Administrative Boundary of Cardiff

About Cardiff

Cardiff (Caerdydd) is the capital city of Wales and a principal area in south Wales, situated on the Bristol Channel at the confluence of the rivers Taff, Ely, and Rhymney. Cardiff had a population of approximately 366,000 at the 2022 Census, and was only formally designated the capital of Wales in 1955 — a relatively recent recognition of a status Cardiff had effectively held for decades. From Coal Port to Cultural Capital In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Cardiff's docks made it the world's largest coal-exporting port, shipping coal from the South Wales valleys to fuel steamships and industries across the globe; Cardiff Castle, at the heart of the city, reflects the immense wealth this trade generated, its Roman and Norman foundations overlaid with extravagant Gothic Revival interiors commissioned in the 19th century by the 3rd Marquess of Bute, then one of the richest men in the world, working with architect William Burges. The former docklands, once known as Tiger Bay, were transformed following the construction of the Cardiff Bay Barrage in 1999 into a waterfront district anchored by the Wales Millennium Centre, opened in 2004 as the home of the Welsh National Opera. Senedd and Principality Stadium The Senedd, the debating chamber of the Welsh Parliament, opened in 2006 on Cardiff Bay to a design by architect Richard Rogers, reflecting Wales's growing constitutional devolution since 1999. The Principality Stadium, in the city centre, is renowned for its retractable roof and has hosted major rugby and football finals, reinforcing Cardiff's status as one of Britain's leading sporting cities alongside its role as Wales's centre of government, education, and culture. GIS and Boundary Data The administrative boundary of Cardiff Council is available for free download in GeoJSON and KML formats, sourced from the OS Open Geography portal (Crown copyright 2024). Compatible with QGIS, ArcGIS, Mapbox, and Google Earth, the dataset supports urban regeneration mapping, maritime heritage research, governmental and cultural planning, and demographic analysis across the Cardiff council area.

📍 Administrative boundary of Cardiff county