The Church Street drill hall is a former military installation in Brighton. It is a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

History

The building was designed by Edmund Scott as the headquarters of the 1st Volunteer Battalion, 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 a ...

and was completed in 1890. This unit evolved to become the 6th (Cyclist) Battalion, The Royal Sussex Regiment but moved to Montpelier Place in Brighton before 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 ...

. Meanwhile, the Sussex Imperial Yeomanry had been located at the Church Street drill hall from their re-formation in 1901. The regiment was mobilised at the drill hall in August 1914 before being deployed to Gallipoli and, ultimately, to the Western Front. After the

, the unit converted to artillery and was reduced to battery size, becoming 389 (Sussex Yeomanry) Battery, the 98th (Sussex Yeomanry) Brigade, Royal Field Artillery. 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 opposi ...

, the battery was reformed as P Battery, 344th (Sussex Yeomanry) Light Anti-Aircraft and Searchlight 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 ...

and then as P Battery, 258th (Sussex Yeomanry) Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery in 1955. After the defence cut-backs of 1967, the drill hall was decommissioned and became a Royal Mail sorting office and, more recently, it has been used as an antiques warehouse.

References

{{Brighton and Hove buildings Drill halls in England Buildings and structures in East Sussex Grade II listed buildings in Brighton and Hove

History

See also

References