EVENTS THAT HAVE SHAPED THE HISTORIC LANDSCAPE THE MILFORD HAVEN WATERWAY

Historic administrative divisions
The pre Anglo-Norman administration of west Wales was based on small kingdoms or gwledydd, which were established before the 8th century AD. The register area lies within the gwlad of Dyfed which, in the early 11th, century, became part of the larger kingdom of Deheubarth. Within each gwlad were smaller units of administration or estates known as maenorau, attested to have existed since the 9th century. These were composed of a number of ‘townships’ or trefi. By the 11th century two additional administrative tiers were introduced - the cantref, a group of 100 trefi, each of which was subdivided into a number of cwmwdau, into which the trefi were grouped. The ‘seven cantrefi of Dyfed’ - Pebidiog, Cemaes, Emlyn, Rhos, Daugleddau, Gwarthaf and Penfro - became a union that was celebrated in both history and lore. It is probable that, in Dyfed, formal systems of native tenure and administration had not become fixed prior to the Anglo-Norman conquest. However, status centres existed, both secular and ecclesiastical, and of the latter the seven ‘bishop-houses’ of Dyfed are well documented.

The Anglo-Norman settlement of the Pembrokeshire region began in 1093 with the invasion of Dyfed under Roger de Montgomery, the Norman Earl of Shrewsbury, and his establishment of a castle at Pembroke. From this base his son, Arnulf, had by 1100 subdued the greater part of Cantref Penfro (in the southern part of the present county), Cantref Rhos (west of Haverfordwest), Cantref Daugleddau (in the central part of the present county), which were reorganised as a county under Henry I - later a palatinate of the earls of Pembroke.

The pre Anglo-Norman conquest territorial divisions remained largely unchanged. The lordship of Haverford was more-or-less coterminous with Cantref Rhos, as was Dungleddy with Daugleddau, and Pembroke with Penfro, although Cwmwd Arberth was administered as a separate lordship; Narberth. The post-medieval hundreds similarly followed the old boundaries except in south Pembrokeshire, where Penfro was divided into Castlemartin and Narberth hundreds. However, in all other respects the area was Anglicised. Henry I deliberately planted large numbers of settlers, from the West Country and Flanders, in the area, and the native administration was entirely re-organised. Although it appears that Henry I attempted to establish an administration based upon English civil models, the creation of the marcher palatine lordship led to a feudalised, manorial system of tenure based on demesne lordships and knights fees. This has given rise to the dominant settlement pattern within the area, of small nucleations - villages, hamlets and large farms - based on the manorial vills. Elements of the system persisted long after the Act of Union. The lordship of Narberth, for example, still operated its feudal manorial courts well into the 17th century.

Prehistoric settlement, funerary and ritual sites
Iron age settlement sites and neolithic and bronze age funerary and ritual sites are common, but their wide dispersal and relative small size in relation to other landscape components means that they do not strongly characterise the area. Of the two types of monument iron age hillforts dating to the first millennium BC are the most prominent. Inland examples located on farmland have often been reduced in height by centuries of agricultural use and are not as impressive as their cousins built on the edge of sea cliffs, where forts such as Great Castle Head at Dale and Tower Point at St Brides are some of the most massive and prominent historic landscape components of the coastal strip. Neolithic and bronze age funerary and ritual sites, which date to the 2nd millennium and 3rd millennium BC, and include chambered tombs, round barrows and standing stones are amongst the most common and important archaeological sites in the area. Their mute presence attests to a settled farming community over 5000 years ago. However, only at Rhoscrowther where a presumed ancient track-way known as ‘The Ridgeway’ passes by several groups of prehistoric monuments do funerary and ritual sites form a strong component of the historic landscape.

Medieval towns
Towns are the most enduring physical legacy of the Anglo-Norman conquest of south Wales. An essential strategy for the conquering lords was the construction of castles, outside of which settlements were established for immigrants who would eventually gain economic control of the area. There are two such plantations within the register area. Pembroke town does not appear to have been planned by the founders of its castle, which was established by Roger de Montgomery and his son Arnulf in 1093, possibly on the site of a pre-existing llys. The town was a product of the seizure of the area by Henry I, after Arnulf’s rebellion in 1100. Henry was particularly interested in stabilising this part of southwest Wales as a crown holding, introducing large numbers of immigrants and granting a charter to Pembroke. This offered the most generous terms to encourage potential settlers. He also established a mint at Pembroke before 1130. The town had received its walls by the 14th century which, with the castle, still form a visually striking element of the landscape, the nearest thing that south Wales has to the Edwardian ‘castle-boroughs’ of north Wales. Tancard the Fleming in c.1100-10 established Haverfordwest castle and town on a virgin site, possibly as a unit. He was probably also acting on crown authority. Town and castle occupy the lowest bridging point of the Western Cleddau, the strategic and economic value of which were factors in the choice of site and its subsequent development. By 1300 the town was of a considerable size, with over 300 burgages - larger than any of the castle-boroughs of North Wales. However, none of the town defences survive.

Both towns were supplied by water and were important trading centres from the first. This trade developed under the Anglo-Norman monopolies, and by the 16th century Pembroke was a town of merchants, and was also the site of the regional customs house. However, Haverfordwest took over the role of county town from Pembroke during this century, by the middle of which it could be described as ‘the best built, the most civil and quickest occupied town in South Wales’. Both towns have a number of later buildings. These date, in particular, to the 18th and early 19th centuries when local gentry farmers, merchants and burgesses built town houses within which to socialise, in lieu of attending the London season. However, as trading centres both would soon be superseded by two, entirely new towns – Milford Haven and Pembroke Dock.

Medieval and later villages
Small, nucleated villages are a distinctive element of southern Pembrokeshire and in particular of the Milford Haven waterway historic landscape. Dispersed farms are present, as they are across most of Wales, but it is the village that distinguishes the settlement pattern of this part of Pembrokeshire from other areas of southwest Wales. There is a strong correlation between the nucleated village settlement type, often centred upon a church, and the area of known Anglo-Norman settlement in southwest Wales in the 12th century and 13th century, evidenced today by place-names, language and other cultural indicators. It is highly likely therefore that the villages were founded in this period in tandem with that other major component of the English lowland agricultural landscape, the open field system. Open fields are described below, but it is worth emphasising here the strong correspondence between nucleated villages and the evidence for open fields. It is also interesting to note that most villages were founded away from the shore of Milford Haven in order to take best advantage of the rich farmland the area had to offer: they were intended to be agricultural communities rather than maritime communities. Historic documentation is often ambiguous in its references to settlement pattern type, and it is not until the mid-to-late 18th century with large-scale estate mapping and the survey of tithe maps in c. 1840, that village morphology can be definitely identified. Villages such as St Ishmael’s, Herbrandston, Houghton, Great Honeyborough, Waterstone, Uzmaston and Cosheston, to name just a few, were then small, nucleated, agricultural communities, often still surrounded by their open field systems, or at least a few strips from the remains of open fields. In some cases, such as Herbrandston, the position of the church at the end of a green around which dwellings are located suggests a planned village. Villages still exert a strong influence on the settlement pattern of the area, although some have experienced considerable expansion during the later 19th century and 20th century. For instance, Great Honeyborough is now incorporated into Neyland and Llangwn has grown considerably from its core. Others, however, such as West Williamston, Carew Newton and Lawrenny, have changed little, and their early morphologies and original functions are still evident.

Medieval castles
Medieval castles are one of the defining components of this area’s landscape. These were erected in large numbers in Pembrokeshire following the Anglo-Norman conquest of 1093, and in particular the years following 1100 as the territories were consolidated under Henry I. Many of the village plantations and the two towns, both of which were settled with immigrant populations, were established around an earthwork castle. Some of these were not rebuilt in stone, but have left earthwork remains at, for instance, St Ishmaels, and probably also at Rosemarket and Walwyn’s Castle where the village morphology suggests that the settlements were axial upon earthwork sites that, while of unknown date, possibly represent re-used iron age enclosures. An iron age promontory fort at Dale appears to have been similarly re-used as an earthwork castle, re-located in the later medieval period when a manor-house was established on the present site. The motte at Picton was also abandoned in favour of a masonry castle constructed nearby.

It is the degree of later medieval masonry rebuilding that really sets this part of Pembrokeshire apart from other regions of southwest Wales. There are a number of major stone castles, of which Pembroke, Haverfordwest and Carew still form powerful visual elements of the landscape. Carew was associated with a shrunken medieval settlement. Lesser masonry castles survive at Picton, Upton and Benton (Burton), the latter two being very small, but fully-developed enclosure castles. In contrast are those sites that can better be described as fortified manor-houses, which again are particularly dense in this part of Pembrokeshire. Castell Coch (Minwear), a large, masonry hall-house within a walled and ditched enclosure, was the caput of the manor of Newhouse. Angle and Eastington (Rhoscrowther) are similar late medieval, first floor hall-houses, while the manor of Cresselly, probably a possession of the Augustinian priory at Haverfordwest, lies within a semi-fortified enclosure. The late medieval Dale Castle appears to have been semi-fortified, while there are contemporary tower-houses at both Angle Rectory and Monkton Priory. These late medieval, private defences, which may be as late as the 16th century in the latter two cases, appear to have been a response to water-borne threats, perhaps the threat of French invasion or coastal raiding by pirates from Ireland and elsewhere.

Open Fields and their enclosure
During the medieval period virtually all farmland within the register area was cultivated in open field systems (also called sub-divided fields or common fields). In this system land was held communally, and apart from small closes and paddocks attached to farmsteads, enclosures were rare, and the land was divided into strips or shares within large open-fields. Uncultivated common and waste lay beyond the open-fields. The pattern, at least, of some of these open field systems may be early. The linear pattern of boundaries in the south Pembrokeshire peninsula may have prehistoric origins, and can be seen to be overlain by at least one medieval churchyard.

Close to the Milford Haven waterway, owing to the high density of population, most land was cultivated and therefore waste and common would have comprised small tracts of land. Traditionally, strips within the open fields were not assigned to a farmer, but were rotated on an annual basis. However, by the 16th century and 17th century rights of cultivation of certain strips within the open fields became the prerogative of single farmers. By exchange and barter several adjoining strips could be amassed. It was then a simple process to throw a hedge around the amassed strips. By this process the open, communally held, fields were transformed into the privately held field systems that still exist.

Medieval and later documents refer directly and indirectly to open fields, but it is 18th century and 19th century estate maps and tithe maps of c. 1840 that provide the best evidence of their extent and. character. As described above, village location and open fields have a strong correlation, It seems highly likely that the fields were established when the villages were founded in the 12th century and 13th century. The time and rate of enclosure of open fields varied. At Rosemarket, for instance, Howells (1955-56) has described how enclosure in the late 16th century by a rapacious landlord led to the conversion of arable to pasture and the depopulation of the village. There is now little evidence in the present landscape of fairly regular, large fields around Rosemarket of the former open fields. It is likely that in the same period other open-fields were being transformed into the large fields we see today, such as Uzmaston, Rhoscrowther and Lawrenny. It seems that it was in the 17th century and 18th century that most enclosure took place, although in some isolated instances open field farming continued into the early 19th century. An example of late enclosure is at Great Honeyborough where a fully functioning open-field farming landscape is depicted on estate maps. Some enclosure of open-fields has left a clear imprint on the modern landscape, with, for example, parcels of narrow strip-fields existing at St Ishmael’s, Waterstone, Houghton, West Williamstone, Carew Newton and Cosheston.

Fields and field boundaries
Field shape and size is determined by complex social, economic and cultural factors. As noted above, narrow strip fields are the result of 17th century through to 19th century piecemeal enclosure of open field systems. Large regular fields may have been the result of a variety of different, unconnected processes. For instance, the fields of small, private estates established in the 16th century or 17th century on land that had been open fields may appear similar to field systems of farms carved out of common land in the late medieval period. The small irregular fields with pockets of woodland found at Martletwy, Landshipping, Cresswell Quay, and to some extent Hook, probably developed during the 18th century and early 19th century when people drawn to the area by the developing coal industry built cottages and carved out small-holdings on commons or the relatively poor agricultural land of the coalfield. Although there is remarkable diversity in field shape and size, boundary types are remarkably consistent across the whole of the Milford Haven waterway landscape. Almost all field boundaries consist of earth and earth and stone banks topped with a hedge. There are exceptions, but these are rare. For instance, mortared walls are found at Lawrenny (connected with the old Lawrenny estate), at West Williamston, and the far west of the Castlemartin Peninsula. Some dry-stone walls can also be found at, for example West Williamston.

Post-medieval farms and estates
Farms with land held in severality, i.e. not part of open-fields or common land, originated in one of several different ways. Towards the end of the medieval period and in the early modern period new farms were established away from village cores on land that had been engrossed and enclosed from open-field strips. Alternatively, with the rise in the concept of private ownership of land new farms were founded on former common land on the fringes of cultivated land. It is these two methods that probably account for the majority of the smaller, dispersed farms. It is also possible that a single farm in a village or township became the dominant and eventually the only holding. This process occurred over many centuries and it is probably the method by which many of the small estates and large farms originated, such as Liddeston, Jordanston and Robeston Hall.

In the first two methods the resulting landscape is one of relatively small, dispersed farms set in a pattern of medium-sized, regular fields. Small estates and large farms tend to be located on the rich farmland towards the west of the waterway and are often associated with large, regular fields. the buildings, (described below) of these estates often exhibit great time depth, sometimes with late medieval or 16th century and 17th century elements, or are substantial Georgian and/or Victorian structures. As well as surviving buildings, the wealth of the small estate owners is demonstrated by their willingness to commission expensive surveys in the late 18th century and early 19th century. The resulting maps, such as those of St Botolphs and Robeston Hall show their properties with walled gardens, flower gardens and orchards. These dispersed, small farms, larger farms and small estates form an important component in the historic landscape of the Milford Haven waterway.

Parks and gardens
The area at the head of the Haven, between the Eastern and Western Cleddau, is almost entirely occupied by post-medieval parks and estates, including Picton and Slebech Parks both of which occupy gently sloping ground leading down to the Haven foreshore. Lesser parks and gardens occur within the register area but are similarly mainly confined to more sheltered sites within this eastern section. Two of these smaller gardens, at Coedcanlas and Landshipping, no longer exist but have been identified through aerial photography. Both were established in the 17th century and were Renaissance gardens comparable in scale to better-known English examples, with characteristic formal courts and terraces. Like Picton and Slebech they lie on gently sloping ground leading down to the Milford Haven foreshore.

A formal park was first created at Picton Castle in the later 17th century, and was also in the Renaissance manner, but was extensively remodelled in the Romantic tradition in the 18th century and 19th century, when a belvedere was established on the old motte. Although there are 18th century elements to the gardens, much of the planting was carried out in a picturesque style in about 1800 and has been modified by much recent planting. The landscape of gardens, parkland, woodland and estate farms still fundamentally survives close by at Slebech Park, which was laid out at about the same time. Many of its elements also survive, with formal gardens including terraces overlooking the Milford Haven.waterway. Other structures associated with Picton and Slebech, such as stable blocks, lodges and walled gardens are prominent and distinctive features of the landscape, while a strong estate architectural signature to this area is maintained by the two home farms and by The Rhos village.

Lesser parks include Upton Castle, which is similarly sited on gently sloping ground leading down to the Haven foreshore. It features a walled garden and orchard, an arboretum, formal terraces and a medieval chapel, and is now managed by Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, and open to the public. Boulston Manor and home farm lie within the remains of a similar parkland landscape, in a similar foreshore location, with fishponds, plantations, a lodge, and a ruined medieval church. Smaller parks, occupying similar sites, lie around the former mansion at Lawrenny Castle, now a picnic area, and Cosheston Hall.

The waterway, shipping and coastal trade
The superb deep water sheltered anchorage afforded by the Milford Haven waterway has long been recognised. It was used as a muster point for the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland, as an invasion landing place by Owain Glydwr and Henry Tudor, and as sheltered anchorage for the British Fleet in the 18th century. Two of the major towns/ports of medieval and later Wales, Haverfordwest and Pembroke, are located on the upper reaches of the waterway. The regional customs house was located at Pembroke during the early post-medieval period. However, the waterway’s isolated location and its lack of a large population base ensured that its potential as a port was not realised until the industrialisation of the late 17th century and 18th century. There are many villages of medieval origin situated along the waterway, but it is instructive to note that most of these lie within fields away from the shore, indicating that agriculture not maritime activity was their main source of income. Fishing, coastal trading and small-scale boat building would have been undertaken from the numerous small creeks, but amongst the villages it is probably only Dale and Angle, both to the far west, that had a strong maritime economy. By 1700, coal from pits at Landshipping, Cresswell, Hook and Llangwn was the major export from the Milford Haven waterway. Many small quays developed to serve this industry. Numerous limekilns along the shore are evidence of the increasing importance of coastal trade. Indeed, it is a rare creek that does not have a limekiln. By the late 18th century the need for a town close to deep-water anchorages to service large ships and provide a port for Irish packets led to the foundation of Milford Haven. A few years later naval dockyards and the town of Pembroke Dock were established. These towns, together with Neyland, are described below. The coming of the railways in the mid 19th century diminished coastal trade, but small ships continued to call at Haverfordwest, Pembroke and other quays into the 20th century, and both Milford Haven and Neyland became important fishing ports. Apart from oil tankers that service three refineries constructed in the late 20th century, fishing boats at Milford Haven and the Irish ferry that operates out of the old dockyards at Pembroke Dock, there is very little commercial traffic on the waterway. Two marinas, at Milford Haven and Neyland, have been opened and many of the industrial slips and quays are now used by leisure craft.

Communications
Historically the waterway always has been the most important communications artery within this area. However, there were early overland routes. The most important of these was the ‘Ridgeway’, a routeway across the spine of the south Pembrokeshire peninsula, which ran along the crest of the limetone ridge between Angle in the west and Tenby in the east. The concentration of prehistoric monumental sites along this routeway suggests that it has prehistoric origins, possibly in the neolithic period, and the linear field system which so strongly characterises this region is axial upon its line. Romanisation of this part of Pembrokeshire was slight, and the main east-west Roman road lay some distance north of this area. It appears that the present A40 follows the line of a major medieval routeway, and Canaston Bridge which carries the road over the head of the eastern Cleddau has medieval origins. Some other early routeways can be traced within the landscape. For example, Haverfordwest – which, by the later medieval period, was one of the largest towns in Wales – lies at the node of 12 roads and tracks, most of which probably have medieval origins, while a disused trackway leading through Minwear parish to the Slebech ferry may also be of medieval origin.

The medieval route beneath the A40 was partly re-aligned, straightened, and turnpiked during the late 18th century, as was the A4075 between Canaston Bridge and Carew. However, it was the 19th century industrial development of the area, and the establishment of the commercial ports of Milford Haven and Pembroke Dock, that placed the greatest demand on its communications. Significant road improvements were carried out, in the 1830s, between Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock, after surveys by Thomas Telford. A railway network, moreover, was planned at the relatively early date of 1845. However, due to delays a line to Milford Haven was not constructed until 1863, as a spur from the Neyland line of 1856, and Pembroke Dock was not served by rail until 1864. Both lines remain operational. A number of spur lines, for private-owner use, were subsequently constructed to link the harbours, docks and refineries with the rail network. Some of these are still in use.

Forestry and woodland
The eastern half of the register area, in the upper reaches of the Haven, was heavily wooded during the historic period, and much of it still is today. This woodland has always been intensely managed. Correctly managed woodland could provide timber for building and ship-building, bark for tanning and dyeing, and coppice for fuel and charcoal. Some of these wooded areas lay – as today – on steep valley sides that had very little other economic use. Others were extensive tracts lying on open ground. The Medieval Forest of Narberth, for example, was recorded in the early 12th century, when it was under royal control and its timber was granted to the potential settlers of Pembroke with which to make their dwellings. Minwear Woods were granted to the Knights Hospitaller of Slebech in a 13th century grant. George Owen records that, by 1594, much of the woodland had been felled by ‘assarting’ and the establishment of farmland over formerly timbered areas. The manor of Newhouse, for example, appears to have been a late creation established as an assart from Narberth Forest, by the Mortimer lords of Narberth in the late 13th century. Owen listed the ‘best standing woods’ then surviving, many of which are still wooded today. They included, on the west side of the Haven, the woods of Benton, Llangwm, Hook and Little Milford, on the north side the woods of Boulston, Picton, Pickle and Toch, and on the east side, Narberth Forest (still with forest administration well into the 17th century), Canaston, Minwear, Coedcenlas, Cresselly, Nash and Upton. Some of these were small pockets of woodland, described as ‘woods of divers gentlemen sufficient to serve their houses for fuel and some for buildings’.

It was under such ‘gentlemen’ that some of this woodland was incorporated, as both an economic and ornamental feature, into the parks and estates that lined the waterway during the post-medieval period, for instance at Picton Park, Slebech Park and Upton Castle Park. In complete contrast, the dense woodland at Minwear and Canaston encouraged the early establishment of industries within the area. George Mynne, who was granted the right to take timber from the woods, erected a charcoal-fuelled blast furnace at Canaston in 1635. An iron forge had been established at Blackpool by 1760, when its lease confirmed the owner ‘the right to cut timber in Canaston Wood within four miles of the forge’. The industries had declined by the early 19th century, mainly due to the exhaustion of timber. In 1794 Hassell observed that most of the woodland was oak, and that it was managed for charcoal production and bark for tanning, but that good charcoal timber was running out. In 1811 Fenton recorded that extensive tree-felling had occurred. Indeed, the estate maps show those areas of woodland that had been recently felled, thinned and coppiced. During the 20th century conifers replaced large tracts of what had been deciduous woodland. Much of this woodland is now Forestry Commission land, managed as Canaston and Minwear Woods.

Eighteenth and nineteenth century towns
Increasing shipping and other economic activity on the Milford Haven Waterway was not matched by an increase of land provisions. In particular, the lack of a major settlement close to deep-water anchorages, and no piers or jetties to serve large ships, were major problems. As early as 1764, William Hamilton recognised there was a problem, but it was not until 1790 that an Act of Parliament granted permission to: ‘make and provide Quays, Docks, Piers and other erections and establish a Market with proper Roads and Avenues’. This was the beginning of the town of Milford Haven which was laid out in its distinctive grid pattern. The relocation of the naval dockyards from Milford Haven to a new site on the opposite bank of the waterway signalled the foundation of a new town. This was Pembroke Dock which, like Milford Haven, was similarly laid out in a grid pattern. The wide streets, and terraced two storey worker houses and single storey cottages, lend a very distinctive character to the town. By the mid 19th century continued increasing economic activity and a growing population led to the development of Neyland. The spur to development here was the opening of a railway terminus in 1856. Unlike both Milford Haven and Pembroke Dock, Neyland grew organically with housing spreading up from the waterway and railway. All three settlements have had to ‘reinvent’ themselves in order to adjust to changing circumstances. The abrupt shutting of the dockyards at Pembroke Dock in 1926 and the gradual closure of military installations since World War 2 have had a profound effect on the town, leading to periods of stagnation. The decline of the fishing industry from the mid 20th century has had a similar effect on Milford Haven and Neyland. The three towns now have a ‘mixed economy’, whose success is reflected in extensive late 20th century housing and infrastructure development in and on the fringes of the settlements.

Nineteenth and twentieth century coastal defences
Apart from two 16th century blockhouses, the defences of Milford Haven date from a major period of building from circa 1850-1875 through to the end of World War 2. Prior to this, military surveyors and lay-people had commented on the vulnerability of the Milford Haven waterway from sea attack on numerous occasions. Reports were commissioned and schemes of fortifications approved, but due to changes in the political or economic climate, these were never implemented, or halted soon after construction began. Even the massive fortification programme of 1850-75 had to undergo several modifications during its construction due to technological developments. By the end of the 19th century this system was virtually redundant.

Much thought was given to the defence of the Haven following the relocation of the naval dockyards from Milford Haven to Pembroke Dock in the early 19th century. A new chain of forts was proposed along the fringes of the waterway, but little was done except for the strengthening of Pater Fort in the new dockyards at Pembroke Dock, the construction of defensible barracks outside the town, and by two gun towers flanking the dockyards. The mouth of the Haven was also defended at this time with four forts built during the 1850s: West Blockhouse, Dale Point, Thorn Island and Stack Rock. Forts at South Hook, Hubberston, Popton and Chapel Bay were built following a report to Parliament in 1858. All these installations survive, most in a good state of repair. Two massive gun batteries were added at the mouth of the waterway in 1901-04.

The military continued to use most of the installations constructed in the mid 19th century up to and after World War 1, with the major gun batteries constructed in the early years of the 20th century in use until after the close of World War 2. From World War 1 onwards new installations were built, often on a massive scale: a submarine mining establishment close to Chapel Bay Fort, an experimental submarine mining station, barracks and torpedo testing establishment at Pennar, gun batteries with searchlight batteries at Soldier’s Rock, a gun battery at Kilroom, an oil store at Llanreath, a mine depot at Blackbridge and several searchlight batteries, anti-aircraft gun batteries, machine gun mountings, as well as observation posts and minewatchers posts were positioned along the coast. At Pembroke Dock, in the former dockyard, a flying-boat station was established in 1930. Planes operating out of this station played a key role in guarding the western approaches to Britain during World War 2. The station closed in 1956. Two flying boat hangars survive, as do many of the other 19th and 20th century military installations.

The coal industry
Edward (1950 and 1963) and Connop Price (1994-95) have studied the Pembrokeshire coal industry. The main coalmining areas of Pembrokeshire were Freystrop, Hook, Picton and Landshipping, with ports at Black Hill Quay, Little Milford Quay, Hook Quay, Lower Hook Quay, Sprinkle Quay, Llangwm Pool, Landshipping Ferry, Landshipping Quay, Lawrenny Quay and Cresswell Quay. Until about 1600, the Pembrokeshire coal industry was carried out on a very small scale. Development continued to be slow, with most pits probably worked seasonally by farmers and farm workers. Even so, by 1700 coal was the chief shipment out of Pembrokeshire. In 1800, Sir Hugh Owen erected the first steam engine in the coalfield at Landshipping. Deeper mining afforded by new technology led to fewer, larger pits. By 1934, output from Pembrokeshire was 42,000 tons, and one pit, Hook, employed over 130 men in 1938. In 1947, the British coal industry was nationalised and the Pembrokeshire field declared uneconomic and all the pits closed. Today apart from quays at Landshipping Ferry, Cresswell Quay and Lawrenny the physical remains of the coal industry are few. However, the most obvious legacy of the industry is the distinct settlement patterns of loosely clustered and dispersed cottages and houses across the coalfield. Many of the original dwellings have disappeared, but the settlement pattern provides a strong component of the historic landscape at Hook, Freystrop, Landshipping and other locations associated with the coal industry.

The oil industry
Ken McKay in the Pembrokeshire County History Vol IV provides a good account of the oil industry A rapidly increasing demand for oil products in the second half of the 20th century resulted in several major oil companies constructing refineries on the banks of the Milford Haven waterway. Milford Haven had two advantages over other locations: deep water anchorage for the increasingly large vessels of the day; and quantities of farmland on which to build. Esso was the first company to build in 1957, followed by BP’s terminal in 1961, Texaco in 1963, Gulf in 1966 and Amoco in 1970, and in the early 1960s the oil-fired Pembroke Power Station was commissioned. The Esso refinery, the BP terminal and the power station have now closed. The impact on the historic landscape of these massive installations has been enormous. Each has been allocated its own character area, as their construction effectively erased all former historic landscape components, and they stand in sharp contrast to their neighbouring agricultural historic landscape character areas. The impact on the seascape of the Haven has also been profound, with long jetties protruding out into what was open water. Other character areas are also affected, and not just by the visual impact the refineries have on their landscapes For instance, infrastructure requirements have led to the construction of the high Cleddau Bridge over the waterway, and housing on the outskirts of villages and towns has been built to provide for a rapidly expanding population.

Tourism and leisure
Parts of Pembrokeshire have been popular tourist destinations for over two hundred years, but not the Milford Haven waterway area, owing to the lack of facilities and the absence of accessible sandy beaches. This situation has improved since World War 2, and in particular since the designation of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park in 1952, although the numbers of visitors are low in comparison with the large numbers that flock to the sandy beaches along the south Pembrokeshire coast. Sailing and other water-sports are popular leisure activities and are catered for with marinas at Neyland and Milford Haven, facilities at Dale and Lawrenny and numerous slipways and quays from which boats can be launched. The Pembrokeshire Coast Path, which attracts many people to the area, runs along the cliff tops and shore of the western part of the waterway. Other attractions include Pembroke Castle, Carew Castle, Picton House and gardens, and other historic houses and gardens. Visitors often stay outside the area at places such as Tenby, Saundersfoot, Little Haven and Broad Haven, but bed and breakfast and holiday cottages are available along the waterway. It is likely that increasing demand for high quality accommodation will result in the conversion of existing buildings, such as old farm buildings, into holiday homes. Camping and caravan sites are also available at Dale, Angle and Llangwm. The tourist industry is still low key and, apart from installations such as the marinas, is not a major part of the historic landscape.

Building Materials
Almost all existing pre-1900 houses and other structures are built of stone with slate roofs. The stone is mainly Carboniferous limestone, with some Old Red Sandstone, both from local quarries. Roofing material is mostly imported slate, although some farm buildings are hung with local stone tiles. Generally worker houses and cottages and smaller farmhouses are cement rendered whilst larger farmhouses, gentry houses, churches and chapels are un-rendered. Only poor quality porous stone, that requires rendering, was available for the construction of houses at the lower end of the social scale. There are, of course, exceptions to this. Farm outbuildings are almost invariably of bare stone. No examples of the earth-built and straw-thatched cottages of the poor described by writers of the mid 19th century survive. Indeed, the prevalence of masonry construction is the defining aspect of the built heritage within this part of Pembrokeshire, and was remarked upon as early as the 16th century. After 1900, a greater variety of materials are used. Brick replaces stone as the chief building material, and later in the 20th century concrete, steel and asbestos all come into use.

Rural domestic vernacular architecture
The predominant type of rural pre 1900 house or farmhouse dates to two or three decades on either side of 1850 and can be broadly described as Georgian vernacular. They are of two storeys and three bays with centrally placed front doors, large, symmetrically placed windows and evenly sized gable-end chimneys. There are examples of houses in the more vernacular tradition with an asymmetrical plan and elevation, small windows, one large and one small chimney, and of one-and-a-half as well two storeys, but these are not common. These vernacular houses seem to be roughly of the same date band as those in the Georgian tradition. It is worth emphasising that the differences between these two house types are subtle and are applied to a basic common house type. This basic house type is common to all social and economic classes, and gradations in size as well as architectural detail provide important clues to the occupier’s social-economic class. Both house types can be paralleled in other areas of southwest Wales, although elsewhere houses in the vernacular tradition are more common than those in the more polite Georgian style.

Single storey worker houses are another manifestation of the social aspect of architecture. They are found elsewhere in southwest Wales, but in not in such large numbers as around the margins of the Milford Haven waterway. Here they are found in both urban (see below) and rural contexts, and were constructed for urban workers, workers in rural industries and for agricultural workers. A few examples are occur with informal settlements, perhaps squatters on common land, associated with the coal industry. These single storey houses are of three bays with a centrally placed front door. Detached, semi-detached and terraced examples can be found. Urban examples are in the more polite tradition than their vernacular, rural cousins. As noted, some were erected for farm workers, but most lie in the old coal mining area of Cresswell, Martletwy and Landshipping and were probably either erected either by owner occupiers or for workers in the coal industry. They probably date to the middle to late 19th century.

Since the mid to late 20th century modernisation of many of older buildings and the construction of numerous new dwellings in a variety of materials and styles has transformed the architectural heritage of the rural landscape. This is particularly noticeable the close urban centres of Haverfordwest, Milford Haven, Pembroke and Pembroke Dock where villages such as Hook, Llangwm and St Ishmaels are mainly 20th century constructs with a small historic core.

Estate houses, greater houses and polite architecture
Unlike rural domestic vernacular architecture which is mainly confined to the 19th century and later, the stock of estate houses, greater houses and polite architecture within this area exhibits great time-depth, with examples from the medieval period through to the 19th century. Fortified, but no longer inhabited, medieval houses such as Castell Coch (Minwear) and Eastington (Rhoscrowther) lie within the area, as do two of the great houses of southwest Wales; Picton Castle and Slebech House. The former, a much modified and medieval castle, and the latter, a late 18th century ‘castle-wise’ mansion, lie in extensive parkland at the centre of vast estates. However, most of the estate- and greater-houses are much less grand. Some such as Coedcanlas, near Lawrenny, with its sub-medieval elements probably originated as the caput of a medieval manor, whilst others, such as Sandy Haven near St Ishmael’s, an imposing structure with perhaps 17th century or earlier elements, may owe its origins to land acquisition and estate building in the early modern period. Indeed, it is this process of estate building from the 16th century onwards that that led to the construction of many of the greater houses. Some houses, as at Sandy Haven and Coedcanlas, were retained, but many were rebuilt in the late 18th century and early 19th century in the polite Georgian style, such as the now semi-derelict mansion at Butterhill near St Ishmael’s and the imposing three-storey house at Jordanston. This pattern of estate building continued into the 19th century when major houses in the Georgian tradition, such as Trewarren near St Ishmael’s, were still being erected and gardens laid out.

The majority of these estate houses and greater houses lie across rich farmland on both sides of the Milford Haven waterway and are associated with systems of large, regular fields.

Farm buildings
The vast majority of pre 1900 farm buildings are stone built and probably date to the middle decades of the 19th century. Surviving earlier farm buildings are usually associated with an estate, such as the fine ranges set around a courtyard at Picton Home Farm. The greater acreages of estate farms required larger farm buildings, and the wealth generated allowed for better building construction. The most wealthy estates could afford home farms with extensive ranges of outbuildings often arranged formally around a courtyard as at Picton. On smaller estates good quality farm buildings are often arranged around a yard close or in a semi-formal arrangement with the main house, for instance, the fine range of buildings at Herbrandston Hall. Most farms are more modest, but usually possess one or two ranges of farm buildings, sometimes in a semi-formal arrangement with the house. Examples of small, single ranges of buildings attached to houses are rare, and this only confirms the theory that the agricultural wealth of this area was comparatively high. As outbuildings on most farms consist of barns for the storage of grain and animal houses, they were built when a mixed pastoral/arable economy was practised. However, barns on modest farms are smaller in proportion to the overall size of their farm buildings than those on larger farms, suggesting that arable was a less important element in the farm’s economy. Very large barns in areas that are now predominantly pastoral, such as the massive ruined barn at the Sisters’ House, Minwear, indicate that arable was once a major element of the farming economy.

Since c. 1900, a greater range of building material has been introduced, including brick and corrugated iron. It is likely that mid 19th century corrugated iron farm buildings were once a common feature of the agricultural landscape, particularly round-headed dutch barns, but they now only survive on smaller farms. Most working farms now have large assemblages of late 20th century steel, concrete and asbestos farm buildings.

There is great variety in the condition of the older, stone built, farm buildings. Most are in good condition, but a significant number are falling into decay, particularly where the farms are no longer worked; a smaller number have been converted to dwellings.

Urban domestic buildings
The two different types of town, represented by the medieval towns of Pembroke and Haverfordwest, and the 19th century towns of Pembroke Dock and Milford Haven, contain contrasting types of domestic building. Precious little survives of pre 1700 urban domestic architecture, but in both Pembroke and Haverfordwest late 18th century and 19th century two, three, and four storey Georgian houses testify to the towns’ wealth during this period. The ‘mixed economy’ of these two towns has resulted in a greater variety of architectural form: 19th century terraced houses, 19th century commercial/domestic properties of the shopping area, and houses and other buildings erected throughout the 20th century. Milford Haven has some elegant Georgian houses as well as many later buildings, but it is Pembroke Dock that has the most distinctive architectural signature of any town in southwest Wales. Here terraces of workers houses (one and two story) flank wide streets laid out in a grid pattern that dates to the early and mid 19th century. The two storey terraces are in the Georgian tradition, with greater detailing on the larger, end ‘foreman’ houses. However, it is gradations in size rather than detail that distinguish the social landscape. At crossroads towards the centre of the town the terminal buildings of the terraces rise to three storeys. South of the main town at Pennar, terraces of single storey worker houses or cottages flank planned wide streets. This type of 19th century terrace house is found in other towns such as Pembroke and in rural contexts close to the Milford Haven waterway, but such large numbers are not matched anywhere else in southwest Wales. Their closest geographical parallel in such numbers is in some of the towns of southern Ireland.

Churches and chapels
Medieval churches give a very distinctive character to the historic landscape of the Milford Haven waterway. Most of them have tall, masonry towers, visible from long distances, often three or more being visible from any vantage point along the waterway. The density of the medieval population, and the formality of its manorial system, led to a pattern of small parishes, each with a large church sometimes supplemented by one or more chapels-of-ease as formerly existed at Angle, Carew, Dale, Pembroke St Mary and St Michael, Slebech and Steynton. Some present parish churches originated as chapels-of-ease. These churches have a shared, distinct morphology. The availability of locally quarried Carboniferous Limestone led to a massive constructional technique, of good quality masonry, in which much of the internal space was vaulted, usually of 14th century to 16th century date. Churches south of the Milford Haven waterway are normally vaulted in one or more cells, and usually feature a west tower and transepts with ‘skew-passages’ leading into the chancel. Porches are normally on the south side and vaulted, and often feature evidence for the former presence of integral, first-floor parvis chambers. Large, square western bellcotes, forming small turrets, are an unusual feature practically confined to the region (seen at Minwear and Cosheston). Churches north of the waterway are similar, but are usually simpler, often lacking the vaulting, transepts and tower. However, projecting ‘choir-recesses’ either side of the chancel east-bay and projecting baptisteries in the nave are often present in these churches. These defining features are almost totally restricted to this region (both seen at Herbrandston, Hubberston and Johnston). There are three large, aisled town churches in Haverfordwest, one of which, St Mary, is the largest parish church in the county and the best quality non-Monastic church in west Wales. In contrast, the two town churches in Pembroke are relatively small. Carew church has a ‘West Country’ tower from c.1500. The remainder of churches in this area are mainly rural, and more ‘typical’. The churchyards at Angle and Carew contain unusual, late medieval mortuary chapels. There are a number of closed, deserted or ruined churches, for example Boulston, Hasguard, Newton North, Pwllcrochan, Paterchurch (Pembroke Dock), Slebech (19th century) and Upton.

There were five major post-conquest monastic houses in the area. Pill Priory, a dependence of the Tironian St Dogmaels Abbey, the Augustinian Haverfordwest Priory, and the Knights Hospitaller church at Slebech survive to varying degrees, although no evidence of the conventual buildings at the latter site has survived. The Benedictine Monkton Priory, Pembroke, survives as a parish church (as, briefly, did Slebech), but there is now no above ground evidence for the Dominican friary at Haverfordwest.

Many medieval nucleations within the area are clustered around their churches, for example at Angle, Herbrandston, Llangwm, Rosemarket and Walwyn’s Castle, but there are others, like Carew and St Ishmaels, which lie some distance from the church, suggesting that the churches occupy pre-existing sites. Moreover, some ecclesiastical sites have demonstrable early medieval origins. Rhoscrowther was the site of one of the seven ‘bishop houses’ of pre-conquest Dyfed and features a possible late medieval capel-y-bedd over a saint’s tomb. Early medieval chapel sites possibly include the cliff-top chapel at Angle and the free chapel at Coedcanlas, while there are a number of Early Christian Monuments in the region, including those at St Ishmaels and Steynton churches (and possibly Johnston). Cist cemeteries lie in close proximity to the churches at St Brides and St Ishmaels.

The impact of nineteenth century church-building and restoration has been relatively slight. Slebech church was rebuilt and relocated in 1840, but the new church is now empty. New churches, for new parishes, were built at Milford Haven and Hundleton, while Pembroke St Michael was rebuilt. The new towns of Milford Haven and Pembroke Dock were however served by a number of nonconformist chapels