Redford Cavalry and Infantry Barracks is located on Colinton Road, near the

Edinburgh City Bypass The Edinburgh City Bypass, designated as A720, is one of the most important trunk roads in Scotland. Circling around the south of Edinburgh, as the equivalent of a ring road for the coastal city, it links together the A1 towards north-east Eng ...

, east of the suburb of

Colinton Colinton ( gd, Baile Cholgain) is a suburb of Edinburgh, Scotland situated south-west of the city centre. Up until the late 18th century it appears on maps as Collington. It is bordered by Dreghorn to the south and Craiglockhart to the north ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. Redford Barracks was built between 1909 and 1915 by the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

and designed by

Harry Bell Measures Harry Bell Measures (1862–1940) was an English architect. Career He had a varied career. In 1884 to 1892 he was in-house architect for William Willett, producing high-quality housing for the wealthy in London and South East England; these wer ...

. When completed, the barracks was the largest military installation built in Scotland since Fort George in the

Highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Albania * Dukagjin Highlands Armenia * Armenian Highlands Australia *Sou ...

. The

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

garrison in

Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age, although the nature of the early settlement is unclear. ...

formally moved out to the barracks in 1923. Today, the Infantry Barracks are unoccupied, and the Cavalry Barracks houses Balaclava Company, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland (

Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

). The barracks comprises two category B listed main buildings and parade squares facing Colinton Road.

Infantry Barracks

The Infantry Barracks (), was originally built to house an entire infantry

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...

and could accommodate 1,000 men. It could provide everything the resident

line infantry Line infantry was the type of infantry that composed the basis of European land armies from the late 17th century to the mid-19th century. Maurice of Nassau and Gustavus Adolphus are generally regarded as its pioneers, while Turenne and Monte ...

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

required to function. The families lived in service quarters close to the barracks and the children attended local schools. The main barrack block itself housed the resident battalion headquarters, one

Rifle Company A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 80–250 soldiers and usually commanded by a major or a captain. Most companies are formed of three to seven platoons, although the exact number may vary by country, unit type, and structure. ...

, a Fire Support Company and Headquarters Company. The two other Rifle Companies were accommodated in a separate, newer block. 3rd Battalion

The Rifles The Rifles is an infantry regiment of the British Army. Formed in 2007, it consists of four Regular battalions and three Reserve battalions, plus a number of companies in other Army Reserve battalions. Each battalion of The Rifles was formerly ...

, the last battalion to occupy the barracks, moved out in 2014.

Cavalry Barracks

The three-storey Cavalry Barracks (), with its tall domed clock-tower, was originally built to house a cavalry regiment, most notably the

Royal Scots Greys The Royal Scots Greys was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment of the British Army from 1707 until 1971, when they amalgamated with the 3rd Carabiniers (Prince of Wales's Dragoon Guards) to form the Royal Scots Dragoon Guard ...

, with a large annexe of

stable A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals and livestock. There are many different types of stables in use today; the ...

s and associated outbuildings. With the permanent stationing of

armoured units Armoured warfare or armored warfare (mechanized forces, armoured forces or armored forces) (American English; see spelling differences), is the use of armored fighting vehicles in modern warfare. It is a major component of modern methods of ...

such as the

Royal Scots Dragoon Guards The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys) is a cavalry regiment of the British Army, and the senior Scottish regiment. The regiment, through the Royal Scots Greys, is the oldest surviving Cavalry Regiment of the Line in the British ...

in Germany as part of the

British Army of the Rhine There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War and the other after the Second World War. Both formations had areas of responsibility located a ...

, the Cavalry Barracks became a home to D squadron, Royal Scots Dragoon Guards stationed there from 1971 until disbanded in 1976. The cavalry barracks have been the home for Balaclava Company, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland (

) since 2014. The Regimental Headquarters of the

Scottish and North Irish Yeomanry The Scottish and North Irish Yeomanry (SNIY) is a reserve Light Cavalry Regiment, formed in 2014, created out of the restructuring of the British Army's Territorial Army. It is operationally paired with The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, (SCOTS D ...

has also been located at the cavalry barracks since 2014.

Based units

The following notable units are based at Redford Barracks. British Army *Headquarters,

51st Infantry Brigade and Headquarters Scotland 51st Infantry Brigade and Headquarters Scotland is an Adaptable Force Brigade of the British Army. It is the regional administrative formation responsible for all the units of the Army Reserve based in Scotland and an Adaptable Force Brigade unde ...

Army School of Bagpipe Music and Highland Drumming The Army School of Bagpipe Music and Highland Drumming is a British Army training establishment that provides instruction on Scottish pipe band music to military pipers and drummers. History Founded in 1910 as the Army School of Piping (later ...

*Battalion, Headquarters, 5 Military Intelligence Battalion, Intelligence Corps *Regimental Headquarters, 105th 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 ...

**I Troop, 278 (Lowland) Battery *Regimental Headquarters,

**E ( Lothians and Border Yeomanry) Squadron * Balaklava Company, 5th Battalion,

Royal Regiment of Scotland The Royal Regiment of Scotland is the British Army Order of Precedence, senior and only Scottish regiment, Scottish line infantry regiment of the British Army Infantry. It consists of three regular (formerly five) and two Army Reserve (United ...

* City of Edinburgh University Officers' Training Corps Community Cadet Forces *20 (Colinton) Platoon, Lothians and Borders Battalion,

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 ...

*Pipes and Drums of Lothians and Borders Battalion, Army Cadet Force *870 (Dreghorn) Squadron,

Air Training Corps The Air Training Corps (ATC) is a British volunteer-military youth organisation. They are sponsored by the Ministry of Defence and the Royal Air Force. The majority of staff are volunteers, and some are paid for full-time work – including C ...

Closure

As part of the ''Future Force 2020'' budgetary announcement in July 2011,

RAF Kirknewton Royal Air Force Kirknewton, otherwise known as RAF Kirknewton, is a Royal Air Force station at Whitemoss, a mile south east of Kirknewton, West Lothian, Scotland. It is retained by the Ministry of Defence, as Kirknewton Airfield and is home to 6 ...

was to have been developed into a major Army base to host a Multi-Role Brigade Redford and

Dreghorn Barracks Dreghorn Barracks are located in Edinburgh, Scotland. The barracks are situated at the southern edge of the city, south of Colinton, and adjacent to the Edinburgh City Bypass. History The present barracks complex was largely built in 1937–1939 ...

would become surplus to requirements and were earmarked for disposal under this plan. However, in December 2011 it was reported that the planned move to Kirknewton was in doubt, and that Redford Barracks would be retained. By 2013 it was confirmed that the MRB plan had been dropped, and that only a part of Redford Barracks would be closed. In 2019, it was announced that the closure of the barracks had been deferred to 2025. This was once more extended to 2029.

References

{{Residential buildings in Edinburgh Highland regiments Installations of the British Army Barracks in Scotland Buildings and structures in Edinburgh Category B listed buildings in Edinburgh The Rifles Military installations established in 1915 1915 establishments in Scotland