In olden times the district now called Glamorgan was part of an independent state. To the people who lived here at that period it was known as Essyllwg, and these people were called Essyllwyr. When the Romans came into this part of the country they turned that name into a Roman form, and called it Siluria. The people were called Silures. Another name for this Welsh state was Gwent, which, in later times, was used only for that portion of the ancient state now known as Monmouthshire. Gwent and Essyllwg both mean the same thing, "Fair " or " Beautiful." So you see that the people who lived here in those days were proud of their home-land, and thought so much of it that they even called it " The Beautiful Country." In the sixth century, that is about fourteen hundred years ago, a prince of this state was named Morgan. He it was who changed the name of the district. Instead of calling the whole state Gwent, he said that it should be called Morganwg. He also said that the eastern portion of his lands should still be called Gwent, while the western part was to be known as Gwlad Morgan The Land of Morgan. From Gwlad Morgan the present name Glamorgan comes. The old state, Gwent or Morganwg, was much larger than the present county. It included the whole of the Glamorgan of to-day (except the district lying between the River Nedd and the Llwchwr), the whole of the present Monmouthshire, and portions of the counties of Brecon, Radnor, Hereford, and Shropshire. Its area remained much the same until the eleventh century, when the Normans separated the Lordship of Glamorgan, as it was then called, from Gwent. Still the portion lying between the Nedd and the Llwchwr was not included. This remained as the Lordship of Gower until the reign of Henry VIII., when the whole of the Principality of Wales was divided into counties. The new county then formed took in the Lordships of Glamorgan and Gower, and the boundaries fixed then, are those which include the county at the present day. On the east and west two rivers mark the boundaries of the county. The Rhymney, on the east, separates it from Monmouthshire, and the Llwchwr, or Loughor, on the west, divides it from Carmarthenshire. On the north are the counties of Brecon and Carmarthen, while its southern and south-western borders are washed by the Bristol Channel. The county has an area of about 792 square miles, or 516,959 acres, and its circumference measures about 140 miles. That is, a rope that would go right round Glamorgan, would, if stretched straight out, reach from Cardiff to Leicester, or from the Point of Ayre, in North Wales, to Breaksea Point on our coast. The county measures in length from the Rhymney River to Worm's Head a distance of 52 miles. GLAMORGANSHIRE varies much in the nature of its surface in different parts. A traveller taken suddenly from one district to another, as from the south to the north, would hardly believe that he was still in the same county. The appearance of the scenery is different, the soil is of another character, and the very wild flowers and ferns are not alike. The county is well watered, numerous streams and rivers running along its many valleys. Thousands of years ago the surface of the Glamorgan was, roughly speaking, composed of two tablelands, a high one in the north, and the other, somewhat lower, extending across the south. Here and there, some land would rise above the rest. This now remains as the highest peaks of our mountain ranges. An irregular line drawn westward from a short distance north of Cardiff to Loughor on the western boundary would show where the one tableland ended, and the other began. The northern part rose in places to nearly 2,000 feet above the sea level and sloped down until the line mentioned was reached. Here it dropped suddenly to the southern plain which varied in height from the sea level to about 300 feet above it. Beyond these again was a tract of land, now covered by the sea forming the-Bristol Channel, through which the Severn flowed to the sea by means of an estuary much further west than it now stands. The Severn and the sea carved away this land and in course of time the channel was formed. The rivers flowing south to join the Severn made their mark upon the land and carved out the numerous valleys that cut into the northern part of the country. When the sea rushed in to form the Bristol Channel it flowed into a part which was below its level and so formed the Swansea Bay. This bay separates the peninsula of Gower from what is called the Vale of Glamorgan. That much of the channel was once land is proved by the remains of forests seen under the water on some parts of its shores. What was high ground in this sea-covered land are now the islands seen in the channel, as the Steep and the Flat Holmes. Pieces of the cliffs remain in the sea as dangerous rocks, such as those found off Worm's Head in Gower, the Tusker Rock off the mouth of the Ogwr (Ogmore), and the Wolves off Lavernock Point. Sully and Barry Islands were also formed by the sea eating away the softer and lower lying rocks between them and the mainland. The many sandbanks found in the channel are also remains of the land now covered by water. The two plainly marked divisions of the land - the mountainous portion in the north, and the undulating tableland in the south, were known to the old inhabitants of the county as Blaenau and Bro. The Blaenau, east of the Nedd, they called Blaenau Morganwg, and that west of the Nedd as Blaenau Gwyr. Blaenau Gwyr was also sometimes termed Tir, or the Land of, Gwj T r. Bro Morganwg is still referred to as the Vale, and we often hear the Welsh inhabitants speaking of " Y Fro." The Fro portion of Gwyr or Gower is that part of the west of the county contained within the Peninsula of Gower as known to us. The county may also be divided into three groups of river basins, each group being contained within three distinct mountain systems. The chief mountain ranges are spurs running in a general southerly direction from the Black Mountains, which lie without the border in Brecknockshire. From Craig-y-Llyn these spurs go to the south-east and the south-west. The angle thus formed contains the mountains of Mid-Glamorgan. The mountains running to the south-east form the watersheds of the first group of river basins, those of the Rhymney, Taff and Ely. The central mountain group contains the land drained by the second group of rivers, the Ewenny, Ogmore or Ogwr, and Afan, and also the basins of the small streams Barry, Thaw or Daw, and Hodnant, which drain the Vale. The third group of river basins lies within the mountains running to the south-west. These are the basins of the Nedd, Tavve and Llwchwr. - 17 months ago

Cardiff International Arena / Arena Rhyngwladol Caerdydd in Cardiff is the top-quality inside concert domain for featuring, feasting and an convening installation in Cardiff for the whole of the South West. The stadium is a euphony locale for performing artists not only from the UK but from across the Cosmos. The Cardiff International Arena (CIA) is an exhibition centre that caters events facility situated in the heart of Cardiff, Cymru Wales, in Great Britain. The scene of action bears a large number of occasion expanses; the biggest constituting the Main Arena. The primary domain at the CIA offers 4500 square meter of exhibition space. Cardiff arena seating plan caters 30 extra arenas including a group discussion entourage (groupings of capable admitting 460) and executive council chambers.   Getting to the Cardiff International Arena Cardiff Arena can be reached from the east on M4 leaving at Junction 29 and following M(48) signed posted Cardiff S & E and further following the signs. CIA is easily accessible by road, from Cardiff International Airport and within only 2 hours of London by train. It is approximately 10 minutes from the Cardiff Coach and railway station. Cardiff Arena is situated approximately 20 minutes drive from the Cardiff International Airport. Address: Cardiff International Arena, Mary Ann Street, Cardiff, Wales CF10 2EQ   Contact: Telephone: 029 2022 4488   Tickets: Box Office 029 2022 4488 - 17 months ago