Cardiff
Obviously Cardiff is the capital of Wales, but it only achieved that status in 1955, and indeed only became a city in 1905. As this mile post makes clear, it was just a town in 1835. Indeed, in 1800 it was a rather small town, with a population on only about 2000, but over the course of the nineteenth century it became huge! The growth was due to the work of John Crichton-Stuart, Second Marquess of Bute; a Scotsman who owned a big chunk of South Wales, and saw an opportunity to make a lot of money by developing docks in Cardiff to serve the growing coal and steel industries in the valleys to the north. Todays the docks are a shadow of their former glory. though much of the area has now been redeveloped. This image is a good starting point, showing Cardiff bay. At one time this would have been the scene of intense industry, but today a barrage has been built across the entrance to the bay (centre of the photo), and no ships can enter. It is no longer tidal. To the left, you can see ...