Swansea is a city and county in South Wales with a population of over 220,000 inhabitants. Swansea town granted city status in 1969 but was founded by Viking invaders from Denmark in 1083, the name coming from the name ‘Sven’ and the Norse word ‘sey’ meaning inlet.

Swansea Castle overlooks the River Tawe and is an oval construction built in 1006 by Norman nobleman Henry de Beaumont as his seat of power in Wales. It features and outer ‘bailey’ or covering wall on three sides, however it has been taken on several occasions including 1116 and 1217 both times to the Welsh. During the 1880s 60% of the copper produced in the UK came from Swansea. Employers in modern Swansea include tourism, hi-tech and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency

Heavy industries dominate the past of Swansea with tin, copper, arsenic and zinc mines creating jobs and sculpting the countryside.

Swansea University was founded in 1920 and has 15,000 students making it the third largest in Wales after Cardiff and Glamorgan. Swansea University is noted for its Museum of Egyptian Antiquities with over 4.500 items and provides advice for museums across the world on matters Egyptian.

Famous inhabitants of Swansea include poet Dylan Thomas, ex MP Michael Heseltine and actress Catherine Zeta-Jones.