Roath ( cy, Y Rhath) is a district and community to the north-east of the

city centre A city centre is the commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely equivalent terms exist in other languages, such as "" in Fren ...

of Cardiff, capital of Wales. There is no community council for the area which is mostly covered by the Plasnewydd

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

, and stretches from Adamsdown in the south to Roath Park in the north.

Description

Albany Road post office - 1974950 - geograph

Its main shopping streets are Albany Road, City Road, and Wellfield Road. The area is characterised by its several tree-lined avenues and Victorian era terraced streets. Roath houses a very diverse population including a large number of students, being very close to the main university campuses, a large ethnic minority population and many young professionals. Parts of Roath are among the most affluent districts of Cardiff, although subdivision of the large Victorian properties is starting to occur in the areas at the south end of the district. Its close proximity to the city centre, its number of local amenities, churches, shops and

restaurant A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...

s and public houses and the famous Roath Park make it a popular area to live.

History

''Y Rhath'' (Rahat, Raath 13th c.) is likely a development of the

Brythonic Brittonic or Brythonic may refer to: *Common Brittonic, or Brythonic, the Celtic language anciently spoken in Great Britain *Brittonic languages, a branch of the Celtic languages descended from Common Brittonic *Britons (Celtic people) The Br ...

word for ramparts, cognate with the Irish word '' ráth'' (earthwork, fortification), the latinised form of this word (''Ratae'') appears elsewhere in Roman Britain (such as Ratae Corieltauvorum). This may suggest a pre-existing Iron Age settlement, likely on the site of the old manor house which was surrounded by earthworks and a ditch for centuries. Alternatively, it could derive from the name given to the Roman settlement in Cardiff, ''Ratostabius''. Roath Court is a nineteenth-century villa on the site of the medieval manor house of Roath. Since 1952 it has been a funeral home. Its

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

portico, designed by Robert Adam in 1766 for Bowood House, Wiltshire, was moved there in 1956. St Margaret's Church, Roath

Roath contains the Church of Saint Margaret of Antioch, built in 1870 on the site of an earlier

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

chapel and the new

Gothic revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

church. Designed by Llandaff architect

John Prichard John Prichard (6 May 1817 – 13 October 1886) was a Welsh architect in the neo-Gothic style. As diocesan architect of Llandaff, he was involved in the building or restoration of many churches in south Wales. Personal history John Prichard wa ...

on a Greek Cross plan, the latter was financed totally by the third Marquess of Bute, in spite of his conversion to Catholicism in 1868. Inside is an opulent mausoleum housing tombs of nine members of the

Bute Bute or BUTE may refer to: People * Marquess of Bute, a title in the Peerage of Great Britain; includes lists of baronets, earls and marquesses of Bute * Lord of Bute, a title in medieval Scotland, including a list of lords * Lucian Bute (born ...

family, including the first marquess and his two wives. The tower of St Margaret's was finally completed in 1926. Roath once had a railway station on the South Wales Main Line, but this closed in 1917. Prior to the 2010s the community was known as Plasnewydd, though was renamed as Roath, being a name that was more widely recognised.

Notable buildings and amenities

Cardiff University , latin_name = , image_name = Shield of the University of Cardiff.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms of Cardiff University , motto = cy, Gwirionedd, Undod a Chytgord , mottoeng = Truth, Unity and Concord , established = 1 ...

, Engineering Building *

Roath Library Roath Library is a Grade II listed building on Newport Road, Cardiff, on the border of the Roath and Adamsdown districts. In 2014 the library closed for repairs, and in 2015 it was decided to close the library permanently. The Roath Branch Libra ...

* St Margaret's Church (and the Bute Mausoleum) *Mackintosh Sports Institute (formerly Plasnewydd) * The Mansion House, Richmond Road, used as the mayor's residence for much of the 20th century. * The Gate Arts Centre, Keppoch Street *James Summers Funeral Home, Roath Court * Shah Jalal Mosque, Crwys Road (formerly Capel Crwys) * Trinity Methodist Church *Albany Primary School *Roath Park Primary * St. Martin's Church, Albany Road *Hodges' Residence and the Dewmisters Crib * St. Edward's Church, Blenheim Road * Roath Park *

St. Peters RFC St Peters Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the district of Roath, in Cardiff, South Wales. The club plays their home games at the Harlequins Playing Field, located off Newport Road. It is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union, and is a ...

* Plasnewydd Community Hall * Saint Peter's RC Primary School

Festivals and events

Since 2009 the annual

Made in Roath Made in Roath is an annual arts festival that takes place every October in Roath, a neighbourhood just adjacent to the city centre of Cardiff, Wales. The event showcases art, music, performance, literature and food in a variety of venues including ...

arts festival has taken place in October. The event showcases art, music, performance and literature in a variety of venues including peoples' homes. Between 2013 and 2016, local organisers Wayne Courtney and

Nathan Wyburn Nathan Wyburn (born 24 October 1989)Griffiths, Niall"First Person: Ebbw Vale artist Nathan Wyburn" ''South Wales Argus'', 10 August 2016. Retrieved on 25 January 2020. is a Welsh variety act artist and media personality who has created celebrity ...

have hosted the 'Roath Bake Off' festival in

St Andrews United Reformed Church, Roath St. Andrew's United Reformed Church is a 19th-century United Reformed church located in the Roath area of Cardiff, Wales. The church is situated on the corner of Wellfield Road and Malborough Road, with some referring to it as the 'church on the ...

. In December 2018, the duo announced that the event would be revived for 2019 as part of the campaign to raise funds for the church it is held in.

Notable people

William Cope, 1st Baron Cope William Cope, 1st Baron Cope, (18 August 1870 – 15 July 1946), known as Sir William Cope, Bt, between 1928 and 1945, was a Welsh Conservative Party politician, who was also notable as an international rugby union player for Wales. He was M ...

, politician and international rugby player *

Lionel Fanthorpe Robert Lionel Fanthorpe, FCollP, FRSA, FCMI (born 9 February 1935) is a retired British priest and entertainer. Fanthorpe also worked as a dental technician, journalist, teacher, television presenter, author and lecturer. Born in Dereham in Norfol ...

Peter Finch Frederick George Peter Ingle Finch (28 September 191614 January 1977) was an English-Australian actor of theatre, film and radio. Born in London, he emigrated to Australia as a teenager and was raised in Sydney, where he worked in vaudeville ...

writer and poet *

Boyd Clack Boyd Daniel Clack (born 7 March 1951) is a Canadian-born Welsh writer, actor, and musician. He was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada to Welsh parents. At a young age, he emigrated with his family to Wales, where he grew up in Tonyrefail ...

Writer, actor and playwright * Brian Hibbard Musician * William Erbery (1604-1654), curate of St Woolos, Newport between 1630 and 1633 then Vicar of St Mary's Church in Cardiff before being forced to leave his post due to his Puritanism. He established the first nonconformist congregation in Cardiff *

Maureen Rees Maureen Rees (born 25 February 1942) is a British television personality from Cardiff, Wales, who was Britain's first reality-television star. She became prominent in the late 1990s after her appearances in two series of the BBC One docuseries ' ...

, British reality TV star (b. 1942) * John Sankey, 1st Viscount Sankey – Labour politician and Lord Chancellor. Grew up in Castle Road (now City Road).

References

External links

RoathCardiff.net
Community news and information about Roath in Cardiff
Geograph.co.uk
photos of Roath and surrounding area
Roathcardiff.com
History and photos of Roath
Madeinroath.com
Arts festival and community project in Roath
roathlocalhistorysociety.org
Local history society focussing on the Ecclesiastical Parish of Roath {{coord, 51, 29, 28, N, 3, 09, 38, W, type:city(2000)_region:GB, display=title Communities in Cardiff Districts of Cardiff