Written by: Swansea Museum and the Chinese Co-Operative Community Centre

There is a long history of contact between Britain and China. Even from as early as the First Century AD, merchants leaving from Roman British ports crossed the ancient world to China. Raw materials, foods and luxury goods such as silk and spices were traded.

Permanent settlement by the Chinese did not occur until the 1700s. Young men looking for work began to settle near the industrial cities of London, Manchester and Cardiff.

The 1914 'British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act' changed immigration laws allowing more straightforward access of foreign citizens to settle in Britain, leading to more families settling across the country. The Act would continue to be amended over the coming years as the needs and nature of the UK changed.

After the years of wartime food shortages, Chinese exotic and ready-prepared foods became in high demand. This helped to ensure a steady population flow from China to Britain until today.

Between the 1920s and 1960s Chinese laundries and restaurants became a familiar site to city and town people, with a laundry on almost every street. The Chinese were one of the first to introduce the idea of public laundry services and ready-made take-away meals to Britain, predating McDonalds, Wimpy and Burger King by over a 100 years.

Today 'Chinese laundries' are a thing of the past but are still fondly remembered.

Currently the Chinese Community is the third largest ethnic minority group in Wales after those of West Indian and Indian subcontinental origin. In 2004 there were over 143,500 Chinese people living in Britain of which 15,000 live in Wales; 1,700 in Swansea.

For a long time the Chinese Community has played an integral part of Welsh society and economy. Chinese factories, companies, restaurants, takeaways and shops now play a major role in the Welsh economy. More and more Chinese people are also turning to professional occupations such as university lecturers, teachers, nurses and doctors, all of which have had a positive impact on the social climate of Wales.

Swansea Museum and the Chinese Co-Operative Community Centre

Click here to view a Chinese Cultural Exhibition slideshow.