David Elwyn Jones (3 July 1945 – 16 April 2003), more well known as D. Elwyn Jones or simply Elwyn Jones, was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

writer, politician, and poet. He was born into a Welsh-speaking family in

Tremadog Tremadog (formerly Tremadoc) is a village in the community of Porthmadog, in Gwynedd, north west Wales; about north of Porthmadog town-centre. It was a planned settlement, founded by William Madocks, who bought the land in 1798. The centre of ...

and initially pursued work in the ministry, obtaining a diploma in theology from the

Bala-Bangor Theological Seminary Bala-Bangor was a theological seminary belonging to the Welsh Independents ( Undeb yr Annibynwyr Cymraeg), an association of Welsh congregationalists. It was founded in 1841 at Llanuwchllyn, then moved to a permanent location at Bala, Gwyne ...

. Nonetheless, he withdrew an offer to become a minister and instead pursued politics. He was a fairly controversial figure, being one of

North Wales , area_land_km2 = 6,172 , postal_code_type = Postcode , postal_code = LL, CH, SY , image_map1 = Wales North Wales locator map.svg , map_caption1 = Six principal areas of Wales common ...

' few outspoken members of the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

. A steadfast Thatcherite early on, he opposed Welsh devolution and often clashed with

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language family, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut P ...

activist groups, so much so that he was targeted with

letter bombs A letter bomb, also called parcel bomb, mail bomb, package bomb, note bomb, message bomb, gift bomb, present bomb, delivery bomb, surprise bomb, postal bomb, or post bomb, is an explosive device sent via the mail, postal service, and designed ...

at one point. He published his autobiography entitled ''Y Rebel Mwyaf?'' ("The Biggest Rebel?") in 1991, and later also published an anthology of his own poetry entitled ''O Love of Things'' in 1997. Despite working passionately for the Conservative Party for more than two decades, he eventually became disenchanted with its shifts in policy and left it to join UKIP in 2003, becoming the party's vice-chairman for North Wales. He died at his home in

Deganwy Deganwy (Middle Welsh ''Degannwy'', Brythonic *''Decantouion'') is a town and electoral ward in Conwy County Borough in Wales with a population of 3,936 (2011). It lies in the Creuddyn Peninsula alongside Llandudno (to the north) and Rhos-on-Se ...

at the age of 57. Although he and his minority views were subject to some notoriety, Dafydd Wigley, former president of the pro-Welsh independence Plaid Cymru party, had respect for his strong personality and expressed sadness at his death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, David Elwyn 1945 births 2003 deaths Conservative Party (UK) politicians Welsh politicians Welsh poets Welsh-speaking politicians People from Tremadog People from Deganwy