author
Arthur Owen Vaughan
An adventurer as well as a writer, he brought a restless, larger-than-life energy to stories shaped by Welsh history, frontier experience, and military life. Writing under the name Owen Rhoscomyl, he became known for turning patriotism and action into vivid popular literature.
1 Audiobook
Old Hendrik's Tales
by Arthur Owen Vaughan
About the author
Born in 1863 and also known by the bardic name Owen Rhoscomyl, Arthur Owen Vaughan was a writer, soldier, and Welsh nationalist. Sources agree that he was raised largely under the influence of his Welsh grandmother, and that this helped shape the strong attachment to Wales and its past that ran through both his life and his books.
His career was unusually wide-ranging. Biographical sources describe him as an adventurer who went to sea when young, later traveled widely, and built a reputation not only as an author but also as a soldier. That breadth of experience fed into his writing, which often blends romance, action, and a deep interest in Welsh identity and history.
Today he is remembered chiefly for the historical and patriotic works he published as Owen Rhoscomyl, including books that helped popularize dramatic versions of the Welsh past for a broad readership. His life seems to have appealed for the same reason his books still do: it joined storytelling, conviction, and real-world experience in one memorable figure.