Portal:Wales

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Wales Portal

The flag of Wales

Wales (Welsh: Cymru [ˈkəm.rɨ] ) 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 the 2021 census, it had a population of 3,107,494. 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. The 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...)

Selected article

South side of the church of St Cristiolus, Llangristiolus
St Cristiolus's Church, Llangristiolus is a medieval church near the village of Llangristiolus, in Anglesey. The village, about 1 mile (1.6 km) from the building, takes its name from the church. Reputedly founded by St Cristiolus in 610, the present building dates from the 12th and 13th centuries. Alterations were made in the 16th century, when the large east window in Perpendicular style was added to the chancel – a window which has been described by one guide to the buildings of north Wales as "almost too big to fit" in the wall. Some restoration work took place in the mid-19th century, when further windows were added and the chancel was largely rebuilt.

The church is still in use for weekly Sunday services (in Welsh and English), as part of the Church in Wales, and is one of four churches in a combined parish. It is a Grade II* listed building, a national designation given to "particularly important buildings of more than special interest", in particular because of its age and the east window. The church contains a decorated font from the 12th century, as well as memorials from the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. Richard Owen, a 19th-century Calvinistic Methodist minister from Llangristiolus, is buried in the graveyard.

Selected image

Colourful buildings in contrasting architectural styles surround a palm tree-lined paddling pool.
The Central Plaza at Portmeirion
Credit: MichaelMaggs

Portmeirion is an Italianate village designed and built by Sir Clough Williams-Ellis between 1925 and 1975. It has served as the location for numerous films and television shows, most famously serving as The Village in the 1960s television show The Prisoner.

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?

Selected quote

It is spring, moonless night in the small town, starless and bible-black, the cobblestreets silent and the hunched, courters'-and-rabbits' wood limping invisible down to the sloeblack, slow, black, crowblack, fishingboat-bobbing sea.

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

General images

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

Wales topics

Categories

Category puzzle
Category puzzle
Select [►] to view subcategories

Featured content

Featured articles

Good articles

Featured pictures

Featured sounds

1899 recording of Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau

Related portals

Related projects

Things you can do

Welsh things you can do

Expand or Improve

Welsh national identity · English rule in Wales · Military history of Wales · Welsh pop and rock music · Wales in the World Wars · Carmarthen Bay · Clwydian Range · Glyn Daniel · List of places in Anglesey · List of places in Ceredigion · List of places in Gwynedd · List of places in Monmouthshire · List of places in Pembrokeshire · List of places in Powys · Pembroke River · River Cothi · River Dwyryd · River Ebbw · River Honddu · River Ithon · River Llynfi · River Mawddach · River Mynach · River Neath · River Ogwen · River Rheidol · River Taff · River Vyrnwy · River Ystwyth  · Aberfan Cemetery · East Glamorgan General Hospital · Welsh traditional music · River Gyffin Other pages that need expansion: Wales stubs

Needs Citations

National symbols of Wales · Welsh pop and rock music

Translate from Welsh

cy:Capel Seion, Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant (Capel Seion, Llanrhaeadr ym Mochnant), Grade II* listed building · cy:Trefeurig (Trefeurig)

Create

Requested images

Welsh placesWelsh people

Participate

Join a WikiProject

Associated Wikimedia

The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:

Discover Wikipedia using portals

Purge server cache