Irwin Barracks is an

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (CA), who ...

military base A military base is a facility directly owned and operated by or for the military or one of its branches that shelters military equipment and personnel, and facilitates training and operations. A military base always provides accommodations for ...

located in , a suburb of ,

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to t ...

. It occupies a site on the western side of the

Fremantle railway line The Fremantle line is a suburban railway and service in Western Australia that connects the central business district (CBD) of Perth with Fremantle. History The railway on which the service runs opened on 1 March 1881 as the first suburban rai ...

. It was previously known as Karrakatta Camp and Irwin Training Centre.

History

The barracks were originally named the ''Irwin Training Centre'' on 5 December 1948 in honour of

Lieutenant-Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...

Frederick Chidley Irwin, the first military commandant of

(1829–1833). Prior to this the area was known as ''Karrakatta Camp'' and was set-aside as a military training area by the Western Australian Colonial Government in 1895. The site was used for short camps (in tented accommodation) and courses for Militia and School Cadet units until the beginning of World War II. In 1896 a

rifle range A shooting range, firing range, gun range or shooting ground is a specialized facility, venue or field designed specifically for firearm usage qualifications, training, practice or competitions. Some shooting ranges are operated by military ...

was constructed at Karrakatta and equipped with seven sets of Jeffries patented "Wimbledon" targetsonly the fourth range in the world so equipped. The range replaced the original rifle range located at Mount Eliza, which was used by all metro-based troops including the Western Australian contingents, which trained at Karrakatta camp for the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the So ...

(1899–1902). On 6 October 1898 completion of buildings for use as

magazines A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combination ...

for storage of powder and ammunition for Perth No.1 Battery were completed. The buildings were constructed of local coastal limestone with slate roofs. These buildings have walls thick and floors of concrete lined with timber flooring. They still exist within the Barracks. The magazine buildings are included on the

Commonwealth Heritage List The Commonwealth Heritage List is a heritage register established in 2003, which lists places under the control of the Australian government, on land or in waters directly owned by the Crown (in Australia, the Crown in right of the Commonwealth ...

as evidence of colonial defence infrastructure. Following

Federation A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-gover ...

, the site was transferred from the State of Western Australia to the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

for A£750. The site formed part of the 5th Military District and was also used for the training of citizen forces (militia) under the Commonwealth. In 1913 the range was formally closed as it was deemed "unsafe", following the earlier death of an army cadet in November 1909, with the range relocated to a new site in Swanbourne. The camp was modernised and expanded during World War II, housing various units, as well as 1,000 Italian

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

. After the war the camp served as an accommodation centre for former members of the Polish forces who had elected to migrate to Australia. In mid-1948 the camp was chosen to serve as a training camp for the

Citizen Military Forces The Australian Army Reserve is a collective name given to the reserve units of the Australian Army. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, the reserve military force has been known by many names, including the Citizens Forces, the Citizen ...

, and on 5 December 1948 it was ceremonially renamed the Irwin Training Centre. Most of the original wooden buildings were replaced by modern brick buildings during the 1950s and 1960s, though the last wooden buildings were not demolished until the 1980s.

Current

Irwin Barracks is the headquarters of 13th Brigade, an

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 ...

formation of the Australian Army. The 13th Brigade currently consists of the following units: *Headquarters 13th Brigade * 10th Light Horse Regiment * 13th Engineer Regiment *

109th Signals Squadron 109th Signal Squadron, Royal Australian Corps of Signals is a military communications sub-unit of the Australian Army. Under command of the 8th Signal Regiment, it currently resides in Karrakatta in Western Australia in support of the 13th Brig ...

11th/28th Battalion, Royal Western Australia Regiment The 11th/28th Battalion, Royal Western Australia Regiment (11/28 RWAR) is a Reserve infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Located in Western Australia, it is one of the two battalions of the Royal Western Australia Regiment which forms the ...

16th Battalion, Royal Western Australia Regiment The 16th Battalion, Royal Western Australia Regiment (16 RWAR) is an Australian Army reserve infantry battalion located in Western Australia and one of the two battalions of the Royal Western Australia Regiment. The battalion was first formed d ...

* 13th Combat Service Support Battalion The barracks also house: * 3rd Light Battery,

Royal Australian Artillery The Royal Regiment of Australian Artillery, normally referred to as the Royal Australian Artillery (RAA), is a Regiment of the Australian Army descended from the original colonial artillery units prior to Australia's federation. Australia's first ...

. Formerly (until 2018) a component of the 13th Brigade. *3 Squadron, Pilbara Regiment. *

Western Australia University Regiment The Western Australian University Regiment (WAUR) is an Australian Army Reserve training unit for the 13th Brigade. Unit history The regiment was founded as the Perth University Regiment on 22 April 1949 to provide military training to univers ...

.This unit has moved to

Leeuwin Barracks HMAS ''Leeuwin'' is a former Royal Australian Navy (RAN) shore establishment, located in , Western Australia. In use between 1940 and 1984, the base reopened in 1986 under the control of the Australian Army as Leeuwin Barracks. Commission ...

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...

. *Headquarters Western Australia

Australian Army Cadets The Australian Army Cadets (AAC) is the youth military program and organisation of the Australian Army, tasked with supporting participants to contribute to society, fostering interest in defence force careers, and developing support for the ...

Brigade *502 Army Cadet Unit Karrakatta

Stolen tank incident

On 27 April 1993, 27 year old Gary Alan Hayes stole an M-113 armoured personnel carrier (APC) from the barracks. He drove it through the

Perth central business district Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

, ramming police targets and government buildings, causing damage to police and government buildings, 7 police vehicles, 5 private vehicles, and a bus stop. He was subsequently forced out of the APC with tear gas dropped into the tank. Hayes was charged with 19 counts of criminal damage, burglary and assault of police officers and was sentenced to four and a half years in

Casuarina Prison Casuarina Prison is the main maximum-security prison for Western Australia, located in the Perth, Western Australia suburb of Casuarina. The prison accommodates minimum-, medium- and maximum-security prisoners. It was opened in 1991 to replace ...

with the possibility of parole after 17 months. He was diagnosed with

paranoid schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social w ...

History

Current

Stolen tank incident

See also

References

Further reading