Shorncliffe Army Camp

Shorncliffe Army Camp is a large military camp near Cheriton in Kent.

History
The camp was established in 1794 when the British Army bought over 229 acres of land at Shorncliffe; it was then extended in 1796 and 1806. It was at Shorncliffe that in 1803 Sir John Moore trained the Light Division which fought under the Duke of Wellington in the Napoleonic Wars.

Shorncliffe was used as a staging post for troops destined for the Western Front during World War I and in April 1915 a Canadian Training Division was formed there. The Canadian Army Medical Corps had general hospitals based at Shorncliffe from September 1917 to December 1918. The camp at that time composed five unit lines known as Ross Barracks, Somerset Barracks, Napier Barracks, Moore Barracks and Risborough Barracks.

During World War II Shorncliffe was again used as a staging post and Queen Mary visited the camp in 1939.

After the War the camp was known for a while as the Sir John Moore Barracks but the name was changed when The Light Infantry moved out in October 1986. Shorncliffe Camp remains the home of 2 (South East) Brigade.