Wales

SIZE AND
GEOGRAPHY
Wales is a country that is part of the
United Kingdom. It is west of England,
and east of the Irish Sea and Ireland.
Wales has a coastline which is 1680 miles
long, and the country itself is 20,779 km2
large. The highest mountains in Wales
are in Gwynedd, in the north-west, and
include Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa), which is
the highest peak in Wales at 1085 m
(3,560 ft). There are three National Parks
in Wales: Snowdonia (Welsh: Parc
Cenedlaethol Eryri), Brecon Beacons
(Welsh: Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau
Brycheiniog), and Pembrokeshire Coast.
 POPULATION AND LANGUAGE
Wales is one of the six Celtic nations. The native people of Wales, the
Welsh, have their own culture and traditions. They have their own
Celtic language, Welsh. Although not all Welsh people can speak Welsh,
it is a real living language for about 20% of Welsh people. Nearly all
Welsh people can speak English. Some of them speak only English. The
Welsh language has official status in Wales.
Three million people live in Wales. Most of them live in the southern
and eastern parts of the country. In this area is the capital and largest
city of Wales, Cardiff, and the next largest city, Swansea.
 CUISINE
Laverbread: The star of the dish is seaweed. As anticipated, Welsh cuisine
has a poor and peasant origin, and this dish was born from the need not to
throw anything away, which in the past helped the population a lot.
Cawl: Cawl is a classic Welsh soup. It doesn't have standard ingredients, but
is in fact prepared with seasonal vegetables, with what the land has to offer
every year. There are several variations: with vegetables or with meat,
typically lamb.
Welsh cake: With a round shape, the taste that stands out most is that of
butter, and their origin is typically popular, in the past they were garnished
with dried fruit or raisins, both long-life ingredients, which therefore could
remain for some time in the pantry without going to bad.
FAMOUS LANDMARKS:
Snowdonia park: Snowdonia is a region in north Wales. It is also a
national park of 838 square miles (2,170 square kilometres) in area. It
was the first national park in Wales, set up in 1951. It is the largest
national park in Wales and includes the highest mountain in Wales, and
the largest natural lake in Wales. Before 1951, the word Snowdonia was
used for the much smaller area around Snowdon itself. The which
includes the national park is twice as large.
FAMOUS LANDMARKS:
Brecon Beacons National Park: The Brecon Beacons National Park is
one of three national parks in Wales, and is centred on the Brecon
Beacons range of hills in southern Wales. It includes the Black
Mountain (Welsh: Y Mynydd Du) in the west, Fforest Fawr (translates as
'great forest') and the Brecon Beacons in the centre and the Black
Mountains in the east.
FAMOUS LANDMARKS:
Cardiff Castle: Cardiff Castle, located in the heart of the Welsh capital, is a
proud monument to medieval craftsmen's skills and to Wales' cultural
heritage.
The original core of the castle was built by the Normans in the 11th
century, over the site of a 3rd century Roman fort. In the Victorian era the
building was renovated following the Gothic style and equipping it with
showy and extravagant furnishings: today the structure stands out for its
marble, gilding and spectacular wooden structures.
At Cardiff Castle you can also visit the Norman Keep, the Firing Line
museum (dedicated to Welsh soldiers) and the tunnels used as bomb
shelters during the Second World War.
SPORT
The most popular sport, in which the national team has the most
success, is rugby. Wales also has its own national football team, which
participated in the 1958 World Cup finals, where it was eliminated in
the quarter-finals by Brazil, then champions.
GOVERNMENT
Wales is a constituent nation part of the United Kingdom. Constitutionally, the United
Kingdom is de jure a unitary state with its own sovereign and with the seat of
government at the Palace of Westminster in London. Wales is represented in the House
of Commons by around 40 members out of a total of 646. The Labor Party occupies 29
of these 40 seats, with the remaining seats being held by the Liberal Democrats, Plaid
Cymru and the Conservative Party. A Secretary of State for Wales sits in the Cabinet of
the United Kingdom and is responsible for representing Wales to the court. The current
Secretary of State is Cheryl Gillan in office since May 12, 2010.

A referendum held in Wales and Scotland in 1997 chose to establish local government
for both regions. In Wales, therefore, the devolution process began with the
proclamation of the Government of Wales Act 1998, created by the National Assembly
for Wales (Cynulliad Cenedlaethol Cymru)
FIFA WORLD CUP
The Wales national football team has entered every World Cup
qualifying campaign since 1950, but to date has only qualified
for two finals tournaments, in 1958 and 2022. In 1958, they
reached the quarter-finals before being eliminated by eventual
winners Brazil. In 2022, they finished bottom of Group B behind
England, the United States and Iran.