Roussillon Barracks

Roussillon Barracks was a military installation in Chichester.

Roussillon Barracks
Chichester
Roussillon Barracks
Roussillon Barracks
Location within West Sussex
Coordinates50.85094°N 0.78001°W / 50.85094; -0.78001
TypeBarracks
Site information
OwnerMinistry of Defence
Operator British Army
Site history
Built1795
Built forWar Office
In use1795-2005
Garrison information
OccupantsRoyal Sussex Regiment
Royal Military Police

History

The barracks were originally established as part of the British response to the threat of the French Revolution in tented accommodation in 1795 and were enhanced by the use of wooden huts in 1803.[1] In 1873 a system of recruiting areas based on counties was instituted under the Cardwell Reforms and the barracks became the depot for the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot and the 107th (Bengal Infantry) Regiment of Foot.[2] The keep, built in the Fortress Gothic Revival Style, and chapel were added in 1875.[1] Following the Childers Reforms, the 35th and 107th regiments amalgamated to form the Royal Sussex Regiment with its depot in the barracks in 1881.[2]

Further enhancements to the barracks took place in the 1930s when the wooden huts were removed. The name of the barracks, given in 1958, commemorates the actions of the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot in putting the Regiment Royal Roussillon to flight at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham during the Seven Years' War.[3] The barracks were demoted to the status of out-station to the Home Counties Brigade depot at Howe Barracks in Canterbury in 1959.[1]

Extensive building took place from 1960 until 1964 to accommodate the Royal Military Police who arrived from Inkerman Barracks and took over the site in 1964.[1] Lieutenant-Commander Alfredo Astiz, an Argentine commander, was questioned at the barracks in June 1982 about the murder of Swedish and French nationals.[4] The Royal Military Police left the site in September 2005 and planning permission for housing was granted in 2011.[5]

References
  1. "Roussillon Barracks". Royal Sussex. Archived from the original on 2 October 2013. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  2. "Training Depots". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 10 February 2006. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  3. "The Royal Sussex Regiment". Royal Sussex. Archived from the original on 30 August 2014. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  4. "Britain sends home Argentine commander suspected of torture". The Montreal Gazette. 11 June 1982. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  5. "Planning permission granted for Roussillon Barracks development". Homes & Communities Agency. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
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