David Colwyn Williams was born in Swansea, South Wales, in 1916. He received a BA (1938) from the University of Wales and both another BA and an LL.B. (1940) from Cambridge. During World War Two, Williams served with the South Wales Borderers in India, the Middle East, and Leros, where he was taken prisoner by German forces in 1943. At the end of the war, he returned to Cambridge for one year as a law supervisor, then accepted the post of Lecturer in Law at Queen's University, Belfast. While on leave in 1958, Williams earned an LL.M from the University of California, Berkeley. He accepted a position as Associate Professor at the University of Saskatchewan in 1961, was promoted to Professor in 1964, and in 1969 was named Assistant Dean of the College of Law. Williams was the author of a number of publications, notably in the fields of Public and Private International Law and Legal History. He also served with various organizations, including the United Nations Association, Canadian Institute of International Affairs, and the Advisory Group to the Minister of External Affairs. Colwyn Williams died suddenly at his Saskatoon home on December 26, 1971.