Fort Hubberstone, on the west side of

Milford Haven Milford Haven ( cy, Aberdaugleddau, meaning "mouth of the two Rivers Cleddau") is both a town and a community in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It is situated on the north side of the Milford Haven Waterway, an estuary forming a natural harbour that ha ...

, Pembrokeshire, is a Grade II* Listed Building which belongs to a series of forts built as part of the inner line of defence of the Haven following the

Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom The Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom was a committee formed in 1859 to enquire into the ability of the United Kingdom to defend itself against an attempted invasion by a foreign power, and to advise the British Government on ...

. Together with

Popton Fort Popton Fort, a Grade II* Listed Building,Fort Popton, Angle
British Listed Buildings, access ...

on the opposite shore, it provided an interlocking field of fire, and represented the last layer of defence before reaching the Royal Naval dockyard at

Pembroke Dock Pembroke Dock ( cy, Doc Penfro) is a town and a community in Pembrokeshire, South West Wales, northwest of Pembroke on the banks of the River Cleddau. Originally Paterchurch, a small fishing village, Pembroke Dock town expanded rapidly follow ...

. Construction began in 1860 and was completed in 1863 at a cost of £55,000.Genealogy World – Fort Hubberstone
Mason, Graham, Retrieved 25 December 2013 It is a large

battery Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...

, with eleven

gun A gun is a ranged weapon designed to use a shooting tube ( gun barrel) to launch projectiles. The projectiles are typically solid, but can also be pressurized liquid (e.g. in water guns/cannons, spray guns for painting or pressure washi ...

s in

casemate A casemate is a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which guns are fired, in a fortification, warship, or armoured fighting vehicle.Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary When referring to antiquity, the term "casemate wall" mean ...

s, eight in an open battery above, with another nine in an open flank battery, and a large barracks to the rear. It is a D-shaped structure, with a bomb-proof roof which protected the barracks and other buildings from mortar projectiles. On its landward side, it was protected by a deep ditch, and on the seaward side by a counter-scarp gallery. The associated casemate battery is located further down the headland and separated from the fort.Phillips, Benjamin A, ''Pembrokeshire's Forts and Military Airfields'', Logaston Press, 2013. The barracks had capacity for 250 men, sourced from the Royal Pembrokeshire Artillery and the 24th Regiment of Foot. Recruitment however was frequently constrained by the isolation of the fort, lacking the appeal of more urban stations. The fort was often required to fire live practice rounds, and in 1894 participated in experiments to illuminate targets with searchlights so they could be engaged at night. Notoriously, in 1875 Lieutenant Walter of the militia was murdered by a Doctor Alder in a drunken brawl. The fort was abandoned after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

as a consequence of the

Haldane Reforms The Haldane Reforms were a series of far-ranging reforms of the British Army made from 1906 to 1912, and named after the Secretary of State for War, Richard Burdon Haldane. They were the first major reforms since the " Childers Reforms" of the ...

. A 1919 proposal to convert the structure into

social housing Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is usually owned by a government authority, either central or local. Although the common goal of public housing is to provide affordable housing, the details, terminology, d ...

came to nothing.

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

saw the fort once again in active use, when it was used as an air raid shelter and army camp for American military personnel. On a good site, the fort has fallen into disrepair. Under the ownership of Milford Haven Port Authority, there were various unsuccessful plans to restore the structure. The site is not currently open to the public, and has been the scene of non-fatal injuries to trespassers. In 2011 it was named as the fifth most endangered archaeological site in the UK by British Archaeology, which prompted a campaign to seek a long-term sustainable use of the site. In 2019, plans were announced to convert the site into a military-based residential camp for former service men and women. These plans were subsequently dropped due to a media scandal involving Camp Valour. In September 2020, the site was purchased by a private investor, who announced it would be open it to the public as a ‘living ruin’.Milford's Hubberston Fort purchased by local businessman
Milford Mercury article, 29 September 2020

References

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External links

Victorian Forts data sheet
Buildings and structures in Milford Haven Forts in Pembrokeshire Grade II* listed buildings in Pembrokeshire History of Pembrokeshire Ruins in Wales Grade II* listed forts

Hubberston Hubberston is a coastal village in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It belongs to the parish of Hubberston in the historical hundred of Roose. It is located directly to the west of the larger town of Milford Haven, and is a district of the community of Mil ...

Archaeological sites in Pembrokeshire Scheduled monuments in Pembrokeshire