Imjin Barracks | |
---|---|
Innsworth | |
Coordinates | 51°53′35″N2°11′50″W / 51.89306°N 2.19722°W |
Type | Barracks Headquarters |
Site information | |
Owner | Ministry of Defence |
Operator | British Army |
Site history | |
Built | 1940 |
In use | 1940–present |
Garrison information | |
Occupants | HQ Allied Rapid Reaction Corps HQ 1st (UK) Signal Brigade Gurkha ARRC Support Battalion |
Imjin Barracks is a British Army installation situated near Innsworth in Gloucestershire, that is home to the headquarters of NATO's Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC).
Imjin Barracks is located at the site of the former RAF Innsworth, which was a non-flying Royal Air Force station between 1940 and 2008.
The station opened in 1940, the first unit based there being No 7 School of Technical Training, which trained engine and airframe fitters and mechanics. In December 1941, No 2 WAAF Depot was opened at Innsworth and from then on the station became increasingly associated with the women's branch of the service. Eventually it was decided to reserve the station almost exclusively for WAAF training, including barrage balloon training amongst other vital roles.
In 1951, the headquarters of the RAF Record Office which had been based nearby in Gloucester and Barnwood, moved to the station and gained Group status. Three years later, in 1954, No. 5 Personnel Despatch Unit arrived, charged with the administration and processing of personnel selected for overseas service.
Just after the war ended, the RAF Base Accounts Office moved from York to Gloucester and grew into the Central Pay Office and became part of the RAF Personnel and Training Command, which formed in 1994, based at Innsworth.
In 2005 it was announced that HQ Personnel and Training Command was to co-locate with HQ RAF Strike Command at RAF High Wycombe. The new collocated HQ's were subsequently merged to form Air Command and the decision was taken to close RAF Innsworth. The drawdown took place over the next three years with elements of the Personnel Management Agency moved to High Wycombe and RAF Cranwell. RAF Innsworth finally closed on 31 March 2008. [1]
The Innsworth site is now managed by the Army and has been renamed Imjin Barracks. When the RAF vacated the site in 2008, elements of AFPAA (renamed Defence Business Services in 2014) including the MoD Medal Office and Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre continued to operate from the site. [2] [3]
In 2010, the barracks also became home to the NATO Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC), a 3-star headquarters with more than 400 permanent staff from 21 contributing nations, which relocated from the Rheindahlen Military Complex in Germany. [4] [5]
The barracks were named after the Battle of the Imjin River because of the connection with the Gloucestershire Regiment, which formed part of the United Nations contingent in the Korean War, and was thought to be an appropriate name for the headquarters of ARRC, which is a multinational force. [6]
The following units are based at Imjin Barracks.
British Army
| Ministry of DefenceNATOSupreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe
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The Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) is the military headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) Allied Command Operations (ACO) that commands all NATO operations worldwide. SHAPE is situated in the village of Casteau, near Mons, Belgium.
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The Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC) is a rapid reaction force maintained by NATO. It is capable of deploying a High Readiness Force (Land) Headquarters at short notice for operations and crisis response.
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Personnel and Training Command (PTC) was one of two commands of the Royal Air Force that were merged to form Air Command on 1 April 2007.
Innsworth is a village near Gloucester, and a civil parish in the borough of Tewkesbury, in the county of Gloucestershire, England. The parish population taken at the 2011 census was 2,468.
JHQRheindahlen was a military base in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany active from 1954 to 2013. It functioned as the main headquarters for British forces in Germany and for the NATO Northern Army Group. Latterly it was also known as the Rheindahlen Military Complex, part of Rheindahlen Garrison. It was named after the local village of Rheindahlen, part of the city borough of Mönchengladbach.
Campbell Barracks, in Heidelberg, Germany, was home to Headquarters, United States Army Europe (USAREUR) from 1948 to 2013. It was also home to Headquarters, V Corps and Headquarters, Allied Force Command Heidelberg.
RAF Innsworth was a non-flying Royal Air Force station, located on the North side of the city of Gloucester in England. The station closed in March 2008 and, for the last 13 years of its life, was the headquarters of Personnel and Training Command. The site was transferred to the British Army and renamed Imjin Barracks, becoming the home of the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps in 2010.
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The Duke of Gloucester Barracks is a British Army barracks at South Cerney in Gloucestershire.
The 1st Signal Brigade, formerly known as the 1st Signal Group, is a brigade of the British Army. The group was first formed in 1968 as a result of the 1966 Defence White Paper which expanded support for NATO and the British Army of the Rhine. In 1987, the group was disbanded and merged into the 2nd Signal Brigade. In 1995, the brigade was reformed and has since deployed on operations across the globe in support of NATO and HQ Allied Rapid Reaction Corps.
8th Engineer Brigade is an engineering support formation of the British Army, under the command of HQ Allied Rapid Reaction Corps, supporting NATO.
The page contains the current structure of the British Army. The British Army is currently being reorganised to the Future Soldier structure.
7th Air Defence Group is a formation of the British Army under the command of HQ Allied Rapid Reaction Corps. It provides all of the United Kingdom's ground based air defence assets. The organisation's subordinate units are drawn from the Royal Regiment of Artillery. The headquarters are located at Baker Barracks, Thorney Island.
The GurkhaAllied Rapid Reaction Corps Support Battalion, or simply the GurkhaARRC Support Battalion is a combat support unit of the British Army, and one of only three units permanently assigned to NATO. For administrative purposes, the Gurkha ARRC Support Battalion falls under the oversight of the Royal Logistic Corps, though employs members from many other cap badges.
Future Soldier is a reform of the British Army resulting from the Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy published in March 2021. The aim of the reform is to create a more lethal, agile and expeditionary force, able to fight and win wars and to operate in the grey-zone between peace and war. Future Soldier was published on 25 November 2021 and deals with the organizational changes of the British Army, with changes to personnel and equipment were set out in the Defence in a Competitive Age paper published on 22 March 2021.