The Carlton Place drill hall is a military installation in Southampton, Hampshire.
History
The building is a former Regency era house, built in the late 1820s, to which a substantial new riding school, designed by William Hinves, was added in the late 1840s.[1][2] The complex was converted into assembly rooms in the 1860s before becoming the headquarters of the 2nd Hampshire Rifle Volunteer Corps.[1][3] This unit evolved to become the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, the Hampshire Regiment in 1885 and the 5th Battalion of the Hampshire Regiment in 1908.[4] The battalion was mobilised at the drill hall in August 1914 before being deployed to India.[5] The battalion amalgamated with the 7th Battalion to form the 5th/7th Battalion at Southampton in 1921 but the two battalions separated again in 1939 for the duration of the Second World War.[4]
The battalion converted to form the 14th Battalion, The Parachute Regiment in 1948.[4] It amalgamated with the 4th Battalion to form the 4th/5th Battalion in 1956 but, following defence cutbacks, the amalgamated battalion was disbanded in 1967.[6] Southampton Universities Officers' Training Corps moved to the drill hall in 1981.[7]
