Thomas Levi (12 October 1825 - 16 June 1916 ) was a Welsh, Calvinistic Methodist minister, and literary figure who also played a role in the political life of Wales. [1] Born in Ystradgynlais he spent his later life as minister of Tabernacl, Aberystwyth.
Levi was born at Penrhos, near Ystradgynlais in the Swansea Valley, Glamorgan, the son of John and Prudence Levi. [1] It was often stated that his father was of Jewish origin. [2] It is said that his father was a Jewish jeweller from Swansea. He received little formal education and worked as a boy at the Ynyscedwyn Ironworks. [1] When the ironworks closed for a time due to a depression in trade, Levi migrated fifty miles to Tredegar ironworks. [2] Following his mother's death, his father and brothers migrated to the United States. [3] He began to preach when around twenty years of age. [1]
Levi became minister of Capel yr Ynys, Ystradgynlais around 1855 and remained there until 1860 when he moved to Philadelphia, Morriston. [1] After sixteen years, Levi received a call in 1876 to minister at Tabernacl, Aberystwyth, one of the leading chapels in the denomination, and he remained there for the remainder of his career. [1]
Levi wrote many books but his most significant achievement was founding Trysorfa y Plant (A Children's Treasury), a journal for children and young people, Levi was responsible for every monthly edition from 1862 until 1911 and the journal had a circulation of 44,000. [1]
From his early days at Ystradgynlais, Levi was politically active, and he led a campaign against the efforts of the rector to levy a church rate in order to rebuild the parish church. [2]
Levi was a Liberal member of Cardiganshire County Council from 1889 until 1895. His son, Professor T.A. Levi established the Law department at the University of Wales, Aberystwyth.
Levi retired from the ministry in 1901. He died in 1916, aged 90. [1]
Merthyr Tydfil is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about 23 miles (37 km) north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydfil, daughter of King Brychan of Brycheiniog, who according to legend was slain at Merthyr by pagans about 480 CE. Merthyr generally means "martyr" in modern Welsh, but here closer to the Latin martyrium: a place of worship built over a martyr's relics. Similar place names in south Wales are Merthyr Cynog, Merthyr Dyfan and Merthyr Mawr.
David Alfred Thomas, 1st Viscount Rhondda, PC, was a Welsh industrialist and Liberal politician. He was UK Member of Parliament (MP) for Merthyr Tydfil from 1888 until the January 1910 general election, then MP for Cardiff until the December 1910 general election, when he left politics to concentrate on his business interests. He was made a member of the Privy Council in 1916. He later held office, notably as "Food Controller" in Lloyd George's wartime coalition government.
Cynog Glyndwr Dafis is a Welsh politician and member of Plaid Cymru who served as the Member of Parliament for Ceredigion from 1992 to 2000, originally as a joint Plaid Cymru–Green Party MP until 1997 and then only as a Plaid Cymru MP until 2000. He also served as the Member of the Welsh Assembly for Mid and West Wales from 1999 to 2003. Born Cynog Glyndwr Davies at Treboeth in Swansea, Glamorganshire, Wales, he was initially a school teacher and researcher before entering politics.
Ystradgynlais is a town on the River Tawe in southwest Powys, Wales. It is the second-largest town in Powys and is in the historic county of Brecknockshire. The town has a high proportion of Welsh language-speakers. The community includes Cwmtwrch, Abercraf and Cwmgiedd, with a population of 8,092 in the 2011 census. It forms part of the Swansea Urban Area where the Ystradgynlais subdivision has a population of 10,248.
Rhymney is a town and a community in the county borough of Caerphilly, South Wales. It is within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. With the villages of Pontlottyn, Fochriw, Abertysswg, Deri and New Tredegar, Rhymney is designated as the 'Upper Rhymney Valley' by the local Unitary Authority, Caerphilly County Borough Council. As a community, Rhymney includes the town of Rhymney, Pontlottyn, Abertysswg, Butetown and Twyncarno.
Joseph Parry was a Welsh composer and musician. Born in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, he is best known as the composer of "Myfanwy" and the hymn tune "Aberystwyth". Parry was also the first Welshman to compose an opera; his composition, Blodwen, was the first opera in the Welsh language.
Abercraf is a village in Powys, Wales, in the community of Ystradgynlais and within the historic boundaries of the county of Brecknockshire.
David Lewis Prosser was a Welsh Anglican bishop and Archbishop of Wales from 1944 to 1949.
John Ellis Meredith (1904–1981) was a Welsh Presbyterian minister and writer. He was the first Welshman to become president of the National Union of Students.
The Cambrian Archaeological Association was founded in 1846 to examine, preserve and illustrate the ancient monuments and remains of the history, language, manners, customs, arts and industries of Wales and the Welsh Marches and to educate the public in such matters. The association's activities include sponsoring lectures, field visits, and study tours; as well as publishing its journal, Archaeologia Cambrensis, and monographs. It also provides grants to support research and publications.
William Richard Williams was the Principal of the United Theological College, Aberystwyth from 1949 to 1962, the first Secretary of the Council of Churches of Wales, and later its president.
John Vyrnwy Morgan, usually known as J. Vyrnwy Morgan, was a Welsh Congregationalist minister and author.
Howell Elvet Lewis, widely known by his bardic name Elfed, was a Welsh Congregational minister, hymn-writer, and devotional poet, who served as Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales from 1924 to 1928.
Calfaria Baptist Chapel, Aberdare, was one of the largest baptist churches in the South Wales Valleys and the oldest in the Aberdare valley. The chapel had an ornate interior, including a boarded ceiling with a deeply undercut rose, while the balcony balustrading had a cast iron front with an intricate foliage design. These features were common in the Welsh chapels of the late nineteenth century. The organ was installed in 1903 at a cost of £850. It was played for the last time in 2012 by Robert Nicholls, during a Radio Cymru broadcast shortly before the closure of the chapel.
Robert Joseph Davies, of Cwrtmawr, Llangeitho was a leading figure in the political and religious life of Cardiganshire and in the Calvinistic Methodist denomination. He was the father of John Humphreys Davies.
Tabernacle, Abercynon was a Calvinistic Methodist chapel in Edward Street, Abercynon, Mid Glamorgan, Wales. Services at Tabernacle were conducted in the Welsh language.
Thomas Thomas was a Welsh church minister and chapel architect, also known as Thomas Glandŵr. He is described as "the first national architect of Wales" and the "unchallenged master of chapel architecture in Wales in the 1860s".
Arthur ap Gwynn (1902–1987) was the third librarian at the University College of Wales and an editor.
Tabernacle Chapel is an Independent (Congregational) chapel in the town of Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It was built in 1872 and is located at 17 Cowell Street. It is a Grade II* listed building.
Geraint Huw Jenkins, FBA, FLSW is a historian of Wales and a retired academic. He was Professor of Welsh History at the Aberystwyth University from 1990 to 1993, when he became Director of the University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies. In 2009, he retired from academia and was appointed Professor Emeritus of Welsh History at the University of Wales.