Colchester Garrison is a major garrison located in Colchester in the county of Essex, Eastern England. It has been an important military base since the Roman era. The first permanent military garrison in Colchester was established by Legio XX Valeria Victrix in AD 43 following the Roman conquest of Britain. Colchester was an important garrison town during the Napoleonic Wars and throughout the Victorian era. During the First World War several battalions of Kitchener's Army were trained there. Now, 2nd Battalion and 3rd Battalion of The Parachute Regiment are based there. Today there are new barracks, which, in replacing the Victorian buildings, have made available building land slightly nearer the town centre. History Napoleonic Wars (1792–1815) Colchester Garrison played an eminent role during the Napoleonic Wars. The troops were originally billeted in local inns and houses. After petitioning from the borough council, new infantry barracks were built in 1794. By 1800 additional infantry, artillery, and cavalry barracks had been built in the area bounded by Barrack Street to the north, Wimpole Road to the west, and Port Lane to the east. In 1805 the barracks were home to 7,000 officers and men. After the Napoleonic Wars the barracks were reduced. The sale of the older barracks and the freehold site on which they stood started in 1817 and was completed in 1840. The Army retained and an infantry barracks for 851 officers and men. Much of the old barracks land was developed as the "New Town" area of Colchester during the Victorian era. Crimean War (1854–1856) Colchester Garrison experienced rapid expansion during the Crimean War. Between 1855 and 1856 wooden infantry barracks for 5,000 troops were erected on Ordnance Field. The government purchased Middlewick Farm for use as a training area and a rifle range in 1857. Middlewick Ranges are still in use by the present garrison; however they will close in 2022. British German Legion In 1856 10,000 troops of the British German Legion were billeted in the infantry barracks and in tented encampments on Barrack Field. The British German Legion was raised in 1854 as a foreign corps in British service (similar to the Kings German Legion during the Napoleonic Wars). The Legion was raised for service in the Crimean War, under the provisions of the Enlistment of Foreigners Act 1854. The Legion did not see active service although a large number of legionaries went to the Crimea