| Location | Ladyville, Belize |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 17.54482°N 88.30572°W |
| Ownership | Government of Belize |
| Operator | Belize Defence Force |
| Built | 1960s |
| Used | 1960s-Present |
| Built for | War Office |
| Occupants | Belize Defence Force British Army |
Price Barracks is a military installation located just north of Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport which is located in Ladyville some 8 miles to the north west of Belize City. It is the main base of the Belize Defence Force.
History
The barracks has its origins in the British Honduras Garrison which had been established in British Honduras in the 1960s. In March 1972 the capacity of the garrison was doubled from facilities for 275 troops to 550 troops as a result of a threat from Guatemala.[1] A significant deployment to the barracks, then known as Airport Camp, was undertaken by the Queen's Regiment in Spring 1976.[2] Following the independence of the country as Belize in September 1981 the camp was renamed Price Barracks after George Cadle Price, a former Prime Minister of the country, and it became the main base of the Belize Defence Force.[3]
In 1994, the UK Government established the British Army Training and Support Unit Belize (BATSUB) based within Price Barracks as its main international facility for jungle training. However, in 2010, it announced the closure of the facility as part of its Strategic Defence and Security Review.[4] This decision was later reversed in 2015.[5][6][7][8]
References
- ^ "UK beefs up Honduras force". The Montreal Gazette. 22 March 1972. Archived 1 October 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
- ^ "Queen's Regiment". British Army units 1945 on. Archived 28 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
- ^ "Contacts". Belize Defence Force. Archived 28 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved September 27, 2015.
- ^ "Jungle training axed as Belize base shuts". The Telegraph. 15 December 2010. Archived 28 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
- ^ "Inside Belize: British Army soldiers are pushed to the limit". ITV. 7 April 2015. Archived 6 July 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
- ^ "No Joke Jimmy, The Brits Are Back". 7 News Belize. October 28, 2015. Archived 18 February 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 22, 2016.
- ^ "Maybe more to Britain's Belize return than meets the eye". Cowbrough Communications. December 2, 2015. Archived 17 June 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 22, 2016.
- ^ "Inside Belize: British Army soldiers put through their paces". ITV. April 7, 2015. Archived 24 June 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 22, 2016.