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Cof Cymru: National Historic Assets of Wales · Wales

Great Western Hotel

Castle, Cardiff, Wales

A Grade II listed building in Castle, Cardiff, designated on 19 May 1975.

Ordnance Survey six-inch map, 2nd edition (1888–1913) covering the location of Great Western Hotel, Castle, Cardiff, with a pin at the register's coordinates
Ordnance Survey six-inch map, 2nd edition (1888–1913), covering this location. Courtesy of the National Library of Scotland. The pin is ours, placed from the register's coordinates.

The record

Designation
Listed building, Grade II
Broad class
Commercial
Date of designation
19 May 1975
Community
Castle
Unitary authority
Cardiff
Country
Wales
Coordinates
51.47653, -3.17711
Cadw reference
13800

Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

5 historical maps cover this location, the earliest the 1636 map "Cornubia : Devonia, Somersetus, Dorcestria, Wiltonia, Glocestria ..." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).

Historical maps covering this location

  • 1636 · Cornubia : Devonia, Somersetus, Dorcestria, Wiltonia, Glocestria ... (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
  • 1865 · England and Wales. England No. 6. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
  • 1895 · Sheet 11. Ordnance Survey of England and Wales. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
  • 1898 · 263 Cardiff (Hills) (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
  • 1913 · Sheet 110. Cardiff & Mouth of the Severn. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)

Get directions ↗

This record in Cadw's own full report ↗

Cadw's description

Location

At S end of St Mary Street.

History

Hotel of 1875; by W D Blessley, architect.

Exterior

Gothic hotel building on rounded corner site. Three storeys. Faced in random stone (mainly Radyr stone); bathstone dressings, slate roofs. Plate tracery to windows; corbelled turrets (pinnacles lost). Entrance block has tower with steep pyramidal roof with 2 levels of louvres; paired 2-light windows to top floor, 2-light Gothic window to first floor, Gothic doorway with modern canopy. To each side of tower, narrow bay with gabled dormer enclosing Gothic window, below this, round window, below this, 2-light square headed window; on ground floor, blocked doorway with cinquefoil in Gothic head. To right of entrance block, 4 gabled bays with 3-light Gothic window to top floor, 2-light Gothic window to first floor (panelled aprons), 2-light Gothic window under straight hood to ground floor. To L of entrance block, seven bays as before (doors under modern canopies to 2 bays); then (beyond buttress) broader bay with stone balcony to first floor, and 3-light window to ground floor; similar bay to splayed corner (upper window recessed) with camber-headed doorway. Two window elevation to W side.

Reason for designation

Elaborate Gothic composition on important corner site. Group value with neighbouring listed buildings.

Nearby in the register

Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.

Designated Historic Asset GIS Data, The Welsh Historic Environment Service (Cadw), 2026-09-07, licensed under the Open Government Licence http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/ Cadw, the Welsh Historic Environment Service · Open Government Licence v3.0
All Commercial in Cardiff All Unitary authority Cardiff records All Wales Heritage registers Historical markers (US)National Register of Historic Places (US)
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