Jane Williams (Ysgafell)

Jane Williams (1 February 1806 – 15 March 1885), was a Welsh writer, often known by her bardic name of Ysgafell. She is sometimes confused with her contemporary, Maria Jane Williams.

She was born in Chelsea, the daughter of a naval official, but spent her youth in the family seat of Neuadd Felen, near Talgarth. She developed an interest in Welsh history, literature and folklore, and associated with Augusta Hall, Lady Llanover. In 1856 she returned to London, where she remained until her death.

Works

• Miscellaneous Poems (1824)
• Twenty Essays on the Practical Improvement of God's Providential Dispensations as Means to the Moral Discipline to the Christian (1838)
• Artegall; or Remarks on the Reports of the Commissioners of Inquiry into the State of Education in Wales (1848)
• The Literary Remains of the Rev. Thomas Price, Carnhuanawc … with a Memoir of his Life (1845–55)
• The Autobiography of Elizabeth Davis, a Balaclava Nurse, Daughter of Dafydd Cadwaladr (1857)
• The Literary Women of England (1861)
• Celtic Fables, Fairy Tales and Legends versified (1862)
• A History of Wales derived from Authentic Sources (1869)

Sources

• Welsh Biography Online