Portal:Wales

The Wales Portal

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, 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 Gruffudd 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 late 19th and 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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A long continuous settlement comprising long terraced streets extends along a U-shaped valley with forested slopes.

Rhondda /ˈrɒnðə/, or the Rhondda Valley (Welsh: Cwm Rhondda), is a former coal mining valley in Wales, formerly a local government district, consisting of 16 communities built around the River Rhondda. The valley is made up of two valleys, the larger Rhondda Fawr valley (mawr, large) and the smaller Rhondda Fach valley (bach, small). Both the singular term 'Rhondda Valley' and the plural 'Rhondda Valleys' are commonly used. In 2001 the Rhondda constituency of the National Assembly for Wales had a population of 72,443; the National Office of Statistics described the Rhondda urban area as having a population of 59,602, making it the fourth largest single urban area in Wales after the cities of Cardiff, Swansea and Newport. Rhondda is part of Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough and is part of the South Wales Valleys.

The Rhondda Valley is most notable for its historical link to the coal mining industry which was at its peak between 1840 and 1925. The Rhondda Valleys were home to a strong early nonconformist Christian movement which manifested itself in the baptist chapels which moulded Rhondda values in the 19th century and early 20th century. Rhondda is also famous for strong masculine cultural ties within a social community which expressed itself outside industry in the form of male voice choirs, sport, trade unions and public house life.

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A broad bay surrounded by 50-metre-high cliffs, with waves breaking at their bases. — Marloes Peninsula, Pembrokeshire

The Marloes peninsula on the Pembrokeshire coast, Wales

Did you know...?

... that the stable block of Newton Court, in Monmouth, hosts one of only three known breeding sites of the greater horseshoe bat in Wales?
... that Glendower Street Congregational Church stood derelict for forty years before its conversion into the award-winning Glendower House, Monmouth?
... that on 13 March 2012, BBC News reported that 17 police stations in South East Wales would close to the public, including Monmouth Police Station?
... that Geoff Charles's photos of 20th-century Welsh life were published at 75 dpi to prevent "illegal copying"?

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Selected biography

Michael Sheen at the San Diego Comic-Con International in July 2010.

Michael Christopher Sheen, OBE (born 5 February 1969) is a Welsh film and stage actor. He was born in Newport to Irene (née Thomas) and Meyrick Sheen, both of whom worked in personnel management; his father is also a part-time professional Jack Nicholson look-alike. When Sheen was five, the family moved to Liverpool, where he became a lifelong Liverpool F.C. fan. He returned to his parents' home of Port Talbot, Wales three years later, where he attended Glan Afan Comprehensive School and played football for Baglan boys club.

Sheen joined the West Glamorgan Youth theatre, where he was a contemporary of writer Russell T Davies. After leaving school, he accepted a place to study acting at the National Youth Theatre of Wales in Cardiff and then trained at the internationally renowned Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Having worked with screenwriter Peter Morgan on five films, Sheen has become known for his portrayals of well-known public figures: Tony Blair in The Deal, The Queen, and The Special Relationship, David Frost in the stage production and film version of Frost/Nixon, and Brian Clough in The Damned United. He also played the Lycan Lucian in all three of the Underworld films, the vampire Aro in The Twilight Saga: New Moon, and more recently, the role of Castor in Tron: Legacy.

In the news

Wikinews Wales portal

General images

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

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

Wales topics

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