Summary
Le Marchant Barracks is a former military installation in Devizes, Wiltshire, England. The site is within the town's built-up area but within Bishops Cannings parish, on London Road about 1 mile (1.6 km) north-east of the centre of the town.
| Le Marchant Barracks | |
|---|---|
| Devizes | |
 Le Marchant Barracks | |
  Le Marchant Barracks Location within Wiltshire | |
| Coordinates | 51°21′42″N 01°58′27″W / 51.36167°N 1.97417°W |
| Type | Barracks |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Ministry of Defence |
| Operator |  British Army |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1878 |
| Built for | War Office |
| In use | 1878-1967 |
| Garrison information | |
| Occupants | Wiltshire Regiment (Duke of Edinburgh's) |
History edit
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. During the Second World War, from September 1944 part of the site was a prisoner of war camp, which by the end of that year housed 7,500 German and Italian personnel.[4][5]
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.[6] Part of the site was still used as a Territorial Army Centre for the 1st Battalion, Wessex Regiment after the main barracks closed.[1]
Later uses edit
The keep was sold by the Ministry of Defence in the 1980s and was subsequently used as a warehouse.[7] It was sold again in 2012 and converted for residential use in 2013.[8]
The keep and gatehouse are Grade II listed.[9][6]
References edit
- ^ a b c "Le Marchant Barracks". Devizes Heritage. Archived from the original on 28 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
- ^ Mallinson, Allan (8 July 2012). "Echoes of the past in these Army cuts". The Telegraph. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
- ^ a b "Training Depots". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 10 February 2006. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
- ^ "Prisoner Of War Camps In Devizes During World War II". Devizes Heritage. Archived from the original on 28 May 2014 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ "WW2 in Devizes: Prisoner of War Diary". Wiltshire Museum. June 2022. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
- ^ a b Historic England. "Gatehouse to Le Marchant Barracks (1271946)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
- ^ "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.