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Уельс / Wales (реферат)

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Уельс / Wales

( HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Wales” \o “Flag of
Wales” Y Ddraig Goch ) ( HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coat_of_Arms_of_the_Principality_of_Wales”
\o “Coat of Arms of the Principality of Wales” Arms of the Principality
)

Wales ( HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_language” \o
“Welsh language” Welsh : Cymru) is a principality and one of the four
constituent parts of the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom” \o “United Kingdom”
United Kingdom . Wales is located in the south-west of HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Britain” \o “Great Britain” Great
Britain and is bordered by HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheshire” \o “Cheshire” Cheshire ,
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shropshire” \o “Shropshire”
Shropshire , HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herefordshire” \o
“Herefordshire” Herefordshire and HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloucestershire” \o “Gloucestershire”
Gloucestershire to the east, the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bristol_Channel” \o “Bristol Channel”
Bristol Channel to the south, HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_George%27s_Channel” \o “St George’s
Channel” St George’s Channel in the west, and the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Sea” \o “Irish Sea” Irish Sea to
the north.

The term Principality of Wales, in Welsh, Tywysogaeth Cymru, is often
used, although the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_of_Wales” \o “Prince of Wales”
Prince of Wales has no role in the governance of Wales and this term is
unpopular among some. Wales has not been politically independent since
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1282” \o “1282” 1282 , when it
was conquered by King HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_I_of_England” \o “Edward I of
England” Edward I of England . The capital of Wales since HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1955” \o “1955” 1955 has been
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiff” \o “Cardiff” Cardiff ,
although HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caernarfon” \o
“Caernarfon” Caernarfon is the location where the Prince of Wales is
invested, and HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machynlleth” \o
“Machynlleth” Machynlleth was the home of a parliament called by
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owain_Glyndwr” \o “Owain
Glyndwr” Owain Glyndwr during his revolt at the start of the fifteenth
century. In HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1999” \o “1999”
1999 , the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Assembly_for_Wales” \o “National
Assembly for Wales” National Assembly for Wales was formed, which has
limited domestic powers and cannot make law.

History

The HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Empire” \o “Roman
Empire” Romans established a string of forts across what is now
southern Wales, as far west as HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carmarthen” \o “Carmarthen” Carmarthen
(Maridunum), and mined gold at HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolaucothi_Gold_Mines” \o “Dolaucothi Gold
Mines” Dolaucothi in Carmarthenshire. There is evidence that they
progressed even further west. They also built the legionary fortress at
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caerleon” \o “Caerleon”
Caerleon (Isca), whose magnificent HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphitheatre” \o “Amphitheatre”
amphitheatre is the best preserved in Britain. The Romans were also
busy in northern Wales, and an old legend claims that HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnus_Maximus” \o “Magnus Maximus”
Magnus Maximus , one of the last emperors, married Elen or Helen, the
daughter of a Welsh chieftain from Segontium, near present-day
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caernarfon” \o “Caernarfon”
Caernarfon .

Wales was never conquered by the Anglo-Saxons, due to the fierce
resistance of its people and its mountainous terrain. An Anglo-Saxon
king, HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offa_of_Mercia” \o “Offa
of Mercia” Offa of Mercia , is credited with having constructed a great
earth wall, or dyke, along the border with his kingdom, to mark off a
large part of Powys which he had conquered. Parts of HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offa%27s_Dyke” \o “Offa’s Dyke” Offa’s
Dyke can still be seen today.

Wales remained a HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celt” \o
“Celt” Celtic region, and its people kept speaking the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_language” \o “Welsh language” Welsh
language , even as the Celtic elements of HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England” \o “England” England and
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scotland” \o “Scotland”
Scotland gradually disappeared. The name Wales is evidence of this, as
it comes from a Germanic root word meaning stranger or foreigner, and as
such is related to the names of several other European regions where
Germanic peoples came into contact with non-Germanic cultures including
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallonia” \o “Wallonia”
Wallonia in HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgium” \o
“Belgium” Belgium and HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallachia” \o “Wallachia” Wallachia in
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romania” \o “Romania” Romania ,
as well as the “-wall” of HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornwall” \o “Cornwall” Cornwall . Part
of the word “Cymru” is evident in the “Cum-” of HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumberland” \o “Cumberland” Cumberland
and HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumbria” \o “Cumbria”
Cumbria .

Wales continued to be Christian (see HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1904-1905_Welsh_Revival” \o “1904-1905
Welsh Revival” 1904–1905 Welsh Revival and HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_Methodist_revival” \o “Welsh
Methodist revival” Welsh Methodist revival ) when England was overrun
by pagan German and Scandinavian tribes, though many older beliefs and
customs survived among its people. Thus, HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_David” \o “Saint David” Saint David
(Dewi Sant) went on a pilgrimage to Rome during the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/6th_century” \o “6th century” 6th century
, and was serving as a bishop in Wales well before HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustine_of_Canterbury” \o “Augustine of
Canterbury” Augustine arrived to convert the king of HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kent” \o “Kent” Kent and found the
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diocese_of_Canterbury” \o
“Diocese of Canterbury” diocese of Canterbury . Although the
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Druidry” \o “Druidry” Druidic
religion is alleged to have had its stronghold in Wales until the Roman
invasion, many of the so-called traditions, such as the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorsedd” \o “Gorsedd” gorsedd , or
assembly of bards, were the invention of eighteenth-century
“historians.” The traditional women’s Welsh costume, incorporating a
tall black hat, was devised in the nineteenth century by Lady Llanover,
herself a prominent patron of the Welsh language and culture.

The conquest of Wales by England did not take place in HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1066” \o “1066” 1066 , when England was
conquered by the HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normans” \o
“Normans” Normans , but was gradual, not being complete until
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1282” \o “1282” 1282 , when
King HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_I_of_England” \o
“Edward I of England” Edward I of England defeated HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llywelyn_the_Last” \o “Llywelyn the Last”
Llywelyn the Last , Wales’s last independent prince, in battle. Edward
constructed a series of great stone HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castle” \o “Castle” castles in order to
keep the Welsh under control. The best known are at HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caerphilly_Castle” \o “Caerphilly Castle”
Caerphilly , HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caernarfon_Castle” \o “Caernarfon Castle”
Caernarfon , HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conwy_Castle” \o
“Conwy Castle” Conwy , and HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlech_Castle” \o “Harlech Castle”
Harlech . Wales was legally annexed by the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laws_in_Wales_Acts_1535-1542” \o “Laws in
Wales Acts 1535-1542” Laws in Wales Act 1535 , in the reign of
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_VIII_of_England” \o “Henry
VIII of England” Henry VIII of England . The HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wales_and_Berwick_Act_1746” \o “Wales and
Berwick Act 1746” Wales and Berwick Act 1746 provided that all laws
that applied to England would automatically apply to Wales (and
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berwick-upon-Tweed” \o
“Berwick-upon-Tweed” Berwick , a town located on the Anglo-Scottish
border) unless the law explicitly stated otherwise. This act, with
regard to Wales, was repealed in HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1967” \o “1967” 1967 .

Politics

Wales, when independent, was rarely a united entity. Since the end of
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman” \o “Roman” Roman rule
in Britain, Wales had been a number of small kingdoms where occasionally
one would be in a position to be able to dominate the others. During the
12th Century the title ” HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King”
\o “King” king ” was no longer used by local Welsh rulers and they
began using the title ” HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince”
\o “Prince” prince ” in their dealings with the English crown and other
territories. This was because they were compelled to pay HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homage” \o “Homage” homage to the
English sovereign and could only do so if they conceded that they were a
prince, and not a fellow king. In the 13th Century the rulers of the
most powerful principality, HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Gwynedd” \o “Kingdom of
Gwynedd” Gwynedd , were afforded the title ” HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_of_Wales” \o “Prince of Wales”
Prince of Wales ” by the English king.

As such, Wales has been a HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principality” \o “Principality”
principality since the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/13th_century” \o “13th century” 13th
century , initially under the Welsh prince HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llywelyn_the_Great” \o “Llywelyn the
Great” Llywelyn the Great , and later under his grandson, HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llywelyn_the_Last” \o “Llywelyn the Last”
Llywelyn the Last , who took the title HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_of_Wales” \o “Prince of Wales”
Prince of Wales around HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1258”
\o “1258” 1258 , and was recognised by the English Crown in HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1277” \o “1277” 1277 by the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Aberconwy” \o “Treaty of
Aberconwy” Treaty of Aberconwy . Following his defeat by HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_I_of_England” \o “Edward I of
England” Edward I , however, Welsh independence in the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14th_century” \o “14th century” 14th
century was limited to a number of minor revolts. The greatest such
revolt was that of HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owain_Glyndwr” \o “Owain Glyndwr” Owain
Glyndwr , who gained popular support in HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1400” \o “1400” 1400 , and defeated an
English force at HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pumlumon” \o
“Pumlumon” Pumlumon in HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1401”
\o “1401” 1401 . In response, the English parliament passed repressive
measures denying the Welsh the right of assembly. Glyndwr was proclaimed
Prince of Wales, and sought assistance from the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France” \o “France” French , but by
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1409” \o “1409” 1409 his
forces were scattered under the attacks of King HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_IV_of_England” \o “Henry IV of
England” Henry IV of England and further measures imposed against the
Welsh.

The HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laws_in_Wales_Acts_1535-1542” \o “Laws in
Wales Acts 1535-1542” Laws in Wales Act 1535 abolished the remaining
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_Marches” \o “Welsh
Marches” Marcher Lordships , leaving Wales with thirteen HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traditional_counties_of_Wales” \o
“Traditional counties of Wales” counties : HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglesey” \o “Anglesey” Anglesey ,
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brecknockshire” \o
“Brecknockshire” Brecon , HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caernarfonshire” \o “Caernarfonshire”
Caernarfon , HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiganshire” \o
“Cardiganshire” Cardigan , HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carmarthenshire” \o “Carmarthenshire”
Carmarthen , HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denbighshire” \o
“Denbighshire” Denbigh , HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flintshire” \o “Flintshire” Flint ,
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glamorganshire” \o
“Glamorganshire” Glamorgan , HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merionethshire” \o “Merionethshire”
Merioneth , HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monmouthshire” \o
“Monmouthshire” Monmouth , HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montgomeryshire” \o “Montgomeryshire”
Montgomery , HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pembrokeshire” \o
“Pembrokeshire” Pembroke , and HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radnorshire” \o “Radnorshire” Radnor ,
and applied the Law of England to both England and Wales, requiring the
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_language” \o “English
language” English language for official purposes. This excluded most
native Welsh from any formal office. Wales continues to share a legal
identity with England to a large degree as the joint entity of
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England_and_Wales” \o “England
and Wales” England and Wales . Scotland and Northern Ireland retain
separate legal systems.

Wales was for centuries dwarfed by its larger neighbour, England.
Indeed, one well-known British encyclopedia was said — perhaps
apocryphally — to have had an entry reading “WALES. See under ENGLAND”.
In HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1955” \o “1955” 1955
steps were taken to re-establish a sense of national identity for Wales
when HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiff” \o “Cardiff”
Cardiff was established as its capital. Before this, legislation passed
by the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliament_of_the_United_Kingdom” \o
“Parliament of the United Kingdom” UK parliament had simply referred
to England, rather than England and Wales.

Since HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993” \o “1993” 1993
and the passing of the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Welsh_Language_Act&action=edi
t” \o “Welsh Language Act” Welsh Language Act it has been law for all
documents produced by public bodies to be in both HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Language” \o “English Language”
English and HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_Language”
\o “Welsh Language” Welsh . Many private companies have followed suit,
producing literature with similar HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilingual” \o “Bilingual” bilingual
qualities.

The HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Assembly_for_Wales” \o “National
Assembly for Wales” National Assembly for Wales , sitting in
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiff” \o “Cardiff” Cardiff ,
first elected in HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1999” \o
“1999” 1999 , is elected by the Welsh people and has its powers defined
by the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Wales_Act_1998” \o
“Government of Wales Act 1998” Government of Wales Act 1998 . The title
of Prince of Wales is still given by the reigning British monarch to his
or her eldest son, but in modern times the Prince does not live in Wales
and has no direct involvement with administration or government. The
Prince is, however, still symbolically linked to the principality; the
investiture of HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles%2C_Prince_of_Wales” \o “Charles,
Prince of Wales” Charles, Prince of Wales took place at HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caernarfon_Castle” \o “Caernarfon Castle”
Caernarfon Castle in HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Wales” \o “North Wales” North Wales
, a place traditionally associated with the creation of the title in the
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/13th_century” \o “13th
century” 13th century . The investiture was considered an insult by
some Welsh people, and Welsh folk singer HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dafydd_Iwan” \o “Dafydd Iwan” Dafydd Iwan
released mocking singles called Croeso Chwedeg Nain (Welcome 69,
although a literal translation would be Welcome Granny’s 60th
(birthday)) and Carlo (Charlie). Two members of ” HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mudiad_Amddiffyn_Cymru” \o “Mudiad
Amddiffyn Cymru” Mudiad Amddiffyn Cymru ” – MAC (Welsh Defence
Movement) – George Taylor and Alwyn Jones, the “Abergele Martyrs”, were
killed by a home made bomb at HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abergele” \o “Abergele” Abergele the day
before the investiture ceremony.

Geography

Wales is located on a HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peninsula” \o “Peninsula” peninsula in
central-west HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Britain” \o
“Great Britain” Great Britain . The entire area of Wales is about
20,779 km2 (8,023 square miles). It is about 274 km (170 miles) long and
97 km (60 miles) wide. Wales borders by England to the east and by sea
in the other three directions: the Bristol Channel to the south, St
George’s Channel to the west, and the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Sea” \o “Irish Sea” Irish Sea to
the north. Together, Wales has over 965 km (600 miles) of coastline.
There are several HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Island” \o
“Island” islands off the Welsh mainland, the largest being HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglesey” \o “Anglesey” Anglesey in the
northwest.

The main population and industrial areas are in HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Wales” \o “South Wales” South Wales
, consisting of the cities of HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiff” \o “Cardiff” Cardiff ,
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swansea” \o “Swansea” Swansea
and HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newport” \o “Newport”
Newport and surrounding areas.

Much of Wales’s diverse landscape is HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain” \o “Mountain” mountainous ,
particularly in the north and central regions. The mountains were shaped
during the last HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ice_age” \o
“Ice age” ice age , the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devensian_glaciation” \o “Devensian
glaciation” Devensian glaciation . The highest mountains in Wales are
in HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowdonia” \o “Snowdonia”
Snowdonia , and include HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowdon” \o “Snowdon” Snowdon , which, at
1085 HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metre” \o “Metre” m
(3,560 HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feet” \o “Feet” feet )
is the highest peak in England and Wales. The 14 (or possibly 15) Welsh
mountains over 3000 feet high are known collectively as the Welsh 3000s.
The HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brecon_Beacons” \o “Brecon
Beacons” Brecon Beacons are in the south and are joined by the
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambrian_Mountains” \o “Cambrian
Mountains” Cambrian Mountains in mid-Wales, the latter being given to
the earliest geological period of the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paleozoic” \o “Paleozoic” Paleozoic (
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambrian” \o “Cambrian”
Cambrian ). Consequently, the next two periods, HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ordovician” \o “Ordovician” Ordovician
and HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silurian” \o “Silurian”
Silurian were named after Welsh/ HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celt” \o “Celt” Celtic tribes from this
area.

The modern border between Wales and England is highly arbitrary; it was
largely defined in the 16th century, based on medieval feudal
boundaries. It has apparently never been confirmed by referendum or
reviewed by any Boundary Commission (except to confirm Monmouthshire as
part of Wales in 1968). The boundary line follows HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Offa%27s_Dyke” \o “Offa’s Dyke” Offa’s
Dyke only approximately. It separates Knighton from its railway
station, virtually cuts off Church Stoke from the rest of Wales, and
slices straight through the village of Llanymynech (where a pub actually
straddles the line).

The HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Wonders_of_Wales” \o
“Seven Wonders of Wales” Seven Wonders of Wales is a traditional list
of seven geographic and cultural HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landmark” \o “Landmark” landmarks in
Wales: Snowdon (the highest mountain), the Gresford bells (the peal of
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_%28instrument%29” \o “Bell
(instrument)” bells in the medieval church of All Saints at
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gresford” \o “Gresford”
Gresford ), the HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llangollen” \o
“Llangollen” Llangollen bridge (built in HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1347” \o “1347” 1347 over the
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_Dee%2C_Wales” \o “River
Dee, Wales” River Dee ), HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Winefride%27s_Well” \o “St Winefride’s
Well” St Winefride’s Well (a HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilgrimage” \o “Pilgrimage” pilgrimage
site at HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holywell” \o
“Holywell” Holywell in HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flintshire” \o “Flintshire” Flintshire )
the Wrexham steeple (16th century tower of St. Giles Church in
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrexham” \o “Wrexham” Wrexham
), the Overton yew trees (ancient HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yew” \o “Yew” yew trees in the
churchyard of St Mary’s at HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overton-on-Dee” \o “Overton-on-Dee”
Overton-on-Dee ) and HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pistyll_Rhaeadr” \o “Pistyll Rhaeadr”
Pistyll Rhaeadr (Wales’s tallest HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterfall” \o “Waterfall” waterfall , at
240 feet or 75 m). The wonders are part of the traditional rhyme:

Pistyll Rhaeadr and Wrexham steeple,

Snowdon’s mountain without its people,

Overton yew trees, St Winefride wells,

Llangollen bridge and Gresford bells.

Highest maximum temperature: 35.2°C (95.4°F) at HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawarden_Bridge” \o “Hawarden Bridge”
Hawarden Bridge , HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flintshire”
\o “Flintshire” Flintshire on HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_2” \o “August 2” 2 August
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1990” \o “1990” 1990 .

Lowest minimum temperature: -23.3°C (-10°F) at HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhayader” \o “Rhayader” Rhayader ,
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radnorshire” \o “Radnorshire”
Radnorshire on HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_21” \o
“January 21” 21 January HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1940” \o “1940” 1940 . HYPERLINK
“http://www.metoffice.com/climate/uk/location/wales/” \l “temperature”
\o “http://www.metoffice.com/climate/uk/location/wales/#temperature”
[1]

See also: HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_towns_in_Wales” \o “List of towns
in Wales” List of towns in Wales

[ HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wales&action=edit&section=4”
\o “Wales” edit ]

Divisions

For administrative purposes, Wales has been divided since HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996” \o “1996” 1996 into 22 unitary
authorities:

9 HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/County” \o “County”
counties

10 HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/County_borough” \o “County
borough” county boroughs

3 HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City” \o “City” cities 1 –
Cardiff, Swansea and Newport.

For more details and recent history of the political divisions of Wales,
see HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subdivisions_of_Wales” \o
“Subdivisions of Wales” Subdivisions of Wales .

1: There are five cities in total in Wales — in addition to the three
unitary authorities listed above, the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_council” \o “Community council”
communities of Bangor & St. David’s also have the status of a city. St.
Asaph also sometimes claims city status, but the government considers
that its HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_status_in_the_United_Kingdom” \o
“City status in the United Kingdom” city status has lapsed.

Economy

Parts of Wales have been heavily industrialised since the eighteenth
century. Coal, copper, iron, lead, and gold have been mined in Wales,
and slate has been quarried. Ironworks and tinplate works, along with
the coal mines, attracted large numbers of immigrants during the
nineteenth century, particularly to the valleys north of Cardiff. Due to
the poor quality soil, much of Wales is unsuitable for crop-growing, and
livestock farming has traditionally been the focus of agriculture. The
Welsh landscape, protected by three National Parks, and the unique Welsh
culture bring in tourism, which is especially vital for rural areas.

Light engineering is still an important activity in the main population
areas of the South and extreme North-East, but the economy, as elsewhere
in the UK, is now focused on the service sector.

Food

Main article: HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_food” \o
“Welsh food” Welsh food

About 80% of the land surface of Wales is given over to agricultural
use. Very little of this is HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arable_land” \o “Arable land” arable land
though as the vast majority consists of permanent grass or rough
grazing for herd animals. Although both HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cattle” \o “Cattle” beef and HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dairy_cattle” \o “Dairy cattle” dairy
cattle are raised widely, especially in Carmarthenshire and
Pembrokeshire, Wales is more well-known for its HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheep” \o “Sheep” sheep farming, and
thus lamb is the meat traditionally associated with Welsh cooking.

HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_food” \o “Welsh food”
Welsh food is usually made from local ingredients. Some traditional
dishes include HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laverbread” \o
“Laverbread” laverbread (made from HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seaweed” \o “Seaweed” seaweed ),
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bara_Brith” \o “Bara Brith”
bara brith (fruit cake), HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cawl_cennin&action=edit” \o
“Cawl cennin” cawl cennin (leek stew), HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_cake” \o “Welsh cake” Welsh cakes ,
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_rarebit” \o “Welsh
rarebit” Welsh rarebit , and Welsh HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamb” \o “Lamb” lamb . A type of
shellfish, HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cockles” \o
“Cockles” cockles , is often served with breakfast.

Demographics

Demographics of Wales as at the 2001 Census:

Population: 2,903,085, Male: 1,403,782 Female: 1,499,303

Percentage of the population born in:

England: 20.32%

Wales: 75.39%

Scotland: 0.84%

Northern Ireland: 0.27%

Republic of Ireland: 0.44%

Ethnic groups:

White: British: 95.99%

White: Irish: 0.61%

White: other: 1.28%

Mixed: white and black: 0.29%

Mixed: white and Asian: 0.17%

Mixed: other: 0.15%

Asian:

Indian/British Indian: 0.28%

Pakistani/British Pakistani: 0.29%

Bangladeshi/British Bangladeshi: 0.19%

Other Asian: 0.12%

Black: 0.25%

Chinese: 0.40%

Percentage of the British population self-identifying as Welsh: 14.39%
(controversially, there was no question on the Census form asking this —
people had to write this in).

Religion:

Christian: 71.9%

Buddhist: 0.19%

Hindu: 0.19%

Jewish: 0.08%

Muslim: 0.75%

Sikh: 0.07%

Other religion: 0.24%

No religion: 18.53%

Not disclosed: 8.07%

The largest single denomination of Wales is Calvinist HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methodism” \o “Methodism” Methodism ,
which by far is the largest single denomination, followed by the
HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Catholic_Church” \o “Roman
Catholic Church” Roman Catholic Church (Eglwys Catholig Rufeinig) and
the Episcopalian (Anglican) HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_in_Wales” \o “Church in Wales”
Church in Wales (Eglwys yng Nghymru) with 3% of the population each,
and the Congregationalist HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Union_of_Welsh_Independents&a
ction=edit” \o “Union of Welsh Independents” Union of Welsh
Independents (Undeb yr Annibynwyr Cymraeg) and the HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presbyterian_Church_of_Wales” \o
“Presbyterian Church of Wales” Presbyterian Church of Wales (Eglwys
Bresbyteraidd Cymru) with 1% of the population each.

Age structure of the population:

0-4: 167,903

5-7: 108,149

8-9: 77,176

10-14: 195,976

15: 37,951

16-17: 75,234

18-19: 71,519

20-24: 169,493

25-29: 166,348

30-44: 605,962

45-59: 569,676

60-64: 152,924

65-74: 264,191

75-84: 182,202

85-89: 38,977

90+: 19,404

Knowledge of the Welsh language:

Percentage of the population aged 3 or more knowing spoken Welsh only:
4.93%

Percentage of the population aged 3 or more speaking Welsh but not
reading or writing it: 2.83%

Percentage of the population aged 3 or more speaking and reading Welsh
but not writing it: 1.37%

Percentage of the population aged 3 or more speaking, reading, and
writing Welsh: 16.32%

Percentage of the population aged 3 or more with some other skills
combination: 2.98%

Percentage of the population aged 3 or more with no knowledge of Welsh:
71.57%

In HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gwynedd” \o “Gwynedd”
Gwynedd , HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglesey” \o
“Anglesey” Anglesey , HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceredigion” \o “Ceredigion” Ceredigion
and HYPERLINK “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carmarthenshire” \o
“Carmarthenshire” Carmarthenshire , Welsh speakers are in the majority.

Gwynedd has the highest proportion of Welsh speakers, but
Carmarthenshire has the highest number of them in any one principal
area.

According to www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/uk.html
HYPERLINK “http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/uk.html” \o
“http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/uk.html” [2] , 26%
of the population are knowledgeable of HYPERLINK
“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cymraeg” \o “Cymraeg” Cymraeg .

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