The regimental depot of a

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

is its home base for recruiting and

training Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or fitness that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance. I ...

. It is also where soldiers and officers awaiting discharge or postings are based and where injured soldiers return to full fitness after discharge from hospital before returning to full duty. Normally, a variety of regimental stores will also be kept at the depot. The regimental depot is not the same as the regimental headquarters (where the main officers' mess and certain central functions are based), though in practice the two will often be co-located.

United Kingdom

In a military dictionary of 1802, the word Depot is given multiple meanings: primarily it is said to describe 'any particular place in which military stores are deposited for the use of the army'; but 'it also signifies an appropriated fort, or place, for the reception of recruits, or detached parties, belonging to different regiments'. At that time Maidstone Barracks served as depot for the British Cavalry; while the depot for the Infantry (established at Chatham Barracks in the 1770s) had moved in 1801 to Albany Barracks on the Isle of Wight. Later, the depot at Maidstone served specifically as a recruitment centre for cavalry regiments stationed in India (and in 1830 a similar arrangement was established at Chatham for infantry regiments stationed in India and New South Wales). A second Cavalry Depot was later established at

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

; in 1865 the Maidstone depot closed and Canterbury alone then served as home depot for the cavalry regiments overseas (with additional accommodation provided when necessary in Colchester). In 1897 the Cavalry Depot at Canterbury was closed, with responsibility for recruitment devolving on the home-based regiments (which began to be affiliated with regiments serving overseas for the purpose of recruitment).

List of UK Infantry Regimental Depots in the 1880s

A list of

barracks Barracks are buildings used to accommodate military personnel and quasi-military personnel such as police. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word 'soldier's tent', but today barracks ar ...

in Britain and Ireland, either designated or ''newly built'' to serve as localization depots for infantry regiments in the wake of 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 ...

of the 1870s and the Childers Reforms which followed. * '' Caterham Barracks, Surrey'' ( Foot Guard regiments) * Glencorse Barracks, Midlothian ( Royal Scots (Lothian Regiment)) * '' Stoughton Barracks, Guildford'' ( Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)) * Canterbury Barracks ( Buffs (East Kent Regiment)) * '' Bowerham Barracks, Lancaster'' ( King's Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment)) * Fenham Barracks, Newcastle upon Tyne ( Northumberland Fusiliers & Durham Light Infantry) * '' Budbrooke Barracks, Warwick'' (

Royal Warwickshire Regiment The Royal Warwickshire Regiment, previously titled the 6th Regiment of Foot, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. The regiment saw service in many conflicts and wars, including the Second Boer War ...

) * Hounslow Barracks ( Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) & The (Duke of Cambridge's Own) Middlesex Regiment) * '' Peninsula Barracks, Warrington'' ( King's (Liverpool Regiment) & Prince of Wales's Volunteers (South Lancashire Regiment)) * '' Britannia Barracks, Norwich'' ( Norfolk Regiment) * '' Sobraon Barracks, Lincoln'' ( The Lincolnshire Regiment) * Topsham Barracks, Exeter (

Devonshire Regiment The Devonshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that served under various titles and served in many wars and conflicts from 1685 to 1958, such as the Second Boer War, the World War I, First World War and the World War II, ...

) * '' Gibraltar Barracks, Bury St Edmunds'' (

Suffolk Regiment The Suffolk Regiment was an infantry regiment Line infantry, of the line in the British Army with a history dating back to 1685. It saw service for three centuries, participating in many wars and conflicts, including the World War I, First and ...

) * '' Jellalabad Barracks, Taunton'' ( Prince Albert's (Somersetshire Light Infantry)) * '' Imphal Barracks, York'' (

Prince of Wales's Own (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, ...

) * '' Victoria Barracks, Beverley'' ( East Yorkshire Regiment) * '' Kempston Barracks'' ( Bedfordshire Regiment) * '' Glen Parva Barracks'' ( Leicestershire Regiment) * Victoria Barracks, Clonmel ( The Royal Irish Regiment) * '' Richmond Barracks, North Yorkshire'' ( Princess of Wales's Own (Yorkshire Regiment)) * Wellington Barracks, Bury ( Lancashire Fusiliers) * Ayr Barracks ( Royal Scots Fusiliers) *

Chester Castle Chester Castle is in the city of Chester, Cheshire, England. It is sited at the southwest extremity of the area bounded by the city walls. The castle stands on an eminence overlooking the River Dee. In the castle complex are the remaining par ...

(

Cheshire Regiment The Cheshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. The 22nd Regiment of Foot was raised by the Henry Howard, 7th Duke of Norfolk in 1689 and was able to boast an independent existence ...

) * '' Hightown Barracks, Wrexham'' (

Royal Welch Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers () was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales's Division, that was founded in 1689, shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated a fusilier regiment and becam ...

) * The Barracks, Brecon ( South Wales Borderers) * Berwick Barracks ( King's Own Borderers) * Hamilton Barracks ( The Cameronians (Scotch Rifles)) * St Lucia Barracks, Omagh (

Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers The Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers was an Ireland, Irish line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1968. The regiment was formed in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 27th (Inniskilling) Regiment of Foot and the 108th (Ma ...

) * Horfield Barracks, Bristol ( Gloucestershire Regiment) * '' Norton Barracks'' ( Worcestershire Regiment) * Burnley Barracks (

East Lancashire Regiment The East Lancashire Regiment was, from 1881 to 1958, a Line infantry, line infantry regiment of the British Army. The regiment was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 30th (Cambridgeshire) Regiment of Foot and 59t ...

) * '' The Barracks, Kingston upon Thames'' (

East Surrey Regiment The East Surrey Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1959. The regiment was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 31st (Huntingdonshire) Regiment of Foot, the 70th ( ...

) * Victoria Barracks, Bodmin (

Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry (DCLI) was a Light infantry, light infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1959. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, by the merger of the 32nd ( ...

) * '' Wellesley Barracks, Halifax'' ( Duke of Wellington's (West Riding Regiment)) *

Carlisle Castle Carlisle Castle is a stone keep medieval fortress located in the city of Carlisle near the ruins of Hadrian's Wall. First built during the reign of William II in 1092 and rebuilt in stone under Henry I in 1122, the castle is over 930 yea ...

(

Border Regiment The Border Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, which was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 34th (Cumberland) Regiment of Foot and the 55th (Westmorland) Regiment of Foot. After service in ...

) * '' The Barracks, Chichester'' (

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 Foo ...

) * Lower Barracks, Winchester (

Hampshire Regiment The Hampshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 37th (North Hampshire) Regiment of Foot and the 67th (South Hampshire) Regiment of Foot. The re ...

) * '' Whittington Barracks, Lichfield'' ( South Staffordshire Regiment) & ( The (Prince of Wales's) North Staffordshire Regiment) * '' Dorchester Depot Barracks'' ( Dorsetshire Regiment) * Maindy Barracks, Cardiff ( Welch Regiment) * Queen's Barracks, Perth (

Black Watch The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (3 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The regiment was created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881, when the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment ...

) * '' Bullingdon Barracks, Cowley'' ( Oxfordshire Light Infantry) * Warley Barracks (

Essex Regiment The Essex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1958. The regiment served in many conflicts such as the Second Boer War and both World War I and World War II, serving with distinction in all three. ...

) * '' Normanton Barracks, Derby'' ( Sherwood Foresters (Derbyshire Regiment)) * Fulwood Barracks, Preston ( Loyal North Lancashire Regiment) * Northampton Barracks ( Northamptonshire Regiment) * '' Brock Barracks, Reading'' ( Princess Charlotte of Wales's (Berkshire Regiment)) * Maidstone Barracks ( Queen's Own (Royal West Kent Regiment)) * '' Pontefract Barracks'' ( King's Own Light Infantry (South Yorkshire Regiment) & York and Lancaster Regiment) * '' Copthorne Barracks, Shrewsbury'' The King's Light Infantry (Shropshire Regiment) * Upper Barracks, Winchester (

King's Royal Rifle Corps The King's Royal Rifle Corps was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army that was originally raised in British North America as the Royal American Regiment during the phase of the Seven Years' War in North America known in the United Sta ...

The Prince Consort's Own Rifle Brigade The Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army formed in January 1800 as the "Experimental Corps of Riflemen" to provide sharpshooters, scouts, and skirmishers. They were soon renamed the "Rifle ...

) * '' Le Marchant Barracks, Devizes'' ( The (Duke of Edinburgh's) Wiltshire Regiment) * Ladysmith Barracks, Manchester ( Manchester Regiment) * Garrioch Barracks, Glasgow (

Highland Light Infantry The Highland Light Infantry (HLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1881. It took part in the First World War, First and World War II, Second World Wars, until it was amalgamated with the Royal Scots Fusiliers in 1959 t ...

) * Fort George, Ardersier ( Seaforth Highlanders (Duke of Albany's/Ross-shire Buffs)) * Castlehill Barracks, Aberdeen ( Gordon Highlanders) * Cameron Barracks, Inverness ( Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders) *

Victoria Barracks, Belfast Victoria Barracks was a military installation in New Lodge, Belfast in Northern Ireland. History The barracks were completed just before the Irish Rebellion in 1798. In 1873 a system of recruiting areas based on counties was instituted under th ...

( Royal Irish Rifles) * Gough Barracks, Armagh (

Princess Victoria's (Royal Irish Fusiliers) The Royal Irish Fusiliers (Princess Victoria's) was an Irish line infantry (later changed to light infantry) regiment of the British Army, formed by the amalgamation of the 87th (Royal Irish Fusiliers) Regiment of Foot, 87th (Prince of Wales's I ...

) * Castlebar Barracks ( Connaught Rangers) *

Stirling Castle Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most historically and architecturally important castles in Scotland. The castle sits atop an Intrusive rock, intrusive Crag and tail, crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill ge ...

( Princess Louise's (Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders)) * Birr Barracks ( Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians)) * Ballymullen Barracks, Tralee (

Royal Munster Fusiliers The Royal Munster Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 to 1922. It traced its origins to the East India Company, East India Company's Bengal European Regiment raised in 1652, which later became the 101st Regiment ...

) * Naas Barracks ( Royal Dublin Fusiliers)

List of UK Cavalry Regimental Depots in the 1910s

A list of barracks in Britain and Ireland designated to serve as depots for cavalry regiments. * The Cavalry Depot at Howe Barracks *No.1 (Eastern) Cavalry Depot later No.1 (Lancers) Cavalry Depot at Shrapnel Barracks, Woolwich (

5th Royal Irish Lancers The 5th Royal Irish Lancers was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment of the British Army. It saw service for three centuries, including the World War I, First World War. It amalgamated with the 16th The Queen's Lancers to be ...

, the 9th Queen's Royal Lancers, the

12th Royal Lancers The 12th (Prince of Wales's) Royal Lancers was a cavalry regiment of the British Army first formed in 1715. It saw service for three centuries, including the First World War and the Second World War. The regiment survived the immediate post-war ...

, the 16th The Queen's Lancers, the

17th Lancers The 17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1759 and notable for its participation in the Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War. The regim ...

and the 21st Lancers) *No.2 (Irish) Cavalry Depot later No.2 (Hussars) Cavalry Depot at Richmond Barracks, Dublin ( 4th Queen's Own Hussars, the

8th King's Royal Irish Hussars The 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1693. It saw service for three centuries including the World War I, First and World War II, Second World Wars. ...

, the 11th Hussars and the 13th Hussars) *No.3 (Northern) Cavalry Depot later No.3 (Hussars) Cavalry Depot at Burniston Barracks (

10th Royal Hussars The 10th Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own) was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment of the British Army raised in 1715. It saw service for three centuries including the World War I, First World War and World War II, Sec ...

, the 14th King's Hussars, the 18th Royal Hussars and the

20th Hussars The 20th Hussars was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. After service in the First World War it was amalgamated with the 14th King's Hussars to form the 14th/20th King's Hussars in 1922. History Early wars The regiment was originally ra ...

) *No.4 (Western) Cavalry Depot later No.4 (Dragoons) Cavalry Depot at Newport Barracks (

2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays) The 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen's Bays) was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment of the British Army. It was first raised in 1685 by the Henry Mordaunt, 2nd Earl of Peterborough, Earl of Peterborough as the Earl of Peterborough ...

, the 3rd Dragoon Guards, the

4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards The 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1685 as the Earl of Arran's Regiment of Cuirassiers. It was renamed as the 4th (Royal Irish) Dragoon Guards in 1 ...

, the Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards), the

7th Dragoon Guards The 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1688 as Lord Cavendish's Regiment of Horse. It was renamed as the 8th Horse in 1694 and the 7th (The Princess Royal's) Dragoon Guards for ...

and the 6th (Inniskilling) Dragoons) *No.5 (Southern) Cavalry Depot later No.5 (Hussars) Cavalry Depot at

Horfield Barracks Horfield Barracks is a former military installation in the Horfield area of Bristol. History The barracks were built, largely in response to the Bristol riots of 1831, and completed between 1843 and 1847. During the Crimean War a mutiny took pla ...

( 3rd The King's Own Hussars, the 7th Queen's Own Hussars, the 15th The King's Hussars and the 19th Royal Hussars) *No.6 (Scottish) Cavalry Depot later No.6 (Dragoons) Cavalry Depot at Castle Park Barracks ( 1st King's Dragoon Guards, the 5th Dragoon Guards, the 1st Royal Dragoons and the 2nd Dragoons (Royal Scots Greys))

French Army

In the

French Royal Army The French Royal Army () was the principal land force of the Kingdom of France. It served the Bourbon dynasty from the reign of Louis XIV in the mid-17th century to that of Charles X in the 19th, with an interlude from 1792 to 1814 and another du ...

and Imperial Army, in addition to many of the empire's many puppet states, a ''dépôt'' was a battalion in size and would provide drafts to the regular 'field battalions' on a regular basis. If mobilised, the depot itself would become a field battalion led by the depot's second in command, typically a senior

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

. Each depot battalion comprised four companies and was commanded by a

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

.Haythornthwaite, p. 4

Footnotes

References