Wales: Encyclopedia - Wales

Wales

Wales (Welsh: Cymru; pronounced IPA: /ˈkəmɹi/, approximately "CUM-ree") is one of the four constituent parts of the United Kingdom. Wales is located in the south-west of Great Britain and is bordered by Cheshire, Shropshire, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the east, the Bristol Channel to the south, St George's Channel in the west, and the Irish Sea to the north.

The term Principality of Wales, in Welsh, Tywysogaeth Cymru, is sometimes used, although the Prince of Wales has no role in the governance of Wales and this term is unpopular among some. Wales has not been politically independent since 1282, when it was conquered by King Edward I of England. The capital of Wales since 1955 has been Cardiff, although Caernarfon is the location where the Prince of Wales is invested, and Machynlleth was the home of a parliament called by Owain Glyndwr during his revolt at the start of the fifteenth century. In 1999, the National Assembly for Wales was formed, which has limited domestic powers. It can alter laws passed by Westminster but cannot initiate laws of its own.

Wales - Origin of Name

Wales was orginally a Celtic region, and its people kept speaking the Welsh language, even as the Celtic elements of England and Scotland gradually disappeared. The name Wales is evidence of this, as it comes from a Germanic root word meaning stranger or foreigner, and as such is related to the names of several other European regions where Germanic peoples came into contact with non-Germanic cultures including Wallonia in Belgium and Wallachia in Romania, as well as the "-wall" of Cornwall. Part of the word "Cymru" is evident in the "Cum-" of Cumberland and Cumbria.

Wales - History

Main article: History of Wales

Humans first inhabited what is now Wales at the end of the last Ice Age. The first documented history was during the Roman occupation of Britain. At that time the area of modern Wales was divided into many tribes, of which the Silures in the south-east and the Ordovices in the central and north-west areas were the largest and most powerful. The Romans established a string of forts across what is now southern Wales, as far west as Carmarthen (Maridunum), and mined gold at Dolaucothi in Carmarthenshire. There is evidence that they progressed even further west. They also built the legionary fortress at Caerleon (Isca), whose magnificent amphitheatre is the best preserved in Britain. The Romans were also busy in northern Wales, and an old legend claims that Magnus Maximus, one of the last emperors, married Elen or Helen, the daughter of a Welsh chieftain from Segontium, near present-day Caernarfon.

After the collapse of the Roman Empire in Britain during 410, Wales became divided into several kingdoms. Attempts by the Anglo-Saxon tribes to invade these kingdoms failed due to the fierce resistance of its people and its mountainous terrain. An Anglo-Saxon king, Offa of Mercia, is credited with having constructed a great earth wall, or dyke, along the border with his kingdom, to mark off a large part of Powys which he had conquered. Parts of Offa's Dyke can still be seen today. Christianty was introduced to Wales in the 6th century.

Following the Norman conquest of England in 1066, the independence of Wales was gradually erroded. In 1282, Edward I of England defeated Llywelyn the Last, Wales's last independent Prince, in battle. Edward constructed a series of great stone castles in order to keep the Welsh under control. The best known are at Caerphilly, Caernarfon, Conwy, and Harlech. Wales was legally annexed by the Laws in Wales Act 1535, in the reign of Henry VIII of England. The Wales and Berwick Act 1746 provided that all laws that applied to England would automatically apply to Wales (and Berwick, a town located on the Anglo-Scottish border) unless the law explicitly stated otherwise.

In the twentieth century, Wales saw a revival in its national status. An independence movement was led by Plaid Cymru, seeking greater autonomy for the region from England. In 1955, the term England and Wales became common for describing the area to which English law applied, and Cardiff was proclaimed as capital. In 1962 the Welsh Language Society was formed in response to fears that the language may soon die out. Nationalism grew, particularly following the flooding of the Tryweryn valley in 1965, drowning the village of Capel Celyn to create a reservoir supplying water to Liverpool. In 1966 the Carmarthen Parliamentary seat was won by Plaid Cymru at a by-election, their first Parliamentary seat. A short terror campaign was waged by Welsh nationalists for a short period by the Free Wales Army and Mudiad Amddiffyn Cymru (MAC - Welsh Defence Movement). In the years leading up to the investiture of Prince Charles as Prince of Wales in 1969, these groups were responsible for a number of bomb blasts destroying water pipes and tax and other offices. In 1969, the Wales and Berwick Act 1746 was repealed for Wales, and a legal definition of Wales, and the boundary with England was stated.

A referendum on the creation of an assembly for Wales in 1979 led to a large majority for the "no". However, in 1997 a referendum on the issue was secured, albeit by a narrow majority. The National Assembly for Wales was set up in 1999 (as a consequence of the Government of Wales Act 1998) and possesses the power to determine how the government budget for Wales is spent and administered

Wales - Politics

Main article: Politics of Wales; see also Politics of the United Kingdom

As one of the constituent parts of the United Kingdom, the head of state in Wales is the British monarch currently Queen Elizabeth II (since 1952). Executive power is derived by the Queen, and exercised by the Parliament of the United Kingdom at Westminster, with some powers devolved to the National Assembly for Wales in Cardiff. The United Kingdom Parliament retains responsibility for passing primary legislation in Wales. The National Assembly has regulatory authority over laws passed that are applicable to Wales, and has limited power to vary these by secondary legislation The National Assembly is not a sovereign authority, and the UK Parliament could, in theory, overrule or even abolish it at any time.

The National Assembly was first established in 1998 under the Government of Wales Act. There are 60 members of the Assembly, known as "Assembly Members (AM)". 40 of the AMs are elected under the First Past the Post system, with the other 20 elected via the Additional Member System via regional lists in 5 different regions. The largest party elects the First Minister of Wales, who acts as the head of government. The Welsh Assembly Government is the executive arm, and the Assembly has delegated most of its powers to the Assembly Government.

The current First Minister of Wales is Rhodri Morgan (since 2000), of the Labour party who forms the government on a coalition basis with the Liberal Democrats. The main opposition party is Plaid Cymru ("Party of Wales"), who favour Welsh independence from the rest of the UK. Other parties include the Conservative Party, and Forward Wales. Current political debate in Wales is whether the National Assembly should be given more powers, such as the power to pass primary legislation, as the Scottish Parliament can in Scotland.

In the British House of Commons, Wales is represented by 41 MPs in the Welsh constituencies. A Secretary of State for Wales sits in the UK cabinet and is responsible for the representation of Welsh issues. The Wales Office is a department of the United Kingdom government, responsible for Wales. The current Secretary of State for Wales is Peter Hain. All primary legislation for Wales is still passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

Wales - Law

Wales shares the same legal system as England, within the legal distinction of England and Wales. England legally annexed Wales under the Laws in Wales Act 1535, in the reign of King Henry VIII. The Wales and Berwick Act 1746 provided that all laws that applied to England would automatically apply to Wales (and Berwick, a town located on the Anglo-Scottish border) unless the law explicitly stated otherwise. This act, with regard to Wales, was repealed in 1967.

A such, English law is the law of Wales. English law is regarded as a common law system, with no major codification of the law, and judicial precedents are binding as opposed to persuasive. The court system is headed by the House of Lords which is the highest court of appeal in the land for criminal and civil cases (although this is due to be replaced by a Supreme Court of the United Kingdom). The Supreme Court of Judicature of England and Wales is the highest court of first instance as well as an appellate court. The three divisions are the Court of Appeal; the High Court of Justice and the Crown Court. Minor cases are heard by the Magistrates' Courts or the County Court.

Wales - Geography

Main article: Geography of Wales

Wales is located on a peninsula in central-west Great Britain. The entire area of Wales is about 20,779 km² (8,023 square miles). It is about 274 km (170 miles) long and 97 km (60 miles) wide. Wales borders by England to the east and by sea in the other three directions: the Bristol Channel to the south, St George's Channel to the west, and the Irish Sea to the north. Together, Wales has over 965 km (600 miles) of coastline. There are several islands off the Welsh mainland, the largest being Anglesey in the northwest.

The main population and industrial areas are in South Wales, consisting of the cities of Cardiff, Swansea and Newport and surrounding areas.

Much of Wales's diverse landscape is mountainous, particularly in the north and central regions. The mountains were shaped during the last ice age, the Devensian glaciation. The highest mountains in Wales are in Snowdonia, and include Snowdon, which, at 1085 m (3,560 ft) is the highest peak in England and Wales. The 14 (or possibly 15) Welsh mountains over 3,000 feet high are known collectively as the Welsh 3,000s. The Brecon Beacons are in the south and are joined by the Cambrian Mountains in mid-Wales, the latter being given to the earliest geological period of the Paleozoic (Cambrian). Consequently, the next two periods, Ordovician and Silurian were named after Welsh/Celtic tribes from this area.

The modern border between Wales and England is highly arbitrary; it was largely defined in the 16th century, based on medieval feudal boundaries. It has apparently never been confirmed by referendum or reviewed by any Boundary Commission (except to confirm Monmouthshire as part of Wales in 1968). The boundary line follows Offa's Dyke only approximately. It separates Knighton from its railway station, virtually cuts off Church Stoke from the rest of Wales, and slices straight through the village of Llanymynech (where a pub actually straddles the line).

The Seven Wonders of Wales is a traditional list of seven geographic and cultural landmarks in Wales: Snowdon (the highest mountain), the Gresford bells (the peal of bells in the medieval church of All Saints at Gresford), the Llangollen bridge (built in 1347 over the River Dee), St Winefride's Well (a pilgrimage site at Holywell in Flintshire) the Wrexham steeple (16th century tower of St. Giles Church in Wrexham), the Overton yew trees (ancient yew trees in the churchyard of St Mary's at Overton-on-Dee) and Pistyll Rhaeadr (Wales's tallest waterfall, at 240 ft or 75 m). The wonders are part of the traditional rhyme:

Highest maximum temperature: 35.2°C (95.4°F) at Hawarden Bridge, Flintshire on 2 August 1990.

Lowest minimum temperature: -23.3°C (-10°F) at Rhayader, Radnorshire on 21 January 1940. [1]

See also: List of towns in Wales

Wales - Subdivisions

For the purposes of local government, Wales was divided into 22 council areas in 1996. These are unitary authorities responsible for the provision of all local government services, including education, social work, enivronment and roads services. Below these are community councils — informal organsiations that represent specific areas within a council area.

The Queen appoints a Lord Lieutenant to represent her in the eight Preserved counties of Wales — which are combinations of council areas. The 13 traditional counties of Wales are also used as geographical areas.

City status in the United Kingdom is determined by Royal Charter. There are five cities in Wales:

• Bangor
• Cardiff
• Newport
• St David's
• Swansea

Subdivisions created by the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994

Anglesey | Blaenau Gwent | Bridgend | Caerphilly | Cardiff | Carmarthenshire | Ceredigion | Conwy | Denbighshire | Flintshire | Gwynedd | Merthyr Tydfil | Monmouthshire | Neath Port Talbot | Newport | Pembrokeshire | Powys | Rhondda Cynon Taff | Swansea | Torfaen | Vale of Glamorgan | Wrexham

Wales - Economy

Parts of Wales have been heavily industrialised since the eighteenth century. Coal, copper, iron, lead, and gold have been mined in Wales, and slate has been quarried. Ironworks and tinplate works, along with the coal mines, attracted large numbers of immigrants during the nineteenth century, particularly to the valleys north of Cardiff. Due to the poor quality soil, much of Wales is unsuitable for crop-growing, and livestock farming has traditionally been the focus of agriculture. The Welsh landscape, protected by three National Parks, and the unique Welsh culture bring in tourism, which is especially vital for rural areas.

Light engineering is still an important activity in the main population areas of the South and extreme North-East, but the economy, as elsewhere in the UK, is now focused on the service sector.

Wales - Demographics

The population of Wales in the 2001 census was 2,903,085. This would make Wales the 134th largest country by population if it were a sovereign nation.

Wales - Language

The official languages in Wales are English and Welsh. English is spoken by almost all people in Wales and is the de facto main language, with the local dialect being Welsh English. However, Wales is officially bilingual, with 20% of the population having some knowledge of the language according to the 2001 census, although few residents of Wales are monolingual in Welsh. The Welsh Language Act 1993 and the Government of Wales Act 1998 provide that the Welsh and English languages should be treated on a basis of equality. Public bodies are required to prepare and implement a Welsh Language Scheme. Thus the Welsh Assembly, local councils, police forces, fire services and the health sector use Welsh as an official language, issuing official literature and publicity in Welsh versions (e.g. letters to parents from schools, library information, and council information). All road signs in Wales should be in English and Welsh, including both versions of place names where names or versions exist in both languages e.g. Cardiff and Caerdydd.

Wales - Religion

The largest religion in Wales is Christianity, with 72% of the population declaring to be Christian in the 2001 census. The Presbyterian Church of Wales is the largest denomination and was born out of the Welsh Methodist revival in the eighteenth century and seceded from the Church of England in 1811. The Church in Wales is the next largest denomination, and forms part of the Anglican Communion. It too was part of the Church of England, and was disestablished by the British Government under the Welsh Church Act 1914. The Roman Catholic Church makes up the next largest denomination at 3% of the population. Non Christian religions are small in Wales, making up less than 2% of the population. 18% of people declare no religion.

The patron saint of Wales is Saint David, with St David's Day celebrated annually on March 1.

Wales - Culture

Main article: Culture of Wales

Wales - Food

About 80% of the land surface of Wales is given over to agricultural use. Very little of this is arable land though as the vast majority consists of permanent grass or rough grazing for herd animals. Although both beef and dairy cattle are raised widely, especially in Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire, Wales is more well-known for its sheep farming, and thus lamb is the meat traditionally associated with Welsh cooking.

Welsh food is usually made from local ingredients. Some traditional dishes include laverbread (made from seaweed), bara brith (fruit cake), cawl cennin (leek stew), Welsh cakes, Welsh rarebit, and Welsh lamb. A type of shellfish, cockles, is often served with breakfast.

Wales - Music

Main article: Music of Wales

Wales is known as the home of many musicians and musical styles. Wales is particularly famous for harpists, male voice choirs, and solo artists including Tom Jones, Charlotte Church, Bryn Terfel, Katherine Jenkins, and Shirley Bassey. Indie bands like Catatonia, Stereophonics, The Manic Street Preachers, and Super Furry Animals in the 1990s and later Goldie Lookin' Chain, Feeder, Lost Prophets Funeral for a Friend and Bullet for my Valentine are also from Wales. The Welsh folk music scene, long overshadowed by its Irish and Scottish cousins, is in resurgence. The BBC National Orchestra of Wales performs throughout Wales and internationally.The world renowned Welsh National Opera Company now has a permanent home at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff Bay

Wales - Sport

The most popular sports in Wales are Rugby union and football. There is a perpetual debate about which is truly the national sport.

The Welsh national rugby union team takes part in the annual Six Nations Championship, and the Rugby Union World Cup. Welsh teams also play in the Celtic League and the European Heineken Cup.

Wales has its own football league since 1992, but for historical reasons, the major Welsh clubs play in the Football League and its feeder leagues. A Welsh national team also exists for international competition.

Wales - Media

Wales has a distinct media from the rest of the UK. BBC Wales is based in Cardiff, and produces Welsh orientated output for BBC One and BBC Two channels. BBC Radio Wales broadcasts as a local English language radio station, while BBC Radio Cymru broadcasts entirely in Welsh. ITV, the UK's main commercial broadcaster has a Welsh orientated service provided by HTV although now branded as ITV Wales. S4C is an exclusively Welsh channel, equivalent to Channel 4 in the rest of the UK. It broadcasts mixture of English and Welsh language programming, but only shows Welsh programming at peak hours.

Welsh newspapers include: Liverpool Daily Post (Welsh edition) ; Llanelli Star; South Wales Echo; South Wales Evening Post; The Western Mail; and Y Cymro, a Welsh language publication.

Wales - National symbols

• The Flag of Wales dates from a royal badge first used by the Tudor monarchs of England. It was adopted officially as the Welsh national flag in 1959. Since the British Union Flag does not have any Welsh representation, the Flag of Wales has become very popular since its introduction
• The Dragon, part of the national flag design, is also a popular Welsh symbol. The oldest recorded use of the dragon to symbolise Wales is from the Historia Brittonum, written around 820, but it is popularly supposed to have been the battle standard of King Arthur and other ancient Celtic leaders. Following the annexation of Wales by England, the dragon was used as a supporter in the English monarch's coat of arms.
• The leek is also a national emblem of Wales. According to legend, Saint David ordered his Welsh soldiers to identify themselves by wearing the vegetable on their helmets in an ancient battle against the Saxons that took place in a leek field.
• The daffodil is the national flower of Wales, and is worn on St David's Day each March 1.
• The Flag of Saint David is sometimes used as an alternative to the national flag, and is flown on St David's Day.
• The Coat of Arms of the Principality of Wales is used by Charles, Prince of Wales in his personal standard.
• The Prince of Wales' Feathers, the heraldic badge of the Prince of Wales is sometimes adapted by Welsh bodies for use in Wales. The Welsh Rugby Union uses such a design for its own badge.

Wales - Photos of Wales

Tredegar House, Newport

Hall of the Mountain Kings, Ogof Craig a Ffynnon, a cave in the Brecon Beacons

The University of Wales, Lampeter, the oldest higher education institution in Wales

The Castle and Old College building, Aberystwyth

Wales - Notable Welsh people

See also

• Angelystor
• Education in Wales
• List of not fully sovereign nations
• England and Wales
• List of public holidays in Wales
• List of Welsh people
• List of rulers of Wales
• List of United Kingdom-related topics
• Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch
• Seven Wonders of Wales
• Walh
• Welsh narrow gauge railways
• Madog ap Owain Gwynedd
• The size of Wales
• Wales national rugby union team
• Welsh national football team

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Wales", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki