Richard Ellis (27 December 1865 – 6 September 1928) 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 peopl ...

librarian and bibliographer, whose main work was to collect materials on the life and work of

Edward Lhuyd Edward Lhuyd FRS (; occasionally written Llwyd in line with modern Welsh orthography, 1660 – 30 June 1709) was a Welsh naturalist, botanist, linguist, geographer and antiquary. He is also named in a Latinate form as Eduardus Luidius. Life ...

Life

Ellis, the son of John Ellis from Aberystwyth, studied at the

University College of Wales, Aberystwyth , mottoeng = A world without knowledge is no world at all , established = 1872 (as ''The University College of Wales'') , former_names = University of Wales, Aberystwyth , type = Public , endowment = ...

from 1889 and won a scholarship to

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 S ...

in 1893. Family reasons meant that he did not take up the place at Oxford until 1898; he was re-awarded a scholarship on the recommendation of the historian

Reginald Lane-Poole Reginald Lane Poole, FBA (1857–1939) was a British historian. He was Keeper of the Archives and a lecturer in diplomatics at the University of Oxford, where he gave the Ford Lectures in 1912 on the subject of "The Exchequer in the Twelfth Centu ...

. He obtained his BA in 1902 and his MA in 1908. His main research at Oxford and thereafter was the collection of material on the life and work of

. Some of it was published in 1906/1907 in the ''Transactions of the

Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion The Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion ( cy, Anrhydeddus Gymdeithas y Cymmrodorion), often called simply the Cymmrodorion, is a London-based Welsh learned society, with membership open to all. It was first established in 1751 as a social, cultural ...

'' under the title ''Some incidents in the life of Edward Lhuyd''. His work was unfinished at his death, and he left his papers to the university library in Aberystwyth. In 1907, Ellis was appointed to run the Welsh library at the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, and in 1908 he was appointed the principal assistant to Sir John Ballinger, the first librarian of the

National Library of Wales The National Library of Wales ( cy, Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru), 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 ...

. He was not happy in this post and returned to Oxford in 1912 with a research scholarship. He also worked at the Codrington Library at

All Souls College, Oxford All Souls College (official name: College of the Souls of All the Faithful Departed) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Unique to All Souls, all of its members automatically become fellows (i.e., full members of ...

, and was the only assistant librarian between 1916 and the end of the First World War. In the early 1920s, Ellis returned to Oxford, making trips to Dublin and Oxford for his research. It was on one of these visits to Oxford that he died in 1928; he was buried in Aberystwyth.

Works

Through his work on Lluyd, Ellis developed a knowledge of other Welshmen at Oxford. This led to ''Facsimiles of Letters of Oxford Welshmen'' (the writers including

Henry Vaughan Henry Vaughan (17 April 1621 – 23 April 1695) was a Welsh metaphysical poet, author and translator writing in English, and a medical physician. His religious poetry appeared in ''Silex Scintillans'' in 1650, with a second part in 1655.''Oxfor ...

Sir Leoline Jenkins Sir Leoline Jenkins (1625 – 1 September 1685) was a Welsh academic, diplomat involved in the negotiation of international treaties (e.g. Nimègue), jurist and politician. He was a clerical lawyer who served as Judge of the High Court of Admira ...

Ellis Wynne Ellis Wynne (7 March 1671 – 13 July 1734) was a Welsh clergyman and author. He is remembered mainly for one of the most important and influential pieces of Welsh-language literature. Life Born in Lasynys Fawr () near Harlech, Gwynedd, Wynn ...

Edward Samuel Edward Samuel (Penmorfa, Caernarfonshire 1674 – ?Llangar 1748), Welsh clergyman, poet and translator, was encouraged by Humphrey Humphreys, then bishop of Bangor, to train for the ministry, which he undertook at Oriel College, Oxford, from where, ...

and Moses Williams). In 1904, he published ''An Elizabethan Broadside in the Welsh Language, being a Brief granted in 1591 to Sion Salusburi of Gwyddelwern, Merionethshire''. He also wrote some poetry in English.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Richard 1865 births 1928 deaths Alumni of Aberystwyth University Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford People from Aberystwyth Welsh librarians 20th-century Welsh historians Welsh poets