CREATING the Celtic Manor Resort must go down as one of the most successful development projects in Gwent’s history.

Not only has the five-star resort been a major engine for job growth, it can also boast three 18-hole golf courses and 600 bedrooms.

It has also enjoyed playing host to a long list of powerful and celebrity guests, not least Barack Obama when he was president of the USA.

But hosting historic events - most notably the Ryder Cup and NATO - all happened within the last 20 years.

So how did the resort end up such a major player on the world stage?

The oldest part of the resort is the Manor House Hotel - formerly Lydia Beynon Maternity Hospital - which was acquired by self-made billionaire Terry Matthews in 1980, along with 2,000 acres of land surrounding the former hospital.

Mr Matthews, who lives in Canada, believed the area to be worthy of a first-class business and leisure resort.

He said: “I was born in the old Lydia Beynon Hospital but my decision to buy the place was not made out of sentiment.

“I was driving by when I noticed the old manor was boarded up and for sale.

“I didn’t have an appointment so I had to persuade a janitor to let me in and take a look.

“My first impression was all that traffic passing by on the M4 and I thought this would be a great place to open a hotel.”

He added: “Even when we opened with 17 bedrooms, I always had plans to build something much bigger because of the potential of the location and the site.

“Here we are nearly 40 years later and we have the UK’s number one conference resort. I think we’ve proved it’s a great site.”

And two years after buying the site in 1980, the former hospital was fully refurbished and reopened as a hotel under the name The Celtic Manor Hotel.

An 18-hole golf course and the massive 330 bedroomed Resort Hotel - at the cost of £120 million - were later added to an already impressive list of facilities in 1999.

The site’s owner, who is a golfing enthusiast, spearheaded the sport at the Celtic Manor Hotel because he felt it would be a perfect fit.

The Celtic Manor Hotel, as it was then named, became an instant success and would go on to win the Egon Ronay Award for the best hotel in Wales for the next five years.

And the much sought-after five-star status was awarded to the Celtic Manor Resort shortly afterwards - with the accreditation covering the whole of the site.

One of the first major events which projected the venue onto the world stage was hosting the The Celtic Manor Wales Open from 2000 until 2004.

But golfers raised their concerns over the climb back over the closing holes.

So, the billionaire made another bold and ambitious move by building an extra nine-hole course - The Twenty Ten Course - which was purpose-built with an aim of staging The Ryder Cup.

In September 2001, the hard work paid off when the historic decision was announced to award Wales its first Ryder Cup to take place at The Celtic Manor Resort in 2010.

Thousands of people flocked to the site eight years ago to get a glimpse of professional golfers play in one of the most important golfing events in the world, propelling the resort right to the front of the world stage.

Less than four years later, the eyes of the world fell again on the Celtic Manor when the site was named to host the NATO summit.

The site played host to 60 world leaders, 70 foreign ministers and 70 defence ministers, who all met to discuss pressing issues including the Ukraine crisis.

More recently, the Celtic Manor expanded again in 2016 with the acquisition of the Coldra Court Hotel.

And, for the seventh time in eight years, the resort has unsurprisingly been voted the UK’s Best Hotel at the Meetings and Incentive Travel Awards.

Further plans for the site have been hatched, with the £100 million International Convention Centre scheduled to open next year.

One thing is for certain, the Celtic Manor Resort is growing from strength to strength.