Five Minutes of History: William Edwards
In 1719, in the small Welsh village of Eglwysilan, a boy was born who would eventually build one of the most remarkable bridges of the eighteenth century. William Edwards was not born into a family of architects or engineers. His father was a farmer, and William grew up in a rural community where practical skills mattered and opportunities for formal education were limited.
He began working with stone while still a young man. According to accounts of his life, Edwards taught himself much of the mason's craft, gaining experience by building walls, houses and other structures in the surrounding countryside. He had an instinctive understanding of stone and of the forces acting upon it, developed through practical experience rather than the engineering education we would expect today.
But masonry was only part of his life. Edwards was also a Nonconformist minister. He began preaching while still young and was ordained as pastor of an Independent congregation at Groeswen in 1750. For the rest of his life, these two occupations existed alongside each other: preacher and builder, concerned with both the spiritual and practical needs of the communities around him.
The work for which he is remembered began when he was commissioned to build a bridge across the River Taff at Pontypridd, then known as Newbridge.
Crossing the Taff was no small undertaking. The river could change dramatically after heavy rain in the Welsh hills, rising rapidly and carrying considerable force. Edwards's first bridge was completed in the 1740s, only to be destroyed by flooding. A second attempt also failed.
For many builders, that might have been the end of the matter.
Edwards tried again.
His eventual solution was ambitious. Rather than relying upon piers standing in the river, he created a single great stone arch spanning the Taff. This removed the vulnerability of supports that could obstruct floodwater and collect trees and other debris carried downstream.
But solving one problem created another.
The enormous weight of masonry above the sides of the arch placed forces upon the structure that threatened its stability. Edwards responded with an ingenious solution. He incorporated three circular openings through the masonry above each end of the arch. These openings reduced the weight while becoming one of the bridge's most recognisable features.
The completed bridge had a span of approximately 140 feet, or 43 metres. At the time, it was celebrated as the longest single-span stone bridge in Britain, and perhaps in Europe.
What makes the achievement particularly striking is the world in which Edwards worked. There were no computer calculations, hydraulic cranes or modern construction materials. Building a great masonry arch required an extraordinary understanding of geometry, stone and timber. Before the arch could support itself, an immense wooden framework known as centring had to carry the stones while they were laid. Only when the arch was complete could that support be removed and the builder discover whether his calculations, judgement and craftsmanship had succeeded.
Edwards went on to design and build other bridges in Wales, and his reputation spread far beyond the communities in which he had begun his working life. Yet he remained a minister at Groeswen and continued preaching alongside his work as a builder.
He died in 1789, aged seventy. The bridge at Pontypridd survived him and still stands today, although a later bridge alongside it now carries modern traffic.
For me, that combination of persistence, practical intelligence and apparent contradiction made Edwards an irresistible subject for a novel. Here was a farmer's son who became both a minister and an internationally admired bridge builder; a man without modern engineering training who attempted something extraordinary, saw his work fail, and began again.
That last part particularly interested me while writing When the Stones Held. We tend to encounter historic achievements after the uncertainty has disappeared. We see the bridge that survived. Edwards could not know that his would.
At some point the wooden supports had to come away.
And the stones had to hold.
It is public domain: Anonymous postcard. Public domain. Source: Wikimedia Commons / Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales.
When the Stones Held by David E. Owen
Publication Date: 16th May 2026
Publisher: Independently Published
Print Length: 331 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
When the Stones Held is a historical novel inspired by the remarkable true story of William Edwards, the self-taught Welsh stonemason who built one of the great bridges of the eighteenth century.
Growing up in rural South Wales, William lives in a world of hard physical labour, dangerous rivers and limited opportunity. From an early age, he develops an instinctive understanding of stone, balance and the possibilities hidden within the landscape around him.
As the coal trade begins to transform the valleys and the need for safer routes grows, William accepts an extraordinary challenge: to build a bridge across the River Taff at Pontypridd. He is twenty-seven years old and has never built a bridge before.
What follows will test far more than his skill as a stonemason. Flood destroys his first bridge. Later attempts bring new failures and new problems to solve. With his reputation, livelihood and family affected by every decision he makes, William must decide how much he is prepared to risk for something no one can promise will succeed.
Set against a South Wales beginning to experience profound change, When the Stones Held is a story of ambition, family, community and resilience, and of an apparently ordinary man whose determination would leave a legacy that survives more than two and a half centuries later.
Any Triggers: Drowning, poverty
David E. Owen
After decades spent teaching around the world—from the UK to the Caribbean, Africa, and the Middle East—I came to writing fiction later in life. I started with fantasy before finding my voice in fast-paced, real-world spy thrillers. My stories are grounded in current issues like corruption, gender bias, and power, but always emphasise pace, surprise, and character-driven tension.
I’ve visited over 80 countries, worked as a radio host in Abu Dhabi, directed Shakespeare for African audiences in the bush, and even survived a flash flood in Mali and an armed hold-up. I was arrested for drug-smuggling in Nigeria but was eventually released when I refused to pay off the police captain, and I was boat-wrecked alone on a desert island in the Arabian Sea (but no tree) and rescued through a police search. Now retired from teaching, I split my time between writing, photography, and trying to get fit (thanks to a stubborn rowing machine). My latest novel, Hate Machine, tackles misogyny and gender radicalisation — not typical thriller territory, but I like a challenge.
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