Benjamin Hall, 1st Baron Llanover, known as Sir Benjamin Hall 1838-59, civil engineer and politician. First Commisioner of Works 1855-58. He oversaw the rebuilding of the Houses of Parliament and hence "Big Ben" may have been named for him. He inherited the Llanover estate in Monmouthshire through his wife, Augusta Waddington (1802-1896), who seems to have been more interesting than her husband.
She promoted the Welsh language and the playing of the Welsh triple harp, which she played herself, and sponsored a series of eisteddfodau. More at the Dictionary of Welsh Biography, from which we quote a section pertinent to the monument: "Her, 'Good Cookery … and Recipes communicated by the Hermit of the Cell of St. Gover {sic}', of 1867, a volume of Welsh tales and recipes structured around the conversation between a traveller to Llanover and the hermit of Llanover, includes her illustrations of the food, but also coloured plates showing Welsh female costume."
