Pill Fort facts for kids
Pill Fort was a special type of small fort, called a sconce, built on the northern coast of Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It was built during the English Civil War by the King's army, known as the Royalists. Their main goal was to stop the Parliamentarian forces (often called Roundheads) from landing at Pembroke Castle. The fort also helped protect Royalist soldiers arriving from Ireland.
Building Pill Fort
The Royalists chose a smart spot for the fort. It was on a raised piece of land where a small river, locally called a "Pill," met the main waterway. An engineer named Richard Steel, from the King's main base in Oxford, designed the fort. Building it cost about £400, which was a lot of money back then!
Pill Fort was the only fort built in Pembrokeshire during the Civil War. While we don't have exact drawings, forts like it usually had four strong earth mounds, called bastions. These were surrounded by a ditch for protection. The fort's walls were made of wooden fences, known as palisades. Cannons were placed on the bastions to fire at enemy ships or soldiers. Inside the fort, soldiers lived and ate in tents.
The Battle for the Fort
In February 1644, Parliamentarian forces arrived in Milford Haven with three ships. Colonel Rowland Laugharne took charge of all their soldiers in Pembroke. Two Royalist ships quickly hid in the Pill, near the fort.
The Parliamentarians moved their cannons into position on the eastern side of the Pill. They also had cannons on their ships in the Haven. They began to bombard Pill Fort, firing many cannonballs at it. At the same time, Parliamentarian soldiers marched from the north, arriving near the fort from Steynton.
Faced with attacks from both land and sea, the Royalist soldiers at Pill Fort decided to surrender. A truce was called, and the fort was handed over to the Parliamentarians.
After the Battle
After its capture, Parliamentarian forces used Pill Fort for the rest of the Civil War. However, before the Second Civil War began in 1648, the fort was taken apart.
Even though the fort was dismantled, its old earth walls could still be seen until at least the 1930s. Sadly, in 1990, the area was flattened by bulldozers, and new buildings now stand where the fort once was.
