Background
He was born on 4 November 1832, at the "Ancient Druid" inn, Hollybush, in the parish of Bedwellty, Monmouthshire.
He was born on 4 November 1832, at the "Ancient Druid" inn, Hollybush, in the parish of Bedwellty, Monmouthshire.
He was the son of Evan James (1809-1878) and Elizabeth Stradling of Caerphilly. His father, a Welsh versifier under the pen-name of leuan ab lago, moved with his family about 1844 to Pontypridd, where he carried on the business of weaver and wool merchant. James James composed the melody which was later known as Hen Wlad fy Nhadau in January 1856.
At first it was known as Glan Rhondda (The banks of the Rhondda), and gave rise to the tradition that the tune had come to him as he walked on the bank of the River Rhondda.
His father, Evan James, wrote the lyrics that eventually became the words of the Welsh national anthem. A memorial to James James and his father, in the shape of two figures representing the muses of Poetry and Music, stands in Ynysangharad Park, Pontypridd.