British Army Training Zones During The Troubles

By Ed Moloney and Bob Mitchell

During the Troubles the British Army constructed or used already erected mock towns/streets to replicate the urban environment that their troops would experience during tours of Northern Ireland. Below is a selection of photos of the sites and some training exercises. Only one, at the Ballykinlar camp in Co Down, was situated in the North. The rest were in England.

Since the end of the Troubles some of the same sites have been used for training troops about to serve in Iran and Afghanistan. You can see that at the training village in Rype, Kent one of the streets has been re-named ‘General Massoud Road’. Interesting, yes?

Ballykinlar

Rype Village in Lydd, Kent

Dymchurch Redoubt – A fort constructed off the Kent coast in anticipation of an invasion of England by Napoleonic forces at the beginning of the 19th century

A soldier surveys a map of a fictional town called, would you believe ‘Killymurphy’

In the meantime, here are some pictures of actual training during the early 70’s. Look familiar?