Roussillon Barracks was a military installation in

Chichester Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ci ...

History

The barracks were originally established as part of the British response to the threat of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

in tented accommodation in 1795 and were enhanced by the use of wooden huts in 1803. In 1873 a system of recruiting areas based on counties was instituted under 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 ...

and the barracks became the

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 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot, the 107th (Bengal Infantry) Regiment of Foot and the

Royal Sussex Light Infantry Militia The Royal Sussex Light Infantry Militia, later the 3rd Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment, was an auxiliary regiment raised in Sussex on the South Coast of England. From its formal creation in 1778 the regiment served in home defence in all of Brita ...

. The keep, built in the Fortress Gothic Revival Style, and chapel were added in 1875. Following 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 three regiments amalgamated to form the

Royal Sussex Regiment The Royal Sussex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1966. The regiment was formed in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot ...

in 1881, with its depot in the barracks. Further enhancements to the barracks took place in the 1930s when the wooden huts were removed. The name of the barracks, given in 1958, commemorates the actions of the 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot in putting the Regiment Royal Roussillon to flight at the

Battle of the Plains of Abraham The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the Battle of Quebec (french: Bataille des Plaines d'Abraham, Première bataille de Québec), was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War (referred to as the French and Indian War to describe ...

during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

. The barracks were demoted to the status of out-station to the

Home Counties Brigade The Home Counties Brigade was an administrative formation of the British Army from 1948 to 1968. The Brigade administered the regular infantry regiments of the Home Counties of south east England. After the Second World War the British Army had fou ...

depot at

Howe Barracks Howe Barracks was a military installation in Canterbury in Kent. History Permanent barracks were first established in Canterbury when William Baldock initiated construction of "St Gregory’s Barracks", an infantry barracks on Sturry Road, as pa ...

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

in 1959. Extensive building took place from 1960 until 1964 to accommodate the

Royal Military Police The Royal Military Police (RMP) is the corps of the British Army responsible for the policing of army service personnel, and for providing a military police presence both in the UK and while service personnel are deployed overseas on operation ...

who arrived from

Inkerman Barracks Inkerman Barracks was a military establishment on Raglan Terrace, Knaphill, Surrey, England. History The facilities on the 65-acre site were originally constructed in 1869 as a prison for disabled convicts known as the Woking Convict Invalid Pris ...

and took over the site in 1964. Lieutenant-Commander

Alfredo Astiz Alfredo Ignacio Astiz (born 8 November 1951) is an Argentine former military Commander (naval), commander, intelligence officer, and naval commando who served in the Argentine Navy during the military dictatorship of Jorge Rafael Videla during t ...

, an Argentine commander, was questioned at the barracks in June 1982 about the murder of Swedish and French nationals. The Royal Military Police left the site in September 2005 and planning permission for housing was granted in 2011. The keep is still retained as an army careers office.

References

{{reflist, 30em Installations of the British Army Barracks in England Buildings and structures in Chichester