Richard Thomas (10 December 1753 – 1780) 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 ...

Anglican priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particul ...

and antiquarian.

Life

Thomas, who was the younger brother of the priest and antiquarian John Thomas, was born on 10 December 1753 in Ynyscynhaearn,

Caernarfonshire , HQ= County Hall, Caernarfon , Map= , Image= Flag , Motto= Cadernid Gwynedd (The strength of Gwynedd) , year_start= , Arms= ''Coat of arms of Caerna ...

, north

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

. Like his elder brother, he studied at the

Friars School Friars School is a school in Bangor, Gwynedd, and one of the oldest schools in Wales. History 1557 Establishment The school was founded by Geoffrey Glyn who had been brought up in Anglesey and had followed a career in law in London. A fria ...

and

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 ...

before being ordained. His brother John died in 1769, bequeathing him his collection of manuscripts; the manuscripts were used by the editors of the ''

Myvyrian Archaiology of Wales ''The Myvyrian Archaiology of Wales'' is a printed collection of medieval Welsh literature, published in three volumes by the Gwyneddigion Society between 1801 and 1807. Until John Gwenogvryn Evans produced diplomatic editions of the important me ...

''. Some of his genealogical manuscripts were sold to the

College of Heralds The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the British Sovereig ...

. Thomas obtained his BA degree in 1775 and was

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

Llanegryn Llanegryn is a village and a community in Gwynedd, north-west Wales. It was formerly part of the historic county of Merionethshire ( cy, Meirionnydd, Sir Feirionnydd). It is located within Snowdonia National Park south of the Snowdonia (''Eryri' ...

Merionethshire , HQ= Dolgellau , Government= Merionethshire County Council (1889-1974) , Origin= , Status= , Start= 1284 , End= , Code= MER , CodeName= ...

, in late 1777, where he was also the schoolmaster. From there, he was able to reach the library at

Peniarth Peniarth is a village and community in Meifod, Powys, Wales. It is 87.1 miles (140.2 km) from Cardiff and 156.9 miles (252.5 km) from London. It is represented in the Senedd by Russell George (Conservative). It is part of the Montgomery ...

, which contained a number of important manuscripts; he said in a letter to the antiquarian

Owen Jones Owen Jones (born 8 August 1984) is a British newspaper columnist, political commentator, journalist, author, and left-wing activist. He writes a column for ''The Guardian'' and contributes to the ''New Statesman'' and ''Tribune.'' He has two w ...

in 1778 that he had been asked to make a catalogue of the contents of the library. He died in 1780 in

Ruthin Ruthin ( ; cy, Rhuthun) is a market town and community in Denbighshire, Wales, in the south of the Vale of Clwyd. It is Denbighshire's county town. The town, castle and St Peter's Square lie on a hill, skirted by villages such as Pwllglas and ...

, having been the curate there since at least 1779.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Robert 1753 births 1780 deaths 18th-century Welsh Anglican priests Welsh antiquarians People educated at Friars School, Bangor Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford