Welsh Ecclesiastical History Seminar series returns with impressive lineup of speakers

The Welsh Ecclesiastical History Seminar lecture series will return next month with an impressive lineup of guest speakers.

A 1714 print by George Vertue showing Bishop William Lloyd in his ecclesiastical robes sitting in front of shelves lined with heavy books; an inscription below is in Latin.

Following a successful inaugural year, the Lectures will reopen on November 14 2023 with Professor William Gibson presenting his lecture entitled Bishop William Lloyd: A Welsh Plotter in the Glorious Revolution of 1688.  In this paper, Professor Gibson will argue that Bishop William Lloyd of St Asaph was not merely a passive opponent of James II, but conspired to remove him from power. He was instrumental in spreading the rumours that the King’s son was the ‘bad pan baby’ and provoked James II to extreme measures against the Church. By looking at the archive record, Gibson will claim that Lloyd was one of the architects of the Revolution in 1688.

This year’s programme, organised by UWTSD, the Oxford Centre for Methodism and Church History and the Institute of Historical Research’s Centre for the History of People, Place and Community, also includes lectures by Professor Frances Knight (University of Nottingham) and Professor Barry Lewis (Dublin Centre for Advanced Studies).

Professor Williams Gibson at a lectern decorated with a cloth showing a dove flying in front of a cross.

Looking ahead to the first lecture of the series, Professor Williams Gibson, Director of the Oxford Centre for Methodism and Church History, commented:

“It’s an honour to be taking part in this year’s Welsh Ecclesiastical History Seminar lecture series and I’m very much looking forward to delivering my lecture in the wonderful surroundings of the Roderic Bowen Reading Room.

As a Lampeter graduate it is always a delight to speak on campus and this year our links with the Institute of Historical Research means that the seminar series are also online.

The seminar is the only forum for research papers in Welsh Ecclesiastical History and makes an important contribution to the History of Wales.”

The Welsh Ecclesiastical History Seminar lectures, held in the Roderic Bowen Reading Room, Lampeter Campus and online, are:

  • Prof. Bill Gibson (Oxford Centre for Methodism & Church History, Oxford Brookes University): 14 November 2023 – Bishop William Lloyd: A Welsh Plotter in the Glorious Revolution of 1688
     
  • Prof. Frances Knight (University of Nottingham): 20 February 2024: Parallel Lives – Alfred Ollivant and Curnop Thirlwall and the Creation of a Welsh Identity
     
  • Prof. Barry Lewis (Dublin Centre for Advanced Studies): 14 May 2024 – Writing a History of Christianity in Wales before the Normans: Challenges and Opportunities

Further Information

Arwel Lloyd

Principal PR and Communications Officer    
Corporate Communications and PR    
Email:  arwel.lloyd@uwtsd.ac.uk    
Phone: 07384 467076

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