The University of Wales Press wishes to pay tribute to Geraint H. Jenkins, who made a huge contribution to its publishing history and to the study of Welsh history in general. Geraint authored and edited numerous ground-breaking and pioneering studies of early modern Welsh history in particular, writing for the Press in both Welsh and English – from his study of the almanac-maker Thomas Jones (1980); his definitive history of Wales in the early modern period, Hanes Cymru yn y Cyfnod Modern Cynnar, 1530–1760 (1983); his biography of ‘Doc Tom’ Tom Richards as part of the ‘Dawn Dweud’ series (1999); to the editing of Ceredigion County History Volume II as recently as 2019.
As director of the Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies between 1993 and 2008, Geraint led several research projects whose seminal outputs were published by the Press – numerous works on Iolo Morganwg, including his own book Bard of Liberty: The Political Radicalism of Iolo Morganwg (2012), and a series of edited volumes on the social history of the Welsh language. He served as a member of the Press Board for several years, and was a trusted friend and colleague.
Geraint also initiated and edited the important annual volume of essays on Welsh history, Cof Cenedl (published by Gwasg Gomer), and wrote the volume on early modern history in Oxford University Press’s series on the history of Wales. He also authored highly entertaining books that reflected his passion for Welsh football and his team, Swansea City, and for the history of Ceredigion and its characters.