Wartime gunners leave a tally in Pembrokeshire

I was turning around to leave, when I noticed the shapes above my head; two painted silhouettes of what appeared to be aircraft. It wasn’t until I returned home and examined the photographs that I spotted the swastikas. Painted on the lintel above a wide observation window in a combined Battery Observation Post / Director Station (BOP/DS) are two previously undocumented (as far as my research has indicated) German aircraft silhouettes. Each aircraft has been painted in red paint, and is accompanied by a red swastika. It is my theory that each swastika represents an aircraft shot down by the anti-aircraft crews manning the coastal battery. If this was not the case, I would imagine the insignia would have been painted on the aircraft themselves, and not to the side.

They are part of the Second World War coast artillery battery at Soldier’s Point (sometimes known as Watch House Point) at St. Ishmael’s in Pembrokeshire. Much of the battery has been demolished, but the two covered gun houses remain, as do two searchlight emplacements and the joint BOP/DS. A gun store and engine house also remain inland, but most other remains have been demolished and the land returned to agricultural use. With the exception of the BOP/DS and searchlights that sit on the Pembrokeshire Coast Path, the battery buildings are fenced off and on private farmland.

The battery has a very brief Coflein record here, and is also recorded on the Defence of Britain database here.

The coast artillery site originally armed with two 6-inch BL Mk XII guns dates from the Second World War and sits at the northern entrance to the heavily defenced channel leading to Milford Haven and Pembroke Dock.

The aircraft paintings are on the lintel above the window on the lower of two levels in the BOP/DS. The concrete Depression Range Finder (DRF) pillar still remains in the corner, as does the low plinth for a small stove.

Paintings like this are relatively rare to survive, especially in such a harsh coastal environment. I have been surprised that these have not been recorded before. However, they are hidden from direct sunlight and the battery hasn’t suffered from too much visible vandalism due to its relatively remote location.

The first aircraft may be a silhouette of a Junkers Ju 88, a German twin-engine bomber / dive-bomber, a type of aircraft that is recorded as being involved in raids against Pembroke Dock fuel depots during the Second World War. The swastika can be seen faintly below the right wing.

The second aircraft may be a Messerschmitt Me 109 single-seat fighter. This type often escorted heavier bombers on raids across the channel, and were seen with Ju 88 bombers during raids on Pembroke Dock. The swastika is to the right of the tail.

While I won’t spell out exactly how to access the BOP/DS in an attempt to deter casual visitors, it is relatively accessible for the adventurous and intrepid historian, but the upper level of the building is in a poor state of repair and extreme care should be taken. As far as I can tell it also sits on public land, and it is not necessary to trespass to view the artwork.