Ebrington Barracks

Ebrington Barracks was a military installation on the east bank of the River Foyle in Derry, Northern Ireland.

Ebrington Barracks
Derry, Northern Ireland
Ebrington Barracks
Ebrington Barracks
Location within Northern Ireland
Coordinates54.99834°N 7.31083°W / 54.99834; -7.31083
TypeBarracks
Site information
OwnerMinistry of Defence
Operator British Army
Site history
Built1841
In use1841-2002
Garrison information
Occupants8 Infantry Brigade

History

The present barracks, named after Hugh Fortescue, Viscount Ebrington (later Earl Fortescue), were built on the site in 1841.[1]

First World War

At the start of the First World War, the barracks were occupied by 1st Battalion Cheshire Regiment who proceeded to France with the Expeditionary Force and landed at le Havre on 16 August 1914.[2]

Second World War

At the start of the Second World War the barracks were home to 2nd Battalion, the South Wales Borderers, before they were mobilised.[3] During the latter part of the War part of the base was handed over to Royal Navy to become HMS Ferret.[1] Munitions were stored at NAD Kilnappy and fuel at a fuel farm at Lisahally.[4]

The Troubles

During the Troubles the barracks were the base of 8 Infantry Brigade.[5] In March 1973 the Provisional IRA bombed the compound causing damage but no injuries.[6] On the 11 January 1974 the Official Irish Republican Army killed two civilians who worked as contractors for the British Army when they exploded a bomb under their car as they left the barracks.[7] On 14 December 1993: two soldiers were wounded by a trip wire bomb blast in a fence at a railway bordering the facilities.[8][9][10]

Dissident republican attacks

In April 2000 the Real Irish Republican Army lowered a device consisting of 5 lb of homemade explosives over the perimeter fence using ropes, and the bomb subsequently exploded damaging the fence and the guardhouse.[11] Then in January 2001 the Real Irish Republican Army were responsible for a mortar attack on the barracks: one mortar landed inside the perimeter fence of the base after being fired from a parked van but no one was injured.[12]

Closure and redevelopment

The barracks were closed when 8 Infantry Brigade moved to Shackleton Barracks in 2003 and the area in front of the barracks was redeveloped as Ebrington Square in 2011.[1] The Peace Bridge, built across the River Foyle between the main part of the city on the West and Ebrington Square on the East, was opened in June 2011.[13]

References
  1. "Londonderry turns swords into ploughshares". Straight Arts. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  2. "1st Battalion, Cheshire Regiment". Wartime Memories. Archived from the original on 25 May 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  3. "Complement of British Army Personnel in Northern Ireland". Second World War in Northern Ireland. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  4. "History of Port" (PDF). Londonderry Port. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  5. "Gold Star" (PDF). Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  6. "The Troubles". 1973. p. 14. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  7. "A Chronology of the Conflict - 1974". CAIN. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  8. "Derry man handed 10-year jail sentence for IRA terrorist offences - BelfastTelegraph.co.uk". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  9. Financial Times, 15 December 1993
  10. "Bomb attack in Londonderry". The Independent. 15 December 1993. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  11. "Bombing blamed on dissidents". BBC. 6 April 2000. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  12. "Dissident Republicans blamed for mortar attack". RTÉ. 23 January 2001. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  13. "Turner Prize 2013, Ebrington Barracks, Derry-Londonderry". The Arts Desk. 30 October 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
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