Thomas Llewellyn Thomas
Encyclopedia
Thomas Llewellyn Thomas (14 November 1840 – 12 May 1897) was a Welsh
Anglican
clergyman and scholar of the Welsh language
. He wrote poems in English, Latin
and Welsh and worked on a Basque
translation of the Old Testament. He was a Fellow of Jesus College, Oxford
for twenty-five years, including fifteen years as Vice-Principal, but failed to be elected Principal in 1895, losing out to John Rhys
.
, known as "Thomas of Caernarfon
" where he was the vicar for twenty-four years. Thomas was born at the vicarage in Caernarfon on 14 November 1840 and was privately educated until he was nine. After further schooling, including attendance a Welsh-language Sunday School
, Thomas matriculated
at Oxford University in October 1860, becoming a scholar of Jesus College
. He won the Newdigate prize in 1863 for an English-language poem about coal mines, and was praised by Matthew Arnold
. He was placed in the second class in Classical Moderations and obtained a third-class Bachelor of Arts
degree in Literae Humaniores
in 1865. His Master of Arts degree followed in 1868. He spent some time as a teacher, at Rossall School
, Llandovery College
(for two years) and Ruthin School
(for five years). He was ordained deacon in 1867, and was ordained priest by Thomas Short
, the Bishop of St Asaph
, in the following year. He served as a curate
in Llanrhaeadr
(1867–1870), Llanfwrog
(1870–1871) and Ruabon
(1872). In 1880, he was later appointed by Jesus College as rector
of Nutfield
, Surrey
, a position he held for two years. He was appointed as a canon
of St Asaph's Cathedral in 1897, but died before he was installed.
In 1872, Thomas was elected to a fellowship at Jesus College, which he retained until his death in 1897. He was a noted linguist: as well as winning (and later judging) the Newdigate prize, he won a prize at the National Eisteddfod in Ruthin
for a Welsh-language poem, "The Harpist's Grave" (with music composed by Brinley Richards
) and also delivered the University's Latin sermon. He could compose poems in English, Welsh or Latin without difficulty. He also mastered the Basque language
, and edited an edition of the Old Testament in Basque. He was the college's Welsh reader, and supported the establishment of a university professorship of Celtic
. He wrote a chapter about the history of Jesus College for Colleges of Oxford (1891). He also championed the college's links with Wales, promoting the use of scholarships for poor students from Wales and supporting the Meyrick Trust
. As well as being a popular tutor, he served as senior tutor and vice-principal of the college, standing in for Hugo Harper
as Principal from 1887 to 1895 during Harper's illness. He did, however, strictly enforce discipline, on one occasion forbidding undergraduates to take beer into the Junior Common Room, which led to a delegation of students (led by Alfred Hazel
, a future Principal of the college) visiting Thomas to protest.. Thomas hoped to succeed Harper as Principal, but instead the position went to Sir John Rhys
, who had become the university's first professor of Celtic. The 1895 election to the principalship developed into a battle between the "church element" and the "non-conformist element", and Rhys (a non-conformist) came out on top.
He contracted pneumonia
in May 1897, dying on 12 May at the age of fifty-seven. He was buried in Llanbeblig cemetery, Caernarfon, alongside his father, after a Welsh-language choral funeral service.
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
Anglican
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
clergyman and scholar of the Welsh language
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
. He wrote poems in English, Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and Welsh and worked on a Basque
Basque language
Basque is the ancestral language of the Basque people, who inhabit the Basque Country, a region spanning an area in northeastern Spain and southwestern France. It is spoken by 25.7% of Basques in all territories...
translation of the Old Testament. He was a Fellow of Jesus College, Oxford
Jesus College, Oxford
Jesus College is one of the colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship Street, Cornmarket Street and Market Street...
for twenty-five years, including fifteen years as Vice-Principal, but failed to be elected Principal in 1895, losing out to John Rhys
John Rhys
Sir John Rhys was a Welsh scholar, fellow of the British Academy, celticist and the first Professor of Celtic at Oxford University.-Early years and education:...
.
Life
Thomas was the eldest son of Canon Thomas ThomasThomas Thomas (cleric)
Thomas Thomas was a Welsh Anglican clergyman. He was noted for his parish ministry in Caernarfon, particularly for his educational work in building schools and helping to found the North Wales Training College.-Life:...
, known as "Thomas of Caernarfon
Caernarfon
Caernarfon is a Royal town, community and port in Gwynedd, Wales, with a population of 9,611. It lies along the A487 road, on the east banks of the Menai Straits, opposite the Isle of Anglesey. The city of Bangor is to the northeast, while Snowdonia fringes Caernarfon to the east and southeast...
" where he was the vicar for twenty-four years. Thomas was born at the vicarage in Caernarfon on 14 November 1840 and was privately educated until he was nine. After further schooling, including attendance a Welsh-language Sunday School
Sunday school
Sunday school is the generic name for many different types of religious education pursued on Sundays by various denominations.-England:The first Sunday school may have been opened in 1751 in St. Mary's Church, Nottingham. Another early start was made by Hannah Ball, a native of High Wycombe in...
, Thomas matriculated
Matriculation
Matriculation, in the broadest sense, means to be registered or added to a list, from the Latin matricula – little list. In Scottish heraldry, for instance, a matriculation is a registration of armorial bearings...
at Oxford University in October 1860, becoming a scholar of Jesus College
Jesus College, Oxford
Jesus College is one of the colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship Street, Cornmarket Street and Market Street...
. He won the Newdigate prize in 1863 for an English-language poem about coal mines, and was praised by Matthew Arnold
Matthew Arnold
Matthew Arnold was a British poet and cultural critic who worked as an inspector of schools. He was the son of Thomas Arnold, the famed headmaster of Rugby School, and brother to both Tom Arnold, literary professor, and William Delafield Arnold, novelist and colonial administrator...
. He was placed in the second class in Classical Moderations and obtained a third-class Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in Literae Humaniores
Literae Humaniores
Literae Humaniores is the name given to an undergraduate course focused on Classics at Oxford and some other universities.The Latin name means literally "more humane letters", but is perhaps better rendered as "Advanced Studies", since humaniores has the sense of "more refined" or "more learned",...
in 1865. His Master of Arts degree followed in 1868. He spent some time as a teacher, at Rossall School
Rossall School
Rossall School is a British, co-educational, independent school, between Cleveleys and Fleetwood, Lancashire. Rossall was founded in 1844 by St. Vincent Beechey as a sister school to Marlborough College which had been founded the previous year...
, Llandovery College
Llandovery College
Llandovery College is an independent school in Llandovery, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It was founded and endowed by Thomas Phillips in 1847 to provide a classical and liberal education in which the Welsh language; the study of Welsh literature and history were also to be cultivated.Llandovery...
(for two years) and Ruthin School
Ruthin School
Ruthin School is one of the oldest public schools in the United Kingdom. Located on the outskirts of Ruthin, the county town of Denbighshire in North Wales, the school is over seven hundred years old and has been co-educational since 1990.- Beginnings :...
(for five years). He was ordained deacon in 1867, and was ordained priest by Thomas Short
Thomas Vowler Short
Thomas Vowler Short was an English churchman, successively bishop of Sodor and Man and bishop of St Asaph.-Life:...
, the Bishop of St Asaph
Bishop of St Asaph
The Bishop of St Asaph heads the Church in Wales diocese of St Asaph.The diocese covers the counties of Conwy and Flintshire, Wrexham county borough, the eastern part of Merioneth in Gwynedd and part of northern Powys. The Episcopal seat is located in the Cathedral Church of St Asaph in the town of...
, in the following year. He served as a curate
Curate
A curate is a person who is invested with the care or cure of souls of a parish. In this sense "curate" correctly means a parish priest but in English-speaking countries a curate is an assistant to the parish priest...
in Llanrhaeadr
Llanrhaeadr-yng-Nghinmeirch
Llanrhaeadr-yng-Nghinmeirch is a village and local government community in Denbighshire, Wales. It lies in the Vale of Clwyd near the A525 road between Denbigh and Ruthin...
(1867–1870), Llanfwrog
Llanfwrog, Denbighshire
Llanfwrog is a village in Denbighshire, in northern Wales....
(1870–1871) and Ruabon
Ruabon
Ruabon is a village and community in the county borough of Wrexham in Wales.More than 80% of the population of 2,400 were born in Wales with 13.6% speaking Welsh....
(1872). In 1880, he was later appointed by Jesus College as rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
of Nutfield
Nutfield
Nutfield can refer to:*Nutfield, Victoria, suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia*Nutfield, Surrey in Surrey, England*Nutfield, New Hampshire, the colonial township from which the modern places of Londonderry, Derry, Windham and parts of Salem, Hudson, and the city of Manchester were formed....
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, a position he held for two years. He was appointed as a canon
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
of St Asaph's Cathedral in 1897, but died before he was installed.
In 1872, Thomas was elected to a fellowship at Jesus College, which he retained until his death in 1897. He was a noted linguist: as well as winning (and later judging) the Newdigate prize, he won a prize at the National Eisteddfod in Ruthin
Ruthin
Ruthin is a community and the county town of Denbighshire in north Wales. Located around a hill in the southern part of the Vale of Clwyd - the older part of the town, the castle and Saint Peter's Square are located on top of the hill, while many newer parts of the town are on the floodplain of...
for a Welsh-language poem, "The Harpist's Grave" (with music composed by Brinley Richards
Henry Brinley Richards
Henry Brinley Richards was a Welsh composer.Richards was born in Hall Street, Carmarthen, his father being organist at St Peter's Church in the town and an organiser of local musical events. Richards won a prize at the Gwent-Morgannwg Eisteddfod of 1834, held at Cardiff, for his arrangement of...
) and also delivered the University's Latin sermon. He could compose poems in English, Welsh or Latin without difficulty. He also mastered the Basque language
Basque language
Basque is the ancestral language of the Basque people, who inhabit the Basque Country, a region spanning an area in northeastern Spain and southwestern France. It is spoken by 25.7% of Basques in all territories...
, and edited an edition of the Old Testament in Basque. He was the college's Welsh reader, and supported the establishment of a university professorship of Celtic
Jesus Professor of Celtic
The Jesus Professorship of Celtic is a professorship in Celtic studies at the University of Oxford within the Faculty of Medieval and Modern Languages. The holder is also a Professorial Fellow of Jesus College, Oxford. The chair was established in 1876, and the first professor was Sir John Rhys...
. He wrote a chapter about the history of Jesus College for Colleges of Oxford (1891). He also championed the college's links with Wales, promoting the use of scholarships for poor students from Wales and supporting the Meyrick Trust
Edmund Meyrick
Edmund Meyrick was a Welsh cleric and benefactor of Jesus College, Oxford, where scholarships are still awarded in his name.-Life:...
. As well as being a popular tutor, he served as senior tutor and vice-principal of the college, standing in for Hugo Harper
Hugo Harper
Hugo Daniel Harper was Principal of Jesus College, Oxford from 1877 to 1895.Harper was educated at Christ's Hospital and won a scholarship to Jesus College in 1840. He obtained a second in classical moderations, followed by a First in Mathematics in 1844. He was a Fellow of Jesus College between...
as Principal from 1887 to 1895 during Harper's illness. He did, however, strictly enforce discipline, on one occasion forbidding undergraduates to take beer into the Junior Common Room, which led to a delegation of students (led by Alfred Hazel
Alfred Hazel
Alfred Ernest William Hazel CBE KC was a British Liberal Party Member of Parliament and legal academic at the University of Oxford....
, a future Principal of the college) visiting Thomas to protest.. Thomas hoped to succeed Harper as Principal, but instead the position went to Sir John Rhys
John Rhys
Sir John Rhys was a Welsh scholar, fellow of the British Academy, celticist and the first Professor of Celtic at Oxford University.-Early years and education:...
, who had become the university's first professor of Celtic. The 1895 election to the principalship developed into a battle between the "church element" and the "non-conformist element", and Rhys (a non-conformist) came out on top.
He contracted pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
in May 1897, dying on 12 May at the age of fifty-seven. He was buried in Llanbeblig cemetery, Caernarfon, alongside his father, after a Welsh-language choral funeral service.