Collectanea Menevensia

Reference: SD/Ch/B27 and SD/Ch/B28

Collectanea Menevensia consists of two volumes of material relating to the diocese of St Davids. It provides a summary of the history of the diocese and is now part of the St Davids Diocesan Records held at the National Library of Wales. It was prepared by Henry Thomas Payne in 1820.

• SDCh/B/27: Collectanea Menevensia of Henry Thomas Payne. Vol. 1
• SDCh/B/28: Collectanea Menevensia of Henry Thomas Payne. Vol. 2

Henry Thomas Payne

Henry Thomas Payne (1759-1832) was a Brecknockshire cleric and antiquary who devoted his life to historical studies. He was a graduate of Balliol College, Oxford, and was ordained priest in 1783 and subsequently licensed to the curacy of Llanelly, Brecknockshire. In 1810 he became a canon of St Davids and was appointed Archdeacon of Carmarthen in 1829. He was an influence on the work of historian Theophilus Jones (1759-1812) and contributed to his History of the County of Brecknock, 1805-1809. Payne died at Crickhowell in April, 1832.

Collectanea Menevensia

The first volume, of 600 pages, is dedicated to the precentor and canons residentiary of the cathedral and begins with an introduction to the history of the chapter. This is followed by a catalogue of documents relating to the history of the diocese. It also includes extracts of statutes, transcripts of documents, and an index.

The second volume, of 500 pages, includes a schedule and an abstract of entries from the Chapter Acts Books of St Davids (1561-1827). Also included are transcripts of documents relating to the rebuilding of the west front of the cathedral church, including the erection of the chapter room to the designs of John Nash (1752-1835).

Further reading

• Owens, B. G. "Biographica et Bibliographica: Archdeacon Henry Thomas Payne (1759-1832)." The National Library of Wales Journal 4 (Summer 1946): 210-214.