HMS St Vincent (Gosport shore establishment)

HMS "St Vincent" was a shore establishment of the Royal Navy, located in Gosport, Portsmouth.

The name was given to the barracks and training establishment in Portsmouth in 1927, after the one that been set up aboard the old first rate HMS "St Vincent" in 1862. The new HMS "St Vincent" was commissioned on 1 June 1927, originally like its predecessor as a training establishment for boys and juniors. On the outbreak of the Second World War, the boys were evacuated to the Isle of Man, where they merged with those evacuated from HMS "Caledonia" to form HMS "St George", which was formally established in 1939. HMS "St Vincent" meanwhile became a training establishment for officers of the Fleet Air Arm and an overflow for the Royal Navy barracks. A signal school was also established. A torpedo training section was opened on 22 July 1940.

"St Vincent" reverted to being a boy's training establishment after the end of the war, and reopened as such on 1 December 1945. It continued to function as such until 1968, when it was decided to close "St Vincent". The official closing ceremony was held on 8 December 1968, with the white ensign being lowered for the last time on 2 April 1969. The base was then handed over to the land agent the following day, 3 April 1969.

References

*Warlow, Ben, "Shore Establishments of the Royal Navy", Liskeard : Maritime, 2000. ISBN 9780907771739