Carlton Barracks is a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

installation in

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...

, England. HMS ''Ceres'', a

Royal Naval Reserve The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original ...

unit is based within the barracks.

History

British Army

The barracks were opened as a base for the 4th Battalion of the West Yorkshire Militia in 1865. In 1887 the barracks were bought, with corps funds, to accommodate the 3rd Battalion the Prince of Wales (West Yorkshire) Regiment (The Rifles). In 1908, the 3rd battalion became the 7th and 8th battalions; these new battalions were also based at Carlton Barracks. At the start of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

so many men reported to Carlton Barracks in response to the call to arms that the

War Office The War Office has referred to several British government organisations throughout history, all relating to the army. It was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, at ...

decided to form two second line battalions (2/7th and 2/8th, the original battalions becoming 1/7th and 1/8th). After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

the headquarters of 45th (Leeds Rifles) Royal Tank Regiment (TA) was established at the barracks as was the headquarters of 269 Field Regiment Royal Artillery. The former regiment evolved to become the 7th (Leeds Rifles) battalion of the

West Yorkshire Regiment The West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own) (14th Foot) was an infantry regiment of the British Army. In 1958 it amalgamated with the East Yorkshire Regiment (15th Foot) to form the Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire which was ...

, based at Carlton Barracks, and the latter regiment evolved to become a battery now known as 269 (West Riding) Battery Royal Artillery which is still based at the barracks.

Royal Navy

The former HMS ''Ceres'' was a

(RNR) unit in

Yeadon, West Yorkshire Yeadon is a town within the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Most of the town is in the Otley and Yeadon (ward), Otley and Yeadon electoral ward, ward of Leeds City Council and the Leeds North West (UK Par ...

which was decommissioned in 1995 in the wake of the

Options for Change Options for Change was a restructuring of the British Armed Forces in summer 1990 after the end of the Cold War. Until this point, UK military strategy had been almost entirely focused on defending Western Europe against the Soviet Armed Forces ...

restructuring programme. In 1999 the decision was made to re-establish a Royal Naval Reserve presence in West Yorkshire and a satellite unit named Calder Division was opened in

Batley Batley is a market town in the Kirklees district, in West Yorkshire, England, south-west of Leeds, north-west of Wakefield and Dewsbury, south-east of Bradford and north-east of Huddersfield, in the Heavy Woollen District. In 2011, the popu ...

to train communications ratings, although the temporary nature of the accommodation and limited equipment led to recruitment and retention difficulties. An alternative building, Carr Lodge, was found within Carlton Barracks, Leeds and underwent refurbishment providing modern facilities. The unit was renamed Ceres Division and was officially opened by

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

K. John Borley, Flag Officer Training and Recruitment, on 14 May 2005 with a

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

paraded by its then-parent unit, HMS ''Sherwood'', and music provided by the Band of HM Royal Marines, Scotland. A plan to refurbish and extend Carr Lodge was approved with work completed in 2015 on a new two-storey training wing with state-of-the-art classrooms, enlarged changing rooms and an accommodation block with permanent bed spaces. Previous works had added a storage facility and a

galley A galley is a type of ship optimised for propulsion by oars. Galleys were historically used for naval warfare, warfare, Maritime transport, trade, and piracy mostly in the seas surrounding Europe. It developed in the Mediterranean world during ...

HMS ''Ceres''

On a visit to the unit on 21 May 2015 the Head of the Maritime Reserves,

Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (India), in India ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ' ...

Andrew Jameson, announced that Ceres Division would be commissioned, becoming the sixth HMS ''Ceres'' on 1 September 2015. The unit was formally commissioned on 6 February 2016 by

The Princess Royal Princess Royal is a title customarily (but not automatically) awarded by British monarchs to their eldest daughters. Although purely honorary, it is the highest honour that may be given to a female member of the royal family. There have been ...

who dedicated the new facilities. A Royal Guard paraded with the RNR Queen's Colour of the Royal Navy and music was provided by the Band of HM Royal Marines, Plymouth.

Affiliations

The unit was affiliated to HMS ''Ark Royal'' before she was decommissioned in March 2011 and remains affiliated to the

Royal Navy Historic Flight The Royal Navy Historic Flight (RNHF) was the historic flight of the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy up until its disbandment in March 2019. The RNHF maintained and flew a small number of aircraft that were important to British Naval aviation. Th ...

, which flies

Fairey Swordfish The Fairey Swordfish is a retired biplane torpedo bomber, designed by the Fairey Aviation Company. Originating in the early 1930s, the Swordfish, nicknamed "Stringbag", was principally operated by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy. It was a ...

Mk.I W5856, ''City Of Leeds''.

Units

Carlton Barracks

British Army units based at the barracks include: * 53 MI Company, 5 Military Intelligence Battalion * 269 (West Riding) Battery, 101st Regiment Royal Artillery * 849 Troop, 64 Signal Squadron, 37 Signal Regiment * B Squadron, 23 Special Air Service (R) * Yorkshire Officers' Training Regiment (HQ) * Leeds UOTC, Yorkshire Officers' Training Regiment

HMS ''Ceres''

HMS ''Ceres'' is home to the following HM Naval Service units: * ,

** Yorkshire Universities Royal Navy Unit ** Leeds Detachment of the Royal Marines Reserve Merseyside

References

External links

HMS ''Ceres'' page on official Royal Navy site

Royal Naval Reserve official site
{{Royal Navy locations in Yorkshire Installations of the British Army Barracks in England Buildings and structures in Leeds