0:00:16 > 0:00:19Admiral Lord Nelson described Milford Haven
0:00:19 > 0:00:22as one of the finest natural harbours in the world.
0:00:22 > 0:00:24In its glory days,
0:00:24 > 0:00:28this was the largest deep water port on the Atlantic.
0:00:28 > 0:00:30The historic defences that ring the estuary
0:00:30 > 0:00:33show how highly it was prized.
0:00:35 > 0:00:39The military have now abandoned these coastal forts.
0:00:39 > 0:00:41They've fallen into private hands
0:00:41 > 0:00:46and they make an ideal spot for the security conscious.
0:00:46 > 0:00:50Talk about taking things to the limit.
0:00:50 > 0:00:54Look, VR 1891, Queen Victoria.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57She didn't like to be taken by surprise either.
0:00:58 > 0:00:59How do you get in here?
0:01:02 > 0:01:05BELL RINGS
0:01:05 > 0:01:06Classy doorbell.
0:01:06 > 0:01:08Hello the house.
0:01:11 > 0:01:13- George.- Hello, you must be Neil.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15- Yes.- Welcome to Chapel Bay Fort.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17What a fantastic place!
0:01:17 > 0:01:20George Geear bought his coastal fort 14 years ago.
0:01:20 > 0:01:25Since then, he's devoted himself to restoring it to its former glory.
0:01:27 > 0:01:29What about this brute, George?
0:01:29 > 0:01:31What does this fire?
0:01:31 > 0:01:34This is an 18-tonne 10-inch rifle muzzle loader,
0:01:34 > 0:01:38fired a pointed armour-piercing Palliser projectile,
0:01:38 > 0:01:42penetrating nearly a foot of armour plating from 1,000 yards.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45This is the original gun put here in 1891.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48If you fire something out of the end of this, how far does it go?
0:01:48 > 0:01:51About three or four miles at this sort of elevation,
0:01:51 > 0:01:5412 degrees, I think the range is three miles.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57George's restoration has been a labour of love.
0:01:57 > 0:02:03The previous residents were pigs - a pig farm, to be precise.
0:02:05 > 0:02:09Even in its heyday, the fort never actually saw action.
0:02:10 > 0:02:16But it was used to train artillerymen before they faced the Western Front in World War I.
0:02:16 > 0:02:19This is the battery control station which
0:02:19 > 0:02:22we have nearly finished restoring, with help from the Lottery.
0:02:22 > 0:02:26You are under an inch and a half of steel armour plate.
0:02:28 > 0:02:34Up in here is where, if you like, this was the nerve centre for this battery.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37- This is the brains of the whole operation.- This is the brains.
0:02:37 > 0:02:42From here, you can see everywhere from the entrance to the Haven, all the way round past Dale,
0:02:42 > 0:02:45you can see all the way down the Haven to the dockyard.
0:02:45 > 0:02:49So nothing passes this fort, but the men in here can see it.
0:02:49 > 0:02:54- And they're in communication with the guns. - So how do you do the clever bit?
0:02:54 > 0:02:57The clever bit comes from this instrument,
0:02:57 > 0:02:59which is a Watkin Depression Range Finder.
0:02:59 > 0:03:03First appeared in 1873. It was so good,
0:03:03 > 0:03:08it was still in use in 1956 when Coast Artillery was closed down.
0:03:08 > 0:03:10So by working these controls together,
0:03:10 > 0:03:13you can keep the crosshairs on the waterline of the ship.
0:03:13 > 0:03:17Absolutely, and get a continuous read-out of range.
0:03:17 > 0:03:20Brilliant. I've got one, George.
0:03:20 > 0:03:24Right now, your number two would pass the range to the chap sitting behind you,
0:03:24 > 0:03:26who by telephone and loudspeaker
0:03:26 > 0:03:30would relay the elevation and the azimuth to the guns.
0:03:30 > 0:03:35Coast gunnery was the very peak of artillery of the period,
0:03:35 > 0:03:39the most intelligent men were posted to Coast Artillery batteries
0:03:39 > 0:03:42because it was so dependent on engineering and mathematics.
0:03:42 > 0:03:45This really WAS the brains of the outfit.
0:03:45 > 0:03:50This was the white heat of military technology 100 years ago.
0:03:52 > 0:03:55The trainee gunners would've had no shortage of ships
0:03:55 > 0:03:58passing through their sights.
0:03:58 > 0:04:02Over the years, fishermen, the Navy and even the odd whaler
0:04:02 > 0:04:05have made the most of Milford Haven's deep waters.