The Vale of Glamorgan, locally referred to as The Vale, is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It borders Bridgend County Borough to the west, Cardiff to the east, Rhondda Cynon Taf to the north, and the Bristol Channel to the south. With an economy based largely on agriculture and chemicals, it is the southernmost unitary authority in Wales. Attractions include Barry Island Pleasure Park, the Barry Tourist Railway, Medieval wall paintings in St Cadoc's Church, Llancarfan, Porthkerry Park, St Donat's Castle, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park and Cosmeston Medieval Village. The largest town is Barry. Other towns include Penarth, Llantwit Major, and Cowbridge. There are many villages in the county borough.
Until 1974, Glamorgan, or sometimes Glamorganshire, was an administrative county in the south of Wales, and later classed as one of the thirteen historic counties of Wales. Originally an early medieval petty kingdom of varying boundaries known in Welsh as Morgannwg, which was then invaded and taken over by the Normans as the Lordship of Glamorgan. The area that became known as Glamorgan was both a rural, pastoral area, and a conflict point between the Norman lords and the Welsh princes. It was defined by a large concentration of castles.
The Bristol Channel is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales and South West England. It extends from the smaller Severn Estuary of the River Severn to the North Atlantic Ocean. It takes its name from the English city and port of Bristol.
Penarth is a town and community in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) south of Cardiff city centre on the west shore of the Severn Estuary at the southern end of Cardiff Bay.
Llantwit Major is a town and community in Wales on the Bristol Channel coast. It is one of four towns in the Vale of Glamorgan, with the third largest population after Barry and Penarth, and ahead of Cowbridge. It is 4+1⁄2 miles (7.2 km) from Cowbridge, 9 miles (14 km) from Bridgend, 10 miles (16 km) from Barry, and 15 miles (24 km) from Cardiff. It had a population of 9,530 in 2021.
Breaksea Point is a promontory at the eastern edge of Gileston's Limpert Bay in the Vale of Glamorgan on the south coast of Wales. Breaksea Point is claimed as the southernmost point of mainland Wales, although that is also claimed of nearby Rhoose Point and the Vale of Glamorgan Council have placed a fixed notice to that effect. Almost 20 km to the east, the Welsh island of Flat Holm is slightly further south in latitude.
Rhoose is a village and community near the sea in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, near Barry. The wider community includes villages and settlements such as Font-y-Gary, Penmark, East Aberthaw and Porthkerry. The population of the community in 2011 was 6,160.
The Vale of Glamorgan Line is a commuter railway line in Wales, running through the Vale of Glamorgan from Barry to Bridgend, via Rhoose and Llantwit Major.
Bridgend railway station is a main line station serving the town of Bridgend, south Wales. It is located approximately halfway between Cardiff Central and Swansea stations, at the point where the Maesteg Line diverges from the South Wales Main Line; it is also the western terminus of the Vale of Glamorgan Line from Cardiff. It is 190 miles 45 chains (306.7 km) measured from the zero point at London Paddington, via Stroud.
St Athan is a village and community in the Vale of Glamorgan in South Wales. The village and its parish church are dedicated to Saint Tathan. The church dates to the 13th–14th century, though an earlier church was dated to the Norman period. The village and the adjacent dormitory village of Eglwys Brewis are known primarily for the MOD St Athan RAF base. There are two pubs in the village, as well as a football team at St Athan Football Club and the St Athan Golf Club. The community includes West Aberthaw.
Cadoxton railway station is a railway station serving Cadoxton and Palmerstown near Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales. It is located on the Barry Branch 6½ miles (10 km) south of Cardiff Central. The line continues to the terminus of the Barry Branch at Barry Island but from Barry Junction the line also continues as the Vale of Glamorgan branch to Bridgend via Rhoose for Cardiff International Airport bus link and then Llantwit Major.
Gileston is a small Welsh village near West Aberthaw in the Vale of Glamorgan on the coast of South Wales.
Aberthaw is an area containing the villages of East Aberthaw and West Aberthaw, on the coast of South Wales about 5 miles (8 km) west of Barry. It is home to Aberthaw Cement Works, Aberthaw Lime Works, and Aberthaw Power Station, a decommissioned coal power station that was linked to the South Wales Valleys via the Vale of Glamorgan Railway. The area is historically within the parish of Penmark in the Vale of Glamorgan. The two villages of West and East Aberthaw are separated by the River Thaw. The village of East Aberthaw, near Rhoose, has a 13th-century pub. The village Baptist Chapel and Mission Room no longer exist as such and have been converted for other uses.
Aberthaw Power Station refers to two decommissioned coal-fired and co-fired biomass power stations on the coast of South Wales, near Barry in the Vale of Glamorgan. They were located at Limpert Bay, near the villages of Gileston and West Aberthaw. The most recent power station on the site, Aberthaw B Power Station, co-fired biomass and as of 2008 had a generating capacity of 1,560 megawatts (MW). The power station closed on 31 March 2020.
Aberthaw Cement Works are cement works in the Vale of Glamorgan near the village of East Aberthaw in Wales.
The Vale of Glamorgan Railway Company was built to provide access to Barry Docks from collieries in the Llynfi, Garw and Ogmore valleys. Proposed by the coalowners but underwritten by the wealthy Barry Railway Company, it opened in 1897 from near Bridgend to Barry, in Wales.
St Athan Boys' Village was a village-style holiday camp located in West Aberthaw, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales.
Aberthaw High Level railway station was a Vale of Glamorgan Railway station operated by the Barry Railway which served Aberthaw, located near the north shore of the Bristol Channel in the former Welsh county of South Glamorgan, and in the current county of Vale of Glamorgan.
Aberthaw Low Level railway station was the Taff Vale Railway station which served East Aberthaw, located near the north shore of the Bristol Channel in the Welsh county of Glamorgan.
The River Thaw is a river in the Vale of Glamorgan, south Wales. At 20 kilometres/12.4 miles, it is the longest river entirely in the Vale of Glamorgan.
