Royal Arcade, Cardiff

In 1861, a free library was set up by voluntary subscription above the St Mary Street entrance to the Royal Arcade in Cardiff.

[1] Before the end of the 19th century the Cardiff School of art was using rooms above the arcade with students such as J. M. Staniforth and Goscombe John attending.

The companies spent £30M on restoring both the Morgan and Royal arcades, with some first-floor Venetian windows and original wooden storefronts still surviving.

[4] Today the Royal Arcade still has some of the original shopfronts at numbers 29, 30 and 32 on St. Mary Street.

Running direct opposite from the new St. David's 2 development and close to Cardiff Central Library, a variety of independent shops are still to be found such as Wally's Delicatessen, who have been in the arcade for 60 years, and those specialising in Welsh textiles, gifts and homeware.