Gentility in Early Modern Wales

An overview of Welsh and British history from 1450-1720 providing a new assessment of Welsh gentility.

The first full-length published study of the Salesburys of Rhug and Bachymbyd, Gentility in Early Modern Wales significantly extends the existing knowledge and understanding of this well-known early modern Welsh gentry family while correcting several errors and misinformation established by nineteenth-century antiquarians. Early modern Wales was a place of opportunity and transition for the gentry as they navigated a complex relationship with their English neighbors and found themselves cultivating a new identity as Cambro-Britons. From this in-depth analysis, the book finds that the Welsh gentry were status-conscious and opportunistic, but Welshness remained fundamental to their sense of self. This is further enhanced by considering the early modern Welsh gentry within a wider global context for the first time, through their participation in colonial activity in the Americas, as well as trade and war with continental Europe.