JONES, THOMAS (Taliesin o Eifion; 1820 - 1876), poet
Pseudonym: Taliesin O Eifion
Date of birth: 1820
Date of death: 1876
Gender: Male
Occupation: poet
Area of activity: Eisteddfod; Poetry
Author: William Evans
Born 13 September 1820 at Llanystumdwy, Caernarfonshire; son of a member of the band on H.M.S. Victory who was awarded the Trafalgar medal. In 1826 the parents, who gave their son a good education, settled at Llangollen. Taliesin followed the trade of plumber and decorator; many inn-signs were painted by him. He mastered cynghanedd in his early youth, and his strict-metre poems have proved to be the best-known of his works. He became a leading eisteddfodic figure. His 'Brwydr Crogen' is a very early example of a Welsh metrical play. He sent in an awdl to the Wrexham national eisteddfod, 1876, but died 1 June, and the chair awarded for his poem was ceremonially draped in black on the eisteddfod stage - that is why he is best remembered as 'Bardd y Gadair Ddu' (The Bard of the Black Chair).
Author
- Reverend William Evans, (1883 - 1968)
- J. Jones ('Myrddin Fardd'), Enwogion Sir Gaernarfon (1922), 214-7
Sources
- NLW: Tal o Eifion
- NLW: Thomas Jones 'Taliesin o Eifion'
Images
- NLW Archives: NLW MSS 9615-9627: Taliesin o Eifion Manuscripts
- VIAF: 278028798
- Wikidata: Q20734488
Additional Links
Published date: 1959
Article Copyright: http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/
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