Dissected by the M22 motorway at Randalstown, an army camp capable of housing more than 5,000 British and Irish soldiers in preparation for the trenches of France once sat, with little trace remaining today. With 65 million untrained men called up to fight in WW1, a problem arose in how… Read More »Randalstown Camp
The purpose built Pre-Officer Cadet Training Unit at Wrotham Camp was reputed to be at one stage the largest training establishments in the world with up to 10,000 cadets on site at one time. The first intake into Wrotham was in August 1942 and the camp continued training potential Officers… Read More »Pre-OCTU Wrotham Camp
It may sound somewhat unassuming, but Oil Berth 3, sitting at the entrance to Musgrave Channel in Belfast Port, was once at the centre of a fascinating piece of Northern Irish history. In 1969, with the escalation of the IRA campaign, the Army deployed on Operation BANNER. This surge of troops… Read More »Oil Berth 3
In July 1971 a unique unit was born into the British Army, in particular 39 Airportable Brigade under the command of Brigadier Frank Kitson (September 1970 – April 1972). Brigadier Kitson has a wealth of experience in counterinsurgency operations, and politically his appointment to 39 Bde was welcomed. Known as the… Read More »The Birth of the Military Reaction Force (MRF)
Situated approximately 1.5km East of the world famous Giants Causeway, Portmoon (Port Moon) is traditionally known for its historic Salmon fishing house. The site sits on Benbane Head in the town land of Carrowreagh. Remnants of this industry remain in the area in the form of the tin roofed fishermans… Read More »Site Visit – Portmoon Anti-Tank Range
Originally, I believed this site was an Air Traffic Control (ATC) Exchange or Repeater Station. Since then I have learned that the site was a microwave radio link connecting Northern Ireland with mainland Great Britain, via a corresponding site at Enoch Hill, near Stranraer in Scotland. I originally visited twice… Read More »Site Visit – Ballygomartin Radio Station
A camp under the control of the Royal Engineers has existed on this unassuming patch of land since the 1860s, making use of the River Medway as a bridging obstacle between Wouldham and Halling. The camp was extensively used for almost exactly 100 years, and over time some permanent structures… Read More »Site Visit – Wouldham Bridging Camp
Divis KP or Divis Key Point as it was known, was a remote communications station situated on the bleak Divis Mountain to the west of Belfast overlooking the City. Due to the highly sensitive nature of the site little is publicly known about it, however as part of the normalisation… Read More »Site Visit – Divis Key Point
Baxter Block as it was later known was an iconic accommodation cluster within Ballykinlar (Ballykinler) Camp in Country Down. This portion of the accommodation had a long and colourful history, first being relocated from The Curragh camp in order to house the newly raised 36th (Ulster) Division, and later to… Read More »Site Visit – Baxter Block, Ballykinlar