1.
Wales
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Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, and it had a population in 2011 of 3,063,456 and has a total area of 20,779 km2. Wales has over 1,680 miles of coastline and is mountainous, with its higher peaks in the north and central areas, including Snowdon. The country lies within the temperate zone and has a changeable. Welsh national identity emerged among the Celtic Britons after the Roman withdrawal from Britain in the 5th century, Llywelyn ap Gruffudds death in 1282 marked the completion of Edward I of Englands conquest of Wales, though Owain Glyndŵr briefly restored independence to Wales in the early 15th century. The whole of Wales was annexed by England and incorporated within the English legal system under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542, distinctive Welsh politics developed in the 19th century. Welsh Liberalism, exemplified in the early 20th century by Lloyd George, was displaced by the growth of socialism, Welsh national feeling grew over the century, Plaid Cymru was formed in 1925 and the Welsh Language Society in 1962. Established under the Government of Wales Act 1998, the National Assembly for Wales holds responsibility for a range of devolved policy matters, two-thirds of the population live in south Wales, mainly in and around Cardiff, Swansea and Newport, and in the nearby valleys. Now that the countrys traditional extractive and heavy industries have gone or are in decline, Wales economy depends on the sector, light and service industries. Wales 2010 gross value added was £45.5 billion, over 560,000 Welsh language speakers live in Wales, and the language is spoken by a majority of the population in parts of the north and west. From the late 19th century onwards, Wales acquired its popular image as the land of song, Rugby union is seen as a symbol of Welsh identity and an expression of national consciousness. The Old English-speaking Anglo-Saxons came to use the term Wælisc when referring to the Celtic Britons in particular, the modern names for some Continental European lands and peoples have a similar etymology. The modern Welsh name for themselves is Cymry, and Cymru is the Welsh name for Wales and these words are descended from the Brythonic word combrogi, meaning fellow-countrymen. The use of the word Cymry as a self-designation derives from the location in the post-Roman Era of the Welsh people in modern Wales as well as in northern England and southern Scotland. It emphasised that the Welsh in modern Wales and in the Hen Ogledd were one people, in particular, the term was not applied to the Cornish or the Breton peoples, who are of similar heritage, culture, and language to the Welsh. The word came into use as a self-description probably before the 7th century and it is attested in a praise poem to Cadwallon ap Cadfan c. 633. Thereafter Cymry prevailed as a reference to the Welsh, until c.1560 the word was spelt Kymry or Cymry, regardless of whether it referred to the people or their homeland. The Latinised forms of names, Cambrian, Cambric and Cambria, survive as lesser-used alternative names for Wales, Welsh
2.
Neath Port Talbot
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Neath Port Talbot is a county borough and one of the unitary authority areas of Wales. Neath Port Talbot is the eighth most populous local authority area in Wales, the actual population taken at the 2011 census was 139,812. The coastal areas are mainly English-speaking, however there are many Welsh-speaking communities in the Valleys to the north of the borough. The county borough borders the other areas of Bridgend and Rhondda Cynon Taff to the east, Powys and Carmarthenshire to the north. Its principal towns are Neath, Port Talbot and Pontardawe, the local authority area stretches from the coast to the borders of the Brecon Beacons National Park. The majority of land is upland or semi-upland in character, most of the lower lying flat land is near the coast around Port Talbot. An extensive dune system stretches along much of the coast, broken by river mouths, the upland areas are cut by five valleys, Vale of Neath, Dulais Valley, Afan Valley, Swansea Valley, Upper Amman Valley. Modern settlement patterns reflect the history of the area, with urban development along the flatter areas of the valleys. The largest town is Neath with a population of 47,020, followed by Port Talbot, Briton Ferry, Pontardawe, the majority of the population live in the coastal plain around Port Talbot and the land around the River Neath in the vicinity of Neath. Much of the towns in the borough lie within the Swansea Urban Area. The population in the region reached its peak in the 1930s, census figures show a population of 151,563 in 1931. The population has shown a steady decline throughout the rest of the 20th century, the population stood at 134,471 in 2001. Local council estimates show the population to have grown during the 2000s. Neath Port Talbot was created from the districts of Neath, Port Talbot and part of Lliw Valley on 1 April 1996 as Neath and Port Talbot. The whole of the Neath Port Talbot area was part of the county of West Glamorgan. Since local government re-organisation in 1996, Neath Port Talbot is governed by Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council, Neath Port Talbot is a staunch Labour stronghold, who have been in power since the authoritys formation in 1996. In June 2008, the activity and employment rates in Neath Port Talbot were below the Welsh average. However, earnings for workers were higher than either the Welsh or British average
3.
South Wales
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South Wales is the region of Wales bordered by England and the Bristol Channel to the east and south, and Mid Wales and West Wales to the north and west. The most densely populated region in the southwest of the United Kingdom, the Brecon Beacons national park covers about a third of South Wales, containing Pen y Fan, the highest mountain south of Snowdonia. Areas to the north of the Brecon Beacons and Black Mountains are generally considered part of Mid Wales, the expression south Wales is not officially defined, and its meaning has changed over time. Between the Statute of Rhuddlan of 1284 and the Laws in Wales Act 1535 and this was divided into a Principality of South Wales and a Principality of North Wales. The southern principality was made up of the counties of Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire, the legal responsibility for this area lay in the hands of the Justiciar of South Wales based at Carmarthen. Other parts of southern Wales were in the hands of various Marcher Lords, the Laws in Wales Acts 1542 created the Court of Great Sessions in Wales based on four legal circuits. The Brecon circuit served the counties of Brecknockshire, Radnorshire and Glamorgan while the Carmarthen circuit served Cardiganshire, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire, Monmouthshire was attached to the Oxford circuit for judicial purposes. These seven southern counties were thus differentiated from the six counties of north Wales, the Court of the Great Sessions came to an end in 1830, but the counties survived until the Local Government Act 1972 which came into operation in 1974. The creation of the county of Powys merged one northern county with two southern ones, there are thus different concepts of south Wales. Glamorgan and Monmouthshire are generally accepted by all as being in south Wales, but the status of Breconshire or Carmarthenshire, for instance, is more debatable. In the western extent, from Swansea westwards, local people might feel that they live in both south Wales and west Wales, areas to the north of the Brecon Beacons and Black Mountains are generally considered to be in Mid Wales. A further point of uncertainty is whether the first element of the name should be capitalized, as the name is a geographical expression rather than a specific area with well-defined borders, style guides such as those of the BBC and The Guardian use the form south Wales. The most densely populated region in the southwest of the United Kingdom, the Brecon Beacons national park covers about a third of South Wales, containing Pen y Fan, the highest mountain south of Snowdonia. This natural beauty changed to an extent during the early Industrial Revolution when the Glamorgan and Monmouthshire valley areas were exploited for coal. By the 1830s, hundreds of tons of coal were being transported by barge to ports in Cardiff, lord Bute then charged fees per ton of coal that was transported out using his railways. Whilst some of the left, many settled and established in the South Wales Valleys between Swansea and Abergavenny as English-speaking communities with a unique identity. Industrial workers were housed in cottages and terraced houses close to the mines and foundries in which they worked. The large influx over the years caused overcrowding which led to outbreaks of Cholera, and on the social and cultural side and this number is now very low, following the UK miners strike, and the last traditional deep-shaft mine, Tower Colliery, closed in January 2008
4.
Grammar school
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The original purpose of medieval grammar schools was the teaching of Latin. Over time the curriculum was broadened, first to include Ancient Greek, and later English and other European languages, natural sciences, mathematics, history, geography, and other subjects. In the late Victorian era grammar schools were reorganised to provide secondary education throughout England and Wales, Grammar schools of these types were also established in British territories overseas, where they have evolved in different ways. With the move to comprehensive schools in the 1960s and 1970s, some grammar schools became fully independent and charged fees. In both cases, many of these schools kept grammar school in their names, more recently, a number of state grammar schools still retaining their selective intake gained academy status, meaning that they are independent of the Local Education Authority. Some parts of England retain forms of the Tripartite System, some of the remaining grammar schools can trace their histories to before the 16th century. The schools were attached to cathedrals and monasteries, teaching Latin – the language of the church – to future priests, other subjects required for religious work were occasionally added, including music and verse, astronomy and mathematics and law. With the foundation of the ancient universities from the late 12th century, grammar schools became the point to a liberal arts education. Pupils were usually educated in schools up to the age of 14, after which they would look to universities. An example of a grammar school founded by a medieval borough corporation unconnected with church or university is Bridgnorth Grammar School. During the English Reformation in the 16th century, most cathedral schools were closed and replaced by new foundations funded from the dissolution of the monasteries. For example, the oldest extant schools in Wales – Christ College, Brecon, with the increased emphasis on studying the scriptures after the Reformation, many schools added Greek and, in a few cases, Hebrew. The teaching of languages was hampered by a shortage of non-Latin type. Many of these are commemorated in annual Founders Day services and ceremonies at surviving schools. The usual pattern was to create an endowment to pay the wages of a master to instruct boys in Latin. The school day ran from 6 a. m. to 5 p. m. with a two-hour break for lunch, in winter, school started at 7 a. m. Most of the day was spent in the learning of Latin. To encourage fluency, some schoolmasters recommended punishing any pupil who spoke in English, by the end of their studies at age 14, they would be quite familiar with the great Latin authors, and with Latin drama and rhetoric
5.
Neath Abbey
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Neath Abbey was a Cistercian monastery, located near the present-day town of Neath in South Wales, UK. It was once the largest abbey in Wales, substantial ruins can still be seen, and are in the care of Cadw. Tudor historian John Leland called Neath Abbey the fairest abbey of all Wales, Neath Abbey is also the name of an area of Neath near to the abbey ruins. The first monks arrived in 1130, following the assumption of the Savigniac order into the Cistercian order in 1147, Neath Abbey also became a Cistercian house. The abbey was ravaged by the Welsh uprisings of the 13th century, at this time, the abbey was turned into a large estate. Sir Philip Hobby was the last occupant of the estate, by 1730, some of the buildings were being used for copper smelting, and the rest were abandoned. In the late 18th century, a foundry was opened near the abbey ruins by a company owned by the Price, Fox. The archaeology of the abbey was eventually excavated between 1924 and 1935, the area adjacent to the ruins is used by a car retailer and a number of smaller businesses and workshops. The site has been used to film episodes of television series Doctor Who. The Time Lord and his companion Amy Pond have filmed several times at the site, which was transformed into a complete structure. EventPicture. co. uk, FREE pictures of Neath Abbey www. geograph. co
6.
Plaid Cymru
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Plaid Cymru is a social-democratic political party in Wales advocating for Welsh independence from the United Kingdom within the European Union. Plaid Cymru was formed in 1925 and won its first seat in 1966, Plaid is a member of the European Free Alliance. In September 2008, a senior Plaid Cymru assembly member spelled out her partys continuing support for an independent Wales, the Welsh Minister for Rural Affairs, Elin Jones, kicked off Plaids annual conference by pledging to uphold the goal of making Wales a European Union member state. She told the delegates in Aberystwyth that the party would continue its commitment to independence under the coalition with the Welsh Labour Party. While both the Labour and Liberal parties of the early 20th century had accommodated demands for Welsh home rule, no political party existed for the purpose of establishing a Welsh government. Initially, home rule for Wales was not an aim of the new movement, keeping Wales Welsh-speaking took primacy. In the general election of 1929 the party contested its first parliamentary constituency, Caernarvonshire, polling 609 votes, the party contested few such elections in its early years, partly due to its ambivalence towards Westminster politics. Indeed, the candidate Lewis Valentine, the party’s first president, by 1932 the aims of self-government and Welsh representation at the League of Nations had been added to that of preserving Welsh language and culture. However, this move, and the early attempts to develop an economic critique, did not broaden its appeal beyond that of an intellectual. The alleged sympathy of the leading members towards Europes totalitarian regimes compromised its early appeal further. The leaders treatment, including the judges dismissal of the use of Welsh and their subsequent imprisonment in Wormwood Scrubs. This heightened the profile of the party dramatically and its membership had doubled to nearly 2,000 by 1939, in fact, the party adopted a neutral standpoint and urged conscientious objection to war service. In 1943 Saunders Lewis contested the University of Wales parliamentary seat at a by-election, gaining 1,330 votes, at this time Gwynfor Evans was elected president. Gwynfor Evans presidency coincided with the maturation of Plaid Cymru into a more political party. Its share of the vote increased from 0. 7% in the 1951 general election to 3. 1% in 1955 and 5. 2% in 1959, in the 1959 election, the party contested a majority of Welsh seats for the first time. Proposals to drown the village of Capel Celyn in the Tryweryn valley in Gwynedd in 1957 to supply the city of Liverpool with water played a part in Plaid Cymrus growth. Support for the party declined slightly in the early 1960s, particularly as support for the Liberal Party began to stabilise from its long-term decline. In 1962 Saunders Lewis gave a talk entitled Tynged yr Iaith in which he predicted the extinction of the Welsh language unless action was taken
7.
Ceredigion (UK Parliament constituency)
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Ceredigion, formerly Cardiganshire, is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Created in 1536, the boundaries have remained unchanged for nearly five centuries. The county constituency was enlarged in 1983 with the addition of part of Pembrokeshire, being renamed Ceredigion, in 1997 it reverted to its former boundaries, being renamed Ceredigion. The Ceredigion Welsh Assembly constituency was created with the boundaries in 1999. The boundaries of this constituency mirror almost exactly those of the county of Ceredigion, under proposed constituency boundary changes announced in September 2016, ahead of the next general election, the seats boundaries will be extended. Ceredigion, formerly known by the version of its name as Cardiganshire, was first enfranchised in 1536 when King Henry VIII incorporated Wales within England. The county was one member, who was to be elected by each person who owned property of a sufficient value. In addition the inhabitants of Cardigan, Aberystwyth, Adpar and Lampeter were given the right to elect one MP between them, with the vote restricted to the Freemen. From 1832 the Reform Act changed the system so that householders of homes worth over £10 were enfranchised in the boroughs. The county saw more influence of the Powell family of Nanteos who were Conservatives, by agreement between the two, neither challenged the others domination and so elections were almost always unopposed. In the 1841 election there was a deal of confusion in the borough constituency. The poll books for Aberystwyth were either lost or stolen and never reached the returning officer, other than an 1855 byelection victory by 12 votes, the Conservatives never won the borough. The county saw its first contest in the 1859 general election when two Conservatives fought for the seat. In 1865 the sitting MP stood down and there was a contest between two Liberals, won by Sir Thomas Lloyd, Bt. who defeated a Gladstonian opponent, David Davies, Llandinam. Lloyd transferred to the borough in the 1868 election when the seat was captured by Swansea industrialist and this election is often regarded as a landmark when tenant farmers apparently refused to follow patterns of age-old deference and vote in line with the wishes of their landlords. Following this election there were allegations of intimidation by Conservative landlords, in reality, however, Richards victory owed much to the support of the powerful Pryse family of Gogerddan. There were close contests for the county thereafter, on a slightly widened franchise, in a redistribution of seats for the 1885 general election, the borough constituency was abolished and absorbed into the county. This brought into the county seat the more radical politics of urban voters in the boroughs of Aberystwyth, Cardigan, Lampeter and Adpar
8.
Order of the British Empire
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There is also the related British Empire Medal, whose recipients are affiliated with, but not members of, the order. Recommendations for appointments to the Order of the British Empire were at first made on the nomination of the United Kingdom, the self-governing Dominions of the Empire, nominations continue today from Commonwealth countries that participate in recommending British honours. Most members are citizens of the United Kingdom or the Commonwealth realms that use the Imperial system of honours and awards. Honorary knighthoods are appointed to citizens of nations where the Queen is not head of state, occasionally, honorary appointees are, incorrectly, referred to as Sir or Dame – Bill Gates or Bob Geldof, for example. In particular, King George V wished to create an Order to honour many thousands of those who had served in a variety of non-combatant roles during the First World War, when first established, the Order had only one division. However, in 1918, soon after its foundation, it was divided into Military. The Orders motto is For God and the Empire, at the foundation of the Order, the Medal of the Order of the British Empire was instituted, to serve as a lower award granting recipients affiliation but not membership. In 1922, this was renamed the British Empire Medal, in addition, the BEM is awarded by the Cook Islands and by some other Commonwealth nations. The British monarch is Sovereign of the Order, and appoints all members of the Order. The next most senior member is the Grand Master, of whom there have been three, Prince Edward, the Prince of Wales, Queen Mary, and the current Grand Master, the Duke of Edinburgh. The Order is limited to 300 Knights and Dames Grand Cross,845 Knights and Dames Commander, and 8,960 Commanders. There are no limits applied to the number of members of the fourth and fifth classes. Foreign recipients, as members, do not contribute to the numbers restricted to the Order as full members do. Though men can be knighted separately from an order of chivalry, women cannot, and so the rank of Knight/Dame Commander of the Order is the lowest rank of damehood, and second-lowest of knighthood. Because of this, Dame Commander is awarded in circumstances in which a man would be created a Knight Bachelor, for example, by convention, female judges of the High Court of Justice are created Dames Commander after appointment, while male judges become Knights Bachelor. The Order has six officials, the Prelate, the Dean, the Secretary, the Registrar, the King of Arms, the Bishop of London, a senior bishop in the Church of England, serves as the Orders Prelate. The Dean of St Pauls is ex officio the Dean of the Order, the Orders King of Arms is not a member of the College of Arms, as are many other heraldic officers. From time to time, individuals are appointed to a higher grade within the Order, thereby ceasing usage of the junior post-nominal letters
9.
King's College, Cambridge
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Kings College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Formally The Kings College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, Kings was founded in 1441 by Henry VI, soon after he had founded its sister college in Eton. However, the Kings plans for the college were disrupted by the Wars of the Roses and resultant scarcity of funds, and his eventual deposition. Little progress was made on the project until in 1508 Henry VII began to take an interest in the college, the building of the colleges chapel, begun in 1446, was finally finished in 1544 during the reign of Henry VIII. Kings College Chapel is regarded as one of the greatest examples of late Gothic English architecture and it has the worlds largest fan-vault, and the chapels stained-glass windows and wooden chancel screen are considered some of the finest from their era. The building is seen as emblematic of Cambridge, the chapels choir, composed of male students at Kings and choristers from the nearby Kings College School, is one of the most accomplished and renowned in the world. Every year on Christmas Eve the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols is broadcast from the chapel to millions of listeners worldwide, on 12 February 1441 King Henry VI issued letters patent founding a college at Cambridge for a rector and twelve poor scholars. This college was to be named after Saint Nicholas, upon whose saint day Henry had been born, William Millington, a fellow of Clare College was installed as the rector. Henry directed the publication of the colleges first governing statutes in 1443 and his original modest plan for the college was abandoned, and provision was instead made for community of seventy fellows and scholars headed by a provost. Henry had belatedly learned of William of Wykehams 1379 twin foundation of New College, Oxford and Winchester College, the King had in fact founded Eton College on 11 October 1440, but up until 1443 Kings and Eton had been unconnected. However, that year the relationship between the two was remodelled upon Wykehams successful institutions and the sizes of the colleges scaled up to surpass Wykehams. A second royal charter which re-founded the now much larger Kings College was issued on 12 July 1443, members of Kings were to be recruited entirely from Eton. Membership of Kings was a vocation for life, scholars were eligible for election to the fellowship after three years of probation, irrespective of whether they had achieved a degree or not. In fact, undergraduates at Kings – unlike those other colleges – did not even have to pass university examinations to achieve their BA degree. The gateway and south range of Old Court had already been built, Henrys grand design for the new college buildings survives in the 1448 Founders Will which describes his vision in detail. Behind the hall and buttery was to be another courtyard, the first stone of the chapel was laid by the King on St James Day,25 July 1446. However, within a decade Henrys engagement in the Wars of the Roses meant that funds began to dry up, work proceeded sporadically until a generation later in 1508 when the Founders nephew Henry VII was prevailed upon to finish the shell of the building. The interior had to wait a further generation until completion by 1544 with the aid of Henry VIII, the chapel would be the only part of Henry VIs Founders Will to be realised
10.
Cricket
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Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a cricket field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard-long pitch with a wicket at each end. One team bats, attempting to score as many runs as possible, each phase of play is called an innings. After either ten batsmen have been dismissed or a number of overs have been completed, the innings ends. The winning team is the one that scores the most runs, including any extras gained, at the start of each game, two batsmen and eleven fielders enter the field of play. The striker takes guard on a crease drawn on the four feet in front of the wicket. His role is to prevent the ball hitting the stumps by use of his bat. The other batsman, known as the non-striker, waits at the end of the pitch near the bowler. A dismissed batsman must leave the field, and a teammate replaces him, the bowlers objectives are to prevent the scoring of runs and to dismiss the batsman. An over is a set of six deliveries bowled by the same bowler, the next over is bowled from the other end of the pitch by a different bowler. If a fielder retrieves the ball enough to put down the wicket with a batsman not having reached the crease at that end of the pitch. Adjudication is performed on the field by two umpires, the laws of cricket are maintained by the International Cricket Council and the Marylebone Cricket Club. Traditionally cricketers play in all-white kit, but in limited overs cricket they wear club or team colours. In addition to the kit, some players wear protective gear to prevent injury caused by the ball. Although crickets origins are uncertain, it is first recorded in south-east England in the 16th century and it spread globally with the expansion of the British Empire, leading to the first international matches in the mid-19th century. ICC, the governing body, has over 100 members. The sport is followed primarily in Australasia, Britain, the Indian subcontinent, southern Africa, womens cricket, which is organised and played separately, has also achieved international standard. A number of words have been suggested as sources for the term cricket, in the earliest definite reference to the sport in 1598 it is called creckett. One possible source for the name is the Old English cricc or cryce meaning a crutch or staff, in Samuel Johnsons Dictionary, he derived cricket from cryce, Saxon, a stick
