The Westgate Hotel, Commercial Street, Newport, Wales is a hotel building dating from the 19th century. On 4 November 1839 the hotel saw the major scenes of the Newport Rising, when 3,000 Chartists, some of them armed, led by John Frost marched on Newport to attempt to secure the release of five of their number who were being held under arrest at the hotel. In the fighting between about 60 soldiers of the 45th Regiment of Foot and police on one side, and a larger number of Chartists on the other, 10-22 Chartists were killed and more than 50 wounded. The hotel is a Grade II listed building.
John Frost was a prominent leader of the British Chartist movement in the Newport Rising.
Caerleon is a town and community in Newport, Wales. Situated on the River Usk, it lies 5 miles (8 km) northeast of Newport city centre, and 5.5 miles (9 km) southeast of Cwmbran. Caerleon is of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable Roman legionary fortress, Isca Augusta, and an Iron Age hillfort. Close to the remains of Isca Augusta are the National Roman Legion Museum and the Roman Baths Museum. The town also has strong historical and literary associations: Geoffrey of Monmouth elevated the significance of Caerleon as a major centre of British history in his Historia Regum Britanniae, and Alfred Lord Tennyson wrote Idylls of the King (1859–1885) while staying in Caerleon.
Newport is a city and county borough in Wales, situated on the River Usk close to its confluence with the Severn Estuary, 12 mi (19 km) northeast of Cardiff. With a population of 145,700 at the 2011 census, Newport is the third-largest principal authority with city status in Wales, and seventh most populous overall. Newport became a unitary authority in 1996 and forms part of the Cardiff-Newport metropolitan area, also known as the Cardiff Capital Region. Newport was the site of the last large-scale armed insurrection in Great Britain, the Newport Rising of 1839. The population grew considerably between the 2011 and the 2021 census, rising to 159,587, the largest growth of any unitary authority in Wales.
Newport City Council is the governing body for Newport, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. It consists of 51 councillors, who represent the city's 20 wards.
National Museum Cardiff is a museum and art gallery in Cardiff, Wales. The museum is part of the wider network of Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales. Entry is kept free by a grant from the Welsh Government.
The University of Wales, Newport, was a university based in Newport, South Wales, before the merger that formed the University of South Wales in April 2013. The university had two campuses in Newport, Caerleon on the northern outskirts of the city, which was subsequently closed during July 2016, and a £35 million campus on the east bank of the River Usk in Newport city centre which opened in 2011. In 2012 the university was ranked 111th out of 120 UK universities in the Guardian League Table for university rankings, 105th out of 116 in The Complete University Guide and 104th out of 116 UK universities in the Times Good University Guide.
The Newport Rising was the last large-scale armed rising in Wales, by Chartists whose demands included democracy and the right to vote with a secret ballot. On Monday 4 November 1839, approximately 4,000 Chartist sympathisers, under the leadership of John Frost, marched on the town of Newport, Monmouthshire. En route, some Newport chartists were arrested by police and held prisoner at the Westgate Hotel in central Newport. Chartists from industrial towns outside of Newport, including many coal-miners, some with home-made arms, were intent on liberating their fellow Chartists. Fighting began, and soldiers of the 45th Regiment of Foot, deployed in the protection of the police, were ordered to open fire. About 10-24 Chartists were confirmed killed, whilst reports of perhaps a further 50 injured. 4 soldiers were reported as injured, as well as the mayor of Newport who was within the hotel. Subsequently, the leaders of the rising were convicted of treason and were sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered. The sentence was later commuted to transportation.
Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales, branded as simply Amgueddfa Cymru, is a Welsh Government sponsored body that comprises seven museums in Wales:
The Riverfront is the principal and newest theatre and arts centre in the City of Newport. It is located on the west bank of the River Usk on the Bristol Packet Wharf in the city centre. Designed by architectural firm Austin-Smith:Lord, the centre was opened on 23 October 2004.
Newport city centre is traditionally regarded as the area of Newport, Wales bounded by the west bank of the River Usk, the George Street Bridge, the eastern flank of Stow Hill and the South Wales Main Line. Most of the city centre is contained within two conservation areas: the central area and the area around Lower Dock Street. Most of the city centre is located in the Stow Hill district.
Friars Walk is a partially under-cover shopping centre and leisure complex in Newport city centre, South Wales. It has several levels and includes a range of high street shops, eateries, a cinema, a bowling alley and a soft play area. The complex is linked by the redeveloped John Frost Square to the Kingsway Shopping Centre, Newport Museum, Art Gallery and Central Library and Newport bus station. The complex is a short walk from the high street shops of Commercial Street and High Street. Newport railway station is also a short walk away.
Christopher David Williams was a Welsh artist.
Ceredigion Museum is a museum in Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, Wales.
David Garner is a Welsh installation artist known for his use of found objects and overtly political themes.
The Chartist Mural was a mosaic mural designed by Kenneth Budd and created in 1978 in a pedestrian underpass in Newport, Wales. It commemorated the Newport Rising of 1839, in which an estimated 22 demonstrators were killed by troops. It was 115 feet (35 m) long and 13 feet (4.0 m) high. The mural was demolished in 2013 amid considerable controversy and misinformation. The original decision to remove the artwork was taken in 2005 by the Labour Controlled Council to allow Modus development company to build the Friars Walk shopping centre. Modus were removed by the Conservative/Lib Dem coalition Council after taking control in 2008 and replaced with Queensbury Development Company Friars Walk.
Art in Cardiff refers to the culture of visual arts in Cardiff, capital city of Wales. The visual arts in Cardiff have a much more recent history than many British cities, due to it being a very small town until rapid growth took place in the mid nineteenth century. Cardiff School of Art originated in 1865 and the first major public art exhibition took place in 1870. The town became a city in 1905, after which time it gained further importance, for example with the creation of a new National Museum. Into the 21st century it has a thriving art scene.
John Frost Square is a large public space in the centre of Newport, South Wales, named after the Chartist leader, John Frost. It was redeveloped as part of the Friars Walk shopping and leisure complex in 2014 and 2015.
Felicity Ursula Hartland Charlton was a British artist known for combining realism and fantasy elements in her paintings often of figures in gardens. Although born in Bristol, Charlton spent the majority of her life working in Wales.
The Mynde is a historic site and property located in Caerleon on the northern outskirts of the city of Newport. The town is the historic site of the Isca Augusta Roman Fortress.
