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The Twentieth Century MilitarySites of Wales Project
Jonathan BerryAssistant Inspector of Ancient Monuments
Cadw
01443 336 073
Introduction
• Briefly explain the character of C20 military activity in Wales – dispel a few myths!
• Describe the key developments in the study of this subject in Wales
• Provide an overview of Cadw’s activities
1: The Military in Wales
A soldier from 7th Battalion, The Warwickshire Regiment (TA) asleep in a camp in South Wales. (© Getty Archive)
The Military in Wales: training
WW2 tank range impact area, Castlemartin, Pembrokeshire(© RCAHMW)
WW1 practice trenches at Bodelwyddan Park, Denbighshire (© RCAHMW)
The Military in Wales: matériel
Ruby Loftus Screwing a Breech Ring, 1943, Dame Laura Knight (© Imperial War Museum)
Asphalt runway and E1 Paste Mixing and Sheeting House, Royal Naval Propellant Factory, Caerwent, Monmouthshire (© Cadw)
The Military in Wales: R&D
Nant-y-Gro dam, Powys(© Cadw)
Ministry of Supply Valley Site, Mold Flintshire (© RCAHMW)
The Military in Wales: R&D
Cold War Sea Slug test-firing, Aberporth, Ceredigion(© RJC Thomas)
WW2 ZAA emplacement (© Imperial War Museum)
Military in Wales: Frontline
Blitz damage February 1941, College Street, Swansea (© WGAS)
Military in Wales: Frontline
Heavy anti-aircraft gun emplacement, Mumbles Hill, Swansea (© Cadw)
Military in Wales: Frontline
3.7-inch Heavy anti-aircraft gun memorial, Swansea (© Cadw)
Military in Wales: Frontline
Former Royal Naval Dockyard / RAF flying boat base, Pembroke Dock, Pembrokeshire (© RCAHMW)
Military in Wales: Frontline
Coastal crust defences, Fairbourne, Gwynedd (© RCAHMW)
Military in Wales: Frontline
WW2 defensive loopholed wall, former RAF Bodorgan, Anglesey (© Cadw)
2: Research
Research• Amateur interest from
1972
• Increasing professional archaeological interest from late 1980s
• Cadw and Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority study, 1994
Research• Defence of Britain
project
• Neil Redfern’s 1998 documentary-based study
• Equivalent of Dobinson’s reports
• Narrower
• Shallower
Research• Established
Twentieth Century Military Sites Working Group
• Designation actions
• Conservation work
• Outreach activities
3: Cadw’s activities
Responses to preservation
Responses to preservation
Responses to preservation
OutreachWritten to:
• Raise awareness and inform
• Support designation work
Aimed at:
• Owners & occupiers
• Landowners
• General public
Outreach• Introduces the range
of military sites in Wales
• Describes the factors affecting their survival
• Explains simple conservation actions
• Statement of policy and best practice
Our military heritage is important
• Defence is a re-occurring theme in Welsh history = continuity
• Dramatic effect of warfare on landscape– Changing defensive strategies– Impact of new technologies
• Some relate to crucial historic episodes• All tell story of profound changes in
warfare & impact on Welsh communities
Cultural value
Remains possess key cultural significance:– Social history, including women’s history
• Women’s Land Army / Women’s Timber Corps• Royal Ordnance Factories
– Impact on art and literature:• War artists• Welsh war poets
– Remembrance and commemoration– Protest / archaeology of opposition– Educational potential
Threats
• Many defence works were cleared during and after the Second World War
• Many structures were only intended as temporary emergency works designed to last the duration
• Regrettably, first hand accounts are fading as memory becomes history
• There is a highly fragmentary rate of site survival, that is under threat from...
Threats
• Climate change & our responses to it
• Forestry / agricultural regimes
• Neglect & vandalism - graffiti, fly-tipping
• Lack of maintenance
• Structural problems - spalling, collapse
• Insensitive development and tourism
• Lack of understanding / ignorance
• Beautifying eyesores
• Treasure hunting / uncontrolled recovery
Threats
Ruinous temporary hutting, RAF Pembrey, Carmarthenshire (© Cadw)
Threats
Former Cold War LOPGAP (Liquid Oxygen / Petrol Guided Anti-aircraft Projectile) camp, Borth, Ceredigion (© RCAHMW)
Threats
Remains of Common-y-coed heavy anti-aircraft battery, St Bride’s Netherwent, Monmouthshire(© Cadw)
Research and recording
Increasingly common from 1990s onwards:
• Complex sites - archives, fieldwork and aerial photographs
• Defence of Britain project
• Data on RCAHMW’s NMRW and the Welsh Archaeological Trusts’ HERs
• Twentieth Century Military Sites Working Group - ongoing
Research and recording
Contemporary artwork, Dale,Pembrokeshire (© RCAHMW)
RAF / RNAS Dale,Pembrokeshire(© RCAHMW)
Protection
A number of ways to protect these sites:
• Cadw’s review of defence heritage and statutory protection for the best examples
• Advice through planning guidance
• Local authority Conservation Areas
• WAG’s agri-environmental schemes
• Inform owners / occupiers of historic significance and educational potential
Protection
Variant design pillbox, Nant Francon,Gwynedd (© Cadw)
WW1 firing range targets, near Dolgellau, Gwynedd(© RCAHMW)
Conservation
Groups have started to conserve these important remains for enjoyment, education and community involvement:
• Lavernock Point Battery, Glamorgan
• Carew Cheriton Control Tower, Pembs
• Mumbles Hill HAA Battery, Swansea
• Holyhead Maritime Museum, Anglesey
• Rhydymwyn Visitor Centre, Flint
Conservation
Air Cadets clearing undergrowth from a Bofors 40mm light anti-aircraft gun position, Lavernock Point, Vale of Glamorgan (© Cadw)
Conservation• 6 conservation
principles
• Principles will inform Cadw’s approach to management of historic environment
• Policies & Guidance to guide Cadw in applying Principles
• 30th October 2009
Summary
• Our understanding of these important sites has grown enormously and will continue to do so
• Wales has a great variety of sites
• Wales was not a backwater – much is of national or international importance
• These sites are vulnerable and at risk
• The best examples will receive statutory protection, but further research is needed
The Twentieth Century MilitarySites of Wales Project
Jonathan BerryAssistant Inspector of Ancient
Monuments
Cadw
01443 336 073
