City in Wales
Cardiff
In 1801 Cardiff had fewer than 2,000 people. A century later it was one of the world's great coal ports, and in 1955 it became the capital of Wales.
Key information
- Nation
- Wales
- Population
- about 362,000 (2021 Census)
- Known for
- Principality Stadium, Cardiff Castle, Cardiff Bay, the Senedd, Doctor Who filming, the 1927 FA Cup win
- What locals are called
- Cardiffians
- Famous people
- Shirley Bassey, Roald Dahl, Gareth Bale, Ivor Novello
- Football clubs
- Cardiff City (the Bluebirds)
About Cardiff
The village that fed the world's furnaces
At the 1801 census Cardiff was a modest port town of fewer than 2,000 people. Then the South Wales coalfield took off, and the valleys north of the city needed somewhere to send their coal. The answer was Cardiff. The Marquess of Bute opened the Bute West Dock in 1839, and more docks followed. In 1913 Cardiff was exporting around ten million tons of coal a year, though neighbouring Barry was the world's largest coal-exporting port that year, handling about 11.05 million tons. Welsh steam coal powered navies and railways from Buenos Aires to Bombay. Cardiff became a city in 1905 and then spent half a century waiting for a title it plainly deserved. In 1955 it was named capital of Wales, which was a fairly recent job for a place with a castle this old.
Tiger Bay: a whole world in a few streets
The docks drew sailors and workers from dozens of countries, and many of them stayed. The district around Butetown, nicknamed Tiger Bay, became one of the oldest multicultural communities in Britain, with Somali, Yemeni, Caribbean, Irish, Norwegian and Welsh families living side by side. The most famous child of the neighbourhood is Shirley Bassey, born there in 1937. She went on to sing three James Bond theme songs, including Goldfinger. In 1910 Captain Scott's Terra Nova expedition sailed for Antarctica from Cardiff, loaded with supplies and money raised from the city's shipowners and businesses.
A Roman wall, a Norman keep and a Victorian fantasy
Cardiff Castle sits in the middle of the city centre, which is rather unusual for a fortress. The site began as a Roman fort, and parts of the Roman wall can still be seen. A Norman motte-and-bailey castle followed, with a stone keep on top of the mound. The real surprise is inside. The third Marquess of Bute, one of the richest men in Britain, hired the architect William Burges in the 1860s to turn the living quarters into a medieval dream. The result is a riot of gilding, painted ceilings, carved beasts and stained glass, all in Victorian Gothic. Outside, the Animal Wall along the castle's edge is lined with stone lions, a baboon and other creatures, and the grounds have peacocks. Beyond the walls, Bute Park runs along the River Taff.
The only team from outside England to win the FA Cup
In 1927 Cardiff City beat Arsenal 1-0 at Wembley, and the FA Cup left England for the first and only time. The Bluebirds have never lost that distinction to anyone else. The club plays in blue at Cardiff City Stadium, and its rivalry with Swansea City is one of the fiercest in British football. Ryan Giggs, born in Canton, and Gareth Bale, from Whitchurch, both started out in the city. Rugby is just as central. Cardiff Rugby plays at Cardiff Arms Park, right beside the national stadium.
A city designed for match day
The Principality Stadium, opened in 1999 as the Millennium Stadium for that year's Rugby World Cup, towers over the city centre with its retractable roof. When Wales play at home, the streets around it fill with red shirts and singing. The stadium has also hosted football finals, speedway and concerts while Wembley was being rebuilt. Cardiff took its turn at cricket too. Sophia Gardens, the home ground of Glamorgan, staged the first Test of the 2009 Ashes series. If you need a rest from sport, the Victorian and Edwardian shopping arcades are some of the best-preserved in Britain. Cardiff Market, which opened in 1891, is the place to find Welsh cakes and laverbread.
Daleks, dragons and a bay reborn
Cardiff Bay was once the grimy heart of the coal trade. After a barrage closed off the bay in 1999, the water became a freshwater lake and the waterfront was rebuilt. It now holds the Senedd, home of the Welsh Parliament, the red-brick Pierhead Building and the Wales Millennium Centre, with its huge bilingual inscription across the front. The space outside the Centre is called Roald Dahl Plass. Dahl was born in Llandaff in 1916 and went to school there, and the city has claimed him ever since. Ivor Novello, the songwriter who gave his name to the famous awards, was also born in Cardiff, in 1893. Since 2005 Cardiff has doubled as London, alien planets and far-flung time zones for Doctor Who and its spin-off Torchwood, whose secret base was set under the bay. Its Welsh name, Caerdydd, is something locals say with pride, and the city is also a centre for Welsh-language media.
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