Portal:Wales

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Wales (Welsh: Cymru [ˈkəmrɨ] ^ⓘ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic Sea to the south-west. As of 2021^[update], it had a population of 3.2 million. It has a total area of 21,218 square kilometres (8,192 sq mi) and over 2,700 kilometres (1,680 mi) of coastline. It is largely mountainous with its higher peaks in the north and central areas, including Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa), its highest summit. The country lies within the north temperate zone and has a changeable, maritime climate. Its capital and largest city is Cardiff.

A distinct Welsh culture emerged among the Celtic Britons after the Roman withdrawal from Britain in the 5th century, and Wales was briefly united under Gruffydd ap Llywelyn in 1055. After over 200 years of war, the conquest of Wales by King Edward I of England was completed by 1283, though Owain Glyndŵr led the Welsh Revolt against English rule in the early 15th century, and briefly re-established an independent Welsh state with its own national parliament (Welsh: senedd). In the 16th century the whole of Wales was annexed by England and incorporated within the English legal system under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. Distinctive Welsh politics developed in the 19th century. Welsh Liberalism, exemplified in the early 20th century by David Lloyd George, was displaced by the growth of socialism and the Labour Party. Welsh national feeling grew over the century: a nationalist party, Plaid Cymru, was formed in 1925, and the Welsh Language Society in 1962. A governing system of Welsh devolution is employed in Wales, of which the most major step was the formation of the Senedd (Welsh Parliament, formerly the National Assembly for Wales) in 1998, responsible for a range of devolved policy matters. (Full article...)

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HMS Cardiff (D108) is a Type 42 destroyer, the third ship of the Royal Navy to be named in honour of the Welsh capital city of Cardiff. She was built by Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria and launched on 22 February 1974. During her career, Cardiff served in the Falklands War, where she shot down the last enemy aircraft of the conflict and accepted the surrender of a 700-strong Argentine garrison at the settlement of Port Howard. During the 1991 Gulf War, Cardiff was part of the British contribution to the Coalition, and her Lynx helicopter sank two Iraqi minesweepers. Later participating in the build-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq as part of the Royal Navy's Armilla patrol, Cardiff thwarted attempts to smuggle oil out of the country, but was not involved with the actual invasion. Cardiff was decommissioned in July 2005, having earned two battle honours for service in the Falklands and Gulf wars. She is currently moored in Portsmouth Harbour, next to sister ship HMS Newcastle. Former servicemen have petitioned for her preservation as a museum ship and local tourist attraction at Cardiff, but her fate remains undecided.

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A partial view of the ceiling of the "Arab Room" in Cardiff Castle, Cardiff

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Did you know...?

... that not only did the village of Wattstown suffer two mining disasters at the same colliery, but both were explosions caused by the unauthorised use of blasting materials?
... that when Teddy Morgan led Wales in their national anthem before the 1905 rugby union match, it was the first time a national anthem had been sung before a sporting event?
... that European welterweight champion Johnny Basham faced a manslaughter charge after killing an opponent in a boxing match?
... that Max Boyce's 1975 recording We All Had Doctors' Papers is the only comedy album to reach number one in the UK Album Charts?

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Sir Thomas Jones Woodward, OBE (born 7 June 1940), known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh pop singer. He was born in Treforest, Rhondda Cynon Taf. Tom Jones rose to fame in the mid-1960s, with an exuberant live act that included wearing tight breeches and billowing shirts, in an Edwardian style popular among his peers at the time. He was known for his overt sexuality, before this was as common as it has become in subsequent years. In 1963 he became the frontman for Tommy Scott and The Senators, a local beat group. Clad in black leather, he soon gained a reputation in South Wales, although the Senators were still unknown in London. In 1964 they laid down seven tracks with maverick Telstar producer Joe Meek, and took them to various labels in an attempt to get a record deal, with no success. The plan was to release a single, Lonely Joe / I Was A Fool, but the ever-flighty Meek refused to release the tapes. Only after It's Not Unusual became a massive hit, Meek was able to sell the tapes to Tower (USA) and Columbia (UK). The group returned to South Wales and continued to play gigs at dance halls and working men's clubs.

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In the news

Wikinews Wales portal

General images

The following are images from various Wales-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Owain Glyndŵr (from History of Wales)
Image 2Map of the Roman invasion of Wales (from History of Wales)
Image 3Bryn Celli Ddu, a late Neolithic chambered tomb on Anglesey
Image 4Statue of Owain Glyndŵr (c. 1354 or 1359 – c. 1416) at Cardiff City Hall
Image 5Cawl, a Welsh dish of meat and vegetables (from Culture of Wales)
Image 6Portrait of William Morgan. (from History of Wales)
Image 7Crempog - Anglesey style (from Culture of Wales)
Image 8Dowlais Ironworks (1840) by George Childs (1798–1875) (from History of Wales)
Image 9Britain in AD 500: The areas shaded pink on the map were inhabited by the Britons, here labelled Welsh. The pale blue areas in the east were controlled by Germanic tribes, while the pale green areas to the north were inhabited by the Gaels and Picts. (from History of Wales)
Image 10The Flag of Saint David (from Culture of Wales)
Image 11A Plaid Cymru rally in Machynlleth in 1949, where the Parliament for Wales Campaign began (from History of Wales)
Image 12Medieval crwth instrument (from Culture of Wales)
Image 13Market Day in Old Wales by Sydney Curnow Vosper (1910) (from Culture of Wales)
Image 14Gravestone of King Cadfan ap Iago of Gwynedd (died c. 625) in Llangadwaladr church (from History of Wales)
Image 15Battle at Mametz Wood by Christopher Williams (1918), commissioned by Secretary of State for War at the time, David Lloyd George. (from History of Wales)
Image 16Offa's Dyke (Clawdd Offa) Map. (from History of Wales)
Image 17Big Pit, National Coal Museum. (from History of Wales)
Image 18King Hywel Dda depicted enthroned in a 13th-century manuscript (from History of Wales)
Image 19Medieval kingdoms of Wales shown within the boundaries of the present day country of Wales and not inclusive of all (from History of Wales)
Image 20Harlech Castle was one of a series built by Edward I to consolidate his conquest. (from History of Wales)
Image 21The Bard, 1774, by Thomas Jones (1742–1803) (from Culture of Wales)
Image 22Senedd-Welsh Parliament, Cardiff Bay. (from History of Wales)
Image 23Red Dragon of Wales (from Culture of Wales)
Image 24Owain Glyndŵr painting by AC Michael (from Culture of Wales)
Image 25Caradog by Thomas Prydderch. Caradog was leader of the north Walian Celtic tribe, the Ordovices, and led multiple Celtic tribes against the Romans. (from History of Wales)
Image 26Medieval map of Welsh realms (from History of Wales)
Image 27Opening of the Sixth Senedd in Cardiff in 2021 (from History of Wales)
Image 28Tom Jones performing with Janis Joplin in 1969 (from Culture of Wales)
Image 29Standard of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn, King of Powys 1063-1075. (from History of Wales)
Image 30Facsimile of Part of Column 579 from the Red Book of Hergest (from Culture of Wales)
Image 31Two of the furnaces of the Blaenavon Ironworks (from History of Wales)
Image 32"Cymdeithas yr Iaith" (Society for the Language) bilingual road sign protest, 1972. (from History of Wales)

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