Reviews
"A valuable insight into the lives of Welsh migrants to London. It is a well written book which richly illustrated and gives considerable insight into the role of the Welsh medium chapels and churches in London. Huw Edwards is to be congratulated on his in-depth analysis of Welshmen and women who ventured to make their fortunes in the greatest city in the world. [...] Don't miss an opportunity to read this enthralling book.
- John T Morris, Cambria Magazine
Huw Edwards has written a thorough and absorbing history of Welsh churches in London... Edwards has undertaken an honest study of traumatic change just before memories and even records are lost. One of his conclusions, having looked at the wider picture, is that earlier co-operation and amalgamation would have been wise. Here are maybe difficult lessons for Anglicans and Methodists still planning for a future.
- Leigh Hatts, Church Times
"This is a good book, carrying many fine illustrations... and I am happy to recommend it and not just to those of Welsh descent.
- Sian Evans, Congregational History Magazine, Vol. 7, No.5, 2015
The author sees hope in the continued commitment of those congregations which survive, people who may never have lived in Wales but who value the ability to worship in Welsh. For them, as for all who read it, this superb book will be a treasure.
- Rhidian Griffiths, Gwales
The book is meticulously researched.. In many ways it's a romantic story of a bygone age, which must not be forgotten... Huw Edwards' book raises all sorts of questions for me about the future shape of the 21st-century Church.
- Rev Paul Hulme, Methodist Recorder
The fruit of five years of Huw Edwards's labour, City Mission offers not only a handsomely produced and fascinating history of London's Welsh chapels and churches, but a reminder of their centrality to the identity and culture of London's Welsh population during the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century... City Mission serves not just as an impressive account of London's Welsh chapels and churches, but as a warning from history for the future of those that remain.
- Owain Wilkins, Planet magazine
Huw Edwards has certainly worked hard to bring all this together from the original written sources... and has also gone back to the archives to tease out some of the knottier problems, has collaborated with academics in the field and has produced a valuable thread of oral history. This together with the provision of an excellent range of illustrations make this a valuable resource for anyone interested in London chapel history and architecture.
- Chris Skidmore, The Chapels Society newsletter
