The Keep, Dorchester

Last updated

The Keep, Dorchester
Dorchester
The Keep Military Museum, Dorchester, Dorset-16Sept2009.jpg
The Keep
Dorset UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
The Keep, Dorchester
Location within Dorset
Coordinates 50°42′53″N02°26′37″W / 50.71472°N 2.44361°W / 50.71472; -2.44361
TypeBarracks
Site information
OperatorFlag of the British Army.svg  British Army
Site history
Built1877-1881
Built for War Office
In use1881-1958
Garrison information
Occupants Dorset Regiment

The Keep, Dorchester is part of the former county barracks of the 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot and the 54th Regiment of Foot. The barracks were built in about 1880 and housed various regiments as units were amalgamated. It ceased to be used in 1958 and most of the site was redeveloped in the 1960s, but the keep remained in Ministry of Defence hands and is now used as a regimental museum.

Contents

It is a Grade II listed building. [1]

History of the barracks

The 'little keep' (part of the former Militia Barracks, dating from 1866) was incorporated into the new Depot. Dorchester Barracks - geograph.org.uk - 981786.jpg
The 'little keep' (part of the former Militia Barracks, dating from 1866) was incorporated into the new Depot.

The Dorchester Depot Barracks were built between 1877 and 1881 [2] on the site of a Militia barracks, which had been established there little over a decade earlier. [3] Their creation took place as part of the Cardwell Reforms which encouraged the localisation of British military forces. [4] The site included a large parade ground, which was laid out between the Keep (or armoury) and the building now known as the 'little keep' and flanked by brick-built barrack blocks (including separate accommodation for officers and other ranks), the officers' mess, a gymnasium, stores, offices and other ancillary buildings. [5]

The barracks became the depot for the 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot and the 75th (Stirlingshire) Regiment of Foot. [6] Following the Childers Reforms, the 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot amalgamated with the 54th (West Norfolk) Regiment of Foot to form the Dorset Regiment with its depot in the barracks in 1881. [6]

During the Second World War the barracks were occupied by 701st Ordnance Light Maintenance Company and the 1st Quartermaster Company of the United States Army. [5]

Parts of the former depot barracks are now occupied by Royal Mail Dorchester, mail vans at the sorting office - geograph.org.uk - 1477285.jpg
Parts of the former depot barracks are now occupied by Royal Mail

In 1958 the Dorset Regiment amalgamated with the Devonshire Regiment to form the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment and Regimental Headquarters were re-located to Wyvern Barracks in Exeter. [2] The site of the barracks was redeveloped; some buildings (including the long soldiers' barracks block on the west side) were demolished, but several others were sold, being taken over by the County Council and the Royal Mail in the 1960s; a tax office was built on the parade ground. Only the keep was retained by the Ministry of Defence. [2] In 2016 the Council sold one of the former barrack blocks for conversion into residential properties. [7]

Alongside the depot barracks, across Poundbury Road, stood the older Cavalry Barracks (opened in 1795 and later known as Marabout Barracks). [8] Most of that site remains in military use as Dorchester's Army Reserve Centre. [9]

The museum

The keep is now a regimental museum for the Devonshire Regiment, the Dorset Regiment, the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment, The Dorset Yeomanry, Queen's Own Dorset Yeomanry, The Dorset Militia, The Royal Devon Yeomanry and 94 Field Regiment RA. [10] The collection includes Adolf Hitler's desk which was taken from the ruins of the Chancellory in Berlin in 1945. [11]

The museum occupies the keep of the original barracks. It is a Grade II listed building and the ground floor preserves its previous layout. The museum is entered through the ammunition and powder store, and through this is the archway that used to lead to the rest of the barracks. Close to the archway are the guardroom and cells, one of which is equipped as it would have been when it housed prisoners. In the west tower is a rope winding gear to hoist weapons, ammunition and other stores to the upper floors. [12]

The first floor is gained by a spiral stair and is now the regimental museum with a display of uniforms, weapons and equipment used by the regiment during its 300-year history. The second floor has a display of campaign and gallantry medals as well as exhibits showing small arms and silverware. The third floor has displays of objects and information on the recent military history of the regiment, places where it has been deployed and events in which it has taken part. Above this is the battlements where there are extensive views of the town and surrounding countryside. [12]

Related Research Articles

Options for Change was a restructuring of the British Armed Forces in summer 1990 after the end of the Cold War.

The Rifle Volunteers was a regiment of the British Territorial Army. In 2007, it was re-designated as 6th Battalion, The Rifles.

The Devonshire and Dorset Regiment, usually just known as the Devon and Dorsets, was an infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1958 by the amalgamation of two county regiments, the Devonshire Regiment and the Dorset Regiment. In 2007 it was itself merged into The Rifles, a "large regiment". Members of the regiments referred to themselves as being a Janner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dorset Regiment</span> British infantry regiment

The Dorset Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1958, being the county regiment of Dorset. Until 1951, it was formally called the Dorsetshire Regiment, although usually known as "The Dorsets". In 1958, after service in the Second Boer War along with World War I and World War II, the Dorset Regiment was amalgamated with the Devonshire Regiment to form the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment. In 2007, it was amalgamated with the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment, The Light Infantry and the Royal Green Jackets to form a new large regiment, The Rifles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cavalry Barracks, Hounslow</span> Former British Army installation in London

Cavalry Barracks is a former British Army installation located north of Hounslow Heath in Hounslow, west London. Hounslow was one of 40 new barracks established around the country in the wake of the French Revolution, to guard against the dual threats of foreign invasion and domestic sedition. The barracks later became a busy depot for the London military district. The barracks have been described by Historic England as 'one of the most significant and complete barracks in the country'; as of June 2021 the site is scheduled to be developed as a sustainable living project by Hounslow Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Devonshire Regiment</span> Former regiment of the British Army

The Devonshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that served under various titles and served in many wars and conflicts from 1685 to 1958, such as the Second Boer War, the First World War and the Second World War. In 1958 the regiment was amalgamated with the Dorset Regiment to form the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment which, in 2007, was amalgamated with the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment, the Royal Green Jackets and The Light Infantry to form a new large regiment, The Rifles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot</span> Military unit

The 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1702. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 54th Regiment of Foot to form the Dorsetshire Regiment in 1881.

The Wessex Brigade was an administrative formation of the British Army from 1948 to 1968. The Brigade administered the regular infantry regiments of the Wessex area of south and south west England.

The 54th Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1755. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot to form the Dorsetshire Regiment in 1881.

In countries whose armies are organised on a regimental basis, such as the army of the United Kingdom, a regimental museum is a military museum dedicated to the history of a specific army regiment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queen's Own Dorset Yeomanry</span> Military unit

The Queen's Own Dorset Yeomanry was a yeomanry regiment of the British Army founded in 1794 as the Dorsetshire Regiment of Volunteer Yeomanry Cavalry in response to the growing threat of invasion during the Napoleonic wars. It gained its first royal association in 1833 as The Princess Victoria's Regiment of Dorset Yeomanry Cavalry, and its second, in 1843, as the Queen's Own Regiment of Dorset Yeomanry Cavalry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DMS Whittington</span>

DMS Whittington, otherwise known as Defence Medical Services Whittington, is a military base in Whittington, Staffordshire, near Lichfield in England. It is home to the Staffordshire Regiment Museum, the Headquarters of the Surgeon General and subordinate medical headquarters, and the location of the Defence Medical Academy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norton Barracks</span>

Norton Barracks is a former military installation in Norton, Worcestershire. The keep is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fenham Barracks</span> Military installation in Newcastle upon Tyne, England

Fenham Barracks is an Army Reserve installation on Barrack Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Invicta Park Barracks</span>

Invicta Park Barracks is a military installation in Maidstone, Kent. It is set to close in 2029.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wyvern Barracks</span>

Wyvern Barracks is a military installation on Topsham Road in Exeter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victoria Barracks, Bodmin</span>

Victoria Barracks was a military installation in Bodmin, Cornwall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wellesley Barracks</span>

Wellesley Barracks is a former military installation in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roussillon Barracks</span> Former barracks in Chichester, England

Roussillon Barracks was a military installation in Chichester.

The Dorset Militia was an auxiliary military force in the county of Dorsetshire in South West England. From their formal organisation as Trained Bands in 1558 until their final service as the Special Reserve, the Militia regiments of the county carried out internal security and home defence duties. They saw active service during the Second Bishops' War and the English Civil War, and played a prominent part in suppressing the Monmouth Rebellion. After being the first English militia regiment to reform in 1758, they served in home defence in all of Britain's major wars, including service in Ireland, and finally trained thousands of reinforcements during World War I. After a shadowy postwar existence they were formally disbanded in 1953.

References

  1. Historic England. "Dorset Military Museum, Dorchester (1324411)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 22 June 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 "The Depot Barracks". The Keep Military Museum. Archived from the original on 28 May 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  3. "The Militia Barracks". The Keep Military Museum. Retrieved 2 June 2018.
  4. "Echoes of the past in these Army cuts". The Telegraph. 8 July 2012. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  5. 1 2 "The Keep Today". The Keep Military Museum. Archived from the original on 28 May 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  6. 1 2 "Training Depots". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 10 February 2006. Retrieved 16 October 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. "Dorchester barracks set to be developed". Dorset Echo. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
  8. Douet, James (1998). British Barracks 1600-1914: their Architecture and Role in Society. London: The Stationery Office.
  9. "Dorchester Army Reserve Centre". Alternative Venues. Retrieved 2 June 2018.
  10. "Welcome". The Keep Military Museum. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  11. "The Keep Military Museum". Dorset Bay. Archived from the original on 28 May 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  12. 1 2 "Museum Guide". The Keep Military Museum. Retrieved 24 August 2016.[ dead link ]