Irwin Barracks

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Australian Army military base in Western Australia

title: "Irwin Barracks" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["barracks-in-australia", "buildings-and-structures-in-perth,-western-australia", "1948-establishments-in-australia", "military-installations-established-in-1948", "karrakatta,-western-australia", "military-installations-in-western-australia"] description: "Australian Army military base in Western Australia" topic_path: "geography/australia" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irwin_Barracks" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Australian Army military base in Western Australia ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox military installation"]

FieldValue
name
partof
location, Western Australia
nearest_town
countryAustralia
imageFile:Hobbs Artillery Park, Irwin Barracks, May 2021 02.jpg
captionHobbs Artillery Park, Irwin Barracks, in May 2021
image2
typeMilitary base
coordinates
pushpin_mapWestern Australia
pushpin_map_altShown within Western Australia
pushpin_map_captionShown within Western Australia
pushpin_relief1
ownershipDepartment of Defence
operator
controlledby
open_to_public
site_other_label
site_other
site_area62 ha
code
built
usedpresent
height
length
fate
current_commander
past_commanders
garrison13th Brigade
occupants
footnotes
::

| name = | ensign = | ensign_size = | native_name = | partof = | location = , Western Australia | nearest_town = | country = Australia | image = File:Hobbs Artillery Park, Irwin Barracks, May 2021 02.jpg | alt = | caption = Hobbs Artillery Park, Irwin Barracks, in May 2021 | image2 = | alt2 = | caption2 = | type = Military base | coordinates = | gridref = | image_map = | image_mapsize = | image_map_alt = | image_map_caption = | pushpin_map = Western Australia | pushpin_mapsize = | pushpin_map_alt = Shown within Western Australia | pushpin_map_caption = Shown within Western Australia | pushpin_relief = 1 | pushpin_image = | pushpin_label = | pushpin_label_position = | pushpin_mark = | pushpin_marksize = | ownership = Department of Defence | operator = | controlledby = | open_to_public = | site_other_label = | site_other = | site_area = 62 ha | code = | built = | used = present | builder = | materials = | height = | length = | fate = | condition = | battles = | events = | current_commander = | past_commanders = | garrison = 13th Brigade | occupants = | website = | footnotes = Irwin Barracks is an Australian Army military base located in , a suburb of , Western Australia. It occupies a 62 ha site on the western side of the Fremantle railway line.

It was previously known as Karrakatta Camp and Irwin Training Centre.

History

The barracks were originally named the Irwin Training Centre on 5 December 1948 in honour of Lieutenant-Colonel Frederick Chidley Irwin, the first military commandant of Western Australia (1829–1833).

Prior to this the area was known as Karrakatta Camp and was set-aside as a military training area by the Western Australian Colonial Government in 1895. The site was used for short camps (in tented accommodation) and courses for Militia and School Cadet units until the beginning of World War II.

In 1896 a rifle range was constructed at Karrakatta and equipped with seven sets of Jeffries patented "Wimbledon" targetsonly the fourth range in the world so equipped. The range replaced the original rifle range located at Mount Eliza, which was used by all metro-based troops including the Western Australian contingents, which trained at Karrakatta camp for the Second Boer War (1899–1902).

On 6 October 1898 completion of buildings for use as magazines for storage of powder and ammunition for Perth No.1 Battery were completed. The buildings were constructed of local coastal limestone with slate roofs. These buildings have walls 698.5 mm thick and floors of concrete lined with timber flooring. They still exist within the Barracks. The magazine buildings are included on the Commonwealth Heritage List as evidence of colonial defence infrastructure.

Following Federation, the site was transferred from the State of Western Australia to the Commonwealth for A£750. The site formed part of the 5th Military District and was also used for the training of citizen forces (militia) under the Commonwealth.

In 1913 the range was formally closed as it was deemed "unsafe", following the earlier death of an army cadet in November 1909, with the range relocated to a new site in Swanbourne.

The camp was modernised and expanded during World War II, housing various units, as well as 1,000 Italian prisoners of war. After the war the camp served as an accommodation centre for former members of the Polish forces who had elected to migrate to Australia. In mid-1948 the camp was chosen to serve as a training camp for the Citizen Military Forces, and on 5 December 1948 it was ceremonially renamed the Irwin Training Centre. Most of the original wooden buildings were replaced by modern brick buildings during the 1950s and 1960s, though the last wooden buildings were not demolished until the 1980s.

Current

Irwin Barracks is the headquarters of 13th Brigade, an Army Reserve formation of the Australian Army.

The 13th Brigade currently consists of the following units:

The barracks also house:

Stolen APC incident

Main article: 1993 Perth tank rampage

On 27 April 1993, 27 year old Gary Alan Hayes stole an M-113 armoured personnel carrier (APC) from the barracks. He drove it through the Perth central business district, ramming police targets and government buildings, causing damage to police and government buildings, 7 police vehicles, 5 private vehicles, and a bus stop. He was subsequently forced out of the APC with tear gas dropped into the tank. Hayes was charged with 19 counts of criminal damage, burglary and assault of police officers and was sentenced to four and a half years in Casuarina Prison with the possibility of parole after 17 months. He was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.

References

References

  1. (2011). "Welcome to Western Australia". Defence Community Association.
  2. (14 February 1949). "Army Instruction". National Library of Australia.
  3. Mossenson, David. "Irwin, Frederick Chidley (1788–1860)". [[Australian National University.
  4. (6 December 1948). "Renaming Camp". National Library of Australia.
  5. (10 June 1903). "Military – The Karrakatta Camp". National Library of Australia.
  6. (12 June 1896). "General News – Rifle Shooting". National Library of Australia.
  7. (6 August 1862). "Local and Domestic Intelligence.". National Library of Australia.
  8. "Kit inspection for Lighthorsemen in camp at Karrakatta training for the Boer War".
  9. (2 February 1901). "At Karrakatta Camp". National Library of Australia.
  10. (7 February 1899). "Public Buildings". National Library of Australia.
  11. "Stone magazine buildings at the Irwin Training Centre, Karrakatta W.A. : report". Dept. of Works.
  12. "Army Magazine Buildings Irwin Barracks, Brallos Pass, Karrakatta, WA". Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities.
  13. (14 July 1913). "Rifle Shooting". National Library of Australia.
  14. (31 July 1913). "Karrakatta Rifle Range". National Library of Australia.
  15. (1 November 1909). "Tragedy at Karrakatta". National Library of Australia.
  16. Galliott, Ray. (October 2011). "What's in a name? : Irwin Barracks history". Royal Australian Artillery Association of Western Australia.
  17. "Rampage in the City". The Western Australian.
  18. Hughes, Judy. (29 April 1993). "Army Vehicle in two-hour city rampage". The Canberra Times.
  19. (19 December 1993). "Jail for 'rampage'". The Canberra Times.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::

barracks-in-australiabuildings-and-structures-in-perth,-western-australia1948-establishments-in-australiamilitary-installations-established-in-1948karrakatta,-western-australiamilitary-installations-in-western-australia