Type Barracks In use 1886 – present Year built 1886 | Owner Ministry of Defence Operator British Army | |
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Occupants The Royal Scots Borderers, 1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland | ||
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Palace Barracks, Holywood is a British Army installation in Holywood, County Down, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom.
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History
Palace Barracks occupies the site of a palatial house known as "Ardtullagh", the home of the Bishop of Down, Connor and Dromore until it was bought by the UK War Office in 1886.
In 1933, six children of Lance Corporal Harry Poole and his wife, Mary, lost their lives from asphyxiation following gas poisoning in the married quarters of the barracks.
During the roughly three decades of "The Troubles" in Northern Ireland, the barracks served as the home base for British army battalions rotating through the province, especially those on a two-year "accompanied" tour with their families. A wide variety of facilities are available for soldiers to use off duty, including a swimming pool, squash courts, saunas, bars and a gymnasium.
Palace Barracks has been the Regimental Headquarters of the Royal Irish Regiment since 2008 and the home base of several squadrons of the 152 (North Irish) Regiment RLC. In March 2010, it was the site of a bombing, one of several attacks carried out by "hardline Republicans" in 2010; other attacks included the Newry car bombing. Since 2014 it has been the base for the The Royal Scots Borderers, 1st Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland.
