St Mary's Road drill hall, Southampton

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St Mary's Road drill hall
Southampton
Southampton, leisure centre - geograph.org.uk - 1966857.jpg
St Mary's Road drill hall
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St Mary's Road drill hall
Location in Southampton
Coordinates 50°54′39″N1°23′58″W / 50.91083°N 1.39936°W / 50.91083; -1.39936
TypeDrill hall
Site information
OwnerSouthampton City Council
OperatorActive Nation
Open to
the public		yes
Site history
Built1889
Built for War Office
ArchitectW H Mitchell
In use1890–1969

The St Mary's Road drill hall is a former military installation in Southampton. It is a Grade II listed building. [1]

History

The building was designed by W H Mitchell as the headquarters of the 1st Hampshire Artillery Volunteers and completed in 1889. [2] It was an initiative of Colonel Edward Bance, former mayor of Southampton, and was opened by Edward Stanhope, Secretary of State for War, in 1890. [1] With the formation of the Territorial Force in 1908, the 1st Hampshire AV became the Hampshire Royal Garrison Artillery, but the drill hall also became the home of the Hampshire Royal Horse Artillery in 1908. [3] Both units were mobilised at the drill hall in August 1914, with the Hampshire RGA manning coast forts and the Hampshire RHA being deployed to the Middle East. [4] [5]

After World War I, the Hampshire RGA resumed its coast defence role while the Hampshire RHA amalgamated with the Hampshire Yeomanry and evolved to become 378 (Hampshire RHA) Battery with its base in Southampton. [3] [6] It was renamed 218 (Hampshire RHA) Battery in 1937 and served as part of 72nd (Hampshire) Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, RA, during World War II. The heavy regiment formed three coast artillery regiments during the war that manned the Portsmouth and Southampton defences. [3] [6]

Postwar, the drill hall was decommissioned and converted for leisure use in 1974. [2]

The building remained in use as St Mary's Community and Leisure Centre, owned and operated by Southampton City Council, until its closure in December 2021. Following a campaign by local residents, the facility reopened in August 2022, managed by the charity Active Nation. In February 2025, the council was seeking a new operator to lease the building on a long term agreement. [7]

References

  1. 1 2 "Former St Mary's drill hall". Historic England. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  2. 1 2 "Southampton". The Drill Hall Project. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 Norman E.H. Litchfield, The Territorial Artillery 1908–1988 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges), Nottingham: Sherwood Press, 1992, ISBN   0-9508205-2-0, pp. 89–95.
  4. ↑ Army List, various dates.
  5. ↑ "The Royal Horse Artillery". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  6. 1 2 "Hampshire Yeomanry (Carabiniers)". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 16 April 2007. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  7. ↑ "Southampton: Council seeks new group to take on leisure centre". BBC News. 1 February 2025. Retrieved 7 February 2025.
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