RM Stonehouse
Stonehouse Barracks, also known as RM Stonehouse, is a Royal Marines base in Stonehouse, Plymouth. It is the home of the UK Commando Force and is considered the spiritual home of the Royal Marines. Marines have been based in Plymouth since the corps was formed in 1664, and Stonehouse is the only one of the early barracks towns to survive.
The site began construction in 1756 for the Admiralty. The main development happened between 1779 and 1785, led by James Templer and Thomas Parlby, with further 19th-century additions by Colonel Godfrey Greene. The original design featured a parade ground with a long east block for private marines and shorter blocks for officers. The east block is one of the earliest large-unit barracks in England.
During the Napoleonic Wars, the barracks were expanded to the south. The Longroom, once a public Assembly Room, was bought in 1805 and turned into an officers’ mess. In 1818, officers moved to a rebuilt mess, and the Longroom was used as a school for non-commissioned officers’ children, later becoming an infirmary. Today the Longroom is part of the site and is used as a gym.
Further expansions occurred around the Crimean War era, with the east and south blocks extended and the north range rebuilt. The archway block on Durnford Street, dating from 1867–71, houses senior officers, offices and a chapel above the entrance. A former 1830s racquet court was converted into a theatre.
After World War II, the Royal Marines’ divisional structure began to wind down, but Stonehouse remained active. It housed various Commando units, and from 1971 became the headquarters of 3 Commando Brigade. It continues as the headquarters of the UK Commando Force.
In 2016 the Ministry of Defence announced plans to sell Stonehouse Barracks, with disposal originally planned for 2023. Those dates were later pushed back to at least 2027, then 2029 and now 2031.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 05:16 (CET).