Royal Artillery

32 Regiment Royal Artillery

Our Regiment

Facts & Figures

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ACTIVE FROM

1939

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ROLE

REACTIVE FORCE

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SPECIALISM

FIND-TRACK

Our Skills

As the British Army’s only regiment equipped with Mini Unmanned Aircraft Systems, we specialise in finding the enemy working directly alongside the infantry and armoured corps. Our trades include: 

  • Drone operators and pilots
  • Parachutists
  • Armoured vehicle drivers and commanders
  • Communications
  • Logistics

Current Deployment

32nd Regiment Royal Artillery deploys all over the world.

On-going commitments include:

  • Deploying as part of the NATO Enhanced Forward Presence in Estonia and Poland
  • Supporting exercises in Kenya, Canada and elsewhere
  • Annual exercises in California

Past deployments:

  • Iraq – Operation TELIC
  • Afghanistan – Operation HERRICK
  • United Kingdom – Resilience Operations

Our Location

Based in the Wiltshire countryside, Larkhill is the home of the Gunners and also to the Stonehenge World Heritage Site. It is approximately 12 miles from Salisbury city centre and less than an hour’s drive from Bath, Bournemouth and Southampton. 

The Regiment is known as The Wessex Gunners and has strong links with the local community in Wiltshire and the South West.

Our People

Lance Bombardier Jay Bradshaw:

 "It’s a really exciting time to be in 32nd Regiment Royal Artillery. We’ve got Batterys deployed in places such as Canada, Kenya, Estonia and Poland. Soldiers in all trades have the ability to gain experience by deploying overseas. Despite the high tempo, members of the Regiment have still maintained high standards across all sports in which we compete, with a number of individuals competing at Army level. Due to the nature of our job we work in small teams, which allows the junior commanders, like myself, to have more responsibility and ownership of their workload.

Lieutenant Ben Magenheimer:

 “As a Troop Commander I lead 20 intelligent soldiers who are experts in operating drones. I often have to brief officers much senior to my rank on sighting reports and present my recommendations. In addition to this, there are plenty of opportunities to play sports and get away on Adventurous Training activities such as Skiing or Sailing.”

Our History

32nd Regiment Royal Artillery has 5 Equipment Batteries, most having a continuous history back to the 18th century.  Between them the Batteries have contributed to every major conflict the British Army has been involved in in the last 200 years.  The Batteries are:

  • 22 (Gibraltar 1779-1783) Battery
  • 21 (Gibraltar 1779-1783) Air Assault Battery
  • 18 (Quebec 1759) Battery
  • 57 (Bhurtpore) Battery
  • 46 (Talavera) Battery

Timeline

  1. 1756-1758

    22 (Gibraltar 1779-1783) Battery formed 1756.

    21 (Gibraltar 1779-1783) Air Assault Battery formed 1756.

    18 (Quebec 1759) Battery formed 1759.

    57 (Bhurtpore) Battery formed 1786.

    46 (Talavera) Battery formed 1778.

     

  2. 1927

    32 Regiment RA raised as 7 Medium Bde, equipped with 60 pounders and 6“ Howitzers

  3. 1939-1945

    The Regiment fought in several campaigns, including the Western Front (1940-43), Greece and Crete (1941), Sicily (1943) and North West Europe (1944-45)

  4. 1956

    Op MUSKETEER (Suez Canal, Egypt)

  5. 1971-99

    5 Northern Ireland Tours (Belfast, Armagh and Maze Prison).

    Op GRANBY (Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Kuwait)  re-equipped with M110 8” Gun and Locating assets.

    Op AGRICOLA (Kosovo)

  6. 2003-14

    The Regiment re-equipped to Phoenix and then Desert Hawk 3, deploying on

    Op TELIC (Iraq) and Op Herrick (Afghanistan

Our Location

  • 32nd Regiment

    Roberts Barracks Larkhill Salisbury Wiltshire SP4 8QU