Thomas Johnes

Aelod seneddol, pensaer tirwedd, ffermwr, cyhoeddwr, llenor a chymwynaswr cymdeithasol o Llwydlo, Swydd Amwythig, Lloegr, oedd Thomas Johnes (1 Medi 1748 – 23 Ebrill 1816). Mae'n fwyaf adnabyddus am ddatblygu ystâd Hafod Uchtryd yng Ngheredigion.

Symudodd Johnes o gartref y teulu yn Croft Castle i Hafod Uchtryd ger Cwmystwyth, Ceredigion, a dechreuodd ddatblygu yr ystâd drwy adeiladu capel anwes ar gyfer tenantiaid yr ystâd, yn ogystal ag ysgol a gerddi, llwybrau a phontydd godidog. Arbrofodd gyda bridio defaid a gwartheg, a thyfu cnydau newydd, gan sefydlu llaethdy ffynianus. Cafodd nifer sylweddol o goed eu plannu ar dir nad oedd yn addas ar gyfer cnydau; a gwobrwywyd medal aur y Royal Society of Arts i Johnes bum gwaith er mwyn cydnabod ei ymdrechion. Anogodd ei denantiaid i wella eu ymarfer ffermio, gan gyhoeddi A Cardiganshire Landlord's Advice to his Tenants ym 1800, ynghyd â chyfieithiad Cymraeg, a cynigodd wobrau am y cnydau gorau. Bu hefyd yn un o brif gefnogwyr Cymdeithas Amaeth Ceredigion a sefydlwyd ym 1784. Ymroddodd Johnes ei oes a'i ffortiwn i ddatblygu ystâd Hafod.The Annual Biography and Obituary for the Year 1817 

Cefndir teuluol a bywyd cynnar
bawd|dde|Portread gan Stothard
Roedd Johnes yn aelod o hen deulu o Sir Gaerfyrddin a Cheredigion, ac yn perthyn i William Wilberforce trwy modryb ei fam, Anne Knight. Mae hefyd yn perthyn trwy ochr yma ei deulu i Marchweithian, Arglwydd Is Aled ac Aed Mawr, tywysog yn nhrefedigaeth cyntaf y Brythoniaid. 

Roedd yn fab hynaf Thomas Johnes (tua 1721–1780) o Lanfair Clydogau ac Elizabeth, merch Richard Knight o Croft Castle, Swydd Henffordd. Ganwyd ef ar 1 Medi 1748, ac fe'i bedyddiwyd yn Eglwys Sant Laurence, Llwydlo. Dysgodd ddarllen ac ysgrifennu Saesneg yn ei ysgol offeiriadol paratoadol lleol, cyn mynychu Ysgol Ramadeg Amwythig pan oedd yn saith oed. Ym 1760, aeth i Goleg Eton, lle bu am saith mlynedd, yn ystod y cyfnod hwn dysgodd Groeg a'r clasuron Lladin dan ofal William Windham. Ym 1767, mynychodd gwrs o ddarlithoedd ar Resymeg ac Athroniaeth Moesol ym Mhrifysgol Caeredin. Wedi gadael y brifysgol yn hwyr ym 1768, aeth yn syth ar daith o amgylch y cyfandir ynghyd â Robert Listen. O dan ei arweiniad ef, teithiodd drwy Ffrainc, Sbaen a'r Eidal cyn mynd i'r Swistir a dilyn llwybr Afon Rhein cyn belled â Strasbourg a theithio trwy'r Alsace a Lorraine i Baris, lle buont yn byw am sawl mis.The Dictionary of National Biography: From the Earliest Times to 1900 Dychwelodd Johnes ym 1771, a treuliodd bron i dair mlynedd yn Swydd Henffordd, gan ddilyn amryw o orchwylion gwledig. Erbyn 1774, roedd wedi blino ar fyw bywyd hamddenol, ac roedd yn benderfynol o ymroddi ei hun i achos pwysicach a mwy arobryn. Safodd i ddod yn Aelod Seneddol, fel ymgeisydd dros Geredigion, yn erbyn Syr Robert Smith. Enillodd Johnes trwy ddeiseb yn y pen draw.

Wedi cwblhau ei astudiaethau ym Mhrifysgol Caeredin, aeth Johnes i Goleg yr Iesu, Rhydychen, a derbyniodd Meistr y Celfyddydau ar 8 Gorffennaf 1783. Yn Rhydychen y cyfarfu gyda'r Arglwydd Thurlow am y tro cyntaf.

Bywyd personol
bawd|120px|chwith|Jane Johnes
Ym mis Awst 1778, priododd Maria Burgh, o Sir Fynwy, yn Eglwys y Santes Fair, Cas-gwent. Hi oedd unig blentyn a oroesodd ac etifeddwraig y Parchedig Henry Burgh o Parc Llettis. Apwyntiwyd yn Gyrnol milisia Sir Gaerfyrddin yr un flwyddyn. O fewn blwyddyn iddynt briodi, daeth Maria yn wael a bu farw ym 1782 yng Nghaerfaddon, Gwlad yr Haf yn ddi-blant.
bawd|120px|dde|Mariamné Johnes
Cyn diwedd y flwyddyn honno, ail-briododd Johnes. Ei gyfnither, Jane Johnes, oedd ei ail wraig, sef merch John Johnes o Ddolaucothi. Achosodd hyn ffrae a ddinistriodd ei berthynas gyda'i deulu am weddill ei oes. Tybier na siaradodd fyth gyda'i fam wedi'r ail briodas hon.Peacocks in Paradise, Elisabeth Inglis-Jones Roedd Jane yn ddynes prydferth a deallus iawn, a daeth a hapusrwydd iddo yn y briodas. Roedd y berthynas yn un agos, a rhanodd y ddau ddiddordeb mewn gwella Ceredigion a chariad am yr Hafod.

Ganed eu plentyn cyntaf, Mariamné ar 30 Mehefin 1784. Roedd Johnes wedi gwirioni arni a bu'n ei magu llawer. Derbyniodd addysg ddrud, a chyflogwyd tiwtoriaid byd eang. Roedd perthynas agos rhwng y ddau a torodd ei galon pan fu farw ar y 4 Gorffennaf 1811.  

Ganed ei fab, Evan, ym 1786, ond bu farw yn ifanc iawn.

Erbyn gaeaf 1814, roedd yn dal i alaru wedi ei golled ac yn doreddig. Daeth yn wael a symudodd i dŷ a oedd wedi prynu ychydig ynghynt ar arfordir Dyfnaint. Bu farw ym mwthyn Langstone Cliff,The Land of Pure Delight ger Dawlish ar 23 Ebrill 1816 yn 68 oed. Claddwyd ef ym Mhlwyf yr Eglwys Newydd, yn Eglwys Sant Michael, Hafod Uchtryd.Gyrfa wleidyddol
After returning from a tour of Europe in 1774 he was elected MP for the borough of Cardigan in the following year.  He went on to be elected MP for Radnorshire in 1780, 1784, 1790, 1795 and for Cardiganshire in 1796, 1802, 1806, 1807, and 1812.A New General Biographical Dictionary He served as Lord Lieutenant of Cardiganshire from 1800 until his death in 1816, was Colonel of the Cardigan Militia, and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1800.Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

In 1780, the year he lost his father, in respect for him, he vacated his seat for the borough of Cardigan, and offered himself a candidate for the county of Radnor. This step involved him in a second electioneering contest. He was opposed by Walter Williams, Esq. of Maesclough, but after an heated battle was returned as Knight of the Shire.

The parliamentary politics of Mr. Johnes were at this time decidedly ministerial. To Prime Minister North, who was then prime minister, he was attached by the ties of personal friendship, as well as by their agreement in political views. Like the celebrated Gibbon, he a gave many a silent, but sincere vote in favour of the American war. His devotion was his reward. In the year 1781, he was appointed His Majesty's Auditor for the Principality of Wales. This office, which was in fact a well paid sinecure[sic], was a few years afterwards proscribed by a bill- of reform: but by a kind consideration, usual in such cases, and in this instance enforced by the powerful interference of Mr. Johnes's intimate friend Lord Chancellor Thurlow, its abolition was deferred till the demise of the existing incumbent. While Chancellor, secured for his friend Mr. Johnes, a life interest in the office of Auditor of the Landed Revenues of South Wales, in direct opposition to the report of a Committee of the Commons; the other, as a member of that House, is said, in return, to have contributed by his vote and influence to the reversionary Tellership granted by act of parliament to his noble friend, in express opposition to the wishes of Mr. Fox, with whom he had lately become connected in politics.

Hafod Uchtryd
Ym 1780, ar farwolaeth ei dad, etifeddodd ystâd Hafod Uchtryd yng Ngheredigion. Symudodd i fyw yno ym 1783 gan ganfod mewn cyflwr gwael, hanner adfail ac wedi ei amgylchynu gan 10,000 acer o ucheldir Cymreig. Roedd y tenantiaid ar lwg yn anobeithio mewn cartrefi gwael. Symudodd hwy o fythod i fythynod a cyflogodd nifer ohonynt i blannu coed ar y tir. Roedd ganddo'r weledigaeth a dull pragmatig o reoli ystâd.Burke's Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry 1847

Roedd fferm yn Hafod Uchtryd ger Cwmystwyth ers yr 16g, ar ffurf maenor mynachlog Ystrad Fflur yn nyffryn Ystwyth. Wedi diddymiad y mynachlogydd, daeth y fferm yn ganolbwynt ystâd a oedd yn eiddo i'r teulu Herbert. Pasiodd yr ystâd i ddwylo'r teulu Johnes o Lanfair Clydogau a Dolaucothi drwy briodas.

Plasty
bawd|chwith|Tŷ'r Hafod, tua 1795 gan John Warwick Smith
Adeiladwyd plasty newydd yn yr Hafod ym 1785 gan Johnes, wedi i'r tŷ hanner adfail a adeiladwyd gan y teulu Herbert gael ei ddymchwel. Dyluniwyd gan Thomas Baldwin o Bath yn yr arddull Gothig. Roedd llyfrgell eang mewn adeilad siâp octagon o fewn y plasty. Casglodd Johnes nifer o lyfrau prin a bonheddig am hanes natur, llawysgrifau Cymraeg, Ffrangeg a Lladin a oedd yn cynnwys rhai gan Edward Lhuyd yn ogystal â nifer o lawysgrifau a rhifynau wedi eu argraffu o'r canol oesoedd yn Ffrangeg. Prynwyd hefyd gasgliad Marquis de Pesaro. Safai cerflun gan Thomas Banks, yn cynrychioli Thetis yn trochi Achiles yn yr afon Styx yn y llyfrgell; cafodd y cerflun ei gomisiynu gan ei wraig gyda delwedd ei ferch fel baban ar gyfer pen Achiles. Mae'r cerflun i'w weld yn y Victoria and Albert Museum.

bawd|dde|150px|Mwgwd y Dyn Gwyrdd ar ffynnon Hafod Uchtryd
Roedd tŷ gwydr 160 troedfedd o hyn yn cysylltu gyda'r llyfrgell, ac roedd hwn yn llawn planhigion prin. Ger y mynedfa o'r ystafell hwn i'r ystafell fwyta, roedd paentiad yn hongian, gan Peter Paul Rubens o Decius Mus yn derbyn Bendithiad o'r Pontifex Maximus. Roedd paentiad uwchben y lle tân, o'r proffwyd Elijah yn cael ei fwydo gan cigfrain, a fu'n wreddiddiol yn hongian yn Abaty Talley, ac a roddwyd i'w hynafiaid wedi diddymiad y mynachlogydd. Ymysg y nifer o baentiadau yn y plasty, roedd portread o "Mr. Johnes of Llanvair", gan Syr Godfrey Kneller; o "Robert Liston, Esq.", gan Wickstead; o "Richard Gorges, Esq., of Eye", Swydd Henffordd; ac o Viganoni; copi o "Cupid Sleeping" gan Guido, tirluniau gan Both a Berghem, a phaentiad o'r Alchymist wedi ei ddinistrio, gan Salvator Rosa. Yn yr ystafell groeso roedd llun enwog Hogarth o Ffair Southwark, Descent from the Cross gan Van Dyck, "Ecce Homo" dau Moralez, dau dirlun gan Claude, gorymdaith y Doge Fenis gan Canaletti; Assumption gan Bernardo Lonino, un o ddisgyblion Leonardo da Vinci, a fu'n wreiddiol ar allor Lugano; Holy Family gan Reubens, portread o Yr Arglwydd Ganghellor Thurlow gan Gardener, a rhai gweithiau miniatur gan Miss Johnes. Cafodd y neuadd ei adeiladu o farmor MonaAnglesey Serpentine, Mona Marble a'i ed with a'i addurno gyda cherflun Groegaidd o Dionysos; chwe paentiad gan Froissart, a dynwarediad o basso relievo, gan Stothard.

Ar 13 Mawrth 1807, dinistriwyd y plasty a chynwys y llyfrgell gan dân. Roedd Johnes yn y Senedd yn Llundain pan glywodd y newyddion. Fe lwyddodd ei wraig a'i ferch ddianc o'r tân. Rhentodd y teulu Castle Hill ger Aberystwyth a cyflogwyd Baldwin o Bath fel pensaer unwaith eto. Ar 1 Medi yr un flwyddyn, dechreuwyd y gwaith o ail-adeiladu, a cytunodd y contractwyr i dalu cosb ariannol os nad oedd to ar y plasty erbyn y Nadolig. Dechreuodd y teulu Johnse brynu dodrefn newydd yn barod i symud i mewn i'r tŷ newydd, gan gynnwys o blasty Palladinaidd Fonthill Splendens, a oedd yn eiddo i William Thomas Beckford. Prynwyd drysau gwydr Ffrengig a nifer o lefydd tân, un wedi ei gerfio gan Banks gyda dau wyneb: Pan ac Iris, Penelope ac Odysseus. Cadwyd rhain yn yr Hafod tan fu'r plasty wedi ei orffen. Yn ystod y gwaith adeiladu, gadawodd y teulu Castle Hill, gan deithio o amgylch Llundain a'r Alban, gan ddychwelyd pob blwyddyn i ganfod y tŷ dal heb ei orffen. Bu llawer o oedi yn yr adeiladu, hyd i Johnes aros yng Nghymru a goruchwylio'r gwaith gan ymweld yn wythnosol i gadw llygad ar y datblygiad. Cymerodd y prosiect dair mlynedd i'w gwblhau.Picturesque landscape
bawd| A depiction of the Hafod Estate, circa 1795 by John Warwick Smith
Strongly influenced by William Gilpin's "Picturesque" idea of landscape, which was contrary to the format adopted by the famous Capability Brown, Johnes drew in the experience of his in-laws and family who were from Croft Castle, Herefordshire, his father having married the granddaughter of Richard Payne Knight (1659–1745), a very successful ironmaster whose family acquired land in a fertile part of Herefordshire. The idea of the "Picturesque" developed by Uvedale Price at Foxley and his contemporary (and cousin), Richard Payne Knight's work at Downton were seen by Johnes as a model for the design of his plantations and gardens at Hafod.

Johnes undertook an extensive afforestation  on the estate. The number of trees planted from 1796 to 1801 numbered 2,065,000 and continued at a rate of 200,000 per year thereafter. Overall, Johnes planted well over 3 million trees (between ) at Hafod between 1782 and 1813. In 1801 alone he planted half a million trees.

Following a visit to Hafod in 1798, by Charles Howard, 11th Duke of Norfolk, the President of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), Johnes was encouraged to offer himself for the awards made by the Society for silviculture.

Between 1790 and 1810 were the golden years at Hafod. Between 1782 and 1813 approximately 405 to 485 hectares (1000-1200 acres) of forest, mainly European Larch and Scots Pine were planted on high ground, with oak and beech on the lower, more fertile land. In spite of two months of little rain, of the 80,000 Larch planted in April 1796, only 200 died.  Following a visit to the estate in 1798 by Charles Howard, 11th Duke of Norfolk, the President of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), Johnes was encouraged to offer himself for the awards made by the Society for silviculture.  He was awarded five Gold Medals as follows:

1800 - The Gold Medal, being the Premium offered for planting Larch – Trees was this Session adjudged to Thomas Johnes MP of Hafod.
1801 – The Gold Medal, being the Premium offered for sowing, planting, and inclosing Timber-trees, was this Session adjudged to Thomas Johnes MP of Hafod.
1802 - The Gold Medal, being the Premium offered for sowing, planting, and enclosing Timber-trees was this session adjudged to Thomas Johnes MP of Hafod
1805 – The Gold Medal of the Society was this Session adjudged to Thomas Johnes MP of Hafod, in Cardiganshire, for his plantations of Oaks.
1810 - The Gold Medal of the Society was this Session adjudged to Thomas Johnes, Esq. MP of Hafod in Cardiganshire, for his Plantations of Larch and other trees. 

Approximately three million trees were planted on the estate during the tenancy of Colonel Johnes.

Without doubt, Thomas Johnes was the pioneer of upland afforestation in Wales. However, the achievement was not his alone. Throughout his years at Hafod, Thomas Johnes employed some outstanding foresters and gardeners.

Between 1790 and 1810 two Scottish men played key roles: John Greenshields, Estate Bailiff and James Todd, Head Gardener who had previously been a gardener at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. These two men were in charge of the extensive plantations and forest-nursery activity.

Over the following years, many more Scots foresters were to play key roles in the development of silviculture on estates throughout Wales. Of course it was the men and boys who did the actual planting thereby, playing a key role in making Hafod an outstanding experiment in land management. At Hafod planting rates were in the order of 1000 per team of one man and a boy per day.

Eglwys Newydd church
bawd|chwith|150px|The Saint Michael's Hafod, Eglwys Newydd church
In 1803 Johnes hired James Wyatt, architect of Broadway Tower and Fonthill Abbey, to design a church for the estate to replace the existing structure established in 1620 by William Herbert of the Herbert family, which had fallen into disuse and was surrounded by bramble.An Attempt to Describe Hafod, George Cumberland, 1996, Hafod Trust 

The cruciform structure, constructed at the sole expense of Johnes, was designed in Gothic architecture, has a square tower at the west end. In the centre of the cross is a richly ornamented font of artificial stone, supported on an octagonal shaft; one side of the basin bears a shield charged with the arms of the family of Johnes, and the faces of the shaft are embellished with figures representing the cardinal virtues. A painting, by Fuseli, of Christ and the two disciples of Emmaus is installed in the northern transept. The southern window was composed of an ancient stained and painted Renaissance Flemish glass had been installed in Cardigan Priory church. Johnes removed the window from that church for his own project at Hafod. The window shattered by fire in 1932, and the fragments collected together in small groups.

Several of the Herberts of Hafod are buried in the church graveyard, to whom headstones were erected. 

In the fire in 1932, a sculpture monument by Francis Legatt Chantrey, erected to the memory of the late Miss Johnes, which depicted herself and her weeping parents was destroyed after well-meaning fire fighters doused it with water causing it to shatter.Eglwys Newydd, A Topographical Dictionary of Wales, Samuel Lewis, 1833

Known today as Hafod Church, it lies within the Vicarage of Llanafan, Aberystwyth. Services are still held at the church every other week in English and Welsh.

Farm and dairy
New Farm (), an experimental farm The Hafod Collection-Complete; Documentation from 1700 to 1940 including an extensive dairy was established at Hafod. It was thought that the lands of Hafod and surrounding Cardiganshire were of a type of soil that could not support dairy farming, howeber in 1800 approximately four tons of cheese and  of butter were produced. Johnes experimented with varieties of cattle to determine which would produce the most milk.  In order to accomplish these studies, he imported 40 cows from 
Holland which Johnes referred to has his "Dutch ladies."  He was subsequently able to produce Parmesan, Stilton, Cheshire and Gloucestershire cheese at will from his own dairy.
bawd|chwith|The Arch built in 1810
bawd|dde|The plaque on the Arch

Social benefactor
Johnes helps to established the Society for the Encouragement of Agriculture and Industry in the County of Cardiganshire as a way to encourage growth in the surrounding area and to promote modern farming techniques to his tenants. He became very frustrated by their refusal to use equipment as basic as a horse and plough, instead preferring pick and shovel.  Farming families from Scotland were brought down into Wales to demonstrate productive techniques, but still the local tenants refused to take example.  

The Hafod Arms Hotel, in Devil's Bridge was constructed by Johnes as a way to encourage tourism in Cardiganshire. At the time the estate encompassed present day Pontarfynach.  

In addition to his concern for social welfare of those at Hafod, he was extremely interested in improving parts of Cardiganshire and actively involved himself in the building of roads and bridges.  Upon inheriting the estate there was not one passable road within its boundaries.  He built Hafod Arch in 1810 to commemorate George III's golden jubilee.Road reopens after damage to arch He also built a school for the poor of the community to attend at no charge. A fund was established to assist families hit by casualties.  A physician was brought on staff and medicine was supplied. Each year he and Mrs. Johnes opened up their home at Christmas hosting a large event for everyone at Hafod including staff and tenants.
bawd|dde|Travels of Bertrandon de la Broquière in Palestine 1807, 8 volumes, (Printed at Hafod Press)

Writer, translator and printer
At the suggestion of his wife Jane, Johnes translated several books from French to English.  He established a private press (Hafod Press) in a cottage in the hills away from the main estate in order to publish his works:
 A Cardiganshire Landlord's Advice to his Tenants (Original work, translated into Welsh; both editions printed at Hafod Press, 1800)
 Translation of De la Curne de Saint Palaye's Life of Froissart 1803, Volumes I to IV.
 The Chronicles of England, France, Spain Translated from the French of Sir John Froissart, 4 volumes, 1806 The Chronicles of England, France, Spain" Translated from the French of Sir John Froissart
 Translation of De Joinville's Memoirs of Saint Louis from French, 1807, 2 volumes, (Printed at Hafod Press)
 Travels of Bertrandon de la Brocquiere in Palestine 1807, 8 volumes, (Printed at Hafod Press)
 The Chronicles of Monstrelet, Notes by the Translator 4 volumes, 1809

Cymryn
Erbyn heddiw, mae ystâd Hafod yn parhau i adlewyrchu gweledigaeth a chynefin Thomas Johnes.The Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce Mae'r ystâd yn eiddo i Ymddiriedolaeth Hafod a'r Comisiwn Coedwigaeth, sy'n ceisio cadw a gwella tirwedd Thomas Johnes.

Llyfryddiaeth

Grigson G (1949) Places of the Mind Routledge & Kegan Paul
Ingrams R & Piper J (1983) Piper's Places, Chatto & Windus/Hogarth Press, ISBN 0-7011-2550-0
Linnard, W. (1971) Forestry 44 Journal of the Royal Forestry Society tud. 139–140
Linnard W. (2000) Welsh Woods and Forests – A History, Gomer Press, ISBN 1-85902-864-0
Gibson W. (1990) Thomas Johnes of Hafod Royal Society of Arts Journal (Study Group for the Society's History) ISBN 0958-0433
Jenkins, Dafydd "Johnes, Thomas (1748–1816), landowner and man of letters
Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion (1959) Gol.
Sir J. E. Lloyd, Dictionary of Welsh Biography down to 1940, B. H. Blackwood Ltd
Society of Arts (1800) Transactions Vol 18 tud. 81 – 83
Society of Arts (1800) Transactions Vol 18 tud. 134 – 139
Society of Arts (1801) Transactions Vol 19 tud. 78 – 81
Society of Arts (1802) Transactions Vol 20 tud. 182 – 191
Society of Arts (1805) Transactions Vol 23 tud. 26 – 29
Society of Arts (1810) Transactions Vol 28 tud. 30 –  32

, sy'n cynnwys map gan William Blake a darluniau gan Thomas Johnes.
, paralel ffotograffaidd cyfoes i  'An Attempt to Describe Hafod' 

Cyfeiriadau

Dolenni allanol
Thomas Johnes, Dictionary of National Biography

Categori:Aelodau Senedd Prydain Fawr
Categori:Aelodau Seneddol y Deyrnas Unedig
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Categori:Genedigaethau 1748
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Categori:Marwolaethau 1816
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