Edward Prosser Rhys (4 March 1901 – 6 February 1945) was a Welsh journalist, poet and publisher.[1]
Edward Prosser Rhys | |
|---|---|
| Born | 4 March 1901 Trefenter, Wales |
| Died | 6 February 1945 (aged 43) Aberystwyth, Wales |
| Occupation | journalist, poet and publisher |
| Literary movement | Welsh language poetry |
| Spouse | Mary Prudence Rhys (1928–1945) |
In his early life he was diagnosed with tuberculosis which would affect him throughout his life. Before going into publishing he worked as a clerk at the Western Ocean Colliery in Nant-y-moel, Ogmore Valley. He later moved to Aberystwyth where he married Mary Prudence Rhys (née Hughes) in 1928, where they then lived for the rest of his life.[2][1]
His poem "Atgof" ('Memory') won the National Eisteddfod in Pontypool in 1924, although it was controversial due to its homosexual content.[3] The poem is extensively about sex, most often heterosexual but there is a short section about a gay experience. It has been speculated that it could be about Morris T. Williams, a close male acquaintance of Prosser Rhys who at the time was married to Kate Roberts.[4]
He formed the publisher Gwasg Aberystwyth in 1928. He also founded The Welsh Books Club in 1937, following a canvas for public interest in subscriptions of Welsh literature, where the reader would receive 4 books a year for the cost of half a crown.[1][2]
He was also editor of Baner ac Amserau Cymru (Banner and Welsh Times) 1923–1945.[5]
On Mynydd Bach there is a monument to Prosser Rhys and three other notable poets from local villages who competed at the National Eisteddfod: T. Hughes Jones (1895–1966), B. T. Hopkins (1897–1981) and J. M. Edwards (1903–1978). It is located just south of Trefenter near Llyn Eiddwen.[6][7][8] His grave also has an epitaph quote written by T. Gwynn Jones.[9]
Prosser Rhys' archives of personal papers are held at the National Library of Wales.[10]
References
edit- ^ a b c Jones, Evan David. "Rhys, Edward Prosser". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 8 August 2015.
- ^ a b "Edward Prosser Rhys". Llais Aeron. Retrieved 2023-02-18 – via BBC Cymru.
- ^ Shopland, Norena (2017). Forbidden lives: lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender stories from Wales. Jeffrey Weeks. Bridgend, Wales. p. 173. ISBN 978-1-78172-410-1. OCLC 994638129.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Queer Wales: the history, culture and politics of queer life in Wales. Huw Osborne. Cardiff. 2016. pp. 81–82. ISBN 978-1-78316-865-1. OCLC 951103103.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ Williams, Peter N. (2003). Presenting Wales from A to Y - The People, the Places, the Traditions: An Alphabetical Guide to a Nation's Heritage. Trafford Publishing. p. 230. ISBN 978-1-55395-482-8.
- ^ "Four Welsh Poets, Mynydd Bach, Trefenter, Ceredigion, Wales - Dead Poets' Society Memorials on". Waymarking.com. 2010-12-31. Archived from the original on May 25, 2015. Retrieved 2015-05-22.
- ^ "Beirdd y Mynydd Bach". Placiauawduron.org. Archived from the original on May 25, 2015. Retrieved 2015-05-22.
- ^ "Hanes trefi a phentrefi gogledd Ceredigion (parhad)". BBC Cymru. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved 2015-05-24.
- ^ "Rhys Edward Prosser, Aberystwyth 2013". www.welshruins.co.uk. Retrieved 2023-02-18.
- ^ The National Archives. "Records for Rhys, Edward Prosser, (1901-1945), Editor and Poet". discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 2023-02-18.