T. E. Nicholas and D. J. Williams conversing at a CND rally at Aberystwyth, 1961. Photograph by Geoff Charles

Thomas Evan Nicholas (6 October 1879 – 19 April 1971),^[1] who used the bardic name Niclas y Glais (English: 'Nicholas of Glais'), was a Welsh language poet, preacher, radical, and champion of the disadvantaged of society.^[1]

Early life

Nicholas was born at 'Blaunwaun Felen' in Llanfyrnach parish, Pembrokeshire, Wales, the fifth child of David (a small farmer and stonemason) and Elizabeth Nicholas.^[2] Before he was one year old, the family moved to 'Y Llety', Pentre Galar, a 57-acre smallholding on the slopes of Foel Dyrch in the Preseli Hills, Pembrokeshire, where Nicholas was brought up.^[3][4][5] "Times were hard. There were 6 children in the family, and Y Llety was a rented smallholding."^[6]

Nicholas's early upbringing was a deep and long-lasting influence on him: "It is often argued that the community of the Preseli Hills represented the socialist ideal for Niclas – a community where people co-operated for each other’s good. It was a civilized society where ideas, stories, debates, sermons and politics were shared. There was a great deal of sharing of books and journals, too. Niclas was introduced to what was happening in Parliament by the newspaper Baner ac Amserau Cymru published by Thomas Gee."^[7]

Training for the ministry and ordination

Nicholas left Pembrokeshire in 1897 and worked briefly in Treherbert in the Rhondda, before studying for the ministry at the Gwynfryn Academy (Ysgol y Gwynfryn), Ammanford, under Watcyn Wyn (Watkin Hezekiah Williams) and John Gwili Jenkins.^[1] In 1901 he was ordained to the ministry among the Welsh Independents at Horeb Chapel, Llandeilo, in Carmarthenshire.

Marriage and family

In 1902, Nicholas married Mary Alys Hopkins, daughter of Thomas Hopkins, watchmaker, Ammanford. Their children included a son, Thomas Islwyn Nicholas (Islwyn ap Nicholas) (b. 1903) and two daughters, Gwladys Thelma (b. 1904) and Nellie Alys (b. 1911).

Seion Chapel, Glais: ministry and writing

In 1903, he was briefly minister of the Welsh Congregational Church at Dodgeville, Wisconsin, U.S.A.

Between 1904 and 1914 he was minister of Seion Chapel in the village of Glais in the Swansea Valley, where Nicholas Road bears his name.^[8]

His religious convictions, influenced by Watcyn Wyn and Gwili, were focused on the radical message of the Gospels. He supported the socialism of R. J. Derfel with its emphasis on brotherhood, peace and justice, equality, land nationalisation, and a Parliament for Wales, and opposition to the royal family, the brewers and militarism. Nicholas became a favorite preacher at 'Cyrddau Mawr' ('Big Meetings') and a popular public speaker.

In his own chapel at Glais he supported Welsh culture, establishing a choir and an eisteddfod. He was a prolific poet: his early poetry had religious themes but by 1908 his poems carried a socialist and radical message. He was known as 'The People's Poet'. He won over 17 eisteddfod chairs during his time at Glais.^[9] The main themes of his poetry were injustice, the battle between the working class and the power of capital, and pacifism. His poetry books and pamphlets – almost all written in Welsh – sold well: Weithwyr Cymru, Cenwch eich hunain i ryddid ('Workers of Wales, sing yourselves to freedom') sold over 6000 copies. He also translated The Internationale into Welsh.

Political, trade union and anti-war activities

Nicholas joined the Independent Labour Party in 1905. He was a close friend and supporter of James Keir Hardie, the founder of the Independent Labour Party – Hardie had been elected as M.P. for the Welsh mining constituency of Merthyr Tydfil from 1900. Like Hardie, Nicholas was both a Christian socialist and a committed pacifist. Nicholas acted as Hardie's election agent in 1910^[10] and, at Hardie's request, Nicholas served as the first Welsh-language editor of the ILP's Merthyr Pioneer from its first appearance in 1911.

In January 1914 Nicholas left Glais to become Minister to two chapels in rural Ceredigion: Ebenezer, Llangybi, and Bethlehem, Llanddewi Brefi.

When the First World War broke out, Hardie and Nicholas both opposed it. Within a few days of Britain going into the war Hardie was speaking against it in his own constituency but was shouted down by the crowd, who supported the war. Hardie died on 26 September 1915, aged only 59. Nicholas delivered the sermon at Hardie's memorial service at Aberdare. He continued to oppose the War throughout its duration.^[11] The authorities took an interest in his activities and sought evidence of treason.^[12]

In the General Election of 1918, Nicholas was invited by the Labour Party to stand in the Aberdare division of Hardie's old Merthyr Tydfil seat, against Charles Butt Stanton (1873–1946). Stanton had won one of the two Merthyr Tydfil seats in the by-election caused by Hardie's death: he had supported the Coalition Government and the war; and fought the General Election as a member of the National Democratic Party (NDP) with the assistance of the Coalition 'coupon'. Nicholas campaigned on Hardie's socialist and pacifist positions. He was badly mistreated. He won 6,229 votes to Stanton's 22,824. However, he was heartened by the fact that the Labour Party greatly increased its vote share nationally (from 7% to 21%) and for the first time it won the most seats in Wales, breaking the long Liberal dominance. Nicholas took heart also from the Russian Revolution.

In Ceredigion Nicholas organised farmworkers into a Union and in 1918 he established the Labour Party in the county. He resigned from the ministry in the same year. He and his wife and son, Islwyn ap Nicholas, set up a dental practice – first in Pontardawe and then, in 1921, in Aberystwyth. (They were trained as dentists by a good friend, David Ernest Evans (1870–1956) of Mountain Ash).

In 1920, Nicholas joined the Communist Party of Great Britain when it was first formed. He was expelled from the Labour Party in 1926 after criticising Ramsay MacDonald's leadership. He continued as an active and popular lecturer, preacher, writer, columnist and poet. In the 1930s he wrote a weekly column, 'O fyd y werin' ('The world of the people') in Y Cymro newspaper.

The Prison Sonnets

In July 1940, during the Second World War, he and his son Islwyn were arrested on a trumped up charge of fascism.^[13] They were imprisoned first in Swansea prison and then in Brixton, where Nicholas wrote 150 sonnets expressing his Christian and Communist convictions. Protests against their imprisonment came from Ministers of religion, trade union leaders, especially the miners, and Members of Parliament. After four months in prison, they were released.

Nicholas's prison sonnets (many written on toilet paper^[12]) were published in Llygad y Drws: Sonedau’r Carchar (Aberystwyth, 1940) and Canu’r Carchar (Llandysul, 1942): they were translated into English by Daniel Hughes, Dewi Emrys and Wil Ifan as The Prison Sonnets of T. E. Nicholas (London, 1948). Llygad y Drws ("The Eye of the Door") refers to the eye-hole in the prison cell door.

The National Library of Wales, which holds the manuscript of his prison poems, has placed them online (with an introduction).^[14]

Death and legacy

T. E. Nicholas died at home in Aberystwyth on 19 April 1971, aged 91. The funeral services were held at the Independent Chapel, Aberystwyth and Narberth Crematorium. His ashes were scattered on the Preseli Hills, Pembrokeshire. His papers are held in the T. E. Nicholas Archive at Bangor University.

Published works

References

Sources and external links