Fenham Barracks is an Army Reserve installation on Barrack Road,

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...

, Tyne and Wear, England.

History

The site was acquired by 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 ...

from Newcastle Corporation in 1804 and, following the construction of three barrack blocks, became the home of units of the 6th (Inniskilling) Dragoons under the name of Newcastle Barracks in 1806. The officers' mess, designed by

James Wyatt James Wyatt (3 August 1746 – 4 September 1813) was an English architect, a rival of Robert Adam in the Neoclassicism, neoclassical and neo-Gothic styles. He was elected to the Royal Academy of Arts in 1785 and was its president from 1805 to ...

, was completed around the same time. Soldiers' duties included putting down the

Chartism Chartism was a working-class movement for political reform in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom that erupted from 1838 to 1857 and was strongest in 1839, 1842 and 1848. It took its name from the People's Charter of ...

movement riots in the 1840s. In 1846 units of the

Royal Horse Artillery The Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) was formed in 1793 as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery (commonly termed Royal Artillery) to provide horse artillery support to the cavalry units of the British Army. Although the cavalry link rem ...

arrived and 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 attentio ...

and the barracks became the depot for the two battalions of the 5th (Northumberland Fusiliers) Regiment of Foot. 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 w ...

, the 5th Regiment of Foot evolved to become the Northumberland Fusiliers with its depot at the barracks in 1881 and the Durham Light Infantry arrived from Sunderland Barracks in 1884. The Durham Light Infantry museum opened at Fenham Barracks shortly after 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 ...

but moved out to Brancepeth Castle when the regiment transferred there in 1939. The Royal Northumberland Fusiliers museum opened at Fenham Barracks in 1929 and remained there after the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers were absorbed into the

Royal Regiment of Fusiliers The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (often referred to as, "The Fusiliers") is an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Queen's Division. Currently, the regiment has two battalions: the 1st Battalion, part of the Regular Army, is an ...

in 1962. The museum finally moved out to

Alnwick Castle Alnwick Castle () is a castle and country house in Alnwick in the English county of Northumberland. It is the seat of the Ralph Percy, 12th Duke of Northumberland, 12th Duke of Northumberland, built following the Norman Conquest and renovated an ...

in 1970. The majority of the Georgian barracks buildings were demolished in the 1970s and replaced with new buildings (those that remained were sold off twenty years later and now serve as student residences). In 1975 the barracks became the home of 15th/19th The King's Royal Hussars; they moved out in 1992 when the regiment was amalgamated to form part of the Light Dragoons. File:Former Sergeants' Mess, Fenham Barracks, Newcastle-upon-Tyne.jpg, Former officers' quarters (later sergeants' mess), now used for student accommodation. File:Former Officers' Mess, Fenham Barracks, Newcastle-upon-Tyne.jpg, Former officers' mess, now used for student accommodation.

Based units

The following units are based at Fenham Barracks. * 214 (North East) Multi-Role Medical Regiment **201 Hospital Squadron * The Queen's Own Yeomanry **Regimental Headquarters **D Squadron

History

Based units

References

Further reading