This is the first biographical account of John Edward Lloyd (1861–1947), widely regarded as the founder of the modern academic study of Welsh history. Published to mark the centenary of Lloyd’s most important achievement, A History of Wales from the Earliest Times to the Edwardian Conquest, this study reassesses Lloyd’s significance by setting his work in the context of his life and of the ideas and scholarship of his time. Through its detailed analysis of Lloyd’s work and its rich contextualization, the book offers fresh insights into ideas about history, education, culture, and national identity in Wales.