Kendrew Barracks is a British Army barracks located 1.1 miles (1.8 km) north east of Cottesmore, Rutland, England. The barracks opened in 2012, on the site of the former RAF Cottesmore.
History
Kendrew Barracks sits on the former site of RAF Cottesmore, which was active between 1938 and 2012, and housed both the Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Forces during its lifetime. Cottesmore was the home of the Tri-National Tornado Training Establishment which trained Panavia Tornado crews, and the last operational home of the British Aerospace Harrier II.[1]
In July 2011, Defence Secretary Liam Fox announced that Cottesmore would house the Army's East of England Multi-Role Brigade.[2] The Army officially took over the site in April 2012 and Kendrew Barracks was officially opened in October 2012 by the Duke of Gloucester.[3] The new barracks were named after Major General Sir Douglas Kendrew.[4]
It became home to the 2nd Battalion, Royal Anglian Regiment, who moved from Dhekelia Garrison,Cyprus in 2012.[5] A second regiment, 7 Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps, moved to the base in June 2013.[3]
From 2017 to 2019, the barracks was home to 2nd Battalion, Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment.[6]
As of 1 November 2018, there were 1,127 troops assigned to the units based at the barracks.[7]
On completion of their Cyprus tour in 2023, the 1st Battalion, Royal Anglian Regiment (known as the Vikings) moved to Cottesmore to join the 2nd Battalion (known as the Poachers), who will remain at Kendrew Barracks. In the future, the Royal Anglian Regiment will no longer participate directly in Cyprus rotations, and therefore will be based at Kendrew Barracks for the foreseeable future.[8]
Based units
The following notable units are based at Kendrew Barracks.[7][9]
Infantry (Queen's Division)
Royal Logistics Corps (102 Logistic Brigade)
British Army