Clwyd
Clwyd | |
---|---|
Area | |
• 2003 | 2,910 km2 Ranked 4th |
Population | |
• 2007 | 491,100 Ranked 2nd |
History | |
• Created | 1974 |
• Abolished | 1996 |
• Succeeded by | Flintshire Wrexham County Borough Denbighshire Parts of Conwy County Borough Parts of Powys |
Status | Non-metropolitan county (1974–1996) Preserved county (1996–) |
Government | Clwyd County Council |
• HQ | Shire Hall, Mold |
Clwyd (/ˈkluːɪd/ KLOO-id, Welsh: [ˈklʊɨd])[1] is a preserved county of Wales, situated in the north-east corner of the country; it is named after the River Clwyd, which runs through the area. To the north lies the Irish Sea, with the English ceremonial counties of Cheshire to the east and Shropshire to the south-east. Powys and Gwynedd lie to the south and west respectively. Clwyd also shares a maritime boundary with Merseyside along the River Dee. Between 1974 and 1996, a slightly different area had a county council, with local government functions shared with six district councils. In 1996, Clwyd was abolished, and the new principal areas of Conwy County Borough, Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham County Borough were created; under this reorganisation, "Clwyd" became a preserved county, with the name being retained for certain ceremonial functions.
This area of north-eastern Wales has been settled since prehistoric times; the
Traditionally, agriculture was the mainstay of the economy of this part of Wales, but with the Industrial Revolution, the North Wales Coalfield was developed and parts of eastern Clwyd around the Dee estuary and Wrexham became industrialised. The advent of the railway running from Chester along the North Wales coast in the mid-19th century made it easy for urban dwellers from Lancashire and Cheshire to visit the seaside towns of North Wales.
History
North Wales has had human settlements since prehistoric times. By the time the Romans reached Britain, the area that is now Clwyd was occupied by the
The Normans conquest of England at first had little effect on North Wales. This was to change as the city of
Although the Industrial Revolution did not much affect the rural parts of the area, there was considerable industrial activity in the North Wales Coalfield, particularly around Wrexham.[5] The Bersham Ironworks at Bersham, in the same area, was at the forefront of technological advances and was most famous for being the original working site of the industrialist John Wilkinson who invented new processes for boring cannons.[6] The Williams-Wynn family of Wynnstay had become rich after the dissolution of the monasteries and owned vast estates in Clwyd with resources including lead, tin and copper as well as corn and timber.[7]
Geography
Clwyd is in the northeastern corner of Wales. It is bounded by the Irish Sea to the north, the Welsh preserved counties of Gwynedd to the west and Powys to the south, and the English ceremonial counties of Shropshire and Cheshire to the southeast and east respectively; much of the eastern boundary follows the course of the River Dee and its estuary. Other large rivers in the area include the River Alyn, a tributary of the Dee, the River Clwyd and the River Conwy in the west. The northern coastal strip is heavily developed for tourism and has many resorts, including Llandudno, Colwyn Bay, Colwyn, Abergele, Rhyl and Prestatyn. In the northeast lies Deeside, the coastal plain beside the Dee estuary, and this part of Clwyd is heavily developed for industry. The area around Wrexham and the commuter settlements close to Chester are also heavily built up.[8]
To the west of this is a ridge of mountains with a steep
Since the 2003 boundary changes, its coastline has extended from the Dee Estuary in Flintshire through to Llanfairfechan. Clwyd consists of the whole of the historic county of Flintshire, and most of Denbighshire. Since 2003 it has also included the former district of Aberconwy, which lies in the historic county of Caernarfonshire, and also the former Edeyrnion Rural District in the historic county of Merionethshire.[10]
Economy
The land uses of any region depend on the underlying geology which influences the soil types. In the Clwydian Range, lead and
Agriculture, largely based on livestock, has traditionally been the main occupation in the central and western parts. There are a mix of large and small farm businesses, and a thriving dairy sector in the Vale of Clwyd.[15] Many of the towns have livestock markets and the farming industry supports farm machinery merchants, vets, feed merchants, contractors and all the ancillary trades connected with agriculture.[7] With their incomes on the decline, farmers have found opportunities in tourism, rural crafts, specialist food shops, farmers' markets and value-added food products.[16]
The upland areas with their sheep farms and small, stone-walled fields are attractive to visitors, and redundant farm buildings are often converted to self-catering accommodation while the farmhouses themselves supply bed-and-breakfast opportunities. The arrival of the railway on the coast in the mid-nineteenth century opened up travel from Merseyside and caused a boom in tourism, with guesthouses in seaside towns offering board and lodging for the urban visitors. More recently caravan sites and holiday villages have blossomed and there has been an increase in the ownership of "second homes".[17]
Various initiatives designed to boost the economy of North Wales are being attempted in 2016. These include the Northern Gateway project on the former
Administrative history
The Local Government Commission for Wales set up in 1958 was the first to recommend wholesale amalgamation of the
In 1967, after a change of government, the
This revised proposal was continued in a further white paper in March 1970, although this proposed that the councils be unitary authorities which would have no district councils below them. The incoming Conservative government resurrected two-tier local government in a consultative document published in February 1971, again with the same upper-tier boundaries.[22] Some minor changes having been made to the existing boundaries due to special local factors, the Local Government Act 1972 duly created Clwyd as a merger of Flintshire with most of Denbighshire, along with the Edeyrnion Rural District from Merionethshire.[23] The 1970 white paper had introduced the name of Clwyd by reference to the River Clwyd and the Clwydian range of hills; Clwyd was the only new Welsh county which did not take its name from an ancient kingdom.[24]
For second-tier local government purposes, Clwyd was divided into six districts:
Clwyd County Council and its districts were abolished by the
Clwyd County Council and its six districts ceased operations at midnight on 1 April 1996, and local government was immediately transferred to the new principal areas of Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire and
The Preserved County of Clwyd came into effect on the same day that Clwyd County Council was abolished. The preserved county was almost identical to the 1974–96 county, but had a few minor changes in line with changes to local government boundaries, the communities of Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant, Llansilin and Llangedwyn being transferred from Clwyd to Powys.[29]
2003 boundary review
In 2003, the borders of Clwyd were changed to cover the remainder of Conwy (which had previously been part of Gwynedd), which was part of a Wales-wide re-organisation of the preserved counties, so that boundaries of the preserved counties would contain whole current principal areas only.[10]
This led to some areas, such as the Aberconwy district, moving to a preserved county it had never been administered by in the past, and therefore these moves went generally unreported due to the preserved county's limited status. The Boundary Commission proceeded to retain the eight preserved counties, and modified their borders in 2003 to match with the incumbent principal area boundaries. The 2003 arrangement brings towns such as Llandudno and Conwy into the preserved county of Clwyd.[10]
Legacy
Some local organisations still make use of the word "Clwyd" in their name, often because their membership covers a wider area than their present unitary authority. These organisations include the Theatr Clwyd, which is based in Mold and is the largest producing arts centre in Wales. It provides young people the opportunity to get involved in drama. The Clwyd Family History Society can help its members to access many historical documents concerning northeastern Wales,[30] and the Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust is one of four archaeological trusts covering the whole of Wales.[31] The Clwyd County Darts Association organises tournaments and takes part in inter-county matches.[32] The Clwyd East Football League was created in 2011 to represent the North East Wales area at the fifth tier of Welsh Football. It has subsequently changed its name to the North East Wales Football League.[33] The Clwyd Pension Fund is the Local Government pension scheme inherited from Clwyd County Council, now providing pension schemes for Wrexham, Flintshire and Denbighshire unitary authorities and former districts.[34]
The position of Lord Lieutenant of Clwyd also continues as the Monarch's personal representative, as with the other seven preserved counties of Wales. The current Lord Lieutenant is Henry George Fetherstonhaugh, who was appointed in 2013.[35]
Landmarks
The Pontcysyllte Aqueduct was built by Thomas Telford in 1805 and is the largest aqueduct in the United Kingdom; it carries the Llangollen Canal over the River Dee and is a World Heritage Site, being considered a masterpiece of civil engineering.[36] The Clwydian Range and Dee Valley constitute an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, one of just five in the whole of Wales.[37] Denbigh, Colwyn and Ruthin are historic towns and Llangollen hosts the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in July each year.[38]
The Gop is a Neolithic mound, the second largest such structure in Britain being only superseded by Silbury Hill. Caer Drewyn is one of many Iron Age hill forts in Clwyd that attest to human occupation of this area for millennia. Maen Achwyfan Cross is a carved 10th century wheel cross depicting Celtic and Viking symbols.[38] The castles of Rhuddlan and Flint were built by the Normans during their invasion of North Wales and Castell Dinas Brân was a Welsh fortress of the same period. St Asaph Cathedral also dates from the thirteenth century as does the medieval Cistercian abbey of Valle Crucis.[38]
Bodnant Garden is a formal garden in a landscaped setting,[39] and Erddig Hall is a stately home, both owned by the National Trust. Other fine country houses in Clwyd include Trevor Hall and Faenol Fawr, Bodelwyddan, while Plas Mawr and Aberconwy House are historic town houses in Conwy.[40] Also in Conwy is the Conwy Suspension Bridge, one of the first such bridges in the world.[41]
Transport
The
There are no motorways in Clwyd. The
See also
- List of Lord Lieutenants of Clwyd
- List of High Sheriffs of Clwyd
- List of places in Denbighshire
- List of places in Flintshire
- List of places in Conwy County Borough
- List of places in Wrexham County Borough
References
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- ISBN 0-14-014581-8.
- ^ a b Marsh, Terry. "Pathfinder Guide: North Wales and Snowdonia". Pathfinder Guides. Crimson Publishing Ltd. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ^ "Wales: the first industrial nation of the World". Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales. 5 October 2008. Archived from the original on 3 October 2011. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ISBN 978-1-4093-5902-9.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-241-97024-9.
- ^ ISBN 0-540-05278-7.
- ^ Statistics.gov.uk Archived 2011-07-28 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c The Preserved Counties (Amendment to Boundaries) (Wales) Order 2003 Retrieved on 19 May 2009
- ^ "Geodiversity". Clwydian Range and Dee Valley. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ^ "'The Calch' - Minera Limeworks". MineraHistory.com. Archived from the original on 16 March 2010. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ^ The North Wales Coalfield, Coalmining History Research Centre, 1953, archived from the original on 4 March 2016, retrieved 20 April 2016
- ^ "Flintshire". Investing in Flintshire. Flintshire County Council. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ^ "Clwyd". NFU Cymru. 5 December 2014. Archived from the original on 20 March 2016. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
- ISBN 978-1-317-12709-3.
- ISBN 978-0-08-097040-0.
- ^ "Six projects to kick-start the North Wales economy in 2016". Daily Post. 1 January 2016. Archived from the original on 7 May 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ Bruce Wood, "The Process of Local Government Reform 1966–74", George Allen & Unwin Ltd, 1976, p. 117-8.
- ^ "Local Government in Wales", Cmnd. 3340, July 1967.
- ^ Bruce Wood, "The Process of Local Government Reform 1966–74", George Allen & Unwin Ltd, 1976, p. 123.
- ^ Bruce Wood, "The Process of Local Government Reform 1966–74", George Allen & Unwin Ltd, 1976, p. 125-6.
- ^ a b Bruce Wood, "The Process of Local Government Reform 1966–74", George Allen & Unwin Ltd, 1976, p. 127-130.
- ^ "Ancient Welsh names restored in council titles". The Times. 19 December 1972.
- ^ "Local Government (Wales) Act 1994". The National Archives. legislation,gov.uk. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ "Clwyd coat of arms". Heraldry of the World. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ^ "Clwyd: County history". High Sheriff's Association of England and Wales. 2010. Archived from the original on 5 May 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ "Denbighshire". Genuki. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
- ^ "Review of Preserved County Boundaries Final Proposals". Local Government Boundary Commission for Wales. Archived from the original on 7 May 2016. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
- ^ "Clwyd Family History Society". Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ^ "Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust". Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ^ "Clwyd County Darts Association". Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ^ "North East Wales Football League". Pitchero. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
- ^ "Clwyd Pension Fund". Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ^ "Lord Lieutenant for County Clwyd". Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street. 17 January 2013. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ^ "Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal". UNESCO. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ "Clwydian Range". North East Wales. Archived from the original on 19 April 2014. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ a b c "Attractions in Clwyd". Britain Express. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ "Bodnant Garden". National Trust. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ "Aberconwy House". National Trust. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ "Conwy Suspension Bridge". National Trust. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ^ "Crewe to Holyhead". North Wales Coast Railway. 2012. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
- ^ Sallery, Dave (2014). "The Conwy Valley Line". North Wales Coast Railway. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
- ISBN 978-0-7495-7743-8.
- ^ "Discover the towns of Wales". Arriva Wales. Arriva Buses Wales. Retrieved 22 April 2016.