West Glamorgan () is a former administrative county in South Wales. It is now a preserved county. West Glamorgan was one of the divisions of the ancient county of

Glamorgan Glamorgan (), or sometimes Glamorganshire ( or ), was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It is located in the South Wales, south of Wales. Originally an ea ...

. It was created on 1 April 1974, by the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

from the county borough of

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 ...

, the municipal boroughs of

Neath Neath (; ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a population of 19,2 ...

and

Port Talbot Port Talbot (, ) is a town and community (Wales), community in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, situated on the east side of Swansea Bay, approximately from Swansea. The Port Talbot Steelworks covers a large area of land which d ...

, the urban districts of Glyncorrwg and Llwchwr, Gower Rural District, Pontardawe Rural District, and all of Neath Rural District except the parish of Rhigos. From 1982, the main offices of West Glamorgan County Council were located in County Hall, Swansea. West Glamorgan had four districts, as follows: *

– Swansea CB and Gower RD * Lliw Valley – Llwchwr and Pontardawe RD *

– Neath and Neath RD *

– Port Talbot and Glyncorrwg Following the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994, West Glamorgan and its component districts were abolished on 1 April 1996, the area being divided into the two unitary authorities of

and Neath and Port Talbot (later changed to "

Neath Port Talbot Neath Port Talbot () is a Principal areas of Wales, county borough in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. Its principal towns are Neath, Port Talbot, Briton Ferry and Pontardawe. The county borough borders Bridgend County Borough and Rhon ...

"). Lliw Valley was partitioned between the two authorities. A West Glamorgan preserved county was created for the limited functions of Lieutenancy and High Shrievalty.

Coat of arms

The arms of West Glamorgan were: ''Argent three chevronels gules, between in chief two pine cones vert dimidiating as many gouttes sable, and in base a lozenge sable.'' The crest is a Welsh Dragon holding a Tudor rose in its forepaws, rising above four gold cogwheels. The supporters are an

osprey The osprey (; ''Pandion haliaetus''), historically known as sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and a wingspan of . It ...

and a

heron Herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 75 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genus ''Botaurus'' are referred to as bi ...

, both with a fish in their beaks, and wearing a chain round their necks. The osprey is standing on water, and the heron on a ploughed field. The motto is ( Welsh: 'The just are strong'). The chevronels derive from the arms of the de Clare family; the pine cones represent forestry; the black drops ( gouttes) the oil industry; and the black lozenge, coal. The four cogwheels above the shield stand for the four districts and their industries; the chains around the supporters' necks, the steel and aluminium industries; the water and the fish, fishing; and the ploughed field, agriculture.

References

{{coord, 51.822, -3.833, display=title, region:GB_scale:100000 Preserved counties of Wales

Coat of arms

See also

References