Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery , commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery ( RA ) , is the artillery arm of the British Army . Despite its name , it comprises a number of regiments . History . The introduction of artillery into the English Army came as early as the Battle of Crécy in 1346 but was not a permanent body , Henry VIII recognised what artillery could achieve and created a semi - permanent body of artillery . The recognition of the need for a permanent body of artillery however , did not happen until 1716 . Before the 18th century , artillery ' traynes ' were raised by royal warrant for specific campaigns and disbanded again when they were over . On 26 May 1716 , however , by royal warrant of George I two regular companies of field artillery , each 100 men strong , were raised at Woolwich . The title " Royal Artillery " ( RA ) was first used in 1720 . On 1 April 1722 the two companies were increased to four and grouped with independent artillery companies at Gibraltar and Minorca to form the Royal Regiment of Artillery , commanded by Colonel Albert Borgard . In 1741 the Royal Military Academy was formed in the Royal Arsenal at Woolwich ( RWA ) to provide training for RA and Royal Engineers ( RE ) officers . The regiment expanded rapidly and , by 1757 , had 24 companies divided into two battalion s , as well as a cadet company formed in 1741 . During 1748 , the presidential artilleries of Bengal , Madras and Bombay were formed . 1756 saw the creation of the Royal Irish Regiment of Artillery . In 1762 the Royal Artillery Band was formed at Minden . By 1771 there were 32 companies in four battalions , as well as two " invalid companies " comprising older and unfit men employed in garrison duties . During 1782 , the regiment moved to the current Royal Artillery Barracks ( front parade ) on Woolwich Common . In January 1793 , two troop s of Royal Horse Artillery ( RHA ) were raised to provide fire support for the cavalry , augmented by two more in November 1793 . All RHA personnel were mounted . The Royal Irish Artillery was absorbed into the RA in 1801 . During 1805 , the Royal Artillery moved to Woolwich Common . In 1819 , the Rotunda was given to the regiment by the Prince Regent to celebrate end of the Napoleonic Wars . ( It was originally built in St . James ' s Park as the outer casing of the tent in which the Prince Regent entertained the Allied sovereigns in 1814 . ) In 1832 , the regimental mottoes were granted . The regiment was under the control of the Board of Ordnance until the board was abolished in 1855 . Thereafter the regiment came under the War Office along with the rest of the army . The School of Gunnery established at Shoeburyness , Essex in 1859 . In 1862 the regiment absorbed the artillery of the British East India Company — 21 horse batteries and 48 field batteries — which brought its strength up to 29 horse batteries , 73 field batteries and 88 heavy batteries . On 1 July 1899 , the Royal Artillery was divided into three groups : the Royal Horse Artillery of 21 batteries and the Royal Field Artillery of 95 batteries comprised one group , while the coastal defence , mountain , siege and heavy batteries were split off into another group named the Royal Garrison Artillery of 91 companies . The third group continued to be titled simply " Royal Artillery " , and was responsible for ammunition storage and supply . Which branch a gunner belonged to was indicated by metal shoulder titles ( R . A . , R . F . A . , R . H . A . , or R . G . A . ) . The RFA and RHA also dressed as mounted men , whereas the RGA dressed like foot soldiers . In 1920 the rank of Bombardier was instituted in the Royal Artillery . The three sections effectively functioned as separate corps . This arrangement lasted until 1924 , when the three amalgamated once more to became one regiment . In 1938 , RA Brigades were renamed Regiments . During World War II there were over 1 million men serving in 960 gunner regiments . In 1947 the Riding Troop RHA was renamed The King ' s Troop RHA and , in 1951 , the title of the regiment ' s colonel - in - chief became Captain General . The Royal Horse Artillery , which has always had separate traditions , uniforms and insignia , still retains a separate identity within the regiment . Before the Second World War , Royal Artillery recruits were required to be at least tall . Men in mechanised units had to be at least tall . They initially enlisted for six years with the colours and a further six years with the reserve or four years and eight years . They trained at the Royal Artillery Depot in Woolwich . From its beginnings , the Royal Artillery has been based at Woolwich , in south - east London . In 2003 it was decided to move the headquarters to Larkhill on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire ( the RA ' s training ground , where the Royal School of Artillery has been based since 1915 ) . The last Royal Artillery troops left Woolwich Barracks in 2007 ; in 2012 , however , the King ' s Troop , Royal Horse Artillery was relocated to Woolwich from their former headquarters in St John ' s Wood . < nowiki > < / nowiki > The Royal Artillery today . The Royal Artillery is equipped with a variety of equipment and performs a wide range of roles , including : The Captain General of the regiment is Queen Elizabeth II . The post was previously known as Colonel - in - Chief until King George VI expressed the desire to be known as Captain General . The head of the regiment is the Master Gunner , St . James ' s Park . The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises both Regular ( full - time ) and Territorial ( part - time ) units . The current regiments of the Royal Artillery are : Regular Army . The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises the Royal Artillery and the Royal Horse Artillery . The Regular Army units are : Regular regiments of the Royal Horse Artillery Regular regiments of the Royal Artillery The Territorial Army . The Royal Regiment of Artillery is unique in that it has sub - units that often move between regiments , or are placed into suspended animation . See List of Royal Artillery Batteries . Support to current operations . All Close Support Artillery Regiments deploy to Afghanistan with the L118 Light Gun . Some convert to the Light Gun for a six - month tour on Operation HERRICK and then revert to their primary role . 5th Regiment Royal Artillery deploys a battery on operations operating and supporting all Base ISTAR equipment and LCMR radar . 32nd Regiment Royal Artillery deploys a battery on operations operating the Hermes 450 UAV . 16th Regiment Royal Artillery deploys a battery to the Falkland Islands in its primary air defence role with the Rapier missile . 47th Regiment Royal Artillery are currently equipped with the Lockheed Martin Desert Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle and use this system on operations . 39th Regiment Royal Artillery have recently converted from the MLRS to the Guided MLRS for use on operations . Equipment . Air defence . The Royal Artillery is equipped with two main weapons in the air defence mission ; Close support . In the support mission , the Royal Artillery has three types of weapon ; Order of precedence . When on parade with its guns the Royal Horse Artillery takes precedence over all Army units . The Future of the Royal Artillery . Under the Army 2020 Concept , these regular army regiments will remain : Due to the disbanding of the 39th RA , It has been noted that six AS - 90 batteries and one GMLRS battery will form the three artillery regiments support the three Reaction Force Brigades . 1 RHA has already announced that it will be one of those artillery regiments . It has been said that the RA may lose its M2270 GLMRS in the future . 1 RHA , 3 RHA , 4 RA , 19 RA 26 RA and the Army Reserve units , 101 RA and 105 RA will be grouped together under the 1st Artillery Brigade . 12th and 16th RA will continue to be under the joint Army - RAF unit , Joint Ground Based Air Defence . 5 RA , along with 104 RA , will be under the 1 Intelligence and Surveillance Brigade . A list of Army Reserve ( formerly Territorial Army ) units has recently been published . 100th ( Yeomanry ) Regiment Royal Artillery will be suspended in animation . 101st ( Northumbrian ) Regiment Royal Artillery will be fully re - roled to GMLRS . 106th ( Yeomanry ) Regiment Royal Artillery will entirely be re - roled to Starstreak missiles , on Stormer vehicles or LML . Sporting and social . The Regimental family supports a wide range of social and sporting activities including - in addition to football , rugby , cricket , sailing etc . - the RA Hunt and a Point - to - Point racecourse . The Regimental magazine , " Gunner " is published monthly and the RA Journal ( with a more academic flavour ) twice a year . The RA Association has branches across the UK and some internationally . Museum . The Regimental museum , " Firepower " is located in the Royal Arsenal at Woolwich .