The Drill Hall Road Army Reserve Centre is a military installation in Newport,

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

History

The building was designed as the headquarters of the

Isle of Wight Rifle Volunteers The 7th Battalion, The Rifles (7 RIFLES) is an Army Reserve battalion of the British Army originally formed in 1999 as an independent regiment, however later became part of The Rifles following the Future Army Structure programme, and remains a ...

in 1860. This unit evolved to become the 5th (Isle of Wight, Princess Beatrice's) Volunteer Battalion, The

Hampshire Regiment The Hampshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 37th (North Hampshire) Regiment of Foot and the 67th (South Hampshire) Regiment of Foot. The regi ...

in 1885 and the 8th Battalion, The Hampshire Regiment in 1908. The battalion was mobilised at the drill hall in August 1914 before being deployed to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. The regiment converted to the Princess Beatrice's (Isle of Wight Rifles) Heavy Regiment,

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

in 1938, a unit which evolved to become the 530th The Princess Beatrice's (Isle of Wight Rifles) Coast Regiment, Royal Artillery in 1940 and the 428th The Princess Beatrice's (Isle of Wight Rifles) Coast Regiment, Royal Artillery in 1947. The presence at the drill hall was reduced to one battery, P (Princess Beatrice's Isle of Wight) Battery, 457th Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery in 1955, and to one platoon, 6 Platoon, B Company (Hampshire), 1st Battalion, Wessex Volunteers in 1971. This unit evolved to become 9 (Princess Beatrice's) Platoon, C (Duke of Connaught's) Company, 6th/7th (Volunteer) Battalion, The

Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (or PWRR, also known as 'The Tigers') is the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, second in the line infantry order of precedence to the Royal Regiment of Scotland and part of the Qu ...

in 1992 and 9 (Princess Beatrice's Isle of Wight Rifles) Platoon, C (Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment) Company, The

Royal Rifle Volunteers Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a c ...

in 1999 before converting to become 266 (Princess Beatrice's) Port Support Squadron, 165th Port Regiment,

Royal Logistic Corps The Royal Logistic Corps provides logistic support functions to the British Army. It is the largest Corps in the Army. History The Royal Logistic Corps (RLC) was formed on 5 April 1993, by the union of five British Army corps: * Royal Engine ...

in 2006. The building remains an active

Army Reserve A military reserve force is a military organization whose members have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional manpower. Reserve ...

Centre and an active

Army Cadet Force The Army Cadet Force (ACF), generally shortened to Army Cadets, is a national youth organisation sponsored by the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence and the British Army. Along with the Sea Cadet Corps and the Air Training Corps, the ACF mak ...

Centre.

References

{{reflist, 30em Drill halls in England Buildings and structures on the Isle of Wight Newport, Isle of Wight