in the construction of the Liverpool Waterworks at Lake Vyrnwy
. In 1889 he moved from here to Liverpool
, where he pastored Burlington Street Congregational Chapel. Much of the ministry at Burlington Street was conducted with the aim of reaching out to the poor of the district around the chapel. He left Liverpool in late 1891, intending to take a pastorate in Cardiff.
Illness prevented Vyrnwy Morgan from taking up the difficult work he had planned to do in Cardiff. Instead, Morgan accepted an invitation from the English Congregational Church in Pontypridd
, where he started in 1892. Difficulties with the pastor of the Welsh Congregational Church caused Morgan to leave the chapel in 1893, accepting a pastorate at York Road Chapel, Lambeth
. In London, Morgan became known as a hard-working, enthusiastic minister, his wife, Sarah, filling his pulpit on a number of occasions. Thomas Edward Ellis also spoke at the chapel, and it was rumoured that Vyrnwy Morgan was planning to enter politics.
In September 1895, Morgan was baptised by total immersion at Watergate Chapel, Brecon, his father-in-law performing the rite. This change of denomination meant a change of pulpits, and in November 1895, John Vyrnwy Morgan was inducted to the Pastorate of Tabernacle English Baptist Chapel, Waun Wen, Swansea. While here, he published his first book, a life of Kilsby Jones, which met with critical acclaim.
The pastorate was not a success, and in 1897 Morgan left for American, where he accepted a pastorate in Omaha
, Nebraska
. In 1899, Vyrnwy Morgan left Nebraska, on account of his wife's poor health, which he attributed to the climate, relocating to Denver. The move was too late for his wife, who died there on New Year's Day 1900. A pastorate at Baltimore
, Maryland followed, where Morgan edited a collection of essays on theology, issued under the title Theology at the Dawn of the Twentieth Century but America held little attraction for Morgan, who returned to Wales in 1903.
In 1908, Morgan left Cardiff, spending some time at the family home in Cwmafan, following the death of his father, before moving to West Wales, initially settling at Aberystwyth. In 1909, Morgan published The Welsh Religious Revival 1904-5: A Retrospect and a Criticism, a book which was severely critical of the part played in the Revival by Evan Roberts
.
The same year, Morgan married Margaret Greig of Edinburgh, by whom he had one child, a daughter.
He would publish seven more books, A Study in Nationality (1911); The Philopsophy of Welsh History (1914); The War and Wales (1916); The Church in Wales in the Light of HIstory (1918); The Life of Viscount Rhondda
(1919); The Bible in the Light of Modern Thought' (1922); and the Welsh Mind in Evolution (1925).
Morgan's books on Wales, which contained stringent criticisms of Welsh nationalism, were controversial in his day, and this contributed to their failure to bring Vrynwy Morgan critical or financial success. In 1914, Morgan moved from Aberystwyth to Tenby. An attempt was made to secure a Civil List Pension for Morgan, but this was declined in 1923, Morgan receiving only a gift from the Royal Bounty, in recognition of his hardship.
Morgan died on 9 August 1925 at his home, Glan-y-Mor, Tenby. He is buried in Tenby Cemetery. A number of his books have been reprinted since his death.
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
Congregationalist minister and author. Usually known as J. Vyrnwy Morgan.
Early life
Born at 166, Park Row, CwmafanCwmafan
Cwmafan is a large village and community in the Afan valley in Wales, lying within Neath Port Talbot County Borough. It has a population of 5,603. In many ways it is a suburb of the nearby town of Port Talbot which is less than to the south, but it is separated from the town by the local...
, 21 March 1860, second son of John Morgan. J. Vyrnwy Morgan was admitted a member of Seion Congregational Church
Congregational church
Congregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
, Cwmafan, at the age of 13. He trained for the ministry at Aberavon Academy, and Memorial College, Brecon
Brecon
Brecon is a long-established market town and community in southern Powys, Mid Wales, with a population of 7,901. It was the county town of the historic county of Brecknockshire; although its role as such was eclipsed with the formation of Powys, it remains an important local centre...
. While in Brecon he met and fell in love with Sarah Edwards, daughter of the minister of Watergate Baptist Chapel, Brecon. They were married in 1884 at Christchurch Congregational Chapel, Oswestry
Oswestry
Oswestry is a town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, close to the Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5, A483, and A495 roads....
. They were to have four surviving children, three sons and a daughter.
Morgan was ordained in 1884, and took charge of the Congregational mission at Llanwddyn, where he ministered to the villagers and the workmen engaged in the construction of the Liverpool Waterworks at Lake Vyrnwy
Lake Vyrnwy
Lake Vyrnwy Nature Reserve and Estate is an area of land in Montgomeryshire, Powys, Wales, surrounding the Victorian reservoir of Lake Vyrnwy. Its stone-built dam, built in the 1880s, was the first of its kind in the world. The Nature Reserve and the area around it are jointly managed by the Royal...
. In 1889 he moved from here to Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, where he pastored Burlington Street Congregational Chapel. Much of the ministry at Burlington Street was conducted with the aim of reaching out to the poor of the district around the chapel. He left Liverpool in late 1891, intending to take a pastorate in Cardiff.
Illness prevented Vyrnwy Morgan from taking up the difficult work he had planned to do in Cardiff. Instead, Morgan accepted an invitation from the English Congregational Church in Pontypridd
Pontypridd
Pontypridd is both a community and a principal town of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales and is situated 12 miles/19 km north of the Welsh capital city of Cardiff...
, where he started in 1892. Difficulties with the pastor of the Welsh Congregational Church caused Morgan to leave the chapel in 1893, accepting a pastorate at York Road Chapel, Lambeth
Lambeth
Lambeth is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated southeast of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
. In London, Morgan became known as a hard-working, enthusiastic minister, his wife, Sarah, filling his pulpit on a number of occasions. Thomas Edward Ellis also spoke at the chapel, and it was rumoured that Vyrnwy Morgan was planning to enter politics.
In September 1895, Morgan was baptised by total immersion at Watergate Chapel, Brecon, his father-in-law performing the rite. This change of denomination meant a change of pulpits, and in November 1895, John Vyrnwy Morgan was inducted to the Pastorate of Tabernacle English Baptist Chapel, Waun Wen, Swansea. While here, he published his first book, a life of Kilsby Jones, which met with critical acclaim.
The pastorate was not a success, and in 1897 Morgan left for American, where he accepted a pastorate in Omaha
Omaha
Omaha may refer to:*Omaha , a Native American tribe that currently resides in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Nebraska-Places:United States* Omaha, Nebraska* Omaha, Arkansas* Omaha, Georgia* Omaha, Illinois* Omaha, Texas...
, Nebraska
Nebraska
Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....
. In 1899, Vyrnwy Morgan left Nebraska, on account of his wife's poor health, which he attributed to the climate, relocating to Denver. The move was too late for his wife, who died there on New Year's Day 1900. A pastorate at Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, Maryland followed, where Morgan edited a collection of essays on theology, issued under the title Theology at the Dawn of the Twentieth Century but America held little attraction for Morgan, who returned to Wales in 1903.
Later life
On his return to Wales, Morgan settled in Cardiff. He joined Star Street Congregational Church, preaching at a number of chapels in Cardiff and its surrounding settlements. Soon after his return to Cardiff, however, Morgan was received into the Church of England, although he was not re-ordained. On the few occasions he preached after this date, it was under Bishop's Licence. He edited two collections of biographical articles, Welsh Religious Leaders in the Victorian Era (1905), and Welsh Political and Educational Leaders in the Victorian Era (1908).In 1908, Morgan left Cardiff, spending some time at the family home in Cwmafan, following the death of his father, before moving to West Wales, initially settling at Aberystwyth. In 1909, Morgan published The Welsh Religious Revival 1904-5: A Retrospect and a Criticism, a book which was severely critical of the part played in the Revival by Evan Roberts
Evan Roberts
Evan Roberts may refer to:*Evan Roberts *Evan Roberts , figure in the 1904-1905 Welsh Revival*Evan Roberts *Evan Roberts *Evan Roberts , Wales international rugby player...
.
The same year, Morgan married Margaret Greig of Edinburgh, by whom he had one child, a daughter.
He would publish seven more books, A Study in Nationality (1911); The Philopsophy of Welsh History (1914); The War and Wales (1916); The Church in Wales in the Light of HIstory (1918); The Life of Viscount Rhondda
Viscount Rhondda
Viscount Rhondda, of Llanwern in the County of Monmouthshire, was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1918 for the Welsh businessman and Liberal politician David Alfred Thomas, 1st Baron Rhondda, with special remainder to his daughter Margaret and her heirs male...
(1919); The Bible in the Light of Modern Thought' (1922); and the Welsh Mind in Evolution (1925).
Morgan's books on Wales, which contained stringent criticisms of Welsh nationalism, were controversial in his day, and this contributed to their failure to bring Vrynwy Morgan critical or financial success. In 1914, Morgan moved from Aberystwyth to Tenby. An attempt was made to secure a Civil List Pension for Morgan, but this was declined in 1923, Morgan receiving only a gift from the Royal Bounty, in recognition of his hardship.
Morgan died on 9 August 1925 at his home, Glan-y-Mor, Tenby. He is buried in Tenby Cemetery. A number of his books have been reprinted since his death.
Sources
- E. G. Millward, ‘John Vyrnwy Morgan’, National Library of Wales Journal, XII (1961).
- ‘The Preacher and the Critic: Margam Jones and Vyrnwy Morgan’, Transactions of the Port Talbot Historical Society, 2:3 (1981)
- Gerard Charmley ‘J. Vyrnwy Morgan: Wales in Another Light’, Welsh History Review, 24 (2008).
- Morgan Monument, Tenby Cemetery.