This article aims to bring together a number of sources of information I have in order to demonstrate the extent of requisitions undertaken by the army, typically for short duration, in support of surges in violence but also for the accommodation of the newly formed Ulster Defence Regiment in the 1970s.
Between 1969 and 2007, both the British Army and civilian population were under attack. It was a dynamic conflict, both in terms of geography and threat, during which there would not necessarily be a winner, just a lesser loser. And there were three sides; republicans, loyalists and the security forces,… Read More »Fortifications of Operation Banner
In 1972 Brigadier Sir Ian Jardine had the task of writing a history of the Northern Ireland emergency including an annex on equipment development. The document below is the content of this annex, dated 22 May 1972, and undersigned by the Assistant Chief of the General Staff (Operation Requirements) or… Read More »The Development of Internal Security Equipment for Northern Ireland (1972)
A photographic visit.
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
Acquired by Campbell College in 1925 as their preparatory school, a house at Cabin Hill dates back to 1786, although the main house standing today was built in 1860 and extended in 1902. Having seen a rich and vibrant history as a fine house and latter school, Cabin Hill now… Read More »Site Visit – Cabin Hill, Belfast
Situated in the leafy suburbs of South Belfast, Belvoir Park Hospital has lain empty since 2006 when the remaining healthcare operations moved to the City Hospital. Belvoir opened 100 years earlier in 1906 as the Purdysburn Fever Hospital and had a long and fruitful history being the site of Northern Irelands… Read More »Site Visit – Belvoir Park Hospital