European Travellers to Wales project wins Research Excellence Award

With an aim of celebrating the high standard of research at the University, Bangor University’s inaugural Research Excellence Award were held on Monday evening.

Amongst the winners was a collaborative research project jointly undertaken by Bangor University, the University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies (CAWCS), and Swansea University.

The AHRC-funded European Travellers to Wales, 1750-2010 project, which has reviewed and celebrated how Wales has been viewed by European travellers, received the award for outstanding project or programmes within the Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences.

The project is led by principal investigator Professor Carol Tully (Bangor), with co-investigators Dr Heather Williams (CAWCS) and Dr Kathryn Jones (Swansea).

Accepting the award was Professor Tully who said:

“I am delighted that the European Travellers to Wales project has been recognised in this way. It has been a great example of collaborative research in the Arts and Humanities and is set to deliver real economic and cultural impact. A team effort from the very beginning, it has been a great experience to work with colleagues in both the academic and cultural communities across Wales and beyond.”

Building on the existing scholarship surrounding English travel writing about Wales, the project looks to broaden the scope by investigating a wide range of accounts, such as travelogues, essays, diaries or letters written by continental Europeans. Reviewing these previously unstudied accounts helps to redefine perceptions of Wales and, complemented by a free travelling exhibition, shows how Wales has been viewed by European travellers during the 260 year period.

Summaries and detailed information about the accounts by European travellers are freely available in the project’s online database Accounts of Travel, together with information on more than 400 other identified travel records.

Speaking about the project, Professor Dafydd Johnston, Director of CAWCS, said:

“Collaborative partnerships of this kind are an important element in CAWCS’s research strategy, and we are delighted that the innovative work of Dr Heather Williams and her colleagues has been recognised by this award.”

The Awards were devised to celebrate the individual achievements of academic staff at different career points, and Six Awards were presented in total to individuals and research teams or specific research projects. Following the inaugural Research Excellence Awards, these new Awards will be held on alternate years with the University’s Impact & Innovation Awards.

More information about the European Travellers to Wales, 1750-2010 project can be found on their website: http://etw.bangor.ac.uk/