David Jones (Unitarian)
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David Jones (1765–1816) was a Welsh barrister. Jones was best known as ‘the Welsh Freeholder’. He was born in 1765, the only son of John Jones of Bwlchygwynt, near
Llandovery Llandovery (; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire, Wales. It lies on the River Tywi and at the junction of the A40 road, A40 and A483 road, A483 roads, about north-east of Carmarthen, north of Swansea and w ...
,
Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire (; or informally ') is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. ...
, where his father farmed his own freehold. He was a relative of John Jones, Unitarian critic. He received his early education at Pencader and
Abergavenny Abergavenny (; , , archaically , ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales. Abergavenny is promoted as a "Gateway to Wales"; it is approximately from the England–Wales border, border with England and is loca ...
, and in 1783 entered
Homerton College Homerton College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Its first premises were acquired in Homerton, London in 1768, by an informal gathering of English Dissenters, Protestant dissente ...
, London, with the view of preparing for the ministry among the
Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...
ic dissenters, but, adopting Unitarian views, moved to
Hackney College New City College (NCC) is a large college of further education with campuses in east London and Essex. The college was formed in 2016 with the amalgamation of separate colleges, beginning with the merger between Tower Hamlets College and Hackney C ...
. There he became tutor and lecturer in
experimental philosophy An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs whe ...
until, in October 1792, he took charge of the New Meeting congregation at Birmingham, as successor to
Joseph Priestley Joseph Priestley (; 24 March 1733 – 6 February 1804) was an English chemist, Unitarian, Natural philosophy, natural philosopher, English Separatist, separatist theologian, Linguist, grammarian, multi-subject educator and Classical libera ...
, who had recommended him for the post. During his ministry there he delivered in 1794–5 ‘some admirable courses of lectures on the philosophy of the human mind, as connected with education, the theory of morals, and also on history.’ Turning to the study of the law, he was admitted a student of
Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn, commonly known as Lincoln's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for Barrister, barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister ...
on 1 May 1795, was called to the bar on 26 June 1800, and practised chiefly as a chancery barrister, but attached himself as well to the Oxford and South Wales circuits. He also became a member of
Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, commonly known as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348 by Edmund Gonville, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges an ...
, graduating B.A. in 1800 and M.A. in 1803. He died in 1816. Jones made a spirited defence of unitarianism against the attacks of Bishop
Samuel Horsley Samuel Horsley (15 September 1733 – 4 October 1806) was a British churchman, bishop of Rochester from 1793. He was also well versed in physics and mathematics, on which he wrote a number of papers and thus was elected a Fellow of the Royal Soc ...
in several works written under the name of 'The Welsh Freeholder'.


Works

;as 'The Welsh Freeholder' * ''A Letter to the ishopon the Charge he lately delivered'', London, 1790, 8vo, which evoked ‘An Answer … by a Clergyman of the Diocese of St. Davids,’ London, 1750, 8vo * ''The Welsh Freeholder's Vindication of his Letter'', &c., London, 1791, 8vo. * ''Reasons for Unitarianism, or the Primitive Christian Doctrine'', London, 1792 * ''The Welsh Freeholder's Farewell Epistles to the Bishop (lately of St. Davids), now of Rochester'', London, 1794, 8vo. ; as David Jones * ''Thoughts on the Riots at Birmingham'', Bath, 1791, 8vo, an enlarged reprint of an anonymous letter written by Jones in the ''
Morning Chronicle ''The Morning Chronicle'' was a newspaper founded in 1769 in London. It was notable for having been the first steady employer of essayist William Hazlitt as a political reporter and the first steady employer of Charles Dickens as a journalist. It ...
'', and republished without his authority both at Maidstone and Birmingham. * ''The Nature and Duties of the Office of a Minister of Religion'', Birmingham, 1792, 8vo. * ''The Revolution in France and the Progress of Liberty, considered in connection with our idea of Providence and of the Improvement of Human Affairs'' (see advertisement in ''The Nature and Duties'', &c.), announced by Jones in 1816, is not known to have been published.


References

Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, David 1765 births 1816 deaths 18th-century Welsh writers 18th-century Welsh male writers 19th-century Welsh writers Welsh barristers Welsh Calvinist and Reformed Christians 18th-century Unitarian clergy 19th-century Unitarian clergy Welsh Unitarians People from Carmarthenshire Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Alumni of Homerton College, Cambridge Welsh religious writers 19th-century Welsh lawyers 18th-century Welsh lawyers