Charles Symmons (1749 – 27 April 1826) was a Welsh poet and priest.

Life

Symmons was the younger son of John Symmons, the MP for Cardigan. He was born in Cardigan in 1749 and educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

, joining the school in 1765; he was admitted as a member of

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

later in the same year. He then attended the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

in 1766, striking up a friendship with

William Windham William Windham (4 June 1810) of Felbrigg Hall in Norfolk, was a British Whig statesman. Elected to Parliament in 1784, Windham was attached to the remnants of the Rockinghamite faction of Whigs, whose members included his friends Charles J ...

. Symmons was ordained deacon in 1773 and priest in 1774, and was appointed

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of Narberth in

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; cy, Sir Benfro ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and the rest by sea. The count ...

in 1778. He also studied at

Clare College, Cambridge Clare College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the University after Peterhouse. It was refounded ...

from 1776 to 1786, obtaining a

Bachelor of Divinity In Western universities, a Bachelor of Divinity or Baccalaureate in Divinity (BD or BDiv; la, Baccalaureus Divinitatis) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded for a course taken in the study of divinity or related disciplines, such as theology ...

degree. He was made a

prebendary A prebendary is a member of the Roman Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the ...

St David's Cathedral St Davids Cathedral ( cy, Eglwys Gadeiriol Tyddewi) is situated in St DavidsBritain's smallest city in the county of Pembrokeshire, near the most westerly point of Wales. Early history The monastic community was founded by Saint David, Abbot ...

in 1789. In 1793, Symmons prepared to take his

Doctor of Divinity A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ran ...

degree at Cambridge, which required him to preach two sermons at the

Church of St Mary the Great, Cambridge St Mary the Great is a Church of England parish and university church at the north end of King's Parade in central Cambridge, England. It is known locally as Great St Mary's or simply GSM to distinguish it from " Little St Mary's". It is one of t ...

. His moderate whig views were controversial in the wake of the trial of William Frend. One of his opponents,

Thomas Kipling Thomas Kipling (1745 or 1746 – 28 January 1822) was a British churchman and academic. He entered St John's College, Cambridge University in 1764 at age 18 and was senior wrangler in 1768. He received an M.A. in 1771, a B.D. in 1779, and ...

, sent extracts to influential clerics. Symmons protested, but decided to take his degree from the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

instead. He was incorporated as a member of

Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship St ...

on 29 March 1794 and received his DD two days later. His whiggish views inhibited further advancement in the church, although he was additionally appointed rector of

Lampeter Velfrey Lampeter Velfrey ( Welsh: ''Llanbedr Felfre'') is a community and parish in the county of Pembrokeshire, Wales, which lies 68.0 miles (109.4 km) from Cardiff and 196.0 miles (315.4 km) from London. In 2011 the population of the parish wa ...

, an adjoining parish to Narberth, in 1794. He failed to be appointed a

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...

as he wished. He died at Bath on 27 April 1826, survived by his wife, two sons and three daughters.

Works

His earliest works included a volume of sermons (1787), a tragedy ''Inez'' (1796) and ''Constantia'', a dramatic poem (1800). Family bereavements reduced his writings thereafter. His major works were a Life of

Milton Milton may refer to: Names * Milton (surname), a surname (and list of people with that surname) ** John Milton (1608–1674), English poet * Milton (given name) ** Milton Friedman (1912–2006), Nobel laureate in Economics, author of '' Free t ...

, prefixed to an edition of Milton's work (1806), a rhyming translation of the ''

Aeneid The ''Aeneid'' ( ; la, Aenē̆is or ) is a Latin Epic poetry, epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Troy, Trojan who fled the Trojan_War#Sack_of_Troy, fall of Troy and travelled to ...

'' (1817) and a ''Life of Shakespeare'', prefixed to an 1826 edition of Shakespeare's works.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Symmons, Charles 1749 births 1826 deaths People from Cardigan, Ceredigion Alumni of the University of Glasgow Alumni of Clare College, Cambridge Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford 18th-century Welsh Anglican priests 19th-century Welsh Anglican priests Welsh poets Welsh non-fiction writers