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Guildhall, Swansea
The Guildhall () is one of the main office buildings of the City and County of Swansea Council. The Guildhall complex, which includes the City Hall, Brangwyn Hall (concert hall) and the County Law Courts for Swansea, is a Grade I listed building. History The building was commissioned to replace the old Swansea Guildhall. The site selected for the building had previously formed part of Victoria Park. The foundation stone for the building was laid on 4 May 1932. The building was designed by Sir Percy Thomas in the neoclassical style (but perhaps more accurately described as Stripped Classicism) and was officially opened by The Duke of Kent on 23 October 1934. The design envisaged a building finished in white Portland stone, and included a art deco clock-tower, making it a landmark. The clock-tower featured the prow of a Viking longship, jutting out on each side as a reminder of Sweyn Forkbeard, thought to be the founder of Swansea. The council chamber used panelling made of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swansea
Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea (). The city is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, twenty-eighth largest in the United Kingdom. Located along Swansea Bay in south-west Wales, with the principal area covering the Gower Peninsula, it is part of the Swansea Bay (region), Swansea Bay region and part of the Historic counties of Wales, historic county of Glamorgan and the ancient Welsh commote of Gŵyr. The principal area is the second most List of Welsh principal areas by population, populous local authority area in Wales, with an estimated population of in . Swansea, along with Neath and Port Talbot, forms the Swansea urban area, with a population of 300,352 in 2011. It is also part of the Swansea Bay City Region. During the 19th-century industrial heyday, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller islands. It has a total area of , making it the list of countries and dependencies by area, sixth-largest country in the world and the largest in Oceania. Australia is the world's flattest and driest inhabited continent. It is a megadiverse countries, megadiverse country, and its size gives it a wide variety of landscapes and Climate of Australia, climates including deserts of Australia, deserts in the Outback, interior and forests of Australia, tropical rainforests along the Eastern states of Australia, coast. The ancestors of Aboriginal Australians began arriving from south-east Asia 50,000 to 65,000 years ago, during the Last Glacial Period, last glacial period. By the time of British settlement, Aboriginal Australians spoke 250 distinct l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swansea Crown Court
Swansea Crown Court is a Crown Court venue which deals with criminal cases at St Helen's Road in Swansea, Wales. History Until the late 1980s, judicial hearings in Swansea were held in the west wing of Swansea Guildhall. However, as the number of court cases in southwest Wales grew, it became necessary to commission a dedicated courthouse for criminal matters. The site chosen, which was close to the guildhall but on the opposite side of St Helen's Road, had been occupied by an old tramway depot. The new building was designed by the Welsh architect Sir Alex Gordon in the neoclassical style, built in concrete at a cost of £5.2 million, and was completed in 1988. The design involved a symmetrical main frontage of eleven bays facing onto St Helen's Road. The central bay featured a wide opening on the ground floor and a prominent bipartite oriel window An oriel window is a form of bay window which protrudes from the main wall of a building but does not reach to the ground. Supp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Courts Act 1971
The Courts Act 1971The citation of this act by this short title is authorised bsection 59(1)of this act. (c. 23) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, the purpose of which was to reform and modernise the courts system of England and Wales, as well as effectively separating the business of the criminal and civil courts. It established the Crown Court, introduced the posts of circuit judge and recorder, and abolished various local courts across the country. Many of its provisions have since been repealed by the Senior Courts Act 1981, but the essential structure described in the act is still in place. Provisions The first part of the act concerns the new Crown Court. It is established as part of the Supreme Court of Judicature, replacing courts of assize and quarter sessions. The appellate jurisdiction of these courts is transferred, and the new court given exclusive jurisdiction in "trial on indictment". It is described as a "superior court of record" for Engl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Assizes
The assizes (), or courts of assize, were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes exercised both Civil law (common law), civil and English criminal law, criminal jurisdiction, though most of their work was on the criminal side. The assizes heard the most serious cases, most notably those subject to capital punishment or, later, life imprisonment. Other serious cases were dealt with by the quarter sessions (local county courts held four times per year), while the more minor offences were dealt with summarily by justice of the peace, justices of the peace in petty sessions (also known as magistrates' court (England and Wales), magistrates' courts). The word ''assize'' refers to the sittings or sessions (Old French ''assises'') of the judges, known as "justices of assize", who were judges who travelled across the seven circu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charles, Prince Of Wales
Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and became heir apparent when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, acceded to the throne in 1952. He was created Prince of Wales in 1958 and his investiture was held in 1969. He was educated at Cheam School and Gordonstoun, and later spent six months at the Timbertop campus of Geelong Grammar School in Victoria, Australia. After completing a history degree from the University of Cambridge, Charles served in the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy from 1971 to 1976. In 1981, he married Lady Diana Spencer. They had two sons, William and Harry. After years of estrangement, Charles and Diana divorced in 1996, after they had each engaged in well-publicised extramarital affairs. Diana died as a result of injuries sustained in a car crash t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising all resources in pursuit of total war. Tanks in World War II, Tanks and Air warfare of World War II, aircraft played major roles, enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, first and only nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II is the List of wars by death toll, deadliest conflict in history, causing World War II casualties, the death of 70 to 85 million people, more than half of whom were civilians. Millions died in genocides, including the Holocaust, and by massacres, starvation, and disease. After the Allied victory, Allied-occupied Germany, Germany, Allied-occupied Austria, Austria, Occupation of Japan, Japan, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swansea Blitz
The Swansea Blitz was the The Blitz, heavy and sustained bombing of Swansea by the Nazi Germany, German ''Luftwaffe'' from 19 to 21 February 1941. A total of 230 people were killed and 397 were injured. Swansea was selected by the Germans as a legitimate strategic target due to its importance as a port and Swansea Docks, docks and the oil refinery just beyond, and its destruction was key to Nazi German war efforts as part of their Strategic bombing during World War II, strategic bombing campaign aimed at crippling coal export and demoralizing civilians and emergency services. Bombing raids First raid, June 1940 The first air raid on Swansea commenced at 3.30 am on 27 June 1940. An initial marker flare was dropped by a ''Luftwaffe'' plane, and the following bombers dropped high explosives to the east of the city centre in the Danygraig residential area. The raid was relatively light, with no casualties reported to the ARP controllers. A number of unexploded bombs were discovere ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Institute Of British Architects
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three supplemental charters and a new charter granted in 1971. Founded as the Institute of British Architects in London in 1834, the RIBA retains a central London headquarters at 66 Portland Place as well as a network of regional offices. Its members played a leading part in promotion of architectural education in the United Kingdom; the RIBA Library, also established in 1834, is one of the three largest architectural libraries in the world and the largest in Europe. The RIBA also played a prominent role in the development of UK architects' registration bodies. The institute administers some of the oldest architectural awards in the world, including RIBA President's Medals Students Award, the Royal Gold Medal, and the Stirling Prize. It also man ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Grenfell
David Rhys Grenfell, (16 June 1881 – 21 November 1968), sometimes known as Dai Grenfell, was a Welsh Member of Parliament. He represented the Gower constituency for the Labour Party from 1922 to 1959. Early life Grenfell was born on 16 June 1881 at Penyrheol, Gorseinon, Swansea, one of ten children of William Grenfell (a native of Blaenavon, Monmouthshire) and his wife, Ann, Hopkins (of Aberavon). His grandfather, John Grenfell, settled in Blaenavon where he became a coal miner, having been born in Sancreed, Cornwall. Grenfell was educated at Penyrheol Board Elementary School until 1893, when, at the age of 12, he was forced to start working as a coal miner underground himself. While working he attended night school to study mining, geology and mathematics; and in 1903 he went to Nova Scotia, where he worked with people of various nationalities, which help foster his love of learning languages. While in Canada he passed his Under Managers Certificate; and in 1905 he ret ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Percy Morris
Percy Morris (6 October 1893 – 7 March 1967) was a British railway clerk, trade unionist and politician who became Mayor of Swansea and represented the town in Parliament. He specialised in railway issues in Parliament, and after being defeated for re-election, he served on public boards in the field of transport and social security. Railway clerk Morris was born in Swansea, one of ten children of Thomas, an Engineman at the local Copper Works and his wife Emma. He attended Manselton Elementary School followed by Dynevor Secondary School. On leaving school in 1908 he joined the administrative staff of the Great Western Railway."Who Was Who", A & C Black. He joined the Railway Clerks' Association of Great Britain and Ireland and became an active trade unionist. While he was still in his teens, he became involved in the political Labour movement and was said to be "in much demand" as a public speaker."Ald. Percy Morris" (obituary), ''The Times'', 8 March 1967, p. 14. He beca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Williams (Swansea East MP)
David Williams (8 September 1865 – 22 January 1941) was a Welsh Labour Party politician. The second son of David and Mary Williams, his father worked at the local Kilvey Copper Works. Williams received little education before entering service in 1877 as a pageboy for the Genfell family of Kilvey, Swansea, owners of the copper works. By the age of 16, he was working in the copper works, but was dismissed after leading a strike. He then became an apprentice boilermaker, while attending evening classes. In 1889, he married Elizabeth Colwill, and the couple had five children. Williams was involved in trade union activities and Labour politics from a young age. In 1898, he became the first Independent Labour Party councillor elected to Swansea Town Council, becoming an alderman in 1904 and was mayor of Swansea in 1912–1913. He received the freedom of Swansea in 1924. He was the first chairman of the Swansea Co-operative Society when it was formed in 1900. He unsucc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
