Cathays Park originated as a private park of the Bute Estate laid out from 1812, and was purchased for the public in 1897. It is a large, roughly rectangular area lying to the east of Bute Park (nprn 301558) and to the north of the main commercial centre of Cardiff. Within the park are three main open spaces:  Alexandra Gardens, Gorsedd Gardens, and Friary Gardens which are all contemporary with the original Edwardian layout of the park. Each has its own distinct character and each retains its original layout. Their setting is a magnificent group of public buildings forming Cardiff's Civic Centre (401617) with its attendant tree-lined spacious roads, the layout of which reflects the underlying earlier park.

The largest space, on the north, is Alexandra Gardens (421034), a rectangular block comprising a five-acre garden with the Welsh National Memorial of the European War (1914-18) in the centre (32845). It is largely laid out to formal lawns with island beds and specimen trees. To the south-east is Gorsedd Gardens (411973), a sub-triangular 2-acre (0.8ha) area of informal garden opposite the National Museum. It is laid out with lawns, specimen trees and tree and shrub borders and hedges, and is adorned with statues (32757; 32778-80). Winding brick paths run through the gardens and around the Gorsedd circle now planted with ash trees.

To the south, Friary Gardens (420855) occupies a triangular area of about 1 acre (0.4ha) divided into two areas by the Dock Feeder Canal (34240), flanked by deciduous trees, which crosses it. The southern half is a slightly sunken triangular area laid out as a formal parterre garden of box-edged beds and gravel paths. Formerly known as a 'Dutch garden', it has retained its original layout.

Sources:
Cadw 2000: Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales, Glamorgan (ref: PGW(Gm)26(CDF).

RCAHMW, 7 July 2022