Born: 1734, near New­cas­tle Em­lyn, Car­mar­then­shire, Wales.

Died: December 1799.

Buried: Short­wood (near Hors­ley), Glou­ces­ter­shire, Eng­land.

Francis was bap­tized at age 15, and be­gan preach­ing at 19. He stu­died at the Bris­tol Bap­tist Coll­ege, and be­gan his min­is­try at Sod­bu­ry. In 1737, he moved to Hors­ley (lat­er known as Short­wood), Glou­ces­ter­shire. He con­duct­ed a suc­cess­ful min­is­try there un­til his death in 1799. He con­trib­ut­ed sev­er­al hymns to Rip­pon’s Se­lect­ions, and wrote a num­ber of others in Welsh. His works in­clude:

• Alleluia, neu Hymnau perthynol i Addoliad Cyhoeddus (Hymns Per­tain­ing to Pub­lic Wor­ship), 1774 & 1786
• Conflagra­tion, a Po­em in Four Parts, 1779
• Elegies on the Deaths of the Revs. George White­field, Ca­leb Ev­ans, Robt. Day, and Jo­shua Thom­as
• The As­so­ci­a­tion, a Po­em, 1790
• A Poetical Ad­dress to the Stock­bridge In­dians
• Two sa­tir­i­cal piec­es on the Bap­tis­mal con­tro­ver­sy, The Sa­lo­pi­an Zeal­ot and The Or­a­cle

Sources

Lyrics

1. Arglwydd grasol, clyw fy nghri—a’m griddfanau
2. Before Thy Throne, Eter­nal King
3. Clod i’r bendigeg Oen—a oddefodd
4. Deffro ’nghalon, deffro ’nghân—i ddyrchafu
5. Glory to the Eternal King
6. Great King of Glo­ry, Come
7. Gwyn fyd y dyn a gred yn Nuw
8. In Sweet Exalted Strains
9. My Gracious Redeemer, I Love
10. Praise the Sav­ior, All Ye Na­tions
11. Wele gadarn sylfaen Si­on
12. Ye Objects of Grace and En­joy­ments of Time