Born on this day 1760 in Llanbradach, near Caerphilly

Morgan John Rhys - radical evangelical Baptist minister, who emigrated to America in 1794 after falling out of favour with the establishment for his views supporting the French Revolution, the abolition of slavery and parliamentary reform.  In America, he changed his surname to Rhees and is crediting with establishing the Welsh colony of Cambria in Pensylvania, where the language, culture and religion of Wales was dominant.  

Born on this day 1977 in Aberystwyth

Stephen Jones - former Wales rugby captain and Lions international.  Jones won 104 caps and two Grand Slams with Wales in 2005 and 2008.  He is also the second-highest Wales point scorer.  Jones played the majority of his career with Llanelli Scarlets, apart from short spells at Clermont Auvergne, where he was chosen by French journalists as the fly-half of the season and at London Wasps, where he retired from professional rugby in 2013 to take up a coaching position and more recently, The Scarlets.  

Richard Llewellyn (real name Richard Dafydd Vivian Llewellyn Lloyd) was a novelist, born of Welsh parents in Hendon, north London on 8th December 1906.

Llewellyn is best remembered as the author of the internationally acclaimed novel "How Green Was My Valley", which was later made into a classic Hollywood film, depicting life in the South Wales coal mining communities.   

On 8th December 1980, John Lennon was shot four times in the back by Mark Chapman who had asked the former Beatle for his autograph only hours before laying in wait and killing him.

One of John Lennon's Welsh connections, was his maternal aunt, Mary Elizabeth "Mimi" Smith (both maternal grand parents were Welsh) who was also Lennon's parental guardian.  Lennon lived with Mimi and her husband George Smith for most of his childhood, after his mother Julia had handed him over to them and when The Beatles became successful, Lennon bought her a home in Poole in Dorset.  

The monastery on Caldey Island was first established in the sixth century and the Welsh name for the island is   Ynys Bŷr,  named after St Pyr, an early abbot.  Also located on the island, is St Illtyd's Church, which contains the Caldey Stone, which dates to the 5th or 6th Century.  It has inscriptions both in Latin and in the ancient Ogham script which originated in Ireland, bearing the name of ‘Dubricius’ (St. Dyfrig) who was an early Bishop of Llandaff and who would visit Cadley Island each year for Lent. 

Other points of interest regarding Caldey Island; 

*   Caldey Island consists of two islands which are separated at high tide, they are called Caldey Island and Little Caldey Island. Little Caldey Island is also known as St Margaret's Island. 

*  The name Caldey is derived from the Viking  keld eye , meaning "cold island"

*  In the 12th century, a priory was established by Benedictine monks, which lasted until the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1536.

*  The current abbey was built in 1910 by Anglican Benedictine monks but financial problems beginning in 1925 led to the 1929 purchase of the property by Belgian Cistercians.

*  Caldey Lighthouse was built in 1828.  The light was intended to help coastal traffic trading limestone and coal to mid and north Wales, but it also helped long-distance and north American traffic identify the Bristol Channel and avoid confusion with the English Channel. 

*  The island issues its own postage stamps and has its own currency called the Dab meaning “flat fish”,

*  The island’s economic activity is supported by tourism and agriculture and has factories and farms, mainly involving the monks, who make cheese, perfumes and other products.