Castle Armoury

Castle Armoury
Bury
Castle Armoury
Castle Armoury is located in Greater Manchester
Castle Armoury
Castle Armoury
Location within Greater Manchester
Coordinates53°35′39″N 2°17′55″W / 53.59422°N 2.29859°W / 53.59422; -2.29859
TypeBarracks
Site information
OwnerMinistry of Defence
Operator British Army
Site history
Built1868
Built forWar Office
In use1868-
Garrison information
OccupantsW company 5th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers
B Detachment, 207 (Manchester) Field Hospital
Bury Detachment ACF
1036 (Bury) Squadron ATC

The Castle Armoury is a military installation in Bury, Greater Manchester, England.

History

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The armoury was designed as the headquarters of the 8th Lancashire Rifle Volunteer Corps and built on the remains of Bury Castle in 1868.[1] An extension exhibiting the same architectural features was opened by the Duke of Connaught in November 1907.[2] The 8th Lancashire Rifle Volunteer Corps evolved to become the 1st Volunteer Battalion, the Lancashire Fusiliers in 1883 and the 5th Battalion, the Lancashire Fusiliers in 1908.[3] The battalion was mobilised at the armoury in September 1914 before being deployed to the Suez Canal, then to Gallipoli and ultimately to the Western Front.[4] The armoury remained the home of the 5th battalion, the Lancashire Fusiliers through the inter-war period.[5]

A major fire took hold at the armoury in January 1943 during the Second World War, in which a fireman died and the building was seriously damaged, and it was not until summer 1952 that the restoration was complete.[2] After the war the armoury continued to be used by the 5th battalion the Lancashire Fusiliers until the battalion was disbanded in 1967. The armoury was then used by a company of the 5th Battalion the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, a unit which evolved following amalgamations to become the Lancastrian and Cumbrian Volunteers in July 1999 and 4th Battalion the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment in July 2006.[2] It is a Grade II Listed building.[1]

The building closed in June 2022 with the owners, a trust, citing safety grounds.[6] The leaser, the Ministry of Defence's Reserve Forces' and Cadets' Association stated that funding was not available to carry out the estimated £2 million of urgent repairs, with further work required to modernise the building.[7][8]

Former units

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The following units were based at the armoury immediately before its closure:[9]

British Army

Community Cadet Forces

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Castle Armoury". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  2. ^ a b c "History of Castle Armoury". Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  3. ^ "Fusiliers in Bury" (PDF). Western Front Association. 30 November 2014. p. 17. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  4. ^ "1st/5th Battalion Lancashire Fusiliers: Tours and Postings". Lancashire Fusiliers. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  5. ^ "Bury County Borough Directory". Metropolitan Borough of Bury. 1936. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  6. ^ Britton, Paul (2022-07-04). "Historic drill hall Castle Armoury in Bury closes". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 2024-05-12.
  7. ^ "Nooks and Corners". Private Eye. No. 1579. 12 August 2022. p. 22.
  8. ^ "'Woefully neglected' armed forces base had 'no hot water or heating' for soldiers returning from active service". Bury Times. 2022-07-22. Retrieved 2024-05-12.
  9. ^ "Castle Armoury". Retrieved 17 April 2021.
  10. ^ "Fusilier from Middleton set for training mission in Canada". Rochdale News. 30 June 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
  11. ^ "Army Reserve QARANC". Retrieved 17 April 2021.
  12. ^ "The Band & Corp of Drums of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers". Retrieved 17 April 2021.
  13. ^ "Greater Manchester Army Cadets". Retrieved 17 April 2021.
  14. ^ "1036 (Bury)". Retrieved 17 April 2021.
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