Guillemont Barracks

51°18′16″N 0°47′38″W / 51.3045°N 0.7940°W / 51.3045; -0.7940TypeBarracksSite informationOwnerMinistry of DefenceOperator British ArmySite historyBuilt1938Built forWar OfficeIn use1938–c.1965

Guillemont Barracks, located just off of junction 4a of the M3, on the Minley Road (A327), was a military installation at Minley in Hampshire.

History

The barracks were built in 1938.[1] Covering 13.7ha, they were named after the German-held village of Guillemont,[1][2] which was retaken by British Empire Forces, in September 1916, during the Battle of the Somme. The West Nova Scotia Regiment arrived at the barracks on 1 January 1940,[3][4][5] and the Les Fusiliers Mont-Royal, part of the Canadian 5th Brigade, were stationed at the barracks in late 1940.[1][6] King George VI and Queen Elizabeth inspected the troops on 26 March 1941.[1] The 3rd Training Regiment of the Royal Engineers were based there from 1954 until the early 1960s.[7] It then became the home of the 1st Battalion the Parachute Regiment between 1963 and 1965.[8]

The site was purchased by Sun Microsystems in 1997 for £36 million.[9] After Sun Microsystems moved to Reading, the property developer, Landid, bought the site in January 2011. In 2018, after clearing the site, Bellway started a new development involving 226 new houses called Helios Park.[10]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Laekas, Michael John (2010). "Mary and John: the early years".
  2. ^ "Guillemont". World War I battlefields. Archived from the original on 23 April 2009. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  3. ^ "War Diary of West Nova Scotia Regiment". 1 January 1940. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  4. ^ "History of the West Nova Scotia Regiment and the Two World Wars". LaHave Islands Maritime Museum. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  5. ^ "War Diary of West Nova Scotia Regiment at Guillemont Barracks" (PDF). 1 February 1940. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  6. ^ "Transcript of Jean O'Brien's diary of the Second World War". Pegasus Archive. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  7. ^ Mackintosh, H.W.B.; Baker Brown, W. (1993). "History of the Corps of Royal Engineers 1960-1908" (PDF). Institution of Royal Engineers. p. 372. ISBN 978-0903530224.
  8. ^ "1st Battalion the Parachute Regiment". British Army units 1945 on. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  9. ^ "Former Sun Microsystems Headquarters sold". DB Real Estate. 17 January 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  10. ^ "HBS Mechanical celebrates a brace of contract wins for Bellway Homes". HBS Group. 6 August 2018. Retrieved 24 June 2023.