| Ritchie Camp | |
|---|---|
| Kirknewton, West Lothian | |
  Ritchie Camp Location within West Lothian | |
| Coordinates | 55°52′17″N3°25′00″W / 55.87139°N 3.41667°W |
| Type | Barracks |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Ministry of Defence |
| Operator |  British Army |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1940s |
| Built for | War Office |
| In use | 1940s-1999 |
Ritchie Camp was a military base located near Kirknewton, West Lothian in Scotland.
Ritchie Camp was initially established during World War II to provide accommodation for units based at RAF Kirknewton. [1] After the War it provided accommodation for United States Air Force units based there. [1]
As part of the drawdown of British Forces from West Germany, the 1st Battalion The Black Watch returned from Minden in March 1968 and were stationed at Ritchie Camp before moving in January 1972 to Hong Kong. [2]
In 1971, it was announced that the 1st Battalion The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders were to be reformed. At that time, Balaklava Company, The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders were based in Gibraltar. They returned home, via Barnard Castle, County Durham and became the nucleus of the new battalion which assembled in Ritchie Camp. [3] From here they undertook 3 tours of duty in Northern Ireland. Amongst visitors to the regiment were the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh and Princess Anne. [4]
When the battalion moved to Osnabrück in November 1974, the 1st Battalion The Royal Scots took up residence, arriving from Cyprus, til June 1976 when they moved to Munster. They were replaced by the 1st Battalion The Queen's Own Highlanders from Osnabrück in June 1976, leaving in March 1980 for Hong Kong. [2]
The 1st Battalion The Gordon Highlanders, transferring from Chester in March 1980, were resident in Ritchie Camp until February 1983, when they moved on to Hemer. [2] In 1981, they were participants in the wedding of The Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer. [5]
In February 1983, they moved to Hemer, when the 1st Battalion The Royal Scots moved in from Ballykinler. They moved in March 1985 to Werl, handing over the camp to The 1st Battalion The Black Watch who had been in Werl. After a short stay, they moved a few miles to Redford Barracks, Edinburgh in April 1986. [2]
Responding to a Commons Written Question on 26 February 1987, the Secretary of State for Defence stated that 'We have recently agreed in principle to make these sites (Winston camp, Lanark, and Ritchie camp, Kirknewton) available to the United States forces for use as peacetime medical storage facilities and as hospitals which would be activated in the event of war.' The Americans handed the site back to the MoD in 1991, when it was described as a Contingency Hospital. [1]
A Tree Preservation Order was placed on Ritchie Camp in December 1987. [6]
The Princess Royal, Patron, Crucial Crew Project, attended a Crucial Crew event hosted by the Lothian and Borders Police 'F' Division at Ritchie Camp on 13 June 1993. [7]
In 1999, the camp was demolished and replaced with up-market housing, and the area renamed 'Newlands'. [8]
The Thin Red Line described an episode of the Battle of Balaclava on 25 October 1854, during the Crimean War. In the incident, around 500 men of the 93rd Sutherland Highlanders led by Sir Colin Campbell, aided by a small force of 100 walking wounded, 40 detached Guardsmen, and supported by a substantial force of Turkish infantrymen, formed a line of fire against the Russian cavalry. Previously, Campbell's Highland Brigade had taken part in actions at the Battle of Alma and the Siege of Sevastopol. There were more Victoria Crosses presented to the Highland soldiers at that time than at any other. The event was lionised in the British press and became an icon of the qualities of the British soldier in a war that was arguably poorly managed and increasingly unpopular.
The Royal Scots, once known as the Royal Regiment of Foot, was the oldest and most senior infantry regiment of the line of the British Army, having been raised in 1633 during the reign of Charles I. The regiment existed continuously until 2006, when it amalgamated with the King's Own Scottish Borderers to become the Royal Scots Borderers, which merged with the Royal Highland Fusiliers, the Black Watch, the Highlanders and the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders to form the Royal Regiment of Scotland.
The hackle is a clipped plume or short spray of coloured feathers that is attached to a military headdress, with different colours being associated with particular regiments.
The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland.
The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (Princess Louise's) is a light infantry company (designated as Balaklava Company, 5th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland) and was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1881 until amalgamation into the Royal Regiment of Scotland on 28 March 2006.
The Queen's Own Highlanders (Seaforth and Camerons), officially abbreviated "QO HLDRS," was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. It was in existence from 1961 to 1994.
The 51st Highland Volunteers is a battalion in the British Army's Army Reserve or reserve force in the Scottish Highlands, forming the 7th Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, also known as 7 SCOTS. It is one of two Reserve battalions in the Royal Regiment of Scotland, along with 52nd Lowland, a similar unit located in the Scottish Lowlands.
The Scottish Division was a British Army Infantry command, training and administrative apparatus designated for all Scottish line infantry units. It merged with the Prince of Wales' Division, to form the Scottish, Welsh and Irish Division in 2017.
The British Army primarily divides its infantry into regiments, which are subdivided into battalions. However, for various reasons, since the end of the Second World War it has also maintained companies that are intended to provide increments and reinforcements.
Redford Cavalry and Infantry Barracks is located on Colinton Road, near the Edinburgh City Bypass, east of the suburb of Colinton in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Royal Air Force Kirknewton, otherwise known as RAF Kirknewton, is a Royal Air Force station at Whitemoss, a mile south east of Kirknewton, West Lothian, Scotland. It is retained by the Ministry of Defence, as Kirknewton Airfield and is home to 661 Volunteer Gliding Squadron.
A Scottish regiment is any regiment that at some time in its history has or had a name that referred to Scotland or some part thereof, and adopted items of Scottish dress. These regiments were created after the Acts of Union in 1707 between England and Scotland, either directly serving Britain during its various wars, or as part of the military establishments of Commonwealth countries. Their "Scottishness" is no longer necessarily due to recruitment in Scotland nor any proportion of members of Scottish ancestry.
The Royal Regiment of Scotland is the senior and only Scottish line infantry regiment of the British Army Infantry. It consists of three regular and two reserve battalions, plus an incremental company, each formerly an individual regiment. However, three regular battalions maintain their former regimental pipes and drums to carry on the traditions of their antecedent regiments.
The 27th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw service in the First World War, the Second World War, and the Korean War. In Korea, the brigade was known as 27th British Commonwealth Brigade due to the addition of Canadian, Australian, New Zealand and Indian units.
51st Infantry Brigade and Headquarters Scotland is an Adaptable Force Brigade of the British Army. It is the regional administrative formation responsible for all the units of the Army Reserve based in Scotland and an Adaptable Force Brigade under Army 2020. The Brigade is also regionally aligned with the Persian Gulf region as part of defence engagement.
The 93rd Regiment of Foot was a Line Infantry Regiment of the British Army, raised in 1799. Under the Childers Reforms, it amalgamated with the 91st Regiment of Foot to form the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.
The 45th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in both the First and the Second World Wars with 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division.
221st Mixed Brigade was a Scottish Home Service formation of the British Army that served under various titles throughout World War I.
The Forth Brigade was a Scottish infantry formation of Britain's Volunteer Force from 1888 to 1902.
