104-597: The Pittsburgher was an overnight limited passenger train operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad between New York City and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania over the Pennsylvania's Main Line . It operated from 1924 to 1964 and one of the most prestigious trains operated by the Pennsylvania and perhaps the premier train between New York and Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgher began operation on January 14, 1924. The Pittsburgher
208-431: A dining car or restaurant car to allow passengers to have a meal during the course of their journey. Trains travelling overnight may also have sleeping cars . Currently, much of travel on these distances of over 500 miles (800 km) is done by air in many countries but in others long-distance travel by rail is a popular or the only cheap way to travel long distances. One notable and growing long-distance train category
312-546: A Colonial-series car with a drawing room, three double bedrooms, and a bar lounge. These were originally built in 1938 for use on the Liberty Limited , General , and Spirit of St. Louis . The trains also carried heavyweight baggage cars , a lightweight dining car, and westbound conveyed a Boston sleeping car from the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad 's William Penn . Passenger train A passenger train
416-419: A Labour dominance of Welsh politics that continued into the 21st century. After economic growth in the first two decades of the 20th century, Wales's staple industries endured a prolonged slump from the early 1920s to the late 1930s, leading to widespread unemployment and poverty. For the first time in centuries, the population of Wales went into decline; unemployment reduced only with the production demands of
520-421: A Welsh constituency at Westminster. Yet by 1906, industrial dissension and political militancy had begun to undermine Liberal consensus in the southern coalfields. In 1916, David Lloyd George became the first Welshman to become Prime Minister of Britain. In December 1918, Lloyd George was re-elected as the head of a Conservative-dominated coalition government, and his poor handling of the 1919 coal miners' strike
624-710: A feat with neither precedent nor successor." Owain Gwynedd (1100–1170) of the Aberffraw line was the first Welsh ruler to use the title princeps Wallensium (prince of the Welsh), a title of substance given his victory on the Berwyn range , according to Davies. During this time, between 1053 and 1063, Wales lacked any internal strife and was at peace. Within four years of the Battle of Hastings (1066), England had been completely subjugated by
728-572: A fixed schedule and have priority over freight trains . Passenger trains may be made up of a number of passenger cars hauled by one or more locomotives, or may be made up of self-propelled railcars . Car design and the general safety of passenger trains have dramatically evolved over time, making travel by rail remarkably safe. Some passenger trains, both long-distance and short-distance, use bi-level (double-decker) cars to carry more passengers per train. Passenger trains hauled by locomotives are more expensive to operate than multiple units, but have
832-591: A higher passenger capacity. Many prestigious passenger train services have been bestowed a special name , some of which have become famous in literature and fiction. The first occasion on which a railway locomotive pulled a train carrying passengers was in the United Kingdom in 1804, at Penydarren Ironworks in Wales , when 70 employees of the ironworks were transported 9 miles by an engine designed by Richard Trevithick . The first passenger train in regular service
936-669: A legal unit in its own right, although it remains part of the single jurisdiction of England and Wales . The Senedd has the authority to draft and approve laws outside of the UK Parliamentary system to meet the specific needs of Wales. Under powers approved by a referendum held in March 2011, it is empowered to pass primary legislation, at the time referred to as an Act of the National Assembly for Wales but now known as an Act of Senedd Cymru in relation to twenty subjects listed in
1040-458: A series of castles: Beaumaris , Caernarfon , Harlech and Conwy . His son, the future Edward II , was born at Caernarfon in 1284. He became the first English prince of Wales in 1301, which at the time provided an income from northwest Wales known as the Principality of Wales . After the failed revolt in 1294–1295 of Madog ap Llywelyn – who styled himself Prince of Wales in
1144-600: A system of government with a separate executive, the Welsh Government, drawn from and accountable to the legislature, the National Assembly. Following a successful referendum in 2011, the National Assembly was empowered to make laws, known as Acts of the Assembly, on all matters in devolved subject areas, without requiring the UK Parliament's approval of legislative competence. It also gained powers to raise taxes. In May 2020,
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#17328513922591248-1098: A train consisting of a single passenger car (carriage, coach) with a driver's cab at one or both ends. Some railways, e.g. the Great Western Railway , used the term " railmotor ". If the railcar is able to pull a full train, it is more likely to be called a " motor coach " or a "motor car". The term "railcar" is sometimes also used as an alternative name for the small types of multiple unit that consist of more than one coach. Rapid transit trains are trains that operate in urban areas on exclusive rights-of-way in that pedestrians and road vehicles may not access them. Light rails are electrically powered urban passenger trains that run along an exclusive rights-of-way at ground level, raised structures, tunnels, or in streets. Light rail systems generally use lighter equipment that operate at slower speeds to allow for more flexibility in integrating systems into urban environments. Trams (also known as streetcars in North America) are
1352-411: A type of passenger train that runs a tramway track on or alongside public urban streets, often including segments of right-of-way for passengers and vehicles. Heritage trains are often operated by volunteers, often railfans , as a tourist attraction or as a museum railway. Usually, the trains are formed from historic vehicles retired from national commercial operation that have retained or assumed
1456-519: A varying degree and (since 2011) Welsh is the only official ( de jure ) language in any part of Great Britain. Wales is a country that is part of the sovereign state of the United Kingdom. ISO 3166-2:GB formerly defined Wales as a principality, with England and Scotland defined as countries and Northern Ireland as a province. However, this definition was raised in the Welsh Assembly in 2010 and
1560-571: A victory for the Celtic Britons at Badon Hill against the Saxons, which was attributed to Arthur by Nennius . Having lost much of what is now the West Midlands to Mercia in the 6th and early 7th centuries, a resurgent late-7th-century Powys checked Mercian advances. Æthelbald of Mercia , looking to defend recently acquired lands, had built Wat's Dyke . According to Davies, this had been with
1664-590: Is Cymry , and Cymru is the Welsh name for Wales. These words (both of which are pronounced [ˈkəm.rɨ] ) are descended from the Brythonic word combrogi , meaning "fellow-countrymen", and probably came into use before the 7th century. In literature, they could be spelt Kymry or Cymry , regardless of whether it referred to the people or their homeland. The Latinised forms of these names, Cambrian , Cambric and Cambria , survive as names such as
1768-433: Is a train used to transport people along a railroad line. These trains may consist of unpowered passenger railroad cars (also known as coaches or carriages) hauled by one or more locomotives, or may be self-propelled; self propelled passenger trains are known as multiple units or railcars . Passenger trains stop at stations or depots , where passengers may board and disembark. In most cases, passenger trains operate on
1872-510: Is a generally mountainous country on the western side of central southern Great Britain. It is about 170 miles (270 km) north to south. The oft-quoted " size of Wales " is about 20,779 km (8,023 sq mi). Wales is bordered by England to the east and by sea in all other directions: the Irish Sea to the north and west, St George's Channel and the Celtic Sea to the southwest and
1976-480: Is coal mining which became the industry synonymous with Wales and its people. Initially, coal seams were exploited to provide energy for local metal industries but, with the opening of canal systems and later the railways, Welsh coal mining saw an explosion in demand. As the South Wales Coalfield was exploited, Cardiff, Swansea, Penarth and Barry grew as world exporters of coal. By its height in 1913, Wales
2080-457: Is described as a country rather than a principality.' In the House of Commons – the 650-member lower house of the UK Parliament – there are 32 members of Parliament (MPs) who represent Welsh constituencies . At the 2024 general election , 27 Labour and Labour Co-op MPs were elected, along with 4 Plaid Cymru MPs and 1 Liberal Democrat MP from Wales. The Wales Office is a department of
2184-650: Is high-speed rail, which generally runs at speeds above 200 km/h (120 mph) and often operates on a dedicated track that is surveyed and prepared to accommodate high speeds. The first successful example of a high-speed passenger rail system was Japan's Shinkansen , colloquially known as the "bullet train", which commenced operation in October 1964. Other examples include Italy's LeFrecce , France's TGV (Train à Grande Vitesse, literally "high speed train"), Germany's ICE (Inter-City Express), and Spain's AVE (Alta Velocidad Española). In most cases, high-speed rail travel
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#17328513922592288-447: Is largely livestock-based, making Wales a net exporter of animal produce, contributing towards national agricultural self-sufficiency . Both Welsh and English are official languages . A majority of the population of Wales speaks English. Welsh is the dominant language in parts of the north and west , with a total of 538,300 Welsh speakers across the entire country. Wales has four UNESCO world heritage sites , of which three are in
2392-440: Is time- and cost-competitive with air travel when distances do not exceed 500 to 600 km (310 to 370 mi), as airport check-in and boarding procedures can add at least two hours to the overall transit time. Also, rail operating costs over these distances may be lower when the amount of jet fuel consumed by an airliner during takeoff and climbout is taken into consideration. Air travel becomes more cost-competitive as
2496-506: The Aberffraw dynasty from Gwynedd and Powys and then codified Welsh law in the 940s. Gruffydd ap Llywelyn was the only ruler to unite all of Wales under his rule, described by one chronicler after his death as king of Wales . In 1055 Gruffydd ap Llywelyn killed his rival Gruffydd ap Rhydderch in battle and recaptured Deheubarth . Originally king of Gwynedd, by 1057 he was ruler of Wales and had annexed parts of England around
2600-528: The Cambrian Mountains and the Cambrian geological period. Wales has been inhabited by modern humans for at least 29,000 years. Continuous human habitation dates from the end of the last ice age , between 12,000 and 10,000 years before present (BP) , when Mesolithic hunter-gatherers from Central Europe began to migrate to Great Britain. At that time, sea levels were much lower than today. Wales
2704-648: The Fifteen Tribes of Wales . The 400-year period following the collapse of Roman rule is the most difficult to interpret in the history of Wales. After the Roman departure in AD 410, much of the lowlands of Britain to the east and south-east was overrun by various Germanic peoples , commonly known as Anglo-Saxons. Some have theorized that the cultural dominance of the Anglo-Saxons was due to apartheid-like social conditions in which
2808-759: The Government of Wales Act 2006 such as health and education. Through this primary legislation, the Welsh Government can then also enact more specific subordinate legislation . Wales is served by four regional police forces: Dyfed-Powys Police , Gwent Police , North Wales Police , and South Wales Police . There are five prisons in Wales : four in the southern half of the country, and one in Wrexham . Wales has no women's prisons: female inmates are imprisoned in England. Wales
2912-548: The Normans . William I of England established a series of lordships, allocated to his most powerful warriors, along the Welsh border, their boundaries fixed only to the east (where they met other feudal properties inside England). Starting in the 1070s, these lords began conquering land in southern and eastern Wales, west of the River Wye . The frontier region, and any English-held lordships in Wales, became known as Marchia Wallie ,
3016-544: The Penmachno Document – and the rising of Llywelyn Bren (1316), the last uprising was led by Owain Glyndŵr , against Henry IV of England . In 1404, Owain was crowned prince of Wales in the presence of emissaries from France, Spain (Castille) and Scotland. Glyndŵr went on to hold parliamentary assemblies at several Welsh towns, including a Welsh parliament ( Welsh : senedd ) at Machynlleth . The rebellion
3120-467: The Pittsburgher was discontinued as part of a government order that prohibited the use of sleeping cars between points less than 450 miles (720 km) apart so the government could free up sleeping cars for the war effort. The next day, it was reinstated as a day train between the two points. By late 1945, it was back to running as an overnight, all-Pullman train between New York and Pittsburgh. Service
3224-645: The Second World War . The war saw Welsh servicemen and women fight in all major theatres, with some 15,000 of them killed. Bombing raids brought high loss of life as the German Air Force targeted the docks at Swansea , Cardiff and Pembroke . After 1943, 10 per cent of Welsh conscripts aged 18 were sent to work in the coal mines, where there were labour shortages; they became known as Bevin Boys . Pacifist numbers during both World Wars were fairly low, especially in
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3328-684: The United States began in the 1830s and became popular in the 1850s and '60s. The first electric passenger train was exhibited at the Berlin Industrial Exposition 1879 . The first successful commercial electric passenger train, the Gross-Lichterfelde Tramway , ran a year later in Lichterfelde . Long-distance trains travel between many cities or regions of a country, and sometimes cross several countries. They often have
3432-665: The Welsh Marches , in which the Marcher lords were subject to neither English nor Welsh law . The extent of the March varied as the fortunes of the Marcher lords and the Welsh princes ebbed and flowed. Owain Gwynedd 's grandson Llywelyn Fawr (the Great, 1173–1240), received the fealty of other Welsh lords in 1216 at the council at Aberdyfi , becoming in effect the first prince of Wales . His grandson Llywelyn ap Gruffudd secured
3536-636: 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
3640-405: The nearby valleys . The eastern region of North Wales has about a sixth of the overall population, with Wrexham being the largest northern city. The remaining parts of Wales are sparsely populated . Since decline of the country's traditional extractive and heavy industries, the public sector , light and service industries, and tourism play major roles in its economy . Agriculture in Wales
3744-437: The north temperate zone and has a changeable, maritime climate . Its 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
3848-561: The 18th century, lawyers, doctors, estate agents and government officials formed a bourgeoisie with sizeable houses. In the late 18th century, slate quarrying began to expand rapidly, most notably in North Wales. The Penrhyn quarry , opened in 1770 by Richard Pennant, 1st Baron Penrhyn , was employing 15,000 men by the late 19th century, and along with Dinorwic quarry , it dominated the Welsh slate trade. Although slate quarrying has been described as "the most Welsh of Welsh industries", it
3952-700: The Britons were at a disadvantage. By AD 500 the land that would become Wales had divided into a number of kingdoms free from Anglo-Saxon rule. The kingdoms of Gwynedd , Powys , Dyfed , Caredigion , Morgannwg , the Ystrad Tywi , and Gwent emerged as independent Welsh successor states . Archaeological evidence, in the Low Countries and what was to become England, shows early Anglo-Saxon migration to Great Britain reversed between 500 and 550, which concurs with Frankish chronicles. John Davies notes this as consistent with
4056-689: The Celtic languages arrived in Britain around 600 BCE. The Brythonic languages ceased to be spoken in England and were replaced by the English language, a Germanic language which arrived in Wales around the end of the eighth century due to the defeat of the Kingdom of Powys . The Bible translations into Welsh and the Protestant Reformation , which encouraged use of the vernacular in religious services, helped
4160-467: The Empire. Further Roman influence came through the spread of Christianity, which gained many followers when Christians were allowed to worship freely; state persecution ceased in the 4th century, as a result of Constantine the Great issuing an edict of toleration in 313. Early historians, including the 6th-century cleric Gildas , have noted 383 as a significant point in Welsh history. In that year,
4264-724: The English Crown, separate from England but under the same monarch. The king ruled directly in two areas: the Statute divided the north and delegated administrative duties to the Justice of Chester and Justiciar of North Wales , and further south in western Wales the King's authority was delegated to the Justiciar of South Wales . The existing royal lordships of Montgomery and Builth Wells remained unchanged. To maintain his dominance, Edward constructed
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4368-681: The Late Bronze Age as part of a maritime trading-networked culture that included other Celtic nations . This "Atlantic-Celtic" view is opposed by others who hold that the Celtic languages derive their origins from the more easterly Hallstatt culture . By the time of the Roman invasion of Britain the area of modern Wales had been divided among the tribes of the Deceangli (north-east), Ordovices (north-west), Demetae (south-west), Silures (south-east), and Cornovii (east). The Roman conquest of Wales began in AD 48 and took 30 years to complete;
4472-585: The National Assembly for Wales) in 1998, responsible for a range of devolved policy matters . At the dawn of the Industrial Revolution , development of the mining and metallurgical industries transformed the country from an agricultural society into an industrial one; the South Wales Coalfield 's exploitation caused a rapid expansion of Wales's population. Two-thirds of the population live in South Wales , including Cardiff, Swansea , Newport , and
4576-511: The National Assembly was renamed "Senedd Cymru" or "the Welsh Parliament", commonly known as the Senedd in both English and Welsh. Devolved areas of responsibility include agriculture, economic development, education, health, housing, local government, social services, tourism, transport and the Welsh language. The Welsh Government also promotes Welsh interests abroad. By tradition, Welsh Law
4680-599: The Norsemen occupying Northumbria to conquer the north. This alliance later broke down and Anarawd came to an agreement with Alfred , king of Wessex , with whom he fought against the west Welsh. According to Annales Cambriae , in 894, "Anarawd came with the Angles and laid waste to Ceredigion and Ystrad Tywi ." The southern and eastern parts of Great Britain lost to English settlement became known in Welsh as Lloegyr (Modern Welsh Lloegr ), which may have referred to
4784-645: The Roman general Magnus Maximus , or Macsen Wledig, stripped Britain of troops to launch a successful bid for imperial power, continuing to rule Britain from Gaul as emperor, and transferring power to local leaders. The earliest Welsh genealogies cite Maximus as the founder of several royal dynasties, and as the father of the Welsh Nation. He is given as the ancestor of a Welsh king on the Pillar of Eliseg , erected nearly 500 years after he left Britain, and he figures in lists of
4888-489: The Romans, Caerwent , is in south east Wales. Both Caerwent and Carmarthen , also in southern Wales, became Roman civitates . Wales had a rich mineral wealth. The Romans used their engineering technology to extract large amounts of gold, copper, and lead, as well as lesser amounts of zinc and silver. No significant industries were located in Wales in this time; this was largely a matter of circumstance as Wales had none of
4992-535: The Second World War, which was seen as a fight against fascism . Plaid Cymru was formed in 1925, seeking greater autonomy or independence from the rest of the UK. The term " England and Wales " became common for describing the area to which English law applied, and in 1955 Cardiff was proclaimed as Wales's capital. Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg (The Welsh Language Society) was formed in 1962, in response to fears that
5096-612: The UK government responsible for Wales, whose minister, the Secretary of State for Wales (Welsh secretary), sits in the UK cabinet . Wales has a devolved , unicameral legislature known as the Senedd (Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament) which holds devolved powers from the UK Parliament via a reserved powers model. For the purposes of local government , Wales has been divided into 22 council areas since 1996. These "principal areas" are responsible for
5200-611: The agreement of king Elisedd ap Gwylog of Powys, as this boundary, extending north from the valley of the River Severn to the Dee estuary, gave him Oswestry . Another theory, after carbon dating placed the dyke's existence 300 years earlier, is that it was built by the post-Roman rulers of Wroxeter . King Offa of Mercia seems to have continued this initiative when he created a larger earthwork, now known as Offa's Dyke ( Clawdd Offa ). Davies wrote of Cyril Fox 's study of Offa's Dyke: "In
5304-413: The border. He ruled Wales with no internal battles. His territories were again divided into the traditional kingdoms. John Davies states that Gruffydd was "the only Welsh king ever to rule over the entire territory of Wales... Thus, from about 1057 until his death in 1063, the whole of Wales recognised the kingship of Gruffydd ap Llywelyn . For about seven brief years, Wales was one, under one ruler,
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#17328513922595408-399: The character, appearance, and operating practices of railways in their time. Sometimes lines that operate in isolation also provide transport facilities for local people. Much of the equipment used on these trains' systems is original or at least aims to replicate both the look and the operating practices of historic/former railways companies. Passenger rail is one of the modes of travel with
5512-866: The conventional rail infrastructure to support trains that can operate safely at higher speeds. Many cities and their surrounding areas are served by commuter trains (also known as suburban trains), which serve commuters who live outside of the city they work in, or vice versa. More specifically, in the United States commuter rail service is defined as, "short-haul rail passenger transportation in metropolitan and suburban areas usually having reduced fare, multiple ride, and commuter tickets and morning and evening peak period operations". Trains are very efficient for transporting large numbers of people at once, compared to road transport. While automobiles may be delayed by traffic congestion , trains operate on dedicated rights-of-way which allow them to bypass such congestion. With
5616-418: The creation of a Welsh assembly with an 80 per cent majority. In 1997, a second referendum on the same issue secured a very narrow majority (50.3 per cent). The National Assembly for Wales ( Cynulliad Cenedlaethol Cymru ) was set up in 1999 (under the Government of Wales Act 1998 ) with the power to determine how Wales's central government budget is spent and administered, although the UK Parliament reserved
5720-442: The dominant source of wealth. The emerging industrial period saw the development of copper smelting in the Swansea area. With access to local coal deposits and a harbour that connected it with Cornwall's copper mines in the south and the large copper deposits at Parys Mountain on Anglesey, Swansea developed into the world's major centre for non-ferrous metal smelting in the 19th century. The second metal industry to expand in Wales
5824-420: 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
5928-410: The end of the 1960s, the policy of bringing businesses into disadvantaged areas of Wales through financial incentives had proven very successful in diversifying the industrial economy. This policy, begun in 1934, was enhanced by the construction of industrial estates and improvements in transport communications, most notably the M4 motorway linking south Wales directly to London. It was believed that
6032-406: The first written evidence of the use of Cymru and y Cymry is found in a praise poem to Cadwallon ap Cadfan ( Moliant Cadwallon , by Afan Ferddig ) c. 633 . In Armes Prydein , believed to be written around 930–942, the words Cymry and Cymro are used as often as 15 times. However, from the Anglo-Saxon settlement onwards, the people gradually begin to adopt
6136-450: The forests to establish pasture and to cultivate the land, developed new technologies such as ceramics and textile production, and built cromlechs such as Pentre Ifan , Bryn Celli Ddu , and Parc Cwm long cairn between about 5,800 BP and 5,500 BP. Over the following centuries they assimilated immigrants and adopted ideas from Bronze Age and Iron Age Celtic cultures. Some historians, such as John T. Koch , consider Wales in
6240-401: The foundations for stable economic growth had been firmly established in Wales during this period, but this was shown to be optimistic after the recession of the early 1980s saw the collapse of much of the manufacturing base that had been built over the preceding forty years. The Welsh Language Act 1967 repealed a section of the Wales and Berwick Act and thus "Wales" was no longer part of
6344-411: The furthest points of the journey. This practice allows less populous communities to be served in the most cost-effective way, at the expense of a longer journey time for those wishing to travel to the terminus station. Higher-speed rail services operate at top speeds that are higher than conventional inter-city trains but below high-speed rail services. These services are provided after improvements to
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#17328513922596448-440: 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 magistrates' courts or the County Court . In 2007 the Wales and Cheshire Region (known as the Wales and Cheshire Circuit before 2005) came to an end when Cheshire was attached to the North-Western England Region. From that point, Wales became
6552-409: The increased diversity of the Welsh economy. Population growth however outpaced economic growth and the standard of living dropped. Prior to the Industrial Revolution in Wales , there were small-scale industries scattered throughout Wales. These ranged from those connected to agriculture, such as milling and the manufacture of woollen textiles , through to mining and quarrying. Agriculture remained
6656-427: The intention of recognizing that the River Wye and its traffic belonged to the kingdom of Gwent." However, Fox's interpretations of both the length and purpose of the Dyke have been questioned by more recent research. In 853, the Vikings raided Anglesey , but in 856, Rhodri Mawr defeated and killed their leader, Gorm. The Celtic Britons of Wales made peace with the Vikings and Anarawd ap Rhodri allied with
6760-409: The kingdom of Mercia originally and which came to refer to England as a whole. The Germanic tribes who now dominated these lands were invariably called Saeson , meaning " Saxons ". The Anglo-Saxons called the Romano-British * Walha , meaning 'Romanised foreigner' or 'stranger'. The Welsh continued to call themselves Brythoniaid (Brythons or Britons) well into the Middle Ages , though
6864-407: The language might soon die out. Nationalist sentiment grew following the flooding of the Tryweryn valley in 1965 to create a reservoir to supply water to the English city of Liverpool . Although 35 of the 36 Welsh MPs voted against the bill (one abstained), Parliament passed the bill and the village of Capel Celyn was submerged, highlighting Wales's powerlessness in her own affairs in the face of
6968-419: The language survive after Welsh elites abandoned it in favour of English in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Successive Welsh Language Acts, in 1942, 1967 and 1993 , improved the legal status of Welsh. The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 modernised the 1993 Welsh Language Act and gave Welsh an official status in Wales for the first time, a major landmark for the language. The Measure also created
7072-479: The large number English people living in Wales. After the Senedd and Elections (Wales) Act 2020 , the National Assembly was renamed " Senedd Cymru " in Welsh and the "Welsh Parliament" in English, which was seen as a better reflection of the body's expanded legislative powers. The Welsh language ( Welsh : Cymraeg ) is an Indo-European language of the Celtic family ; the most closely related languages are Cornish and Breton . Most linguists believe that
7176-443: The law making powers of the National Assembly it is now able to make laws, known as Acts of the Assembly, on all matters in devolved subject areas, without needing the UK Parliament's agreement. In the 2016 referendum , Wales voted in support of leaving the European Union, although demographic differences became evident. According to Danny Dorling , professor of geography at Oxford University, votes for Leave may have been boosted by
7280-412: The legal definition of England. This essentially defined Wales as a separate entity legally (but within the UK), for the first time since before the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 which defined Wales as a part of the Kingdom of England. The Welsh Language Act 1967 also expanded areas where use of Welsh was permitted, including in some legal situations. In a referendum in 1979 , Wales voted against
7384-400: The legal system of England and Wales since 1536. English law is regarded as a common law system, with no major codification of the law and legal precedents are binding as opposed to persuasive. The court system is headed by the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom which is the highest court of appeal in the land for criminal and civil cases. The Senior Courts of England and Wales is
7488-457: The lowest carbon dioxide emissions. Rail travel emits much less carbon dioxide per mile than air travel (2–27%) or car travel (2–24%). Wales – in Europe (green & dark grey) – in the United Kingdom (green) Wales ( Welsh : Cymru [ˈkəmrɨ] ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom . It is bordered by the Irish Sea to
7592-583: The male population. Of these, roughly 35,000 were killed, with particularly heavy losses of Welsh forces at Mametz Wood on the Somme and the Battle of Passchendaele . The first quarter of the 20th century also saw a shift in the political landscape of Wales. Since 1865, the Liberal Party had held a parliamentary majority in Wales and, following the general election of 1906 , only one non-Liberal Member of Parliament, Keir Hardie of Merthyr Tydfil , represented
7696-480: The name Cymry over Brythoniad . From 800 onwards, a series of dynastic marriages led to Rhodri Mawr 's ( r. 844–77) inheritance of Gwynedd and Powys . His sons founded the three dynasties of Aberffraw for Gwynedd , Dinefwr for Deheubarth and Mathrafal for Powys . Rhodri 's grandson Hywel Dda (r. 900–50) founded Deheubarth out of his maternal and paternal inheritances of Dyfed and Seisyllwg in 930, ousted
7800-471: The necessary materials in suitable combination, and the forested, mountainous countryside was not amenable to industrialisation. Latin became the official language of Wales, though the people continued to speak in Brythonic. While Romanisation was far from complete, the upper classes came to consider themselves Roman, particularly after the ruling of 212 that granted Roman citizenship to all free men throughout
7904-521: The north and west, England to the east , the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic Sea to the south-west. As of 2021 , it had a population of 3.2 million. 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
8008-510: The north. The English words "Wales" and "Welsh" derive from the same Old English root (singular Wealh , plural Wēalas ), a descendant of Proto-Germanic * Walhaz , which was itself derived from the name of the Gauls known to the Romans as Volcae . This term was later used to refer indiscriminately to inhabitants of the Western Roman Empire . Anglo-Saxons came to use
8112-555: The numerical superiority of English MPs in Parliament. Separatist groupings, such as the Free Wales Army and Mudiad Amddiffyn Cymru were formed, conducting campaigns from 1963. Prior to the investiture of Charles in 1969, these groups were responsible for a number of bomb attacks on infrastructure. At a by-election in 1966, Gwynfor Evans won the parliamentary seat of Carmarthen , Plaid Cymru's first Parliamentary seat. By
8216-610: The occupation lasted over 300 years. The campaigns of conquest were opposed by two native tribes: the Silures and the Ordovices . Caractacus or Caradog , leader of the Ordovices, had initial success in resisting Roman invasions of north Wales but was eventually defeated. Roman rule in Wales was a military occupation, save for the southern coastal region of south Wales , where there is a legacy of Romanisation. The only town in Wales founded by
8320-525: The planning of it, there was a degree of consultation with the kings of Powys and Gwent. On the Long Mountain near Trelystan , the dyke veers to the east, leaving the fertile slopes in the hands of the Welsh; near Rhiwabon , it was designed to ensure that Cadell ap Brochwel retained possession of the Fortress of Penygadden." And, for Gwent, Offa had the dyke built "on the eastern crest of the gorge, clearly with
8424-717: The post of Welsh Language Commissioner , replacing the Welsh Language Board. Following the referendum in 2011, the Official Languages Act became the first Welsh law to be created in 600 years, according to the First Minister at the time, Carwyn Jones . This law was passed by Welsh Assembly members (AMs) only and made Welsh an official language of the National Assembly. Starting in the 1960s, many road signs have been replaced by bilingual versions. Various public and private sector bodies have adopted bilingualism to
8528-518: The provision of all local government services. Following devolution in 1997, the Government of Wales Act 1998 created a Welsh devolved assembly, the National Assembly for Wales , with the power to determine how Wales's central government budget is spent and administered. Eight years later, the Government of Wales Act 2006 reformed the National Assembly for Wales and allowed further powers to be granted to it more easily. The Act also created
8632-471: The recognition of the title Prince of Wales from Henry III with the Treaty of Montgomery in 1267. Subsequent disputes, including the imprisonment of Llywelyn 's wife Eleanor , culminated in the first invasion by King Edward I of England . As a result of military defeat, the Treaty of Aberconwy exacted Llywelyn 's fealty to England in 1277. Peace was short-lived, and, with the 1282 Edwardian conquest ,
8736-406: The right to set limits on its powers. The Government of Wales Act 2006 (c 32) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the National Assembly for Wales and allows further powers to be granted to it more easily. The Act creates a system of government with a separate executive drawn from and accountable to the legislature. Following a successful referendum in 2011 on extending
8840-399: The rule of the Welsh princes permanently ended. With Llywelyn 's death and his brother prince Dafydd 's execution, the few remaining Welsh lords did homage to Edward I of England . The Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284 provided the constitutional basis for a post-conquest government of the Principality of North Wales from 1284 until 1535/36. It defined Wales as "annexed and united" to
8944-594: The ruler. Other than in the Marches , where March law was imposed by the Marcher Lords, Welsh Law remained in force in Wales until the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284. Edward I of England annexed the Principality of Wales following the death of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd , and Welsh Law was replaced for criminal cases under the Statute. Marcher Law and Welsh Law (for civil cases) remained in force until Henry VIII of England annexed
9048-522: The same trackage (though not simultaneously), as well as producing a more comfortable ride for passengers. "Inter-city" is a general term for any rail service that uses trains with limited stops to provide fast long-distance travel. Inter-city services can be divided into three major groups: The distinction between the three types of inter-city rail service may be unclear; trains can run as InterCity services between major cities, then revert to an express (or even regional) train service to reach communities at
9152-536: The story of Cantre'r Gwaelod 's drowning and tales in the Mabinogion , of the waters between Wales and Ireland being narrower and shallower, may be distant folk memories of this time. Neolithic colonists integrated with the indigenous people, gradually changing their lifestyles from a nomadic life of hunting and gathering, to become settled farmers about 6,000 BP – the Neolithic Revolution . They cleared
9256-798: The term to refer to the Britons in particular; the plural form Wēalas evolved into the name for their territory, Wales. Historically in Britain , the words were not restricted to modern Wales or to the Welsh but were used to refer to anything that Anglo-Saxons associated with Britons, including other non-Germanic territories in Britain (e.g. Cornwall ) and places in Anglo-Saxon territory associated with Britons (e.g. Walworth in County Durham and Walton in West Yorkshire). The modern Welsh name for themselves
9360-425: The then Counsel General for Wales , John Griffiths , stated, 'Principality is a misnomer and that Wales should properly be referred to as a country.' In 2011, ISO 3166-2:GB was updated and the term 'principality' was replaced with 'country'. UK Government toponymic guidelines state that, 'though there is a Prince of Wales, this role is deemed to be titular rather than exerting executive authority, and therefore Wales
9464-444: The throne of England from Richard III of England in 1485, uniting England and Wales under one royal house. The last remnants of Celtic-tradition Welsh law were abolished and replaced by English law by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 during the reign of Henry VII's son, Henry VIII . In the legal jurisdiction of England and Wales , Wales became unified with the kingdom of England; the " Principality of Wales " began to refer to
9568-697: The travel distance increases because the fuel accounts for less of the overall operating cost of the airliner. Some high-speed rail systems employ tilting technology to improve stability in curves. Examples of tilting trains are the Advanced Passenger Train (APT), the Pendolino , the N700 Series Shinkansen , Amtrak 's Acela and the Spanish Talgo . Tilting is a dynamic form of superelevation , allowing both low- and high-speed traffic to use
9672-399: The use of bilevel cars , which are tall enough to have two levels of seating, commuter rail services can haul as many as 150 commuters per train car, and over 1,000 per train: much more than the capacity of automobiles and buses. In British and Australian usage, a "railcar" is a self-propelled railway vehicle designed to transport passengers. The term is usually used in reference to
9776-498: The whole country, though it remained a "principality" only in a ceremonial sense. The Marcher lordships were abolished, and Wales began electing members of the Westminster parliament. In 1536 Wales had around 278,000 inhabitants, which increased to around 360,000 by 1620. This was primarily due to rural settlement, where animal farming was central to the Welsh economy. Increase in trade and increased economic stability occurred due to
9880-565: The whole of Wales under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 (often referred to as the Acts of Union of 1536 and 1543), after which English law applied to the whole of Wales. The Wales and Berwick Act 1746 provided that all laws that applied to England would automatically apply to Wales (and the Anglo-Scottish border town of Berwick ) unless the law explicitly stated otherwise; this Act was repealed with regard to Wales in 1967. English law has been
9984-661: Was a horse drawn train on the Swansea and Mumbles Railway which opened in 1807. In 1808, Trevithick ran a passenger-carrying exhibition train called Catch Me Who Can on a small loop of track in London. The exhibition, which ran for two weeks, charged passengers for rides. The first steam train carrying passengers on a public railway was hauled by Locomotion No. 1 on the Stockton and Darlington Railway in 1825 , traveling at speeds up to 15 miles per hour. Travel by passenger trains in
10088-615: Was a key factor in destroying support for the Liberal party in south Wales. The industrial workers of Wales began shifting towards the Labour Party . When in 1908 the Miners' Federation of Great Britain became affiliated to the Labour Party, the four Labour candidates sponsored by miners were all elected as MPs. By 1922, half the Welsh seats at Westminster were held by Labour politicians—the start of
10192-437: Was compiled during an assembly held at Whitland around 930 by Hywel Dda , king of most of Wales between 942 and his death in 950. The ' law of Hywel Dda ' ( Welsh : Cyfraith Hywel ), as it became known, codified the previously existing folk laws and legal customs that had evolved in Wales over centuries. Welsh Law emphasised the payment of compensation for a crime to the victim, or the victim's kin, rather than punishment by
10296-681: Was discontinued in 1964, and its sleepers were transferred to the Manhattan Limited . During the 1940s, the Pittsburgher was assigned lightweight equipment from a pool of cars built by Pullman-Standard for the Pennsylvania Railroad immediately before World War II. These included City-series cars, with 18 roomettes; Brook-series cars, with 12 duplex single rooms and 5 double bedrooms; Imperial-series cars with four compartments, two drawing rooms, and four double bedrooms; and County-series cars, with 13 double bedrooms. The trains also carried
10400-442: Was eventually defeated by 1412. Having failed Owain went into hiding and nothing was known of him after 1413. The penal laws against the Welsh of 1401–02 passed by the English parliament made the Welsh second-class citizens. With hopes of independence ended, there were no further wars or rebellions against English colonial rule and the laws remained on the statute books until 1624. Henry Tudor (born in Wales in 1457) seized
10504-564: Was free of glaciers by about 10,250 BP, the warmer climate allowing the area to become heavily wooded. The post-glacial rise in sea level separated Wales and Ireland, forming the Irish Sea . By 8,000 BP the British Peninsula had become an island. By the beginning of the Neolithic ( c. 6,000 BP ) sea levels in the Bristol Channel were still about 33 feet (10 metres) lower than today. The historian John Davies theorised that
10608-436: Was iron smelting, and iron manufacturing became prevalent in both the north and the south of the country. In the north, John Wilkinson 's Ironworks at Bersham was a major centre, while in the south, at Merthyr Tydfil , the ironworks of Dowlais , Cyfarthfa , Plymouth and Penydarren became the most significant hub of iron manufacture in Wales. By the 1820s, south Wales produced 40 per cent of all Britain's pig iron . By
10712-559: Was producing almost 61 million tons of coal. Historian Kenneth Morgan described Wales on the eve of the First World War as a "relatively placid, self-confident and successful nation". The output from the coalfields continued to increase, with the Rhondda Valley recording a peak of 9.6 million tons of coal extracted in 1913. The First World War (1914–1918) saw a total of 272,924 Welshmen under arms, representing 21.5 per cent of
10816-439: Was the premier Pennsylvania train operating between New York and Pittsburgh. Although not streamlined in 1938 as part of the " Fleet of Modernism ", it was completely upgraded with streamlined equipment (but with no observation car ) at the express request of U.S. steel business clientele. Although the train was considered all- Pullman , it frequently carried coaches on the end for day travelers going to Pittsburgh and back. In 1944,
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