The University of Wales, Aberystwyth was established in 1872, and Physics was taught from the start as Natural Philosophy, Astronomy and Mathematics. In 1877 the Physics Dept. was founded as a separate entity. The dept. has always had a tradition of both theoretical and experimental research. Early work by staff was undertaken largely in Germany, but WWI put a stop to this. Research early in the 20th century focused on thermal electrical conductivity and quantum theory. The 1920s saw work appear in the Welsh language in the form of Prof. Gwilym Owen's lectures on acoustics. The advent of WWII brought research relating to military and government and the staff concentrated on training men for government research. By the 1970s work was being done on experimental rocket launching equipment, and the 1980s saw the dept. become involved with work on the European radar facility. Today the dept. has an excellent reputation in both research and teaching and attracts approximately 50 new students annually. Work at the moment is focused on areas including atmospheric physics and shock wave and combustion physics, which confront real problems such as ozone depletion and the design of silicon-chip detectors.