Le Marchant Barracks
Le Marchant Barracks is a former military installation in Devizes, Wiltshire, England.
Le Marchant Barracks | |
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Devizes | |
Le Marchant Barracks | |
Le Marchant Barracks Location within Wiltshire | |
Coordinates | 51°21′42″N 01°58′27″W |
Type | Barracks |
Site information | |
Owner | Ministry of Defence |
Operator | |
Site history | |
Built | 1878 |
Built for | War Office |
In use | 1878-1967 |
Garrison information | |
Occupants | Wiltshire Regiment (Duke of Edinburgh's) |
History
The barracks were built in the Fortress Gothic Revival style and named after Sir John Gaspard Le Marchant in 1878.[1] Their creation took place as part of the Cardwell Reforms which encouraged the localisation of British military forces.[2] The barracks became the depot for the 62nd (Wiltshire) Regiment of Foot and the 99th (Lanarkshire) Regiment of Foot.[3] Following the Childers Reforms, the 62nd and 99th Regiments amalgamated to form the Wiltshire Regiment (Duke of Edinburgh's) with its depot in the barracks in 1881.[3]
During the First World War 5,000 soldiers were processed there and over 3,000 reservists were called up there.[1] Between the Wars the barracks were the local infantry training centre and during the Second World War the barracks became a Prisoner of war camp.[1] The barracks remained the home of the Wiltshire Regiment until 1959 after which time they were used as a secondary location by the Duke of Edinburgh's Royal Regiment until about 1967.[4]
Part of the site was still used as a Territorial Army Centre for the 1st Battalion the Wessex Regiment (Rifle Volunteers) after the main barracks closed.[1] The keep was sold by the Ministry of Defence in the 1980s and was subsequently used as a warehouse.[5] It was sold again in 2012 and converted for residential use in 2013.[6]
The keep and gatehouse are Grade II listed.[7][8]
References
- "Le Marchant Barracks". Devizes Heritage. Archived from the original on 28 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
- "Echoes of the past in these Army cuts". 8 July 2012. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
- "Training Depots". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 10 February 2006. Retrieved 16 October 2016.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
- "Gatehouse to Le Marchant Barracks". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
- "The Keep, London Road, Devizes". Country Life. Archived from the original on 28 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
- "Take peek at converted Keep in Devizes". This is Wiltshire. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
- Historic England. "Keep, wall and gateway, Le Marchant Barracks (1243314)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
- Historic England. "Gatehouse to Le Marchant Barracks (1271946)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 6 April 2015.