#1Famous people · Abergavenny, Gwent
Of the 69 famous people born in Abergavenny, an unusual share are ministers and preachers
Rebecca James, the British cyclist from Wales, is the most widely known, written about in 20 languages. Second place goes to the British politician Francis Pym, third to Ethel Lina White. The oldest name on the list belongs to David Lewis, born in 1520, the newest to Carwyn Tuipulotu, born in 2001. Among the 42 towns in Gwent with famous people on record, the town ranks 3rd.
Born here
69
notable people
Best known
Rebecca James
in 20 Wikipedia languages
First
1520
David Lewis
Youngest
2001
Carwyn Tuipulotu
Most common field
Sports
38 people
What stands out about Abergavenny’s famous people
★ What stands out · Known for
What Abergavenny is known for
The field furthest above the usual share is ministers and preachers, at 3.3 times.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Through the years
When Abergavenny’s famous people were born
The 1990s saw the most births of any decade: 14.
SportsWriting & ArtsPolitics & LawFaithFilm, TV & StageMilitaryScience & MedicineMusicNotable
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
The best known
Born in Abergavenny
Languages with an article: 20 for Rebecca James, 17 for Francis Pym, 16 for Ethel Lina White.
#1
#2EW#3
Everyone
Everyone else born in Abergavenny
66 more, best known first.
Nicholas Jones
born 1942British journalist, writer and political commentator
Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
Dilys Breese
1932–2007British ornithologist and television producer (1932–2007)
Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
Peveril William-Powlett
1898–1985Royal Navy Admiral and rugby union player (1898-1985)
MilitaryWikipedia ↗
Thomas Monaghan
1833–1895British military trumpeter (1833–1895); recipient of the Victoria Cross
MilitaryWikipedia ↗
Joseph Edward Crawshay Partridge
1879–1965Welsh-South African rugby union footballer (1879-1965)
SportsWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
Of the towns around it, Blaenavon has the most on record: 12.
Questions about famous people from Abergavenny
Who is the most famous person from Abergavenny?
Rebecca James (British cyclist from Wales) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 20 languages. Next come Francis Pym and Ethel Lina White.
How many famous people were born in Abergavenny?
69 people born in Abergavenny have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 83 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Abergavenny known for?
Among its famous people, athletes: 38 of the 69. That is 55% of the town’s list, against 49% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Abergavenny?
David Lewis, born in 1520. The youngest on the list was born in 2001.
Who counts as from Abergavenny?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Abergavenny’s built-up area (the ONS 2022 boundary), a hospital or district within it included, whose English Wikipedia article agrees. People who only lived here, adult performers and people known mainly for crimes aren’t listed.
Why is someone missing?
Their Wikidata birthplace may be a bigger area (“London”), another town, or missing, or their article may give no birthplace. We only list people both sources agree on; editing Wikidata or Wikipedia changes this page at the next refresh.
From Wikidata (CC0: birthplaces, descriptions, years, occupations) and English Wikipedia (each person’s article confirms the birthplace; linked, not quoted). Birthplaces are placed in the town by the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary (Office for National Statistics, Open Government Licence v3.0). Ranked by how many Wikipedia languages cover each person. Fields are read from Wikidata’s description and occupations. “The usual town”: everyone listed across UK towns. Portraits: each person’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (22)
- Rebecca James: Nicola, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Francis Pym: Unknown photographer, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- David Lewis: Alexander Voet the Elder, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Thomas James: Unidentified engraver, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Augusta Hall, Baroness Llanover: Charles Augustus Mornewick, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Lowri Thomas: Nicola, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Vulcana: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Dave Richards: Jon Candy from Cardiff, Wales, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Rachel James: Nicola, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Becky Morgan: Wojciech Migda (Wmigda), CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Eluned Parrott: National Assembly for Wales from Wales, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- John Williams: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Jules Williams: Joshmarmaduke, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Rob Davies: National Assembly for Wales from Wales, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Tony James: Nibbo, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Harold Day: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Scott Ellaway: Clive Barda, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Thomas Monaghan: Cobb, Woolwich (no individual credited), Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- William Bradshaw: Enoch Seeman, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- E. E. Clive: DVD (20th Century Fox), Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Roy Jenkins: Jean-Louis Debaize, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Marina Diamandis: Daniel Åhs Karlsson, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.