page_title: Belize Defence Force
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Belize Defence Force / History
caption_attribution_description: English: BELIZE CITY, Belize (Aug. 31, 2007) - Brig. Gen. Lloyd Gillett, commander of the Belize Defense Force, addresses Belize soldiers and recruits during a ceremony marking the completion of small unit training with a U.S. Marine Corps mobile training team. The event was conducted under the auspices of U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command, for the Global Fleet Station&#8217;s (GFS) pilot deployment to the Caribbean Basin and Central America. The deployment is designed to validate the GFS concept for the Navy, and to support U.S. Southern Command by enhancing cooperative partnerships with regional maritime services, and by improving the operational readiness of the participating nations&#8217; military forces. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class David Hoffman (RELEASED)
context_page_description: The Belize Defence Force is the military of Belize, and is responsible for protecting the sovereignty of the country. The BDF is under the Ministry of Natural Security, which is currently headed by Hon. Michael Peyrefitte; the BDF itself is commanded by Brigadier General Steven Ortega. In 2012, the Belizean government spent about $17 million on the military, constituting 1.08% of the country's gross domestic product.
context_section_description: The military of Belize dates back to 1817, when the Prince Regent Royal Honduras Militia, a volunteer organization, was founded. Between 1817 and 1978, the military force in Belize has had ten different names:
  The Prince Regent's Royal Militia (1817-1866)
  The Belize Volunteer Force (1866-1868)
  The Belize Volunteer Corps (1868-1883)
  The Belize Light Infantry Volunteer Force (1897-1905)
  British Honduras Volunteers (1905-1916)
  British Honduras Territorial Force (1916-1928)
  British Honduras Defense Force (1928-1944)
  British Honduras Home Guard (1942-1943)
  British Honduras Volunteer Guard (1943-1973)
  Belize Volunteer Guard (1973-1977)
  The BDF was founded in 1978 following the disbanding of the Belize Volunteer Guard and the Police Special Force the year before.
  After Belize achieved independence in 1981 the United Kingdom maintained the deterrent British Forces Belize in the country to protect it from invasion by Guatemala. During the 1980s this included a battalion and No. 1417 Flight RAF of Harriers. The main British force left in 1994, three years after Guatemala recognised Belizean independence, but the United Kingdom maintained a training presence via the British Army Training and Support Unit Belize (BATSUB) and 25 Flight AAC until 2011 when the last British Forces left Ladyville Barracks, with the exception of seconded advisers. The BDF Maritime Wing became part of the Belize Coast Guard Service in November 2005.
  In October 2015, due to rising tensions between Belize and Guatemala and the British cutback on military bases worldwide to focus on the War On Terror in 2011, Belize asked the UK to bring BATSUB back; the British Government brought BATSUB to Belize once again.
caption: Brig. Gen. Lloyd Gillett addresses soldiers at a ceremony marking the completion of training with the U.S. Marine Corps
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