1st (Hanover Square) Middlesex Artillery Volunteer Corps
| 1st (Hanover Square) Middlesex Artillery Volunteer Corps | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1860–1876 |
| Country |
 United Kingdom
|
| Branch |
 Volunteer Force
|
| Type | Artillery Volunteer Corps |
| Role | Field Artillery |
| Size | Two Batteries |
| Part of | 1st Administrative Battalion, Middlesex Artillery Volunteers |
| Garrison/HQ | Leicester Square, London |
The 1st (Hanover Square) Middlesex Artillery Volunteer Corps (1st Middx AVC) was a unit of the Volunteer Force raised to supplement the British Army at a time of perceived crisis in 1860. The expense of maintaining a unit of this description led to its amalgamation into a better-funded corps in 1876.
The 1st (Hanover Square) Middlesex Artillery Volunteer Corps was raised on 16 July 1860 during the great surge of enthusiasm after an invasion scare that saw the creation of many Rifle, Artillery and Engineer Volunteer units composed of part-time soldiers eager to supplement the Regular British Army in time of need. Apart from the Adjutant, Major W.B. Stevens, who had served 21 years in the East India Company's Madras Army, they were all enthusiastic amateurs.
Initially, the unit was based in Hanover Square in London's Mayfair district. In 1864 it took over commercial premises at No 28 Leicester Square, formerly the residence of Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh and of his brother Prince Henry, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn, and later of John Hunter the famous surgeon. Since then the square had become less socially exclusive. (The present No 28 dates from 1901.)
The 1st Middlesex AVC formed part of the 1st Administrative Battalion, Middlesex Artillery Volunteers, which was also headquartered at 28 Leicester Square, and which shared its commanding officer and adjutant. The other unit in the Admin Battalion was the 1st Tower Hamlets AVC, also founded in 1860 and based at Poplar in East London.
As civilians, the Volunteers sometimes let politics intrude into unit affairs. In 1866, members of the 1st Middlesex Artillery Volunteers were accused of fundraising for Governor Edward Eyre of Jamaica, whose brutal suppression of the Morant Bay Rebellion in the island had divided political opinion in London.
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