Edward Edwards (c. 1726 – 2 September 1783) 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 ...

scholar and clergyman. He was a Fellow of Jesus College, Oxford for over thirty-five years, and was vice-principal for more than twenty years. His particular scholastic interest was in the works of the Greek philosopher Xenophon.

Life

Edwards was the son of Lewis Edwards and was born in Talgarth in the parish of Tywyn, Merionethshire, in North Wales. He was educated at Jesus College, Oxford, where he matriculated in May 1743 – he was said to be 17 years old at that time. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in January 1747 and was elected to a fellowship of the college in the same year. He retained his fellowship until 1783, and also served as vice-principal of the college from 1762 until 1783 (beginning when Thomas Pardo was principal, continuing in post throughout the principalship of Humphrey Owen and into the time of

Joseph Hoare Joseph Hoare may refer to: * Joseph Hoare (Welsh academic) (1709–1802), Welsh clergyman and principal of Jesus College, Oxford *Joseph Hoare (bishop of Victoria) (1858–1906), Anglican bishop * Joseph Hoare (bishop of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise) (18 ...

). He was also awarded the higher degrees of

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 ...

(1756) and

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 ...

(1760). He was ordained deacon on 23 July 1749 at Cuddesdon by the Bishop of Oxford,

Thomas Secker Thomas Secker (21 September 16933 August 1768) was the Archbishop of Canterbury in the Church of England. Early life and studies Secker was born in Sibthorpe, Nottinghamshire. In 1699, he went to Richard Brown's free school in Chesterfield, D ...

. He was ordained priest by Secker on 10 June 1750 at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford. He was

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 the parish of

Besselsleigh Besselsleigh or Bessels Leigh is an English village and civil parish about southwest of Oxford. Besselsleigh was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire. The village is just off the A420 road between O ...

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

from at least 1770. In 1783, Edwards resigned his fellowship, having been appointed by the college as rector of Aston Clinton,

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

on 31 July 1782. His time at Aston Clinton was limited, since one source gives his date of death as 2 September 1783, and a letter written by

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson (18 September 1709 – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

confirms that Edwards was dead by 1784. Edwards and Samuel Johnson were friends and exchanged letters – Johnson described Edwards as "my convivial friend" and stayed with Edwards at Jesus College on a visit to Oxford in 1782. Edwards had an interest in matters connected with Wales, but his primary concern was Greek literature. He prepared an edition of Xenophon's '' Memorabilia'', and published an essay on Socratic ethics in 1773 in the light of Xenophon's writings. His edition was printed with the Greek text and a Latin version before his death; the publication was completed by his friend

Henry Owen Henry Owen (1716–1795) was a Welsh theologian and biblical scholar. In biblical scholarship he discussed the date of publication and the form and manner of the composition of the four canonical gospel accounts. Life He was the son of Willia ...

in 1785.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Edward 1720s births 1783 deaths 18th-century Welsh Anglican priests Welsh scholars and academics Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford Fellows of Jesus College, Oxford People from Merionethshire People from Tywyn