Guillemont Barracks

Guillemont Barracks, located just off of junction 4a of the M3, on the Minley Road (A327), was a military installation at Minley in Hampshire.

Guillemont Barracks
Minley
The road into the former Guillemont Barracks site
Guillemont Barracks
Location within Hampshire
Coordinates51.3045°N 0.7940°W / 51.3045; -0.7940
TypeBarracks
Site information
OwnerMinistry of Defence
Operator British Army
Site history
Built1938
Built forWar Office
In use1938–c.1965

History

The barracks were built in 1938.[1] Covering 13.7ha, they were named after the German-held village of Guillemont,[1][2] which was retaken by British Empire Forces, in September 1916, during the Battle of the Somme. The West Nova Scotia Regiment arrived at the barracks on 1 January 1940,[3][4][5] and the Les Fusiliers Mont-Royal, part of the Canadian 5th Brigade, were stationed at the barracks in late 1940.[1][6] King George VI and Queen Elizabeth inspected the troops on 26 March 1941.[1] The 3rd Training Regiment of the Royal Engineers were based there from 1954 until the early 1960s.[7] It then became the home of the 1st Battalion the Parachute Regiment between 1963 and 1965.[8]

The site was purchased by Sun Microsystems in 1997 for £36 million.[9] After Sun Microsystems moved to Reading, the property developer, Landid, bought the site in January 2011. In December 2013, a planning application to demolish the part built structures and to build 150 homes on the site was refused.[10]

References

  1. Laekas, Michael John (2010). "Mary and John: the early years".
  2. "Guillemont". World War I battlefields. Archived from the original on 23 April 2009. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  3. "War Diary of West Nova Scotia Regiment". 1 January 1940. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  4. "History of the West Nova Scotia Regiment and the Two World Wars". LaHave Islands Maritime Museum. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  5. "War Diary of West Nova Scotia Regiment at Guillemont Barracks" (PDF). 1 February 1940. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  6. "Transcript of Jean O'Brien's diary of the Second World War". Pegasus Archive. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  7. Mackintosh, H.W.B.; Baker Brown, W. (1993). "History of the Corps of Royal Engineers 1960-1908" (PDF). Institution of Royal Engineers. p. 372. ISBN 978-0903530224.
  8. "1st Battalion the Parachute Regiment". British Army units 1945 on. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  9. "Former Sun Microsystems Headquarters sold". DB Real Estate. 17 January 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  10. "Planning application". Rushmoor Borough Council. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
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