Tidworth Camp
| Tidworth Camp | |
|---|---|
| Tidworth | |
 Tidworth camp from Clarendon Hill. | |
  Tidworth Camp Location within Wiltshire | |
| Coordinates | 51°13′56″N 1°40′28″W / 51.23217°N 1.67451°W |
| Type | Barracks |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Ministry of Defence |
| Operator |  British Army |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1897 |
| Built for | War Office |
| In use | 1897–present |
| Garrison information | |
| Occupants | Various |
Tidworth Camp is a military installation at Tidworth in Wiltshire, England. It forms part of the Tidworth, Netheravon and Bulford (TidNBul) Garrison.[1]
History
[edit]The Camp was established when the War Office acquired a 19th-century mansion – Tedworth House – and large tracts of land to its north in 1897.[2] Headquarters Southern Command was established at Tidworth Camp in 1905.[3]
Lucknow Barracks and Mooltan Barracks were completed in 1905, Tidworth Military Hospital was finished in 1907. Aliwal Barracks, Assaye Barracks, Bhurtpore Barracks, Candahar Barracks, Delhi Barracks and Jellalabad Barracks were added later,[4] and a Royal Ordnance depot was established during the First World War. The barracks are named for battles in India and Afghanistan: Aliwal, Assaye, Bhurtpore, Candahar, Delhi, Jellalabad, Lucknow and Mooltan.[5] (Jellalabad Barracks should not be confused with the former barracks of the same name in Taunton, Somerset).[6]
There was also an army hospital during the First World War. A description of it, including actions taken to address a suspected meningitis outbreak, is provided by Arthur Bullock, who spent around a week there in 1918.[7]
In the Second World War, the Camp was home from 1942 to 1944 to various formations of the United States Army including 7th Armored Division (14 June to 7 August 1944),[8] 9th Armored Division,[9] and 8th Armored Division.[10] HQ Southern Command left the Camp and moved to Erskine Barracks near Fugglestone St Peter in 1949.[11] The military hospital closed in March 1977.[12]
Extensive reconstruction at the Camp involving 160 new or refurbished buildings was carried out under Project Allenby Connaught between 2006 and 2014.[4]
Tedworth House had various military uses, including providing accommodation for nurses; from 1977 to 2011 it was the Officers' Mess for the Camp.[13] It is now a recovery centre operated by the Help for Heroes charity.[14]
Military cemetery
[edit]Tidworth Military Cemetery, north of the Camp and surrounded by farmland, is under the care of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. 417 First World War burials from Tidworth, and from Fargo Military Hospital near Larkhill, include many of Australian or New Zealand servicemen. There are also 106 graves of the Second World War and 40 of other nationalities.[15]
Former branch railway
[edit]A branch from the Midland and South Western Junction Railway at Ludgershall was built in 1901 and opened to passengers in 1902.[16] Goods tracks known as Tidworth Military Railway continued west from Tidworth station into the military area. The branch returned to military control in 1955 and was closed in 1963.[17][18]
Barracks
[edit]The barracks which encompass the camp include:
- Aliwal Barracks
- Assaye Barracks
- Queen's Royal Hussars[20]
- 2nd Armoured Medical Regiment, Royal Army Medical Corps[21][22]
- 3rd Armoured Close Support Battalion, Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers[23]
- Bhurtpore Barracks
- 1st Armoured Medical Regiment, Royal Army Medical Corps[24]
- Candahar Barracks
- 10 Army Education Centre Group, Adjutant General's Corps[25][26]
- Delhi Barracks
- Headquarters, 1st Deep Reconnaissance Strike Brigade Combat Team[27]
- 6th Armoured Close Support Battalion, Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers[19]
- Jellalabad Barracks
- Headquarters South West[28]
- 4th Armoured Close Support Battalion, Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers[19]
- Lucknow Barracks
- 1st Battalion, Royal Welsh[19][29]
- British Army Bands Tidworth[30][31]
- Band of the Royal Artillery
- Band of the Corps of Royal Engineers
- Band of the Adjutant General's Corps
- Mooltan Barracks
- 1st Battalion, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers[19]
References
[edit]- ^ "Garrison Commander assists with construction of new Officers' Mess". Aspire Defence Limited. 20 December 2017.
- ^ Page, William, ed. (1911). "Victoria County History: Hampshire: Vol 4 pp391-394 – Parishes: Tidworth, South". British History Online. University of London. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
- ^ "General Sir Ian Hamilton". Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
- ^ a b "Tidworth Overview". Aspire Defence. Archived from the original on 26 March 2014.
- ^ "Mooltan Barracks, Tidworth". British listed buildings. Retrieved 6 March 2017.
- ^ "The Keep, Jellalabad Barracks, Mount Street, Taunton". Somerset County Council. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
- ^ Bullock, Arthur (2009). Gloucestershire Between the Wars: A Memoir. The History Press. p. 54. ISBN 978-0-7524-4793-3.
- ^ "Order of Battle of the U.S. Army, World War II, European Theater of Operations, Divisions". U.S. Army Center of Military History. OFFICE OF THE THEATER HISTORIAN. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
- ^ Ken Wakefield (24 March 2014). The Other Ninth Air Force: Ninth US Army Light Aircraft Operations in Europe 1944-45. Fonthill Media. GGKEY:6KCZWNPHUL0.
- ^ Charles R. Leach (1992). In tornado's wake: a history of the 8th Armored Division. Battery Press. p. 47. ISBN 9780898391763.
- ^ "'Fugglestone St Peter', in A History of the County of Wiltshire: Volume 6". 1962. pp. 37–50. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
- ^ "Tidworth Military Hospital". Retrieved 22 November 2014.
- ^ "Last lunch at Tedworth House". Salisbury Journal. 3 February 2011. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
- ^ "Recovery in the South | Tedworth House". Help For Heroes. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
- ^ "Tidworth Military Cemetery". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
- ^ Historic England. "Tidworth Military Railway (1359011)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 1 March 2015.
- ^ Steph Gillett (15 August 2018). The Midland & South Western Junction Railway Through Time. Amberley Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4456-6337-1.
- ^ Oakley, Mike (2004). Wiltshire Railway Stations. Wimbourne: The Dovecote Press. pp. 133–134. ISBN 1-904349-33-1.
- ^ a b c d e f "Order of Battle, Manpower, and Basing Locations". parliament.uk. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
- ^ "Queen's Royal Hussars". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ "Google Maps". Google Maps. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ Sadler, Claire (13 May 2019). "Army Medics Exercise Freedom Of Aldershot Ahead Of Tidworth Move". Forces Network. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ "Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ "1 Armoured Medical Regiment". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ "10 Army Education Centre". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
- ^ Army Policy & Secretariat, FOI(A) Request relating to current AECs (7 December 2020). whatdotheyknow.com. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
- ^ "1st Deep Reconnaissance Strike Brigade Combat Team". British Army. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ^ "Historic change of command parade in South West |". Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ Hartle, Lisa (1 March 2019). "Royal Welsh Troops Mark St David's Day At Tidworth". Forces Network. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ "British Army Music". www.army.mod.uk. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ "A Reshape of British Army Bands in 2019". 4 November 2019. Retrieved 20 November 2020.