95-539: Morgannwg may refer to: Glamorgan , a historic county in south Wales, called Morgannwg in Welsh Kingdom of Morgannwg , a medieval kingdom in the same area Morgannwg (journal) , the journal of the Glamorgan History Society Iolo Morganwg (1747–1826), a Welsh antiquarian and poet See also [ edit ] Coleg Morgannwg ,
190-412: A "reasonable" level of economic activity, and the anthracite coalfield in western Glamorgan (and eastern Carmarthenshire) also managed to maintain production and exports above pre-war levels. With the outbreak of World War II the coalfields of Glamorgan saw a sharp rise in trade and employment. Despite the demand the want for the youth to conscript in the war effort in the valley areas meant that there
285-600: A community under the patronage of St. Peter's Gloucester . The building of parish churches also began in the 12th century, densely in the Vale, but very sparsely in the upland and northern areas. The Laws in Wales Acts of 1535 established the County of Glamorgan through the amalgamation of the Lordship of Glamorgan with the lordships of Gower and Kilvey ; the area that had previously been
380-402: A former county borough: West Glamorgan , Mid Glamorgan , South Glamorgan . The name also survives in that of Vale of Glamorgan , a county borough . Glamorgan comprised distinct regions: the industrial valleys , the agricultural vale and the scenic Gower Peninsula . The county had boundaries with Brecknockshire (north), Monmouthshire (east), Carmarthenshire (west), and to the south it
475-642: A former further education college in Rhondda Cynon Taf Glamorgan (disambiguation) Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Morgannwg . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Morgannwg&oldid=1152098997 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Articles containing Welsh-language text Short description
570-518: A large labour force – up to 200 men – suggestive of large communities nearby. Archaeological evidence from some Neolithic sites (e.g. Tinkinswood) has shown the continued use of cromlechi in the Bronze Age . The Bronze Age – defined by the use of metal – has made a lasting impression on the area. Over six hundred Bronze Age barrows and cairns , of various types, have been identified all over Glamorgan. Other technological innovations – including
665-500: A larger Royalist to prevent a siege of Cardiff. The period between the Laws in Wales Acts and the industrialisation of Glamorgan saw two distinct periods architecturally. From the 1530s throughout to 1650, the newly empowered gentry attempted to show their status by building stately homes to show their wealth; but the period from 1650 through to the mid-1750s was a fallow time for architectural grandeur, with few new wealthy families moving to
760-618: A local outcropping of coal near the surface, gave Swansea economic advantages in the smelting industry. Early iron smelting within Glamorgan was a localised and minor industry, with historical evidence pointing to scattered ironworks throughout the county. John Leland mentions a works at Llantrisant in 1539, an operation in Aberdare existed during the reign of Edward VI and two iron furnaces were recorded as being set up by Sir W. Mathew in Radyr during
855-523: A mound of earth known as a round barrow ; sometimes with a distinctive style of finely decorated pottery – like those at Llanharry (discovered 1929) and at Llandaff (1991) – that gave rise to the Early Bronze Age being described as Beaker culture . From c. 3350 BP, a worsening climate began to make agriculture unsustainable in upland areas. The resulting population pressures appear to have led to conflict. Hill forts began to be built from
950-413: A regiment of Roman auxiliary troops. Its remains are located beneath the town of Loughor . Stone defences were added to the earthen ditch and rampart by AD 110 and the fort was occupied until the middle or end of that century. However, it was later abandoned for a time and in the early 3rd century the ditch naturally silted up. It appears to have been brought back into use during the reign of Carausius who
1045-483: A rock drawing of a red deer from the same period. This may be the oldest cave art found in Great Britain . Gower is also home to menhirs or standing stones from the Bronze Age . Of the nine stones , eight remain today. One of the most notable of the stones is Arthur's stone near Cefn Bryn . Its 25-ton capstone was most likely a glacial erratic (a piece of rock/conglomerate carried by glacial ice some distance from
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#17328528689561140-645: A scraper; flint flakes; a bone spatula; a needle & bead; and animal bones – the remains of domesticated animals, cat and dog. Archaeologists Alasdair Whittle and Michael Wysocki note that this period of occupation may be "significant", with respect to Parc Cwm long cairn, as it is "broadly contemporary with the secondary use of the tomb". In their article published in The Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society (vol.64 (1998), pp. 139–82) Whittle and Wysocki suggest corpses may have been placed in caves near
1235-462: Is The Beacon at Rhossili Down at 193 metres (633 ft) overlooking Rhossili Bay. Pwll Du and the Bishopton Valley form a statutory Local Nature Reserve . The southern coast consists of a series of small, rocky or sandy bays, such as Langland and Three Cliffs , and larger beaches such as Port Eynon , Rhossili and Oxwich Bay . The north of the peninsula has fewer beaches, and is home to
1330-399: Is a partly restored Neolithic chambered tomb . The megalithic burial chamber, or " cromlech ", was built around 6,000 BP. In the 1950s, members of Cambridge University excavating in a cave on the peninsula found 300–400 pieces of flint related to toolmaking, and dated it to between 14,000 and 12,000 BC. In 2010, an instructor from Bristol University exploring Cathole Cave discovered
1425-552: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Glamorgan Glamorgan ( / ɡ l ə ˈ m ɔːr ɡ ən / ), or sometimes Glamorganshire ( Welsh : Morgannwg [mɔrˈɡanʊɡ] or Sir Forgannwg [ˈsiːr vɔrˈɡanʊɡ] ), was one of the thirteen historic counties of Wales in the south of Wales . Originally an early medieval petty kingdom of varying boundaries known in Welsh as Morgannwg (or Glywysing ), which
1520-579: Is known for its coastline , popular with walkers and outdoor enthusiasts, especially surfers. Gower has many caves, including Paviland Cave and Minchin Hole Cave. The peninsula is bounded by the Loughor Estuary to the north and Swansea Bay to the east. Gower Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty covers 188 km , including most of the peninsula west of Crofty , Three Crosses , Upper Killay , Blackpill and Bishopston . The highest point of Gower
1615-402: The 7th millennium BP – the free standing megalithic structures supporting a sloping capstone (known as dolmens ) ; common over Atlantic Europe . Nineteen Neolithic chambered tombs (or long barrows ) and five possible henges have been identified in Glamorgan. These megalithic burial chambers, or cromlechi , were built between 6000 and 5000 BP, during the early Neolithic period,
1710-588: The Act of Union resulted in the Lordship of Gower becoming part of the historic county of Glamorgan with the southwest part becoming the hundred of Swansea . Agriculture remains important to the area with tourism playing an ever-increasing role in the local economy. The peninsula has a Championship status golf course at Fairwood Park just off Fairwood Common, which twice hosted the Welsh PGA Championships in
1805-702: The Braose family until the death of William de Braose, 2nd Baron Braose in 1326, when it passed from the family to the husband of one of his two daughters and co-heiresses, Aline and Joan. In 1215 a local lord, Rhys Gryg of Deheubarth , claimed control of the peninsula, but in 1220 he ceded control to the Anglo-Norman lords, perhaps on the orders of his overlord, Llywelyn ap Iorwerth . As an Anglo-Norman peninsula isolated from its Welsh hinterland but with coastal links to other parts of south Wales and southwest England, it developed its own Gower dialect of English. In 1535,
1900-581: The Brown Lenox Chainworks , which during the 19th century was the town's main industrial employer. The largest change to industrial Glamorgan was the opening up of the South Wales coalfield , the largest continuous coalfield in Britain, which occupied the greater part of Glamorgan, mostly north of the Vale. The coalfield provided a vast range in quality and type, but prior to 1750 the only real access to
1995-678: The Diocese of Llandaff became incorporated into the Province of Canterbury, the Bishop of Llandaff rebuilt over the small church with the beginnings of Llandaff Cathedral in 1120. In the western region of Morgannwg two monastic foundations were sited, a Savigniac house in Neath in 1130 and the Cistercian Margam Abbey in 1147. In the Vale a Benedictine monastery was founded in 1141, Ewenny Priory ,
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#17328528689562090-553: The Elizabethan era . By 1666 a furnace was in operation in Hirwaun and in 1680 a smelting hearth was established in Caerphilly . Despite the existence of these industries, the scale of production was small, and in 1740 the total output of iron from Glamorgan was reported at 400 tons per year. Glamorgan, now falling under the protection of the crown, was also involved in the conflicts of
2185-575: The General Strike of 1926 and then most disastrously the interwar depression of 1929–1931, which changed the face of industrial Glamorgan forever. In 1932, Glamorgan had an unemployment rate of more than 40 per cent, and one of the highest proportions of people receiving poor relief in the United Kingdom. This was a contrast with relatively recent prosperity: for example, in 1913 unemployment in Merthyr
2280-634: The Gower Peninsula ( Penrhyn Gŵyr ) is in South West Wales and is the most westerly part of the historic county of Glamorgan , Wales . It projects towards the Bristol Channel . In 1956, the majority of Gower became the first area in the United Kingdom to be designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty . Until 1974, Gower was administered as a rural district . It was then merged with
2375-565: The Green Coast Award 2005 for "natural, unspoiled environment": Rhossili Bay , Mewslade Bay , Tor Bay , Pwll Du Bay , and Limeslade Bay . Other beaches: The Llethryd Tooth Cave, or Tooth Hole cave, is a Bronze Age ossuary site in a limestone cave, about 1,500 yards (1.4 km) north north west of the Parc Cwm long cairn cromlech, on private land along the Parc Cwm valley, near
2470-714: The Industrial Revolution . Glamorgan was the most populous and industrialised county in Wales, and was once called the "crucible of the Industrial Revolution", as it contained the world centres of three metallurgical industries (iron, steel and copper) and its rich resources of coal. Under the Local Government Act 1972 , the county boroughs and administrative county of Glamorgan were abolished on 1 April 1974, with three new counties being established, each containing
2565-614: The Late Pleistocene – at which time the cave overlooked an area of plain , some miles from the sea. From the end of the last ice age (between 12,000 and 10,000 BP) Mesolithic hunter-gatherers began to migrate to the British Peninsula – through Doggerland – from the European mainland . Archaeologist Stephen Aldhouse-Green notes that while Wales has a "multitude" of Mesolithic sites, their settlements were "focused on
2660-605: The Mansels at Margam , Williams of Neath , the Herberts at Cardiff and Swansea, Sir David Ap Mathew of Llandaff, and the Stradlings of St Donats . The main industry of Glamorgan during this period was agriculture. In the upland, or Blaenau area, the hilly terrain along with many areas being densely wooded, made arable farming unprofitable, so the local farming concentrated on the rearing of horses, cattle and sheep. The lowland, or Bro
2755-531: The Marquess of Bute with the intention of erecting buildings to meet the administrative, legal and educational needs of Glamorgan's county town. From 1901 onwards, Cathays Park was developed into "possibly the finest... civic centre in Britain" with a range of public buildings including the Baroque City Hall and the rococo -style University College . The majority of Nonconformist chapels were built in
2850-732: The Swansea Urban Area . Wales is known to have been inhabited since at least the Upper Paleolithic period, and the Gower Peninsula has been the scene of several important archaeological discoveries. In 1823, archaeologists discovered a fairly complete Upper Paleolithic human male skeleton in Paviland Cave. They named their find the Red Lady of Paviland because the skeleton is dyed in red ochre , though later investigators determined it
2945-493: The Tawe valley also became a location for the manufacture of nickel after Ludwig Mond established a works at Clydach in 1902. Even at its peak, copper smelting was never as significant as iron smelting, which was the major industrial employer of men and capital in south Wales before the rise of the sale-coal industry. Ironmaking developed in locations where ironstone , coal and limestone were found in close proximity – primarily
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3040-410: The cockle -beds of Penclawdd . The northern coast is mainly salt marsh , and is used for raising Gower salt marsh lamb which was registered as a Protected Designation of Origin in 2021 under UK law and in 2023 under EU law. The interior is mainly farmland and common land . The population mainly resides in small villages and communities with some suburban development in eastern Gower; part of
3135-623: The county borough of Swansea . From 1974 to 1996, it formed the Swansea district . Since 1996, Gower has been administered as part of the unitary authority of the City and County of Swansea . Since its establishment in 1999, the Gower Senedd constituency has only elected Labour members. The Gower constituency in Westminster had previously also elected only Labour Members of Parliament (MPs) since 1908;
3230-524: The terrace house or miners cottage, railway stations, hospitals, churches, chapels, bridges, viaducts, stadiums, schools, universities, museums and workingmen's halls. As well as the architecture of Glamorgan entering modernity , there was also a reflection to the past, with some individuals who made the most from the booming industrial economy restoring symbols of the past, building follies and commissioning Gothic-style additions to ancient churches. Robert Lugar 's Cyfarthfa Castle in Merthyr (1825) and
3325-472: The wheel ; harnessing oxen ; weaving textiles ; brewing alcohol ; and skillful metalworking (producing new weapons and tools, and fine gold decoration and jewellery, such as brooches and torcs ) – changed people's everyday lives during this period. Deforestation continued to the more remote areas as a warmer climate allowed the cultivation even of upland areas. By 4000 BP people had begun to bury, or cremate their dead in individual cists , beneath
3420-938: The 1990s. Meanwhile, the Gower Golf Club at Three Crosses hosts the West Wales Open, a two-day tournament on Wales' professional golf tour , the Dragon Tour. Gower is part of the Swansea travel to work area . There are six castles on the Gower Peninsula: Landimore Castle—also known as Bovehill Castle— Oystermouth Castle , Oxwich Castle , Pennard Castle, Penrice Castle , Weobley Castle and numerous cairns and standing stones. Four beaches have Blue Flag beach and Seaside (2006) awards for their high standards: Bracelet Bay , Caswell Bay , Langland Bay and Port Eynon Bay . Five other beaches have been given
3515-440: The 19th century. They progressed from simple, single-storey designs to larger and more elaborate structures, most built in the classical style. Perhaps the most ambitious chapel was John Humphrey's Morriston Tabernacle (1872), incorporating Classical, Romanesque and Gothic elements, which has been called the 'Noncomformist Cathedral of Wales'. Industrial architecture tended to be functional, although some structures, such as
3610-417: The 8th-century king Morgan ab Athrwys, otherwise known as "Morgan Mwynfawr" ('great in riches') who united Glywysing with the neighbouring kingdoms of Gwent and Ergyng , although some have argued for the similar 10th-century ruler Morgan Hen . It is possible it was only the union of Gwent and Glywysing that was referred to as Morgannwg. By virtue of its location and geography, Morgannwg or Glywysing
3705-511: The Act of Union, allowed the leading Welsh families to gain in wealth and prosperity, allowing equal footing to those families of English extraction. Old monasteries, with their lands, were acquired by the wealthy and turned into country houses; their notable residents preferring to live in gentry houses rather than the fortified castles of the past. Major families in Glamorgan included the Carnes at Ewenny ,
3800-455: The American coal miners' strike. Cardiff Docks reached an exporting peak in 1923, but soon production fell and unemployment in the upland valleys began to increase at a dramatic rate. Between April 1924 and August 1925 the unemployment rate amongst South Wales miners jumped from 1.8% to 28.5%. Several factors came together to cause this collapse, including the over-valuation of sterling, the end of
3895-503: The British output of copper . The industry was developed by English entrepreneurs and investors such as John Henry Vivian and largely based in the west of the county, where coal could be purchased cheaply and ores imported from Cornwall , Devon and later much further afield. The industry was of immense importance to Swansea in particular; in 1823 the smelting works on the River Tawe , and
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3990-595: The Bronze Age, it was not until non- ferrous metalworking became a major industry in the late 17th century that Glamorgan saw a concentration of works appearing in a belt between Kidwelly and Port Talbot. Smelting of copper started around Neath under the Mines Royal Society c. 1584 but the scale of the works increased dramatically from the early 18th century when Swansea displaced Bristol as Britain's copper smelting capital. Easy access to Cornish ores and
4085-576: The Glamorgan coast – e.g., Burry Holms (Gower Peninsula). Excavations at one – Dunraven hill fort ( Southerndown , Vale of Glamorgan) – revealed the remains of twenty-one roundhouses . Many other settlements of the Silures were neither hill forts nor castles. For example, the 3.2-hectare (8-acre) fort established by the Romans near the estuary of the River Taff in 75 AD, in what would become Cardiff,
4180-540: The Gower Peninsula was not under the Lordship of Glamorgan, and became the Gower Lordship which had previously been the cantref of Gŵyr . The lowlands of the Lordship of Glamorgan were manorialized, while much of the sparsely populated uplands were left under Welsh control until the late 13th century. Upon the death of William, Lord of Glamorgan , his extensive holdings were eventually granted to Gilbert de Clare in 1217. The subjugation of Glamorgan, begun by Fitzhamon,
4275-606: The Great Depression because of the high proportion of its workforce employed in primary production rather than the manufacture of finished products. Other parts of Britain began to recover as domestic demand for consumer products picked up, but unemployment in the South Wales Valleys continued to rise: the jobless rate in Merthyr reached 47.5 per cent in June 1935. However, the coastal ports, Cardiff and Swansea, managed to sustain
4370-576: The Late Bronze Age (and throughout the Iron Age (3150–1900 BP)) and the amount and quality of weapons increased noticeably – along the regionally distinctive tribal lines of the Iron Age. Archaeological evidence from two sites in Glamorgan shows Bronze Age practices and settlements continued into the Iron Age. Finds from Llyn Fawr , thought to be votive offerings , include weapons and tools from
4465-574: The Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age. The hoard, described as "one of the most significant prehistoric metalwork hoards in Wales" has given its name to the Llyn Fawr Phase , the last Bronze Age phase in Britain. Excavations at Llanmaes , Vale of Glamorgan, indicate a settlement and "feasting site" occupied from the Late Bronze Age until the Roman occupation . Until the Roman conquest of Britain ,
4560-490: The Rhondda grew from 3,035 in 1861 to 55,632 in 1881, peaking in 1921 at 162,729. Much of this population growth was driven by immigration . In the ten years from 1881 to 1891, net migration to Glamorgan was over 76,000, 63 percent of which was from the non-border counties of England – a proportion that increased in the following decade. Until the beginning of the 18th century, Glamorgan was almost entirely agriculture based. With
4655-704: The Victorian terrace of Cardiff or the ribbon cottages of the valleys. Several of these projects were failures architecturally and socially. Of note were the Billybanks estate in Penarth and Penrhys Estate (Alex Robertson, Peter Francis & Partners) in the Rhondda, both described by Malcolm Parry , the former Head of the School of Architecture at Cardiff University, as "...the worst examples of architecture and planning in Wales." Gower Peninsula Gower ( Welsh : Gŵyr ) or
4750-509: The area that would become known as Glamorgan was part of the territory of the Silures – a Celtic British tribe that flourished in the Iron Age – whose territory also included the areas that would become known as Breconshire and Monmouthshire . The Silures had hill forts throughout the area – e.g., Caerau ( Cardiff ), Caerau hill fort, Rhiwsaeson ( Llantrisant ), and Y Bwlwarcau [Mynydd Margam], south west of Maesteg – and cliff castles along
4845-405: The area. Of the eight major gentry houses of the time only St Fagans Castle survives with its interior intact; five, Neath Abbey, Old Beaupre Castle , Oxwich Castle , Llantrithyd and Ruperra Castle are ruinous. Of the remaining two manors, The Van at Caerphilly was reconstructed in 1990 while Cefnmabli was gutted by a fire in 1994. The old castles became abandoned throughout this period due to
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#17328528689564940-698: The cantref of Gwynllwg was lost to Monmouthshire . With Wales finally incorporated with the English dominions, the administration of justice passed into the hands of the crown. The Lordship became a shire and was awarded its first parliamentary representative with the creation of the Glamorganshire constituency in 1536. The Reformation , which was closely followed by the Dissolution of the Monasteries , led to vast social changes across Britain. These events, along with
5035-507: The century progressed, symbols of the past industrial period were torn down and replaced with industrial estates populated by unadorned geometric factories. With concrete becoming the favourite post-war building material, larger office blocks began appearing within the cities, though few were of any architectural significance. Despite entering a fallow period of architectural design, several structures of note did emerge. Although work began in 1911, The National Museum of Wales (Smith and Brewer)
5130-461: The coal subsidy, the growth of electric power, the adoption of oil as the fuel of choice for many industries, and over-expansion of the mines in the late nineteenth century. The Welsh coal owners had failed to invest mechanisation during the good years, and by the 1930s the South Wales Coalfield had the lowest productivity, highest production costs and smallest profits of all Britain's coal-producing regions. These structural problems were followed by
5225-509: The coastal plains", the uplands were "exploited only by specialist hunting groups". Human lifestyles in North-West Europe changed around 6000 BP; from the Mesolithic nomadic lives of hunting and gathering, to the Neolithic agrarian life of agriculture and settlement. They cleared the forests to establish pasture and to cultivate the land and developed new technologies such as ceramics and textile production. A tradition of long barrow construction began in continental Europe during
5320-411: The coastline during this period. Archaeological evidence shows that humans settled in the area during an interstadial period . The oldest known human burial in Great Britain – the Red Lady of Paviland – was discovered in a coastal cave between Port Eynon and Rhossili , on the Gower Peninsula. The 'lady' has been radiocarbon dated to c. 29,000 years before present (BP) – during
5415-421: The collieries and shipping dependent on them, supported between 8,000 and 10,000 people. Imports of copper ores reached a peak in the 1880s, after which there was a steep fall until the virtual end of the trade in the 1920s. The cost of shipping ores from distant countries, and the growth of foreign competitors, ended Glamorgan's dominance of the industry. Some of the works converted to the production of zinc and
5510-402: The copper plants of Swansea. In 1828 the South Wales coalfield was producing an estimated 3 million tons of coal, by 1840 that had risen to 4.5 million, with about 70 percent consumed by local commercial and domestic usage. The 1840s saw the start of a dramatic increase in the amount of coal excavated within Glamorgan. Several events took place to precipitate the growth in coal mining, including
5605-416: The crown. With the start of the First English Civil War , there was little support from the Welsh for the Parliamentarians. Glamorgan sent troops to join Charles I at the Battle of Edgehill , and their Member of Parliament Sir Edward Stradling was captured in the conflict. In the Second English Civil War , the war came to Glamorgan at the Battle of St Fagans (1648), where the New Model Army overcame
5700-419: The demand. The richest source for steam coal was the Rhondda Valleys, and by 1856 the Taff Vale Railway had reached the heads of both valleys. Over the next fifty years the Rhondda would grow to become the largest producer of coal of the age. In 1874, the Rhondda produced 2.13 million tons of coal, which rose to 5.8 million tons by 1884. The coal now produced in Glamorgan far exceeded the interior demand, and in
5795-442: The discovery of steam coal in the Cynon Valley , the building of a large masonry dock at Cardiff and the construction of the Taff Vale Railway . In 1845, after trials by the British Admiralty , Welsh steam coal replaced coal from Newcastle-upon-Tyne as the preferred fuel for the ships of the Royal Navy . Glamorgan steam coal quickly became a sought-after commodity for navies all over the world and its production increased to meet
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#17328528689565890-578: The first of them about 1500 years before either Stonehenge or the Egyptian Great Pyramid of Giza was completed. Two major groups of Neolithic architectural traditions are represented in the area: portal dolmens (e.g. St Lythans burial chamber ( Vale of Glamorgan ), and Cae'rarfau (near Creigiau )); and Severn-Cotswold chamber tombs (e.g. Parc Cwm long cairn , ( Parc le Breos Cwm , Gower Peninsula), and Tinkinswood burial chamber ( Vale of Glamorgan )), as well as tombs that do not fall easily into either group. Such massive constructions would have needed
5985-521: The formation, disappearance, and reformation of glaciers which, in turn, caused sea levels to rise and fall. At various times life has flourished, at others the area is likely to have been completely uninhabitable. Evidence of the presence of Neanderthals has been discovered on the Gower Peninsula . Whether they remained in the area during periods of extreme cold is unclear. Sea levels have been 150 metres (490 ft) lower and 8 metres (26 ft) higher than at present, resulting in significant changes to
6080-434: The four-storey engine house at Cyfarthfa Ironworks (1836), were built to impress. Coal mining eventually became the dominant industry in Glamorgan and tall winding towers – originally made of timber or cast iron, later steel – became symbolic icons. After the First World War, there was an initial drop in coal and iron production, there was still enough demand to push the coalfields to their limits, helped by events such as
6175-413: The great ironworks, Penydarren Ironworks was built in 1784. These works made Merthyr Tydfil the main centre of the industry in Wales. As well as copper and iron, Glamorgan became an important centre for the tinplate industry. Although not as famous as the Llanelli or Pontypool works, a concentrated number of works emerged around Swansea, Aberavon and Neath towards the late 19th century. Glamorgan became
6270-443: The industrialisation of the county, farming became of far less importance, with industrial areas encroaching into farming lands. In Glamorgan, from the late 19th century, there was a significant reduction away from arable land towards pasture land. There were two main factors behind this trend; firstly the increase in the population of the county required more milk and other dairy produce, in an age before refrigeration. Secondly there
6365-478: The late 19th century additions to Cardiff Castle , designed by William Burges , exemplify how Gothic was the favoured style for rich industrialists and entrepreneurs. Greek Revival architecture , popularised in France and Germany in the late 18th century, was used for a number of public and educational buildings in Wales including the Royal Institution of South Wales in Swansea (1841) and Bridgend Town Hall (1843). In 1897, Cardiff Corporation acquired land from
6460-420: The later half of the 19th century the area became a mass exporter for its product. In the 1890s the docks of South Wales accounted for 38 percent of British coal exports and a quarter of global trade. Along with the increase in coal production came a very large increase in the population, as people emigrated to the area to seek employment. In Aberdare the population grew from 6,471 in 1841 to 32,299 in 1851 while
6555-455: The longest run (with Normanton and Makerfield ) of any UK constituency. This ended in 2015 when the Conservatives took the seat. In 2017, it returned to Labour. The area of both constituencies covers the peninsula and the outer Gower areas of Clydach , Gowerton , Gorseinon , Felindre , Garnswllt and encompasses the area of the historic Lordship of Gower apart from the city of Swansea. About 70 square miles (180 km ) in area, Gower
6650-411: The most populous and industrialised county in Wales and was known as the 'crucible of the Industrial Revolution'. Other areas to house heavy industries include ironworks in Maesteg (1826), tinplate works in Llwydarth and Pontyclun and an iron ore mine in Llanharry . Alongside the metalworks, industries appeared throughout Glamorgan that made use of the works' output. Pontypridd was well known for
6745-421: The new security brought by Glamorgan coming under the protection of the crown, with only the Stradlings of St Donat's Castle electing to remain in their old ancestral home. By the 17th century, the availability of fine building stone permitted the construction of high-quality lime-washed rural cottages and farmhouses in the Vale of Glamorgan, which drew favourable remarks from travellers. A Glamorgan yeoman of
6840-664: The northern and south-western parts of the South Wales coalfield . In the second half of the 18th century four ironworks were built in Merthyr Tydfil . In 1759 the Dowlais Ironworks were established by a partnership of nine men. This was followed by the Plymouth Ironworks in 1763, which was formed by Isaac Wilkinson and John Guest , then in 1765 Anthony Bacon established the Cyfarthfa Ironworks . The fourth of
6935-699: The present day though many are now ruinous. Of the castles built during the medieval period, those still standing above foundation level include, Caerphilly Castle , Cardiff Castle , Ogmore Castle , St Donat's Castle , St Quintins Castle , Coity Castle , Neath Castle , and Oystermouth Castle . Many of the castles within Morgannwg were attacked by forces led by Owain Glyndŵr during the Welsh Revolt of 1400–1415. Some were captured, and several were damaged to such an extent they were never maintained as defences again. When
7030-478: The region are early stone monuments, waypoints and grave markers dating between the 5th and 7th century, with many being moved from their original position to sheltered locations for protection. The most notable of the early stone markers still in its original place is on a high mountain ridge at Gelligaer . Of the later plaitwork patterned standing crosses the finest and best preserved is the 9th century 'Houelt' stone at Llantwit Major . The Lordship of Glamorgan
7125-606: The rock outcrop from which it came): the builders dug under it and supported it with upright stones to create a burial chamber. The remains of Sweyne Howes on Rhossili Down, Penmaen Burrows Tomb (Pen-y-Crug) and Nicholaston Long Cairn are three other well-known Neolithic chambered tombs. During the Bronze Age, people continued to use local caves for shelter and for burying their dead. Bronze Age evidence, such as funeral urns, pottery and human remains, has been found in Tooth Cave at Llethryd, Culver Hole (Port Eynon) and Cathole Cave . With
7220-405: The seams was through bell pits or digging horizontally into a level where the seam was exposed at a river bank or mountainside. Although initially excavated for export, coal was soon also needed for the smelting process in Britain's expanding metallurgical industries. Developments in coal mining began in the north-eastern rim of Glamorgan around the ironworks of Merthyr and in the south-west around
7315-452: The time generally lived in greater comfort than his contemporaries of the more westerly or upland parts of Wales such as Cardiganshire or north Carmarthenshire . From the mid-18th century onwards, Glamorgan's uplands underwent large-scale industrialisation and several coastal towns, in particular Swansea and later Cardiff , became significant ports. From the late 18th century until the early 20th century Glamorgan produced 70 per cent of
7410-486: The transition into the Iron Age, hill forts (timber fortifications on hill tops and coastal promontories) and earthworks began to appear. The largest example of this type of Iron Age settlement in the Gower Peninsula is Cilifor Top near Llanrhidian. Roman occupation brought new settlement. The Romans built Leucarum , a rectangular or trapezoidal fort at the mouth of the River Loughor , in the late 1st century AD to house
7505-432: The uplands and in the coastal regions, reflecting the increasing population and the need for new cheap housing to accommodate the hundreds of thousands of workers coming into the area. As the towns urbanised and the hamlets became villages, the trappings of modern life were reflected in the buildings required to sustain new and growing communities. The period saw the appearance, not only of the works and pits themselves, but of
7600-517: The village of Llethryd. In 1961 the cave was rediscovered by cavers , who found human bones. An excavation was carried out by D.P. Webley & J. Harvey in 1962 revealing the disarticulated remains (i.e. not complete skeletons) of six adults and two children, dated to the Early Bronze Age or Beaker culture . Other finds are now held at the National Museum of Wales , Cardiff : Early Bronze Age, or Beaker, collared urn pottery; flaked knives;
7695-590: Was a shortage of workers to run the mines; this in turn saw the introduction of the Bevin Boys , workers conscripted to work in the mines. During the war both Cardiff and Swansea were targets for German air attacks due to their important docks. After the First World War, Glamorgan, as was typical for Britain as a whole, entered a period of modernity, which saw buildings built and designed for functionality rather than splendour with period features watered down. As
7790-516: Was actually a male. This was the first human fossil to have been found anywhere in the world, and is still the oldest ceremonial burial anywhere in Western Europe . The most recent re-calibrated radiocarbon dating in 2009 indicates that the skeleton can be dated to around 33,000 Before Present (BP). In 1937 the Parc Cwm long cairn was identified as a Severn-Cotswold type of chambered long barrow . Also known as Parc le Breos burial chamber, it
7885-469: Was an employment shortage in farming due to the call of better paid industrial work, and pastoral land was less work intensive. Stock rearing became prominent with breeds such as Hereford , Devon and Shorthorn cattle being bred in the Vale of Glamorgan, while the unenclosed wilds of the Gower saw Welsh Ponies bred on the commons. The industrial period of Glamorgan saw a massive building program throughout
7980-484: Was applied was the University Hospital of Wales (S.W. Milburn & Partners). Begun in the 1960s, and completed in 1971, the building is the third largest hospital in the United Kingdom and the largest in Wales. It was designed to bring the care of patients, research and medical teaching together under one roof. The demands of modern living saw the growth of housing estates throughout Glamorgan, moving away from
8075-607: Was below 2 per cent and the borough had 24,000 miners. By 1921, the number of employed miners had fallen to 16,000, and in 1934, it was down to 8,000. Steel production was no less depressed than the coal industry. The inter-war years saw the closure of the old Cyfarthfa and Dowlais works, as steel-making became increasingly concentrated in the coastal belt. Both the coal and steel industries were increasingly dominated by large amalgamations, such as Powell Duffryn and Guest, Keen and Nettlefolds . The smaller companies progressively disappeared. Glamorgan suffered disproportionately during
8170-507: Was bordered by the Bristol Channel . The total area was 2,100 km (811 sq mi). Glamorgan contained two cities, Cardiff , the county town and from 1955 the capital city of Wales, and Swansea . The highest point in the county was Craig y Llyn (600 metres (1,969 ft)) near the village of Rhigos in the Cynon Valley . Glamorgan's terrain has been inhabited by humankind for over 200,000 years. Climate fluctuation caused
8265-557: Was built over an extensive settlement established by the Silures in the 50s AD. The region originated as an independent petty kingdom named Glywysing , believed to be named after a 5th-century Welsh king called Glywys , who is said to have been descended from a Roman Governor in the region. Saint Paul Aurelian was born in Glamorgan in the 6th century. The names Morgannwg ( Morgan + territorial suffix -wg , 'territory of Morgan') and Glamorgan ( gwlad + Morgan , 'land of Morgan') reputedly derive from
8360-467: Was described as "Wales' finest interwar building". Although functionality often deprived a building of interest, Sully Hospital (Pite, Son & Fairweather) is an example of a building which gained from its functional requirements. Initially built for tubercular patients, whose cure required the maximum amount of light and air, the functional architecture left a striking glass-fronted building, completed in 1936. Another hospital to which functionalism
8455-404: Was devoted to more general branches of farming, cereal, grass for pasture, hay and stock raising. Non-agricultural industries were generally small scale, with some shallow coal pits, fulling mills , weaving and pottery-making. The main heavy industry of note during this period was copper smelting, and this was centred on the towns of Swansea and Neath. Although copper had been mined in Wales since
8550-530: Was established by Robert Fitzhamon following the defeat of Iestyn ap Gwrgant , c. 1080 . The Lordship of Morgannwg was split after it was conquered; the kingdom of Glamorgan had as its caput the town of Cardiff and took in the lands from the River Tawe to the River Rhymney. The Lordship took in four of the Welsh cantrefi , Gorfynydd , Penychen , Senghenydd and Gwynllwg . The area later known as
8645-518: Was finally completed by the powerful De Clare family, and in 1486 the kingdom was granted to Jasper Tudor . The legacy of the Marcher Lords left the area scattered with historic buildings including Norman castles, Cistercian Abbeys , churches and medieval monuments. The kingdom of Glamorgan was also notable for the number of castles built during the time of the Marcher Lords , many surviving to
8740-413: Was not completed until 1927 due to the First World War. Designed to reflect sympathetically in dimensions with its neighbouring city hall, the dome-topped museum combines many architectural motifs with Doric columns at its facade, while internally a large entrance hall with stairs, landings and balconies. Percy Thomas ' Guildhall in Swansea, an example of the 'stripped modernist' style completed in 1936,
8835-563: Was the second part of Wales, after Gwent, to fall under the control of the Normans and was frequently the scene of fighting between the Marcher Lords and Welsh princes. The earliest buildings of note included earthwork dykes and rudimentary motte-and-bailey hillside defences. All that remains of these fortifications are foundations that leave archaeological evidence of their existence, though many were built upon to create more permanent defensive structures. The earliest surviving structures within
8930-486: Was then invaded and taken over by the Normans as the Lordship of Glamorgan . The area that became known as Glamorgan was both a rural, pastoral area, and a conflict point between the Norman lords and the Welsh princes. It was defined by a large concentration of castles. After falling under English rule in the 16th century, Glamorgan became a more stable county, and exploited its natural resources to become an important part of
9025-448: Was worried about Irish raids, but was abandoned again before the 4th century. A Norman castle was later built on the site. Following the Norman invasion of Wales the commote of Gŵyr passed into the hands of English-speaking barons, and its southern part soon became Anglicised . In 1203 King John (1199–1216) granted the Lordship of Gower to William III de Braose (died 1211) for the service of one knight's fee . It remained with
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