| Buckingham Gate drill halls | |
|---|---|
| London | |
 58 (centre) and 59 (beyond) Buckingham Gate | |
  Buckingham Gate drill halls Location within London | |
| Coordinates | 51°29′53″N0°08′11″W / 51.49815°N 0.13641°W |
| Type | Drill halls |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1886 |
| Built for | War Office |
| In use | 1886-Present |
The Buckingham Gate drill halls were military installations at 58 and 59 Buckingham Gate, London.
The building was designed as the headquarters of the 13th Middlesex (Queen's Westminster) Volunteer Rifle Corps and completed in 1886. [1] That unit became the 16th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Queen's Westminster Rifles) in 1908. [2] The battalion was mobilised at the drill hall in August 1914 before being deployed to the Western Front. [3]
In 1937, on the break-up of the London Regiment, the unit based at the drill hall was redesignated the Queen's Westminsters, King's Royal Rifle Corps. [4] The regiment amalgamated with the Queen Victoria's Rifles in 1961 [4] and moved out to the Davies Street drill hall. [2]
In the 1970s the drill hall was used by the Army Cadet Force Association [5] and, in the late 20th century, it was used extensively by the Metropolitan Police Service. [6] It still survives and is currently used as a conference facility. [7]
The building was designed by John Macvicar Anderson as the headquarters of the 7th (London Scottish) Middlesex Volunteer Rifle Corps [8] and was opened by the Duke of Cambridge in July 1886. [9] From 1899 to 1901 the All England Open Badminton Championships were held in the drill hall. [10] The 7th (London Scottish) Middlesex Volunteer Rifle Corps became the 14th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (London Scottish) in 1908. [2]
In May 1912 the drill hall was used as the location for the inquiry into the sinking of RMS Titanic. [11]
In August 1914, the 14th (County of London) Battalion was mobilised at the drill hall before being deployed to the Western Front. [3] In 1937, on the break-up of the London Regiment, the unit based at the drill hall was re-designated as The London Scottish, The Gordon Highlanders. [12]
In April 1944, during the Second World War, Princess Elizabeth visited a Sea Scouts exhibition at the drill hall. [13] In 1947 the regiment was reconstituted but with its headquarters still at the drill hall. [14]
The drill hall was demolished in 1985 [15] and parts of the structure, including the wrought-iron roof, the double-level iron galleries and the war memorials, were relocated to the new Horseferry Road drill hall. [8] The Buckingham Gate site has since been redeveloped for offices and the Swire Group now occupies the office block on the site. [16]
The London Regiment was an infantry regiment in the British Army, part of the Territorial Force. The regiment saw service in the First World War and was disbanded in 1938, shortly before the Second World War, when most of its battalions were converted to other roles or transferred elsewhere and reformed in 1993. The London Guards date their formation to that of this Regiment in 1908.
The Place is a dance and performance centre in Duke's Road near Euston in the London Borough of Camden. It is the home of London Contemporary Dance School and the Robin Howard Dance Theatre, and formerly the Richard Alston Dance Company.
The Queen's Westminsters were an infantry regiment of the Territorial Army, part of the British Army. Originally formed from Rifle Volunteer Corps, which were established after a French invasion scare of 1859. The unit became part of the newly established London Regiment on the formation of the Territorial Force in 1908. It was subsequently amalgamated in 1921 with the Civil Service Rifles, and became a territorial Battalion of the King's Royal Rifle Corps in 1937. It ceased to exist as separate entity after it was amalgamated in 1961.
The London Scottish was a reserve infantry regiment then a company of the British Army. In its final incarnation it was A Company, the London Regiment until, on 1 May 2022, soldiers in the company transferred to foot guards regiments and the company became G (Messines) Company, Scots Guards, 1st Battalion London Guards.
RADA Studios is a theatrical venue in Chenies Street in Bloomsbury, just to the east of Tottenham Court Road in the West End of London. Owned by the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), the building contains rehearsal rooms, meeting rooms, and the 200-seat Studio Theatre.
The 9th Battalion, London Regiment was a Territorial Army infantry battalion of the British Army. The London Regiment was formed in 1908 in order to regiment the various Volunteer Force battalions in the newly formed County of London, and the Queen Victoria's Rifles were one of twenty six units brought together in this way.
The Kensington Regiment (Princess Louise's) is a unit of the British Army, which originated in the Volunteer Rifle Corps' movement of the 1850s. In 1908 it became a battalion of the London Regiment in the Territorial Force. It was an infantry regiment from 1908 to 1940, a heavy fire support unit from 1940 to 1945, and has been a unit of the Royal Corps of Signals since 1945.
The 140th Brigade was an infantry brigade formation of the British Army's Territorial Army (TA) that had its origins in a South London Brigade of the former Volunteer Force. It served on the Western Front in the First World War and was recreated during the Second World War where it served only in the United Kingdom as a training formation.
25th Cyclist Battalion was a bicycle battalion of the London Regiment of the British Army. The battalion was converted to a unit of the Royal Corps of Signals in 1922.
Fulham House is a military installation at 87 Fulham High Street, Fulham, London. It is a Grade II listed building.
The Tufton Street drill hall is a former military installation on Tufton Street, Westminster, London.
The Davies Street drill hall is a former military installation in Davies Street, London.
The Iverna Gardens drill hall is a military installation in Kensington, London.
Blackheath drill hall is a military installation at Blackheath in London.
The Braganza Street drill hall is a military installation in Braganza Street, Walworth.
The Horseferry Road drill hall was a military installation at 95 Horseferry Road, London.
The Forrest Hill drill hall is a former military installation in Edinburgh, Scotland. The building is now owned by the University of Edinburgh.
The Victoria Road drill hall is a former military installation in Glasgow.
The Priory Road drill hall is a military installation at Hornsey in London.
The Old Street drill hall is a former military installation in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, England.
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