The Ack Ack Camp on Mumbles Hill
by Michael Llewellyn

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The camp on the Mumbles Hill was a big part of my early life from 1939 to 1945, as I was a child living nearby in Michaels Field.  I can remember my time with the men on the Hill, where the Royal Artillery manned the Battery. At one stage, they were commanded by Colonel ‘Chalky’ White. (I was told that he had won a VC).. The officers included Lieutenant Harewood, who enjoyed a society wedding with his bride Elaine, with whom I shared our dug-out for several months (in separate bunks I hasten to say).  I was aged eight and felt it appropriate to confide in her that I thought her to be ‘a smashing bit of stuff,’ which was well received and is evidenced by a newspaper photograph of her wedding. There was also Lieutenant Maurice Smart, Bombardier Tiny Ellis and Private Alex James. I think that Maurice Smart arrived in Singapore just in time to be captured by the Japanese. Company Sergeant Major Bill Cargill was my personal hero:  a regular soldier, he had been a Chindit in Burma with Wingate and had also served in Palestine before the War.  
          Although there was much barbed wire surrounding the Mumbles Hill Camp, access for small lads like me was extremely easy— just hop over the hedge onto Boulanger's carriage drive, or in our case, open the gate at the end of the garden, for our house had been designated for requisition in the event of invasion and had concrete steps with a gate provided. We used to wander into the camp with some freedom, as long as we did not adopt too high a profile and avoided officers. The soldiers were always kind to us, and we used to Blanco kit in return for cap badges, uniform buttons and the like: clean the webbing with a toothbrush and khaki paste, which came in tins, rather like cleaning tennis shoes. There was plenty of kit to clean and it was something of a chore. Haversack, anklets, belt, frog for bayonet, rifle sling, two pouches and various straps—We became quite expert. When the NAAFI hut (at first an ordinary Nissen hut, but later quite a smart building) showed films or had entertainments there were usually a gang of local kids sitting at the front.  

          Later in the War, Nissen huts were erected in the field, which is now Thistleboon Drive, and were separate from the main camp. A contingent of ATS (women soldiers) was accommodated there.  I'm not certain what role they performed but they greatly added to the occasion and rather daringly (for the times) usually wore slacks and, we were interested to note from various washing lines, enormous khaki bloomers! 
        We were always having parades in the village, usually associated with raising funds ‘Mrs Churchill's Aid to Russia Fund’, or ‘Spitfire Week’ for example, or to celebrate Armistice Day or some other important event. The Parades would form up somewhere along the Mumbles Road and march to a Saluting Base at Oystermouth Square and turn up Dunns Lane. A naval contingent (if available from the Docks) would, as Senior Service, always lead the parade, followed by contingents from the Army, the Home Guard, the Air Force, Sea, Air and Army Cadets, ARP Wardens, Queen Alexandra's Nursing Corps,  Sea Scouts (3rd Mumbles Troop), Scouts (1st Mumbles Troop, I'm not certain there was a 2nd Mumbles) Girl Guides, Cubs and Brownies. We took it all very seriously and it was much enjoyed by everyone. We all felt that we were ‘doing our bit’ by parading in uniform. 

            By the time of D Day, I'm not certain that the AA Guns were still on the hill.  A contingent of the Black Watch was there at about that time.  A piper paraded through the camp with pipes wailing several times a day, to the enormous amusement of us youngsters, who would follow him at a distance shouting rude remarks until chased away! We had American negro soldiers at the camp just before D-Day. On discovering their presence, we pestered them for gum, candy and comics to be told to come back next day. Their stay was extremely brief for when we returned, they had gone.  

The camp was then deserted until squatters arrived at the end of the War. They were very decent people, who lacked homes and were there for some time. 

  
I knew Bert Slee as he was a friend of my Dad's and used to come out with us in the motorboat Bessie, which my Dad owned and moored at Southend. I knew that later he had been lost in the Rawalpindi.   He seemed a very nice man and it was so sad that he was lost in those early stages of the War. The Rawalpindi didn't have a hope against the Scharnhorst and the Gneisenau, who appeared suddenly in low visibility.  Very gallant to fight, but at a fearful cost and to little purpose. When the "Jervis Bay", another armed merchant cruiser, placed herself between a German Raider and the convoy she was escorting later in the war, she suffered a similar fate but delayed the raider long enough for the convoy to break and scatter, which saved many ships and lives. Captain Fogarty Fegen R.N. was awarded the Victoria Cross and a number of his officers gained decorations. I don't know of any awards being made to "Rawalpindi" personnel. 

 

Decommissioning: used by homeless families

After the end of the war, guns and other equipment were removed from both batteries. (The examination battery on the lighthouse island had already been disbanded.) Mumbles Head was finally decommissioned in 1957 and the six-inch gun battery bunkers and gun emplacements were either removed or covered over. 

Today, only markers and information boards indicate what was once there. The searchlight emplacements and the engine house on the lighthouse island still exist and remains of the concrete causeway going out to the island can be seen at low tide. Nissen huts at both Bracelet Bay and Mumbles Hill were used for a while as temporary accommodation for homeless families, (see below).

Postwar, a friend of Ronald Studden named Christtancock lived in one of the Nissan huts at Bracelet Bay and noted that in the early 1950s they had prior warnings, which arrived in the post twice a year, 'we were warned that the guns on the hill would fire twice a year for testing, usually January and July  and as a security measure we should tape up our windows.' 

      By 30 August 1944 the number of heavy anti-aircraft guns around Swansea had been halved and by 3 January 1945 all had been removed. On Mumbles Hill, the anti-aircraft gun emplacements fell into ruin and became hidden beneath vegetation. 

Vehicles 

Aditional Information

By John Smith

The Spanish Civil War of 1937 had highlighted the awesome potential of air weaponry to undermine a country's ability to defend itself against the destruction of its strategic infrastructure and its civilian population. To counter this situation, the British Government set up the 'Air Defence of Great Britain'. This Organisation unified Fighter Command and Anti Aircraft Commands, together with the Royal Observer Corps.

The country was divided into defence regions interlinked to a central command with communications established through the national telephone network. Radar stations were strategically established to track and notify the Air Defence Command about incoming enemy bombers and this was disseminated to regions.

A system of air raid warnings were introduced, with 'yellow' as a preliminary warning to bring Anti Aircraft Units, Civil Defence, Fire Fighting, Police and Hospital authorities to the ready. 'Red' alerted the civilian population of imminent attack by the sounding of air raid sirens. 'White' sounded the all clear.

During early 1941, night fighters lacked the technology to successfully intercept and destroy the attacking enemy bombers. Therefore the primary night time means of defence fell to the Anti Aircraft Units of the Royal Artillery whose principle weapon of defence was the 3.7 inch (94mm) QF Mobile Anti Aircraft Gun supported by Searchlights which enabled them to identify German bombers at night.

This equipment was developed in co-operation with Vickers Company and issued to the Royal Artillery in 1938. It was designed for both static and mobile use, mounted on four wheels and towed by a Scammell Tractor Unit. The Gun weighed nearly 10 tons, has a maximum ceiling of fire of 30,000 feet (6 miles), fires a shell weighing 281bs and is capable of elevating and traversing through 80 and 360 degrees respectively. The Gun mounted on the monument is identical to the 3.7 inch Anti Aircraft Guns that were used during WW2, in the defence of Swansea during the Blitz.

In February 1941, the local Air Defence Command lay with 5th Anti Aircraft Division, with 6 Light Brigade covering the approximate area from Carmarthen to Bridgend, under command of Brigadier R C Reynold OBE MC. He deployed 79th HAA Regiment in and around Swansea with a responsibility to provide a maximum wall of fire to defend the City from Air attacks.

Guns from 246, 247 and 248 HAA Batteries were deployed in the Swansea area as follows:

246 Battery - 4 guns at Neath Abbey and 2 guns at Mumbles.  ## Probably not correct 

247 Battery - 4 guns at Morriston and 4 guns at the Jersey Marine.

248 Battery - 4 guns at Sketty. Ref:  Anti-Aircraft & Rocket Battery, Ashleigh Road 

To assist the guns, predictors and Sound Locating Units were in support to track the height and path of the attacking aircraft. Additionally, in support of the guns, were searchlights and several Light Anti Aircraft Detachments equipped with machine guns to combat low flying aircraft.

The 'Ack-Ack Gunners' as they were known, were formed from Territorials, Militiamen and regular soldiers, some who had returned from Dunkirk. They undertook their duties in all weathers and were at 'Action Stations' for long periods. Their main frustration was, in spite of their very hard work and best efforts, very few raiders were shot down. This was unfortunately due to the fact that the technology to do this was not then available. However the guns played an important role, by forcing the raiders to fly at higher altitudes to take avoiding action, all of which made it much more difficult for them to aim accurately at the target. This reduced the number of hits they made on the targets, which effectively reduced the damage sustained to life and property. It was also very important to boost civilian morale by providing the feeling that 'we were hitting back'.

Reference - Wikipedia  

79th (Hertfordshire Yeomanry) Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/79th_(Hertfordshire_Yeomanry)_Heavy_Anti-Aircraft_Regiment,_Royal_Artillery

By the end of February 1941 the HAA guns in the Swansea GDA still only numbered 18 out of a planned establishment of 36. These were distributed to sites as follows:[61][62]

• N1 Llansamlet – 4 x 3.7-inch (247 Bty)

• N2 Neath – 4 x 3.7-inch (246 Bty)

• N3 Jersey Marine – 4 x 3.7-inch (247 Bty)

• N4 Ravenhill (under construction by 246 Bty)

• N5 Mumbles – 4 x 3.7-inch (248 Bty) 

• N6 Sketty – 2 x 3.7-inch (248 Bty)

These had been increased a month later to 36

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NEWS - November 2021 -  MUSEUM IS LOOKING FOR A NEW SITE
1940s Swansea Bay museum on Fabian Way,  has closed while searching for a new site for its extensive collection.