Horrocks Barracks

Horrocks Barracks was a military installation in Schloss Neuhaus, Germany.[1]

Horrocks Barracks
Schloss Neuhaus
Horrocks Barracks
Location within Germany
Coordinates51°44′43″N 08°42′44″E
TypeBarracks
Site information
Operator British Army
Site history
Built1257 - present
Built forPrince Bishop of Paderborn
In use1945 – 1992 (BAOR)
Garrison information
GarrisonPaderborn Garrison
Sign at the main gate of Horrocks Barracks, Schloss Neuhaus, 1983.
The site of Horrocks Barracks in 1736 (Schloss Neuhaus and Gardens).
Site Plan of Horrocks Barracks (1945 - 1992), located in and around the castle at Schloss Neuhaus, Germany, early 1950s.
Aerial view of the complete site of Horrocks Barracks, late 1960s.
Sign at the main gate of Horrocks Barracks, Schloss Neuhaus, 1983. The Garrison Stables ("Langer Stall") can be seen in the background.
Unit Sign at Horrocks Barracks: HQ 211 MCAG RE, 1978.
Schloss Neuhaus Castle, known as Horrocks Barracks 1945 - 1992, as seen August 21, 2022.

Description

Horrocks Barracks was located in the grounds of Schloss Neuhaus, about four kilometres from the Paderborn city centre, and covered approximately 30 acres (12 hectares) of land. The barracks was bordered by the rivers Pader, Lippe and Alme ("Castle Island") and the Residenzstrasse.[2]

History

1247 - 1802: Beginnings and Palace of the Prince Bishops of Paderborn

Construction of the castle began in 1257 under bishop Simon I. zur Lippe (1247 - 1277). Around 1370 and after numerous attacks bishop Heinrich von Spiegel (1361 - 1380) built the still existing part of the castle ("Haus Spiegel") and made it the constant palace of the prince bishops of Paderborn.[3][4] Extensions are:

  • "Haus Braunschweig" (1524 - 1526)
  • "Haus Köln" (1534) which connected the first two buildings.
  • "Haus Kerssenbrock" (1548 - 1560)
  • "Haus Fürstenberg" and the four towers (1590 - 1597)

In 1736 the garden next to the castle was completed. It is now part of the Garden Heritage Network - EGHN.[5]

Additional historic buildings around the castle from that period are:

  • "Marstall" (Stables, 1729 - 1732/1733)
  • "Schlosswache" (Guard House, 1733)

In 1802 the Kingdom of Prussia annexed the whole site.

1802 - 1945: Prussian Use (Schloss-Kaserne)

Before being used as a military installation the castle served as a prison until 1820.

The "Schloss-Kaserne" was then home to

The following buildings date back to the Prussian use of the site[10][11]

  • "Kleine Reithalle" (1824, now the "Städtische Gallerie in der Reithalle")
  • "Lange Stall" (1824, Garrison Stables during British use, demolished 1984)
  • "Kompaniegebäude" (1876 - 1878, HQ 12 PLSU RPC, demolished 1992)
  • "Reithalle mit Stallungen" (1876 - 1878, NAAFI Shop, now the "Schlosshalle")
  • "Waschhaus"/"Alte Kommandantur" (1883/1884, HQ 211 MCAG RE, now the offices of the Schloss- and Auenpark)
  • "Block 20" (1935/1936, 420 MCLG RPC, now part of GSN Gymnasium Schloss Neuhaus)
  • various buildings used as quarters, stables, stores and garages (NAAFI Bulk Issue Store, demolished in the early 1980s)

1945 - 1992: British Use (Horrocks Barracks)

For use by the British Army, the barracks was named after Lieutenant-General Sir Brian Horrocks. The allocated British Forces Post Office number was 16. Over the years it was home to several units. Among them are:

In 1959 the British Forces handed back the Schloss itself to the Federal Republic of Germany. It was then purchased by the City of Paderborn June 25, 1964.[17]

The NAAFI shop at Schloss Neuhaus was in the spotlight November 28, 1981, when a 2-year-old child, Katrice Lee, went missing during a shopping expedition with her family.

1992 - present: Landesgartenschau 1994

The whole Schloss-area was handed back to the German authorities in 1992 to create what was the "Landesgartenschau 1994". 211 MCAG RE undertook the construction of six twin city partnership gardens as a Military Aid to the Civil Community (MACC) task.[18] The former NAAFI-shop-building was first known as the "Bürgerhaus" and nowadays as the "Schlosshalle".

References
  1. Horrocks Barracks, in: Programme for "Beating the Retreat For 211 MCAG RE at Schloß Neuhaus On Monday March 4, 1996".
  2. Horrocks Barracks, BAOR Locations. Retrieved 09 December 2022.
  3. "Schloss Neuhaus" in "Paderborn von A - Z", page 302, 2006, ISBN-10: 3-89710-332-X.
  4. "Studien und Quellen zur Geschichte von Stadt und Schloss Neuhaus - Band 1", 117 pages, Heimatverein Schloß Neuhaus 1909 e.V., 1994.
  5. European Garden Heritage Network - EGHN: Schloss- and Auenpark Neuhaus, Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  6. "Militärgeschichte des Paderborner Landes", page 40, 2009, ISBN 978-3-89710-423-5.
  7. as above, page 41
  8. as above, page 47
  9. as above, page 77
  10. "Die 8. Husaren und ihre Garnison in Neuhaus und Paderborn", pages 66 - 69, 2001, ISBN: 3-89710-168-8.
  11. Site Plan dated July 1913 in : "Paderborn in historischen Fotografien 14; Links, zwo, drei vier! - Paderborn als Garnisonsstadt 1813 - 19 45, pages 12 - 13, 2020.
  12. "Correspondence - Jubilee Review Sennelager July 1977" by Major D P Aston, OC 211 MCAG RE BAOR, The Royal Engineers Journal, Volume 93, No. 3, page 189, September 1979, ISSN 0035-8878.
  13. "Construction Engineering in BAOR" by Major N Munro, The Royal Engineers Journal, Volume 102, No. 2, pages 106 - 109, August 1988, ISSN 0035-8878.
  14. "1988 Corps Annual General Meeting" address by the Engineer-in-Chief, The Royal Engineers Journal, Volume 103, No. 1, page 4, April 1989, ISSN 0035-8878.
  15. "The History of the Corps of Royal Engineers, Volume XII, 1980 - 2000", page 735, The Institution of Royal Engineers, Brompton Barracks, Chatham, Kent, 2011, ISBN 978-090353039-2.
  16. "Long Serving Regiment Beats Retreat in Schloss", Senne-Times, Vol. 23, No. 3, April 1996, edited and produced by the staff of 41 Army Education Centre on behalf of the Commander Paderborn Garrison.
  17. "Studien und Quellen zur Geschichte von Stadt und Schloss Neuhaus - Band 2", 279 pages, Heimatverein Schloß Neuhaus 1909 e.V., 2009, ISBN 978-3-00-029618-5.
  18. Historical Notes, in: Programme for "Beating the Retreat For 211 MCAG RE at Schloß Neuhaus On Monday March 4, 1996".
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