Wales

Visitors to this web site should be aware that there is a considerable amount of information about Wales available on the internet. To those not familiar with the country, Wales which has a maximum length of 140 miles and is 100 miles across its widest is not a big country. The total area is 8,015 square miles and much of it is mountainous. Around one quarter of the land is above 1,000 ft. and in the north the peak of Snowdon rises to 3,560 ft., the highest point in England and Wales. Wales has a long 732-mile coastline, consisting of bays, beaches, peninsulas and cliffs. The largest bay - Cardigan Bay - gives the west-facing Welsh coastline its distinctive horseshoe' shape. In terms of land use - 81% is used for agriculture, 12% is covered in woodland, and only 8% is categorized as urban. Wales has a population of 2.8 million. The people are mainly concentrated in the south-eastern corner around the capital city of Cardiff. The city (population 270,000) was developed in the 19th century as a coal-exporting port. The Industrial Revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries had its major impact in South Wales, where the iron and steel factories and coalmines were concentrated. Swansea, also in the south, is Wales's second city with a population of 177,000. Newport, to the east of Cardiff near the Welsh border, has a population of 130,000. Like Cardiff, Swansea and Newport owe their growth to the industries of South Wales and their location as ports on the Bristol Channel. It is estimated that 20% of today's population of Wales speak Welsh fluently.

For the serious student who wishes to learn about Welsh history the most comprehensive book is the Welsh language 717 page book "Hanes Cymru" written by John Davies which he then translated into English as "A History of Wales". While about 20 books are available on the history of Wales, the author of this web page also recommends "The Matter of Wales: Epic Views of a Small Country" by the well known author Jan Morris and "Land of My Fathers: 2000 Years of Welsh History" by Gwynfor Evans. Gwynfor as he is known in Wales is the Honorary President of Plaid Cymru (the Welsh Nationalist Party) who over they years has played a dominant role in obtaining recognition of the Welsh language, culture and history by others within and outside of Wales. He also wrote the Foreword to "Reminiscences of Wales 1924-1942"

In terms of web pages, much information about Wales is available on Wales on Britannia, totalwales and BBC Wales. Links are provided within some of these sites which provides the visitor to this site with information on other Welsh related topic such as History & Traditions, Cultural Tradition, Welsh History Timeline, Facts About Wales and the Welsh, Royal Families of Wales, Language & Literature, Welsh Language Guide, Welsh Proverbs, Welsh Literature, Suggested Reading List, Politics, and Government of Wales.

If you plan to spend a vacation in Wales, look at the many links in the Welsh Tourist Board (WTB) web site where you will find information about castles, museums,and national events which are well worth visiting. The book makes reference to brass bands and male voice choir and the WTB site list venues and dates of rehearsals and concerts performed by these groups. It also lists sporting events and it is generally recognized that rugby is the are periodically posted on this web site. The visitor should not forget that rugby is the national sport of Wales is rugby. Gwyn Jones a well known author once wrote "Rugby, as it is played in Wales is not a game, it is a tribal mystery." While rugby matches between two Welsh teams are exciting, tension always reaches a high peak when the Welsh rugby team plays a team from another country. A search engine will list numerous web sites about Welsh rugby.

Wales now has a National Assembly of Wales. This came into existence because in July 1997, the Government published its White Paper "A Voice for Wales" which outlined its proposals for devolution in Wales. These proposals were endorsed in the referendum of 18 September 1997. Subsequently, Parliament passed the Government of Wales Act 1998, which established the National Assembly for Wales, and the National Assembly for Wales (Transfer of Functions) Order 1999, which enables the transfer of the devolved powers and responsibilities from the Secretary of State for Wales to the Assembly.

A site which may interest some is Britannia's Facts about Wales. This web page will continue to be updated as other areas of interest about Wales not listed here are researched. In the meantime, visitors to the internet can log into Data Wales, a site which includes much data about the Wales including useful maps of Wales, information about travel and tourism, history and culture as well as interesting links to some Welsh and Wales-related web pages. In addition to the BBC Wales site which provides information in English, the other BBC site, Radio Cymru provides information in Welsh about news and events in Wales. This is only one of many other web sites where all the information is in Welsh. Although links from this web page are not provided to other sites such as the National Library of Wales, the Welsh National Opera and Welsh Universities visitors are encouraged to browse these and the many other web sites which now list information about Wales. Browing the internet for these sites will provide visitors with a better understanding about the people, language, culture and history of this fascinating country.

Jill Forward wrote a review of "Reminiscences of Wales 1924-1942" and it was published in the South Wales Evening Post, Monday January 28, 2002. You can view the review in Adobe Acrobat PDF file format in either 8.5X11" or A4 sizes.