Description

991/0/10059 Ramsden garden wall memorial, Montgome
20-MAY-10 ry Lines

II
Commemorative garden wall, about 24m long, and dated 1962. It forms the southern edge of a part-sunken garden within the cluster of barracks and parade grounds at the Montgomery Lines.

Concrete, designed in a consciously Brutalist style, and with aggregate comprised of brick from the demolished Victorian Corunna, Barossa and Albuhera barracks. The material effect is rough, with irregularly exposed aggregate and an irregularly stepped profile to the top, with vertically grooved shuttered concrete finish.

An inscription band in stone with blocky sans serif lettering at the base of the wall marks its unveiling by James Ramsden, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for War, in 1962 to commemorate the beginning of Aldershot Barracks rebuilding. Inscription reads 'THIS STONE UNVEILED BY MR JAMES RAMSDEN MP PARLIAMENTARY UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE FOR WAR ON 4TH OCTOBER 1962 COMMEMORATES THE START OF THE REBUILDING OF BARRACKS IN ALDERSHOT'

The rear elevation is plainer but the brick aggregate and the geometric styling are apparent.

HISTORY: Arnhem Barracks, Bruneval Barracks, Normandy Barracks and Rhine Barracks are collectively known as the Montgomery Lines after Field Marshal the Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, who was Colonel Commandant of the Parachute Regiment from 1944 to 1956. These four barracks were designed to house the 16th Parachute Brigade and were built in 1962 on the original site of Corunna, Barossa and Albuhera Barracks. An inscription on the contemporary wall of a small garden between the new barracks records the start of the new rebuilding as being from 1962 and initiated by James Ramsden MP (b.1923), Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for War from 1960-63, when the barracks were built; Ramsden was the last holder of this office, which was re-named the Secretary of State for Defence in 1964. The wall was constructed in part from re-used brick from the Victorian barracks demolished for the post-war rebuilding.

SOURCES
Douet J, British Barracks, 1600-1914, their Architecture and Role in Society (1998) 130-133
English Heritage, Barracks Thematic List Review (1993) 19
Hantsweb Hampshire County Council (Accessed 23/10/09); Aldershot local history pages:
http://www3.hants.gov.uk/museum/aldershot-museum/local-history-aldershot/barracks/montgomery-lines.htm
216 Parachute Squadron website (accessed 23/10/09)
http://www.216parasigs.org.uk/history/216pss.htm

The Ramsden Wall Memorial at Montgomery Lines is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Architectural interest: a Brutalist wall that forms a backdrop to a garden in the post-war barracks complex and is a striking structure of its time, employing concrete to dramatic effect with its random exposure of aggregate, and effectively rough finish and period lettering.
* Historic interest: Although contemporary in its styling, the wall commemorates the post-war rebuilding of the Victorian barracks at this major Army site by the noted political figure James Ramsden MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for war at the time; it evocatively used bricks from the demolished barracks on the site as part of the design.

Reasons for Listing

The Ramsden Wall Memorial at Montgomery Lines is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Architectural interest: a Brutalist concrete wall that forms a backdrop to a garden in the post-war barracks complex and is a striking structure of its time, employing concrete to dramatic effect with its random exposure of aggregate, and effectively rough finish and period lettering.
* Historic interest: although contemporary in its styling, the wall commemorates the post-war rebuilding of the Victorian barracks at this major Army site by the noted political figure, James Ramsden MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for war at the time; it evocatively used bricks from the demolished barracks on the site as part of the design.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26672952

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

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