George M.Ll. Davies (1880-1949), conscientious objector, Member of Parliament, Methodist minister and conciliator, is best remembered and most revered as a peace-maker. But the life of this charismatic Welshman reflects a broader spectrum of interests and activities that placed him at the heart of events in the first half of the twentieth century in Wales, and beyond. From his roots in the Liverpool Welsh community, to his complicated relationship with organised religion and his uncertain engagement with party politics, his life embodied change and uncertainty as much as constancy. Rather than the 'saint' of myth, George Davies was a complex figure, who battled mental illness. His life reveals much about the challenges and pressures of this period.