The Pembrokeshire Militia, later the Royal Pembroke Rifles, was an auxiliary regiment reorganised from earlier precursor units in the Welsh county of Pembrokeshire during the 18th Century. Primarily intended for home defence, it served in Britain and Ireland through all Britain's major wars. It was converted into garrison artillery in 1853 and continued until it was disbanded in 1909.
Pembroke Trained Bands
The universal obligation to military service in the Shire levy was long established in England and was extended to Wales. King Henry VIII called a 'Great Muster' in 1539, which showed the following available in the newly reorganised county of Pembrokeshire: County of Pembrokeshire: 1166 men available for service, of whom 139 had 'harness' (armour) Lordship of Haverfordwest: 454 (43 with harness) Tenants of Thomas Jones in both those places and in the Hundred of Dewisland: 380 with 4 'nags' (horses) Cilgerran Hundred: 254
The legal basis of the militia was updated by two Acts of 1557 covering musters and the maintenance of horses and armour. The county militia was now under the Lord Lieutenant, assisted by the Deputy Lieutenants and Justices of the Peace (JPs). The entry into force of these Acts in 1558 is seen as the starting date for the organised Militia of England and Wales. Although the militia obligation was universal, it was clearly impractical to train and equip every able-bodied man, so after 1572 the practice was to select a proportion of men for the Trained Bands, who were mustered for regular training. During the Armada crisis of 1588 Pembrokeshire furnished 800 trained foot and 30 'petronel's (the petronel was an early cavalry firearm).
In the 16th Century little distinction was made between the militia and the troops levied by the counties for overseas expeditions. However, the counties usually conscripted the unemployed and criminals rather than send the trained bandsmen. Between 1585 and 1602 Pembrokeshire supplied 610 men for service in Ireland and 30 for the Netherlands. The levies were commanded by professional captains rather than local men: in 1601 a captain who had raised 100 troops in Gloucestershire was ordered to take the 50 from Pembrokeshire under his command as well. The men were given 'conduct money' to get to the embarkation ports. This was recovered from the government, but replacing the weapons issued to the levies from the militia armouries was a heavy cost on the counties.
With the passing of the threat of invasion, the trained bands declined in the early 17th Century. Later, King Charles I attempted to reform them into a national force or 'Perfect Militia' answering to the king rather than local control. The Pembrokeshire Trained Bands of 1638 consisted of 557 men, 276 armed with muskets and 281 'Corslets' (body armour, signifying pikemen). They also mustered 57 horse. Part of this force may have been organised as the North Pembroke Trained Band. Pembrokeshire was ordered to send 300 men overland to Newcastle upon Tyne for the Second Bishops' War of 1640. However, substitution was rife and many of those sent on this unpopular service would have been untrained replacements.
Civil Wars
Control of the militia was one of the areas of dispute between Charles I and Parliament that led to the English Civil War. When open war broke out between the King and Parliament, neither side made much use of the trained bands beyond securing the county armouries for their own full-time troops. Most of Wales was under Royalist control for much of the war, and was a recruiting ground for the King's armies. However, Pembrokeshire was divided, with the coastal towns of Pembroke and Tenby leaning towards Parliament. These were vital for the Royal army to land supplies and reinforcements from Ireland. On 18 September 1643 during his campaign to take these two towns, the Earl of Carbery as the King's Lieutenant-General for Carmarthenshire, Cardiganshire and Pembrokeshire, summoned the Pembrokeshire TBs to Haverfordwest, where they declared for the King and were presumably absorbed into his army. However, Pembroke and Tenby were later recovered by Rowland Laugharne for Parliament.