Golden Cross, Cardiff

The Golden Cross is a Grade II listed public house at the junction of Customhouse Street and Hayes Bridge Road in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. The current building dates from 1903 and is noted for its distinctive ceramic tiling.[1][2]

The Golden Cross, Hayes Bridge Road

History

A pub has existed on the site since 1849, originally named the Shields and Newcastle Tavern. It was renamed the Castle Inn in 1855 and assumed its present name in 1863.[1] Around 1903/4 it was rebuilt in its current form for Brains Brewery.[2] The CAMRA Historic Pub Interiors list describes the Golden Cross as "the most spectacularly decorated of any in Wales".[3] The bar tiles, featuring distinctive corner grotesques, were designed by Craven Dunnill of Shropshire. The interior has several decorative pictorial panels of tiles that depict Cardiff Castle, Brains Brewery in 1890, and Cardiff's Old Town hall with a statue of Lord Bute from St Mary's Street in 1863.[4][5] The Golden Cross has one of fourteen remaining ceramic bar counters in the United Kingdom. The other ceramic counter in Wales is located at the in Waterloo Hotel in the Newport district of Pillgwenlly.[6] Dunnill replicated the design with grotesques at the Mountain Daisy pub in Sunderland, and the Gunmakers Arms Birmingham. An almost identical tiled frieze design is at the White Swan pub in Birmingham.[3] The Cardiff historian Brian Lee has said the Golden Cross "developed a reputation as the smartest brothel in town" in the 19th century. The Golden Cross is alleged to be the site of a fight involving a young Rocky Marciano, who was stationed in Wales during his time in the United States Army in World War II.[1]

During the Second World War the fascist leader Oswald Mosley attempted to hold a meeting at the pub but violent opposition forced him to return to London.[1]

The pub was threatened with demolition in 1979 but reprieved after a campaign led by the South Wales Echo.[3][1] It had been given listed status by Cadw in May 1975.[2] In 2010 it was listed by CAMRA as one of their 10 most unspoilt pubs by the CAMRA Pub Heritage Group and is listed on CAMRA's National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors.[7]

The Golden Cross has become a popular gay friendly pub, with regular drag acts and entertainment. It was voted in 2004 as the best gay pub in the UK.[8]

  • The Golden Cross from Custom House Street
  • A Brains Brewery logo in stained glass
  • The distinctive Victorian tiled bar
  • A ceramic tile display of Cardiff Castle
  • The snooker room

References
  1. "Brian Lee: Golden memories of Cardiff's Golden Cross pub". Wales Online. 26 October 2012. Retrieved 6 May 2015.
  2. "Cof Cymru – National Historic Assets of Wales – Full Report for Listed Buildings – Golden Cross Public House". Cadw – Cof Cymru.
  3. "CAMRA Pub Heritage: Golden Cross". CAMRA Pub Heritage: Historic Pub Interiors. CAMRA. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  4. Mike Pearson (2 March 2015). Marking Time: Performance, Archaeology and the City. University of Exeter Press. p. 99. ISBN 978-0-85989-971-0.
  5. Brian E. Davies (15 May 2011). Wales A Walk Through Time - Flat Holm to Brecon. Amberley Publishing Limited. p. 48. ISBN 978-1-4456-2617-8.
  6. "CAMRA Pub Heritage: Waterloo Hotel & Bistro Restaurant". CAMRA Pub Heritage: Historic Pub Interiors. CAMRA. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  7. Gemma McKenna (5 August 2010). "CAMRA lists top ten heritage pubs". Morning Advertiser. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
  8. "The Golden Cross". Cardiffpubs.co.uk. Retrieved 6 May 2015.

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