Major Francis Jones CVO, TD, DL, FSA, MA,

KStJ The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (), commonly known as the Order of St John, and also known as St John International, is an order of chivalry constituted in 1888 by royal charter from Queen Victoria and dedica ...

(5 July 1908 – 14 December 1993) was an author,

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

and

officer of arms An officer of arms is a person appointed by a sovereign or state with authority to perform one or more of the following functions: * to control and initiate armorial matters; * to arrange and participate in ceremonies of state; * to conserve ...

Early and private life

Born in

Trefin Trefin (Welsh Language Commissioner, Welsh standardised:), formerly anglicised as Trevine, is a village in North Pembrokeshire, south-west Wales. The village lies within the parish and Community (Wales), community of Llanrhian, which has a signi ...

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and otherwise by the sea. Haverfordwest is the largest town and ...

, Francis Jones was educated at

Fishguard Fishguard (, meaning "Mouth of the River Gwaun") is a coastal town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, with a population of 3,400 (rounded to the nearest 100) as of the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census. Modern Fishguard consists of two parts, Lowe ...

County School (now

Ysgol Bro Gwaun Ysgol Bro Gwaun (formerly Fishguard County Secondary School) is a secondary comprehensive school in the town of Fishguard in north Pembrokeshire. It is a predominantly English-medium school with significant use of Welsh, and has a catchment area ...

), and eventually became a schoolmaster. He began to work on the county records held at

Haverfordwest Haverfordwest ( , ; ) is the county town of Pembrokeshire, Wales, and the most populous urban area in Pembrokeshire with a population of 14,596 in 2011. It is also a Community (Wales), community consisting of 12,042 people, making it the secon ...

in 1931 and he made a report to the county council in 1936.Independent obituary
/ref> He then secured an appointment in the

National Library of Wales The National Library of Wales (, ) in Aberystwyth is the national legal deposit library of Wales and is one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies. It is the biggest library in Wales, holding over 6.5 million books and periodicals, and the l ...

, 1936–1939. Following war service and subsequent work on the

official history An official history is a work of history which is sponsored, authorised or endorsed by its subject. The term is most commonly used for histories which are produced for a government. The term also applies to commissions from non-state bodies includi ...

of the Sicilian and Italian campaigns, he was appointed the first County Archivist of

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. ...

, serving from 1958 to 1973. He had married Ethel Charles in 1932: they had two sons and two daughters. Jones died in

Carmarthen Carmarthen (, ; , 'Merlin's fort' or possibly 'Sea-town fort') is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community (Wales), community in Wales, lying on the River Towy north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. At the 2021 United Kingdom cen ...

in 1993 aged 85 and was commemorated at the Church of St Benet Paul's Wharf, a Welsh Anglican church in the City of London which has been the religious home of the College of Arms since 1555.

Military career

Jones was commissioned into 4th

Battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...

, The

Welch Regiment The Welch Regiment (or "The Welch", an archaic spelling of "Welsh") was an infantry regiment line infantry, of the line of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1969. The regiment was created in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the am ...

, but was subsequently transferred to the

Pembroke Yeomanry The Pembroke Yeomanry was an auxiliary regiment of the British Army dating back to 1794. It saw active service in the French Revolutionary War, the Second Boer War, World War I and World War II. Its lineage is maintained by 224 (Pembroke Yeomanr ...

. He entered active service in 1939, and later took part in the North African landings and Battle of Beja, for which he was mentioned in despatches. He later fought in the

Sicilian campaign The Sicilian Expedition was an Athenian military expedition to Sicily, which took place from 415–413 BC during the Peloponnesian War between Athens on one side and Sparta, Syracuse and Corinth on the other. The expedition ended in a devastat ...

and landing, then after landing at

Salerno Salerno (, ; ; ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Campania, southwestern Italy, and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after Naples. It is located ...

fought in the Italian campaign up to the

Battle of Monte Cassino The Battle of Monte Cassino, also known as the Battle for Rome, was a series of four military assaults by the Allies of World War II, Allies against Nazi Germany, German forces in Kingdom of Italy, Italy during the Italian Campaign (World War ...

as second in command of the regiment. He was subsequently posted as a

General Staff Officer A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, Enlisted rank, enlisted, and civilian staff who serve the commanding officer, commander of a ...

to the War Cabinet Offices, Historical Section, where he wrote the Official War Record for the Sicilian and Italian Campaigns. He was later appointed Battery Commander in the Surrey Yeomanry (Queen Mary's Regiment).

Heraldic career

In 1963 the office of Wales Herald of Arms Extraordinary was revived, in anticipation of the investiture of

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

, and Francis Jones appointed. (The last recorded reference to a Wales Herald was in the late fourteenth century.) In this capacity he was on the

Earl Marshal Earl Marshal (alternatively marschal or marischal) is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England (then, following the Act of Union 1800, in the U ...

's staff for the

State funeral A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive elements o ...

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

, and officiated at the

investiture Investiture (from the Latin preposition ''in'' and verb ''vestire'', "dress" from ''vestis'' "robe") is a formal installation or ceremony that a person undergoes, often related to membership in Christian religious institutes as well as Christian kn ...

of the Prince of Wales in 1969. Over the next 30 years he participated in State ceremonial with the officers of arms in ordinary of the

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

on occasions such as the

State Opening of Parliament The State Opening of Parliament is a ceremonial event which formally marks the beginning of each Legislative session, session of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. At its core is His or Her Majesty's "Speech from the throne, gracious speech ...

and the

Garter service The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. The most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, it is outranked in precedence only by the decorations of the Victoria Cr ...

Writing career

Jones was a prolific writer with several hundred articles, essays and books published. He also appeared on

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

radio and television programs. His main published works include * ''The Holy Wells of Wales'' (1954) * ''God bless the Prince of Wales: four essays for investiture year, 1969.'' (1969) * ''The Princes and principality of Wales'' (1969) * ''Historic Carmarthenshire Homes and their Families'' (1987) * ''A catalogue of Welsh manuscripts in the College of Arms'' (1988) * ''Historic houses of Pembrokeshire and their families'' (1996) * ''Treasury of historic Pembrokeshire '' (1998) * ''Historic Cardiganshire Homes and their families'' (2000) * ''Treasury of historic Carmarthenshire'' (2002)

Honours and appointments

Jones received the

Territorial Decoration __NOTOC__ The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a military medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer O ...

with three clasps for his military service. He was created a Commander of the Royal Victorial Order and

Knight of the Order of St John The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there un ...

. He was also a

Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries The Society of Antiquaries of London (SAL) is a learned society of historians and archaeologists in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1707, received its royal charter in 1751 and is a registered charity. It is based at Burlington House in Pi ...

and received an Honorary

Master of Arts degree A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

from the

University of Wales The University of Wales () is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff – the university was the first universit ...

. Among the many other positions he held and societies to which he belonged were: * Deputy Lieutenant

Dyfed Dyfed () is a preserved county in southwestern Wales, covering the modern counties Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire. It is mostly rural area with a coastline on the Irish Sea and the Bristol Channel. Between 1974 and 1996, Dyfed w ...

* Vice-President Dyfed Local Council * Governor of the

County Archivist 1958-1973 * Member of

Gorsedd Gorsedd Cymru (), or simply the Gorsedd (), is a society of Welsh-language poets, writers, musicians and others who have contributed to the Welsh language and to public life in Wales. Its aim is to honour such individuals and help develop and p ...

* Member of the Historical Society of the

Church in Wales The Church in Wales () is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The position is currently held b ...

* President of the Cambrian Archaeological Society *

History Association *

Record Society * Croeso '69 Committee *

Académie Internationale d'Héraldique An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the g ...

The Heraldry Society The Heraldry Society is a British organization that is devoted to studying and promoting heraldry and related subjects. In 1947, a twenty-year-old John Brooke-Little founded the Society of Heraldic Antiquaries. This name was changed to The H ...

Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion The Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion (), often called simply the Cymmrodorion, is a London-based Wales, Welsh learned society, with membership open to all. It was first established in 1751 as a Social club, social, cultural, literary society, l ...

* Honorary Member of Mark Twain Society, USA

Arms

References

External links

West Wales Genealogy

Archives Network Wales

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Francis 1908 births 1993 deaths Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order English archivists English officers of arms Knights of Justice of the Order of St John Welsh genealogists Pembroke Yeomanry officers 20th-century British historians