Peninsula Barracks is a military installation on O'Leary Street in

Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...

, England.

History

The barracks were built in the Fortress Gothic Revival Style and, although construction started a few years earlier, they were opened as Orford Barracks in 1878. Their creation took place as part of the

Cardwell Reforms The Cardwell Reforms were a series of reforms of the British Army undertaken by Secretary of State for War Edward Cardwell between 1868 and 1874 with the support of Liberal prime minister William Ewart Gladstone. Gladstone paid little attention ...

which encouraged the localisation of British military forces. The barracks were intended as

depot Depot ( or ) may refer to: Places * Depot, Poland, a village * Depot Island, Kemp Land, Antarctica * Depot Island, Victoria Land, Antarctica * Depot Island Formation, Greenland Brands and enterprises * Maxwell Street Depot, a restaurant in ...

for the two battalions of the

8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot The 8th (King's) Regiment of Foot, also referred to in short as the 8th Foot and the King's, was an infantry regiment of the British Army, formed in 1685 and retitled the King's (Liverpool Regiment) on 1 July 1881. As infantry of the line, the ...

. Under the

Childers Reforms The Childers Reforms of 1881 reorganised the infantry regiments of the British Army. The reforms were done by Secretary of State for War Hugh Childers during 1881, and were a continuation of the earlier Cardwell Reforms. The reorganisation was ...

, the 8th Regiment of Foot evolved to become the

King's Regiment (Liverpool) The King's Regiment (Liverpool) was one of the oldest line infantry regiments of the British Army, having been formed in 1685 and numbered as the 8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot in 1751. Unlike most British Army infantry regiments, which we ...

with its depot at the barracks in 1881. The barracks were also intended as depot for the 40th (2nd Somersetshire) Regiment and the

82nd Regiment of Foot (Prince of Wales's Volunteers) The 82nd Regiment of Foot (Prince of Wales's Volunteers) was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1793. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 40th (the 2nd Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot to form the Prince of Wales' ...

. Under the

the 40th and 82nd regiments, together with the Warrington-based

4th Royal Lancashire Militia (The Duke of Lancaster's Own Light Infantry) The 4th Royal Lancashire Militia (The Duke of Lancaster's Own Light Infantry) was an auxiliary regiment raised in the county of Lancashire in North West England just before the Crimean War. It later became part of the South Lancashire Regiment. Al ...

amalgamated to form the

South Lancashire Regiment The South Lancashire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1958. The regiment, which recruited, as its title suggests, primarily from the South Lancashire area, was created as part of the Childers Ref ...

in 1881. The King's Regiment (Liverpool) moved out to

Seaforth Barracks Seaforth Barracks was a military installation at Seaforth in Merseyside. History The barracks were originally built as cavalry accommodation and were completed in 1882. Units of the Royal Garrison Artillery and Royal Field Artillery were also ...

in 1910 leaving the barracks as the mobilisation point for the South Lancashire Regiment at the start of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the barracks became the home of the 4th Battalion the South Lancashire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's Volunteers); although the regiment was disbanded in 1958 the battalion transferred to the

Lancashire Regiment The Lancashire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Volunteers) was an infantry regiment of the British Army that had a very short existence. History The regiment was formed, as a consequence of defence cuts instigated by the 1957 Defence White Paper, by ...

and continued to be based at the barracks. This battalion was reduced to company status in 1967 and that company transferred to the

Queen's Lancashire Regiment The Queen's Lancashire Regiment (30th, 40th, 47th, 59th, 81st and 82nd Regiments of Foot) (QLR) was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the King's Division. It was formed on 25 March 1970 at Connaught Barracks in Dover through ...

in 1970. In 1975 the barracks became the headquarters of 5th/8th (Volunteer) Battalion the

King's Regiment The King's Regiment, officially abbreviated as KINGS, was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the King's Division. It was formed on 1 September 1958 by the amalgamation of the King's Regiment (Liverpool) which had been raised in 1685 ...

and in 1999 they became the home of B (Cheshire) Company of the

King's and Cheshire Regiment The King's and Cheshire Regiment was a regiment of the British Territorial Army, with headquarters in Warrington, Cheshire. History The regiment was formed in 1999 by the amalgamation of the 5th/8th (Volunteer) Battalion of the King's Regiment a ...

, which subsequently left in 2005 prior to the regiment's amalgamation. Since 2007 they have been the home of a squadron of 75 Engineer Regiment. In 2019, a detached platoon of A (Ladysmith) Company, 4th Battalion

Duke of Lancaster's Regiment The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's, Lancashire and Border) (LANCS) is an infantry regiment of the line within the British Army, part of the King's Division. Headquartered in Preston, it recruits throughout the North West of England. The Du ...

, based in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, was raised at the barracks, after a 14 year absence of infantry in the town.

References

{{reflist Installations of the British Army Barracks in England