Edward Jones, who took the bardic name Bardd y Brenin ('The King's Bard'), was born at Henblas in the parish of Llandderfel, Merionethshire, and christened on 29 March 1752, the fourth of nine children. His father was a skilled musician and harp-maker who taught several of his children to play, and Edward was steered towards a musical career from an early age, developing a lifelong fascination with Welsh poetry and native customs alongside his harp playing.
Around 1775 Jones travelled to London under the patronage of Welsh nobility, quickly coming into contact with the noted music historian Charles Burney and establishing himself as harp teacher to several people of rank. He was appointed harpist to the Prince of Wales around 1790, a title he used for three decades, and on the prince's accession to the throne as George IV in 1820 he adopted the name Bardd y Brenin. He lived within St James's Palace itself from 1805 to 1820, holding a post in the Office of Robes while continuing to return to Wales each summer.
Jones's enduring legacy rests on his scholarship as much as his harp playing. His three-volume Musical and Poetical Relicks of the Welsh Bards (1784, 1802 and 1820) rescued and preserved over two hundred traditional Welsh airs and penillion that might otherwise have been lost, alongside translations and essays that helped fuel the Celtic Revival. He died in reduced circumstances in London on 18 April 1824 and was buried at St Marylebone cemetery.
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Royal harpist to the Prince of Wales (later George IV), and author of the landmark Musical and Poetical Relicks of the Welsh Bards.
Edward Jones (Bardd y Brenin)
Harpist
Born and raised at Llandderfel, Merionethshire; confirmed Welsh by birth.
Beyond his own harp playing, Jones was one of the earliest systematic collectors of Welsh traditional music, transcribing melodies he heard sung and played during his return visits to north Wales. His scholarship on ancient Welsh musical instruments and literature made him a key figure in the Celtic Revival of the late eighteenth century.
Career Highlights
Appointed harpist to the Prince of Wales around 1790
Published Musical and Poetical Relicks of the Welsh Bards, Vol. 1, in 1784
Adopted the name Bardd y Brenin on George IV's accession in 1820
ℹ️ Born and christened 29 March 1752 at Henblas, Llandderfel, Merionethshire, Wales.
ℹ️ Died 18 April 1824 in London, in straitened circumstances; buried at St Marylebone cemetery.
Born and raised at Llandderfel, Merionethshire; confirmed Welsh by birth.