1882 in Wales

Incumbents

• Prince of Wales – Albert Edward
• Princess of Wales – Alexandra
• Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales – Clwydfardd

  Events

• 10 January – The vessels Constancia and Primus attempt to pass through a lock at Newport Docks at the same time and a collision results. The lock is blocked and the vessels already in the dock are trapped for nearly two weeks. The resulting losses eventually culminate in the demise of the Newport Dock Company a year later.
• February – Charles Wilkins launches the English-language periodical The Red Dragon in Cardiff.
• 11 February – Six miners are killed in an accident at the Lewis Merthyr Colliery.
• 3 March – Five miners are killed in an accident at the Henwaen Colliery, Blaina.
• 20 October – The steamer Clan MacDuff sinks off Holyhead, resulting in 32 deaths.
• 1 November – An Austrian barque, the Petroslava, is wrecked on Skokholm with the loss of 10 of its 11 crew members.
• 16 November – New Fishguard Lifeboat Station boat Sir Edward Perrott launches 5 times and rescues 46 lives from 15 different vessels.
• Anti-Irish riots break out at Tredegar.
• Lager is brewed at Wrexham, for the first time in the UK.
• Brains Brewery opens in Cardiff.
• St Catharine's Church, Baglan, is consecrated.
• The Welsh Charity School in Ashford, Surrey, becomes girls-only and changes its name to the Welsh Girls' School.
• Slate workings in Cwm Llan on Snowdon are closed because of the expense of transporting the slate to a port.

  Arts and literature

Awards

• Chair – withheld
• Crown – Dafydd Rees Williams

  New books

• Richard Davies – Pedwerydd Llyfr Mynyddog
• Frances Hoggan – Education for Girls in Wales

  Music

Sport

• Football
• *25 February - John Price becomes the first Welsh footballer to score a hat-trick in an international match, when he produces four of the goals in a 7–1 win against Ireland.
• *Druids win the Welsh Cup for the third time in its five-year history.
• Rugby Union
• *Bargoed RFC, Loughor RFC, Pentyrch RFC and Pontardawe RFC are formed.
• *First Wales national game against Ireland. Result sees first Welsh victory and first points scored, by Newport's Thomas Baker Jones.

  Births

• 3 January – Johnnie Williams, Wales international rugby player
• 3 February – Arthur Jenkins, politician
• 3 February – Harry Wetter, Wales international rugby union player
• 11 February – Gwendoline Davies, patron of the arts
• 5 April – Howell Jones, Wales international rugby player
• 7 May – Reggie Gibbs, Wales international rugby player
• 24 July – Reginald Clarry, politician
• 6 September – Tommy Vile, Wales international rugby player
• 14 September – Jack Powell, Wales international rugby player
• 30 September – Charlie Pritchard, Wales international rugby player
• 13 October – Trevor Preece, cricketer
• 6 November – David Rees Griffiths, poet
• 8 November – Jack Williams, Wales international rugby player
• 21 November – Harold Lowe, officer on board RMS Titanic
• 16 December – Cyril Fox, archaeologist
• 31 December – Tom Evans, Wales international rugby player
• date unknown – Ivor Lewis, artist

  Deaths

• 9 January – Joseph Edwards, sculptor, 69
• 8 March – William Bulkeley Hughes, politician, 84
• 21 April – George Grant Francis, antiquary, 68
• 20 June – David Thomas, industrialist, 87
• 15 July – John Petherick, engineer and traveller, 69
• 24 August – John Dillwyn Llewelyn, botanist and photographer, 72
• 21 November – Banastyre Pryce Lloyd, linguist and civil servant, 58
• 16 December – Alfred Ollivant, Bishop of Llandaff, 84