T. E. Ellis

Thomas Edward Ellis (16 February 1859 – 5 April 1899), often known as T. E. Ellis or Tom Ellis, was a Welsh politician who was the leader of Cymru Fydd, a movement aimed at gaining home rule for Wales. Ellis was, for a time, the most prominent of a generation of Liberal politicians who emerged in Wales after 1886, who placed greater emphasis than the previous generation to a Welsh dimension to their politics. His early death in 1899 aged 40 added to the aura that surrounded his name.

Early life T. E. Ellis was born at Cefnddwysarn near Bala, the son of a tenant farmer, and was brought up among folk memories of the political evictions in Merioneth following the 1859 and 1868 General Elections. Having attended Bala Grammar School, where his fellow pupils included Owen Morgan Edwards, he progressed to the University of Wales, Aberystwyth, (then Aberystwyth college) from 1875 to 1879, then went to New College, Oxford, graduating in history in 1884.

On leaving Oxford, Ellis briefly went into journalism and also acted as a private tutor to the son of a South Wales shipping magnate. He then became private secretary to Liberal Party MP, John Brunner.

Parliamentary career In 1886, he was selected as the Liberal Party candidate for the Merionethshire constituency, and was elected the same year at the general election.

Personal life Ellis married Annie Jane, daughter of Robert J. Davies and sister of John Humphreys Davies. They had one son, his biographer Thomas Iorwerth Ellis, who was born posthumously in December 1899.

Assessment Tom Ellis, according to Kenneth O. Morgan, was a "nationalist of a complex kind". On the one hand, he was deeply rooted in the Methodist tradition, with a love of Welsh poetry and literature. He regarded himself as a follower of Mazzini, and his support for Cymru Fydd made him a prominent advocate of Home Rule. In contrast, he became an admirer of Cecil Rhodes, whom he had met in Cape Colony and his acceptance of government office attracted criticism from some of his erstwhile supporters.