King’s Troop arrives at its new Woolwich barracks
Schoolchildren, veterans and local people lined Woolwich High Street last week to welcome the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery to its new home.
The unit left its long-term home in St John’s Wood on 6 February and the seven officers, 164 soldiers and 109 horses moved into their brand new barracks – Napier Lines – the following day.
“We have been tremendously heartened and humbled by the strength of public support for the King’s Troop and The Army,” commanding officer Major Mark Edward told H&H.
Napier Lines was commissioned and designed exclusively for the King’s Troop, and work on the £16m project began in October 2010.
The horses will be hacked on nearby Woolwich Common and where there is also a grassed training area.
The barracks also has a canter track, an outdoor school and a 120x80m indoor arena.
This is big enough for them to practise the musical ride, where horses tow the troop’s six World War I guns at a gallop in choreographed manoeuvres.
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For pictures and more on this story see the current issue of H&H (16 February)
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A self-confessed newshound, farmer’s daughter and journalist of many years' experience, Charlotte worked on regional papers before joining H&H in 2007. A regular rider, she visited Ireland in 2010 to investigate the fate of Irish horses through the recession, to much acclaim, and reported from the FEI General Assembly in Rio de Janeiro in 2011. She left Horse & Hound in March 2013.