Thursday, March 03, 2005
Professor Sir Glanmor Williams
Doing a history degree at Swansea University had many memorable moments. There was the party to celebrate Dutch independence (at least I think that is what it was for - I just wandered in off the street and joined in), the wonderful course run by Peter Stead looking at how historical events in the late nineteenth and the twentieth Centuries were reflected in the literature of the time, and of course, the tutorials with Rhodri Morgan's brother, Prys. However, if I were to be truthful the outstanding moments were the lectures by Professor Glanmor Williams on the Tudors.
Glanmor was an intellectual giant and each of his lectures were masterpieces in their own right. I missed many lectures during my three years at College but I never ever skipped one by Glanmor Williams. The detail, the sheer depth of knowledge, the quality of his prose and his passion never ceased to captivate me. He brought the subject to life in a way that no other lecturer could.
I post this now because Professor Sir Glanmor Williams has recently passed away at the age of 84. He accomplished so much. Tryst Williams writes about him in the Western Mail today. Professor Meic Stephens puts it so much better than I can:
Meic Stephens, Emeritus Professor of Welsh Writing in English at the University of Glamorgan, said, "He was the pre-eminent historian of Wales, the most prolific and the most authoritative, who made a magisterial contribution to our understanding of religion, language and society in Wales and led, by example, the remarkable renaissance in the writing of Welsh history."
It really was a privilege to have crossed his path, no matter how briefly.
Glanmor was an intellectual giant and each of his lectures were masterpieces in their own right. I missed many lectures during my three years at College but I never ever skipped one by Glanmor Williams. The detail, the sheer depth of knowledge, the quality of his prose and his passion never ceased to captivate me. He brought the subject to life in a way that no other lecturer could.
I post this now because Professor Sir Glanmor Williams has recently passed away at the age of 84. He accomplished so much. Tryst Williams writes about him in the Western Mail today. Professor Meic Stephens puts it so much better than I can:
Meic Stephens, Emeritus Professor of Welsh Writing in English at the University of Glamorgan, said, "He was the pre-eminent historian of Wales, the most prolific and the most authoritative, who made a magisterial contribution to our understanding of religion, language and society in Wales and led, by example, the remarkable renaissance in the writing of Welsh history."
It really was a privilege to have crossed his path, no matter how briefly.
