William Chambers (24 May 1809 – 21 March 1882), was a Welsh politician, the illegitimate son of the industrialist William Chambers of

Llanelli Llanelli ("St Elli's Parish"; ) is a market town and the largest community in Carmarthenshire and the preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is located on the Loughor estuary north-west of Swansea and south-east of the county town, Carmarthen. ...

, and a member of the Chambers family. William Chambers the younger was born in

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; nl, label=also Dutch, Valencijn; pcd, Valincyinnes or ; la, Valentianae) is a commune in the Nord department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced a s ...

, France, but was educated in England, first at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

and then at

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corpo ...

. In 1839 he co-founded the Llanelly Reform Society. He was the leader of a demonstration at Mynydd Sylen in August 1843, during the

Rebecca Riots The Rebecca Riots (Welsh: ''Terfysgoedd Beca'') took place between 1839 and 1843 in West and Mid Wales. They were a series of protests undertaken by local farmers and agricultural workers in response to levels of taxation. The rioters, often me ...

, but shortly afterwards he helped the authorities to capture rioters who attacked the toll-gate at

Pontarddulais Pontarddulais (), also known as Pontardulais (), is both a community and a town in Swansea, Wales. It is northwest of the city centre. The Pontarddulais ward is part of the City and County of Swansea. Pontarddulais adjoins the village of Hendy i ...

. In 1850, he was the first chairman of the Llanelli Board of Health.

References

External links

Welsh Biography On-line
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chambers, William 1809 births 1882 deaths People educated at Eton College Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Welsh politicians People from Llanelli