The Coal Exchange (also known as the Exchange Building) is an historic building in
Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...
, Wales. It is designed in
Renaissance Revival
Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range o ...
style. Built in 1888 as the Coal and Shipping Exchange to be used as a market floor and office building for trading in coal in Cardiff, it later became a hub of the global coal trade. It is situated in
Mount Stuart Square
Mount Stuart Square is a residential and commercial square in Cardiff, Wales. It is located in the Butetown area of the city. Originally developed in the late 1800s as a residential location for nearby dock workers, it quickly became a centre f ...
in
Butetown
Butetown (or ''The Docks'', cy, Tre-biwt) is a district and community in the south of the city of Cardiff, the capital of Wales. It was originally a model housing estate built in the early 19th century by the 2nd Marquess of Bute, for whose t ...
, and was for many years the hub of the city's prosperous shipping industry.
It later became a music venue, with offices remaining in use in the West Wing, before being closed indefinitely in 2013 due to building safety issues. Following a series of proposals to demolish the building, Cardiff Council purchased the Coal Exchange. In 2016 the property was sold to the Liverpool-based hospitality company Signature Living, which began a programme of restoration and conversion of the building into a hotel.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Liverpool-based company Signature Living entered administration leaving the future of the building in limbo. During the summer of 2020, the Coal Exchange Hotel was saved by Cardiff-based company Eden Grove Properties, the company saved 56 jobs and reopened the hotel during September 2020 with no affiliation to the former owners Signature Living. After just two weeks the hotel was forced to close again inline with the firebreak lockdown in Wales to help stop the spread of COVID-19. The hotel will reopen during 2021 and the new owners are in the latter stages of completing the legal documents with the relevant companies to commence work on the rear and underground section of the building with hopes to complete the building towards the end of 2021 start of 2022. Once fully completed the hotel will host 146 bedrooms, an on-site restaurant and bar, spa, gym, learning zone, conference rooms and the Grand Hall wedding venue.
History
Construction and early history
![Coal ships tied up at Cardiff Docks](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Coal_ships_tied_up_at_Cardiff_Docks.jpg)
Before the Coal Exchange was built in Mount Stuart Square, the area was a residential square with a central garden. It was taken over by commerce as the city grew in prosperity. Built to provide a dedicated location for merchants and traders to sell coal, it followed construction of buildings of a similar function in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
and
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
.
[The Cardiff Coal Exchange: Conservation Management Plan]
Edwards, Zoe, Cotswold Archaeology July 2017 Prior to its construction, coal merchants used to chalk up the changing prices of coal on slates outside their offices or struck deals in the local public houses.
It was built and opened in stages, the central trading hall and east block completed first. The trading hall was a large central space around which suites of offices were located.
The London and Provincial Banking Company occupied the majority of the north side.
As Cardiff became the biggest coal port in the world, the building was constructed between 1884 and 1888 by
Edwin Seward
Edwin Seward (1853–1924) was an architect based in Cardiff, Wales.
Biography
Born in Somerset, Seward came to Cardiff aged 16 and studied at the School of Art. He began work as an assistant to architect G. E. Robinson.
Seward was one of th ...
as a base from which to conduct trade negotiations regarding the
coal mines
Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...
of the
South Wales Valleys – most of which was shipped to
Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...
for distribution.
The building played an important role in the industrial Cardiff of the 19th century. Paired Corinthian columns, an oak balcony, and rich wood panelling adorn the trading hall, which was reconstructed by Edwin Seward in 1911.
Following its opening, coal owners, ship owners and their agents met daily on the floor of the trading hall where agreements were made by word of mouth and telephone. During the peak trading hour of midday to one o'clock, the floor might have as many as 200 men gesticulating and shouting. It was estimated that up to 10,000 people would pass in and out of the building each day. At one time the price of the world's coal was determined here.
It was at the Coal Exchange that the first ever
£1,000,000 deal was agreed
in 1904.
["Talks to secure future of Coal Exchange in Cardiff Bay"](_blank)
BBC News, 20 January 2014. Retrieved 27 October 2016. The building interior was lavishly refurbished in 1912 by Edwin Seward, and reopened as the ‘New Exchange Building’. In 1915, an extension was added to the southern section, connected to the trading hall.
Post-war period
Cardiff's reliance on coal made the Bute Docks highly vulnerable to any downturn in the demand for it. With the end of the war the docks went into further decline. The Coal exchange closed in 1958 and coal exports came to an end in 1964. The southern extension was demolished in the 1970s. The building became Grade II*
listed
Listed may refer to:
* Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm
* Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic
* Endangered species in biology
* Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...
in 1975.
[Cardiff Exchange Building, Butetown](_blank)
British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
In 1979 the Coal Exchange was earmarked as a future home of the proposed
Welsh Assembly
The Senedd (; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees certain taxes and scrutinises the Welsh Gove ...
and a heavily reinforced underground carpark was constructed (also envisaged to act as a nuclear shelter)
but the plan for devolution was rejected by the Welsh people in a referendum. In 1983 the building was considered as a headquarters for the
Welsh language
Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language family, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut P ...
television station,
S4C,
though this also failed to take off. The Exchange Hall was used with great regularity during this period as a
filming location
A filming location is a place where some or all of a film or television series is produced, in addition to or instead of using sets constructed on a movie studio backlot or soundstage. In filmmaking, a location is any place where a film crew wil ...
for various parts of the entertainment industry, for example the BBC drama ''Bevan''.
Re-opening and closure
In 1988 the building was re-acquired and subsequently completely refurbished in 2001 to turn it into a major venue. The venue hosted acts such as the
Arctic Monkeys
Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. The group consists of Alex Turner (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Jamie Cook (guitar, keyboards), Nick O'Malley (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Matt Helders (drums, back ...
,
Manic Street Preachers
Manic Street Preachers, also known simply as the Manics, are a Welsh Rock music, rock band formed in Blackwood, Caerphilly, Blackwood in 1986. The band consists of cousins James Dean Bradfield (lead vocals, lead guitar) and Sean Moore (musician ...
,
Ocean Colour Scene
Ocean Colour Scene (often abbreviated to OCS) are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Solihull in 1989. They have had five top 10 albums including a number one in 1997. They have also achieved seventeen top 40 singles and six top 10 sin ...
,
Stereophonics
Stereophonics are a Welsh rock band formed in 1992 in the village of Cwmaman in the Cynon Valley, Wales. The band consists of Kelly Jones (lead vocals, lead guitar, keyboards), Richard Jones (bass guitar, harmonica, backing vocals), Adam Zind ...
,
Van Morrison
Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards.
As a teenager in t ...
and
Biffy Clyro
Biffy Clyro are a Scottish rock band that formed in Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire, composed of Simon Neil (guitar, lead vocals), James Johnston (bass, vocals), and Ben Johnston (drums, vocals). Currently signed to 14th Floor Records, they have r ...
.
The Coal Exchange closed on 7 August 2013 as a result of building safety issues. With the subsequent liquidation of the company which owned it in 2014, ownership of the Coal Exchange passed to the Crown Estate. It then became the subject of efforts to preserve the historic fabric of the building by the not-for-profit organisation Save the Coal Exchange Limited. In February 2015, Welsh Government Economy Minister Edwina Hart commissioned a feasibility study into future re-use of the building. In May 2015 it was confirmed that the exchange would be used for filming of the remake of ''
The Crow
The Crow is a supernatural superhero comic book series created by James O'Barr revolving around the titular character of the same name. The series, which was originally created by O'Barr as a means of dealing with the death of his fiancée at t ...
''. In 2016, filmmaker
Nick Broomfield
Nicholas Broomfield (born 1948) is an English documentary film director. His self-reflective style has been regarded as influential to many later filmmakers. In the early 21st century, he began to use non-actors in scripted works, which he cal ...
visited the building as part of his documentary ''Going Going Gone'', which investigated the deterioration and heritage of the Coal Exchange.
The Exchange Hotel
In 2016 it was announced that the building was to be fully refurbished as a hotel by private company Signature Living, with a museum detailing the history of the building and of the Cardiff Docks.
The proposal received some opposition, including from the
Victorian Society
The Victorian Society is a UK amenity society and membership organisation that campaigns to preserve and promote interest in Victorian and Edwardian architecture and heritage built between 1837 and 1914 in England and Wales. It is a registered ...
and MP
Stephen Doughty
Stephen John Doughty (born 15 April 1980) is a Welsh Labour and Co-operative Party politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Cardiff South and Penarth since 2012. He has been the Shadow Minister for Africa and a Shadow Mi ...
. Cardiff council granted planning permission in July 2016. In June 2017, the BBC broadcast a documentary entitled ''Saving The Coal Exchange'', which looked at the development of the building into a hotel. As part of the phased restoration programme, rooms were opened as works were completed. The first 30 rooms of the hotel opened in May 2017. This was followed by a further 30 rooms in both June and September 2017, bringing the total to 50.
The Coal Exchange Hotel
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Liverpool-based company Signature Living entered administration leaving the future of the building in limbo, During the summer of 2021, the Coal Exchange Hotel was saved by Cardiff-based company Eden Grove Properties, the company saved 56 jobs and reopened the hotel during September 2020 with no affiliation to the former owners Signature Living. After just two weeks the hotel was forced to close again inline with the firebreak lockdown in Wales to help stop the spread of COVID-19. The hotel will reopen during 2021 and the new owners are in the latter stages of completing the legal documents with the relevant companies to commence work on the rear and underground section of the building with hopes to complete the building towards the end of 2021 start of 2022. Once fully completed the hotel will host 146 bedrooms, an on-site restaurant and bar, spa, gym, learning zone, conference rooms and the Grand Hall wedding venue.
Design
![The clock, Coal Exchange, Cardiff](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1d/The_clock%2C_Coal_Exchange%2C_Cardiff.jpg)
The building is constructed largely in limestone, in the French Renaissance style. The exterior is made of pale Corsham stone on three sides, with yellow brick on the western elevation. The roof is slate, topped with multiple chimneys mainly in yellow brick. Its style was derived from French Renaissance models. The main entrance front faces south. The building is made up of three storeys and basement, plus attic storeys in the central pedimented 'frontispiece', with a hipped pavilion roof. The entrance is guarded by a pair of fluted
Corinthian column
The Corinthian order (Greek: Κορινθιακός ρυθμός, Latin: ''Ordo Corinthius'') is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order ...
s, and topped by a floral relief in a triangular pediment surmounted by Royal Arms. On the north east corner, steps lead up to a projecting porch which housed Barclays Bank, resident here since building opened.
The interior retains an entrance hall with a Jacobethan style moulded plaster ceiling, panelled walls, and woodblock and inlay floor. At the rear are two lions on high plinths supporting clock faces showing times of Cardiff high tides. The central Coal and Shipping Hall dominates the building, surrounded by galleried tiers, in Jacobethan style dark wood. A false ceiling has reduced the height to 2 storeys, hiding a centrally glazed roof.
Access
Coal Exchange is served by
Cardiff Bay railway station
, symbol_location = gb
, symbol = rail
, image = Cardiff Bay Railway Station (geograph 6004274).jpg
, caption = Cardiff Bay railway station (May 2018)
, borough = Cardiff Bay, Cardiff
, country = Wales
, coordinates =
, grid_name = Grid ...
and
Cardiff Bus
Cardiff Bus ( cy, Bws Caerdydd) is the dominant operator of bus services in Cardiff, Wales and the surrounding area, including Barry and Penarth. The company is wholly owned by Cardiff Council and is one of the few municipal bus companies to r ...
service 7, 8, 35, and
Baycar
Baycar (also styled as baycar) is a bus service in Cardiff, serving the city centre and Cardiff Bay.
The service forms part of the wider Cardiff Bus network, but is unique in that the entire Baycar bus system includes its own branded vehicle ...
.
See also
*
List of cultural venues in Cardiff
*
Mining in Wales
Mining in Wales provided a significant source of income to the economy of Wales throughout the nineteenth century and early twentieth century. It was key to the Industrial Revolution.
Wales was famous for its coal mining, in the Rhondda Valley, t ...
*
Music of Cardiff
The music of Cardiff has been dominated mainly by rock music since the early 1990s with later trends developing towards more extreme styles of the genre such as heavy metal and metalcore music. It, along with the nearby music scene in Newpor ...
*
South Wales Coalfield
The South Wales Coalfield ( cy, Maes glo De Cymru) extends across Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea, Neath Port Talbot, Bridgend, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Merthyr Tydfil, Caerphilly, Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen. It is rich in coal deposits, espec ...
References
External links
Coal Exchange HotelArchived website of the former arts venue
{{Economy and Industry of Cardiff
Grade II* listed buildings in Cardiff
Edwin Seward buildings
Economy of Cardiff
History of Cardiff
Butetown
Hotels in Cardiff
Hotels established in 2017
Coal industry