Cardiff City, or Dinas Caerdydd, has been Wales' capital city of since 1955 and is the most important administrative, shopping, and cultural centre in the country. It is also the headquarters for many national organisations and government departments, including the home of the Senedd (the Wales Parliament). It is also an important industrial centre and also a hub for commerce, law, higher education, media, and independent film production.
Wales Capital City, Cardiff. Cardiff Bay, the Pierhead Building, the Senedd and the Millennium Centre.
What was Wales Capital City in 1955 before Cardiff
Before Cardiff was given the formal title of Wales' capital city in 1955, various places in Wales (and England!) were the capital. For a long period from 1473 to 1689 Ludlow in Shropshire (England) was the capital of Wales! Centuries before Ludlow, Strata Florida Abbey, where Llywelyn the Great held council in 1238 was the capital. In 1404, Owain Glyndŵr formed a Senedd (parliament) in Machynlleth.
25 Dates in the History of Cardiff
Here are 25 points in the history of Cardiff in the two hundred years from 1800 to 1999.
1813 - Cardiff’s oldest pub, the Goat major (formerly the Blue Bell) opposite the castle, opens
1815 - Boat service between Cardiff and Bristol was established
1826 - The first theatre in Cardiff, the Theatre Royal, was opened
1857 - The last public execution in Cardiff was held
1858 - The Royal Arcade opens. The first of six Victorian and Edwardian shopping arcades in Cardiff
1860 - The Principality Building Society was opened
1869 - The National Newspaper of Wales, the Western Mail was first published
1875 - Cardiff Castle’s clock tower was built
1876 - Cardiff Arms Park hosted the first rugby match between Cardiff and Swansea rugby clubs
1884 - Cardiff Arms Park hosted its first international rugby match between Wales and Ireland.
1885 - In the rugby season, Frank Hancock of Cardiff RFC, introduced new 'two-centre' tactical innovation, since adopted worldwide
1890 - Cardiff’s Animal Wall is built around the castle
1894 - Spillers the world’s oldest record store opens
1897 - The Pierhead Building was built
1905 - Cardiff becomes a city
1907 - The world’s first £1 million deal is signed in Cardiff’s Coal Exchange
1913 - The record amount of around 10.7 million tons of coal were exported through Cardiff docks
1916 - Roald Dahl was born in Cardiff
1950 - Cardiff’s trams make their final journeys
1952 - The last execution took place in Cardiff Prison. A Mr Matan was hanged for murder, but his conviction was quashed in 1998
1955 - Cardiff becomes the Capital city of Wales
1958 - The British Empire and Commonwealth Games are held in Cardiff
1983 - St David’s Hall and the National Concert Hall and Conference Centre of Wales opens
1984 - The National Stadium at Cardiff Arms Park was opened
1987 - Cardiff Bay Development Corporation was established to transform derelict land that had been Cardiff docks into Cardiff Bay
1997 - Wales voted in favour of a devolution and for a Welsh Assembly in Cardiff. The Senedd Building was completed in 2006.
1999 - Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium is built to host the 1999 Rugby World Cup
2014 Hosted NATO Summit
Wales Capital City, Cardiff. Cardiff Castle.
History of the Name Cardiff in Welsh
Cardiff in Welsh is "Caerdydd". The origins of the name Caerdydd are a point of debate but are widely believed to have come from an English corruption of the original Welsh title Caer-Taff (Fort on the Taff). Others believe that Caerdydd derives from the Middle Welsh word Caerdyf. Whatever its background, Cardiff in Welsh is firmly established as "Caerdydd"!!!
Four Capitals of Wales
Over the course of history a number of places have served as the location of the Welsh "Government" or "Parliament". With varying degrees of formality, here are the four capital cities of Wales before Cardiff.
Abergwyngregyn, the seat of the Kingdom of Gwynedd and one of the medieval kingdoms of Wales.
Ystrad Fflur (Strata Florida) A Cistercian abbey where Llywelyn ein Llyw Olaf (Llywelyn the Great held council in 1238.
Machynlleth. The site of Owain Glyndŵr's parliament and where he was proclaimed Prince of Wales in 1404 - the last Welsh Prince of Wales.
Ludlow (Llwydlo, in Shropshire, England), seat of the Council of Wales and the Marches from 1473 to 1689.
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