Richard DAVIES (Bishop of St. Asaph and St. Davids)

Born: ABT 1505

Died: 7 Nov 1581

Buried: Abergwili church

Welsh Bishop and scholar, was born in North Wales, and was educated at New Inn Hall, Oxford, becoming vicar of Burnham, Buckinghamshire, in 1550. Being a reformer he took refuge at Geneva during the reign of Mary, returning to England and to parochial work after the accession of Elizabeth in 1558.

His connection with Wales was renewed almost at once; for, after serving on a commission which visited the Welsh dioceses, he was, in Jan 1560, consecrated Bishop of St. Asaph, whence he was translated, early in 1561, to the bishopric of St. Davids. As a Bishop Davies was an earnest reformer, very industrious, active and liberal, but not very scrupulous with regard to the property of the church. He was a member of the council of Wales, was very friendly with Matthew Parker, Archbishop of Canterbury, and was regarded both by Parker and by William Cecil, Lord Burghley, as a trustworthy adviser on Welsh concerns. Another of the bishops friends was Walter Devereux, first earl of Essex.

Assisting William Salisbury, Davies took part in translating the New Testament into Welsh, and also did some work on the Welsh translation of the Book of Common Prayer. He helped to revise the Bishops Bible of 1568, being himself responsible for the book of Deuteronomy, and the second book of Samuel.

He died on 7 Nov 1581, and was buried in Abergwili church.

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