Thomas William Jones, Baron Maelor

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Thomas William Jones, Baron Maelor (10 February 1898, Ponciau, Wrexham, Wales - 18 November 1984, Ponciau, Wrexham, Wales) was a British Labour politician. He was Member of Parliament for Merioneth from 1951 until his retirement in 1966. Subsequently, he was given a life peerage as Baron Maelor, of Rhosllannerchrugog in the County of Denbighshire.

Born into a mining family, he was educated at Ponciau School before becoming a coal miner at the nearby Bersham colliery. He later attended Normal College Bangor, Gwynedd and qualified as a teacher.

During World War I he was a conscientious objector but served in the army as a non-combatant. He was received a six-month prison sentence by court-martial for refusing to obey orders, on grounds of conscience, which he served at Wormwood Scrubs prison in London and Dartmoor prison in Devon.

Jones firstly stood as a Labour candidate in 1935 but was unsuccessful. However, in the 1951 general election he was elected as Member of Parliament for Merioneth, a position he held until 1966.

He was a poet and a member of the Gorsedd of Bards at the National Eisteddfod of Wales and served as President of the International Eisteddfod at Llangollen.

Lord Maelor died in a fire at his home in Ponciau in 1984.

He was the brother of James Idwal Jones, who was Member of Parliament (Labour) for Wrexham from 1955 to 1970.

[edit] References

• Leigh Rayment's Peerage Page

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Emrys Owain Roberts	Member of Parliament for Merionethshire 1951–1966	Succeeded by William Edwards