List of battalions and locations of the Ulster Defence Regiment

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Ulster Defence Regiment CGC
Crest of the Ulster Defence Regiment.svg
Ulster Defence regimental crest
Active1970–1992
CountryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
BranchFlag of the British Army (1938-present).svg British Army
Type Infantry Regiment
RoleInternal Security
Size11 battalions (at peak)
Regimental Headquarters Lisburn (1992)
Motto(s)"Quis Separabit" (Latin)
"Who Shall Separate Us?"
March(Quick) Garryowen & Sprig of Shillelagh.
(Slow) Oft in the Stilly Night
Commanders
Colonel in Chief General Sir John Anderson GBE, KCB, DSO
Colonel of
the Regiment		Colonel Sir Dennis Faulkner CBE

Ulster Defence Regiment battalions were located throughout Northern Ireland. The bases were a mix of regimental, battalion, company and platoon locations.

Contents

Regimental headquarters

HQUDR was based at Thiepval Barracks, Lisburn. [1] This location was also home to the 39 Infantry Brigade (39 Bde) and Headquarters Northern Ireland (HQNI).

Training centre

The UDR's main training centre was located at Ballykinlar Army Base where the battalion headquarters of the 3rd (County Down) Battalion were also situated. [2]

Battalion locations

NameActiveBases
Headquarters1970–1992Thiepval Barracks, Lisburn
1st (County Antrim) Battalion 1970–1984BHQ HQ Coy & A Coy – Ballymena; B Coy – Ballymoney; C Coy – Antrim; D Coy – Lisburn; E Coy – Larne
1st/9th (County Antrim) Battalion 1984–1992BHQ, HQ Coy, Antrim; A Coy, B Coy, G Coy, Ballymena; C Coy, D Coy, Antrim; E Coy, Larne/Carrickfergus, F Coy, Carrickfergus
2nd (County Armagh) Battalion [2] 1970–1991 Drumadd Barracks, Armagh (replaced Gough Barracks which was taken over by the RUC); Loughall UDR Barracks; Glenane Barracks (destroyed in an IRA attack); Newtownhamilton RUC Station
2nd/11th (County Armagh) Battalion 1991–1992 Mahon Road Barracks, Portadown. Drumadd Barracks, Armagh.
3rd (County Down) Battalion [2] 1970–1992 Ballykinlar; The Abbey, Kilkeel; Rathfriland UDR Barracks; Newry; Saintfield
4th (County Fermanagh) Battalion [2] 1970–1991Grosvenor Barracks, Enniskillen; Lisnaskea; Monea; St Angelo
4th/6th (County Fermanagh and County Tyrone) Battalion 1991–1992
5th (County Londonderry) Battalion [2] 1970–1992 Ballykelly; Derry; Ballymoney; Magherafelt; Maghera RUC Station; Coleraine; Garvagh RUC Station; Macosquin
6th (County Tyrone) Battalion [2] 1970–1991 St Lucia Barracks, Omagh; The Deanery, Clogher; Castlederg; Strabane
7th (Belfast) Battalion 1970–1984 Palace Barracks; Newtownards, Ladas Drive, Belfast
7th/10th (City of Belfast) Battalion 1984–1992 Palace Barracks; Grand Central Hotel, Royal Avenue, Belfast, Newtownards, Ladas Drive, Belfast
8th (County Tyrone) Battalion [2] 1971–1992Killymeal House, Dungannon; Cookstown UDR Barracks; Aughnacloy;
9th (Country Antrim) Battalion [3] 1972–1984BHQ, HQ Coy, C Coy, Steeple Hill, Antrim; A Coy, F Coy, Carrickfergus; B Coy, D Coy, Lisburn; E Coy, Ballyclare
10th (City of Belfast) Battalion 1972–1984Malone Road, Belfast; Carryduff
11th (Craigavon) Battalion [2] 1972–1991BHQ, A Coy, B Coy, E Coy, Mahon Barracks, Portadown; C Coy, Kitchen Hill Barracks, Lurgan; D Coy, Scarva Road Barracks, Banbridge; F Coy, Thiepval Barracks, Lisburn

The regiment was reduced to nine battalions in 1984, then to seven in 1991. 9th (County Antrim) Battalion was formed in 1972 from two companies of the 1st Battalion. As part of the Options for Change review, it was amalgamated with 1 UDR again in 1991.

Battalion dispersals

The dispersal of UDR soldiers into their areas of responsibility was through sub-barracks, as illustrated in the table below, which could hold several companies or perhaps just a platoon. Battalion Headquarters would be located in a major town (usually the county town but not always as some counties had two Battalions). Guarded by a permanent cadre of soldiers these barracks would become doubly active after 6 p.m. as part-time soldiers arrived for evening duties. After Ulsterisation began in 1976 many battalion headquarters eventually had full-sized permanent cadre companies attached and these would maintain a 24-hour presence in the battalion's Tactical Area of Responsibility. In each battalion area, sub headquarters units would maintain direct contact with their own men and Battalion HQ by radio. In many cases, the radios were operated by Greenfinches whose husbands or sons were out on patrol. This led to tense moments when mobile units or foot patrols came under attack and submitted a "contact report" (contact with the enemy) by radio. [4] [5]

An example of this structure can be seen in the make-up of 2 UDR based at Drummad Barracks in Armagh:

CompanyPart/Full-timeBaseHours of dutyNumber on duty
HQ CoyMixedArmagh, Command, Control & AdminAdmin 9-5, Watchkeepers 24 hr9-5 = 15, 24hr = 5
A CoyFull-timeArmagh2435
B CoyPart-timeArmagh/Newtownhamilton/Caledon7pm – 2am35
C CoyPart-timeGlenanne7pm – 2am35
D CoyPart-timeLoughgall7pm – 2am35

County connections

The raising of citizen militias has a history in Ireland stretching back to the creation of the Irish Militia in 1793. The Militia itself was officially disbanded in 1908 and replaced with the Territorial Force [6] (in Ireland, it was called the Special Reserve and, after the Great War, the Supplementary Reserve), [7] which later became the Territorial Army.

Some battalions of the Irish Militia remained on the Army list (in name only) until 1953 as part of the Territorial Army; The 5th Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers: [8] 6th Royal Ulster Rifles and 5th Royal Irish Fusiliers.

The raising of the Ulster Defence Regiment followed the practice of raising citizen militias in Ireland for two reasons:

The raising of battalions on a county basis followed the pattern of raising militias. There were, however, several exceptions with the UDR. Belfast was not a county borough in 1793 and previous militia units in County Londonderry did not use a county or city suffix and were simply known as "Derry" or "Londonderry".

The county connections are:

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References

  1. ↑ Potter p24
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Ryder 191
  3. ↑ Potter p63
  4. ↑ Testimony to Courage – the Regimental History of the Ulster Defence Regiment 1969–1992, John Potter, Pen & Sword Books Ltd, 2001, ISBN   0-85052-819-4
  5. ↑ Chris Ryder, The UDR -An Instrument of Peace? ISBN   0-413-64800-1
  6. ↑ "The National Archives | Exhibitions & Learning online | First World War | Glossary". Nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 26 October 2008.
  7. ↑ A Military History of Ireland By Thomas Bartlett, Keith Jeffery Published by Cambridge University Press, 1996 ISBN   0-521-62989-6, 978-0-521-62989-8 p595
  8. ↑ "Territorials and Militia – British Army Website". Army.mod.uk. Retrieved 26 October 2008.

Bibliography

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