On this day in 1749, probably at Warwick Castle, Charles Francis Greville was born, the founder of the town and seaport of Milford Haven.

In 1790, Greville applied to Parliament to construct quays, markets and access roads to the port at Milford and to a make it the linking point for transferring mail to and from Ireland.

He then invited seven quaker families from Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts to settle in the new town which was founded in 1793 and designed on a grid pattern layout.

After the formation of the town, Milford Haven became a well-known whaling port for several decades, and in 1797 a Royal Dockyard was established.

Lord Nelson described it as the second best natural harbour in the world, second only to Trincomalee in Sri Lanka.

In 1814 the Royal Dockyard was transferred to Pembroke Dock and a commercial dock was established at Milford, which became the home of a successful fishing and boat-building industry.

In 1850s a network of forts was constructed on both sides of the Milford Haven estuary as a defence against an anticipated French invasion.

During the Second World War Milford Haven housed approximately 1,000 American troops.

Many of the chief oil companies opened refineries at Milford in the 1960s, which resulted in the port dealing with three times the combined trade of all the other ports of Wales by 1974.