1st Battalion, Ulster Defence Regiment

C Company, 1 UDR on parade at Steeple Camp, Antrim, Remembrance Sunday 1970.

The experience of 1 UDR was the same as that of all battalions of the regiment in the early days. Because of equipment shortages patrols had to be carried out in private cars or in vehicles borrowed from other army units.[9] Instead of torches, patrols carried Hurricane Lamps which had to be lit by hand. These were eventually replaced by the Bardic torches carried by the regular army.[9]

The 9th (Country Antrim) Battalion was formed on 15 December 1971 from the companies of 1 UDR who were based in the southern half of Country Antrim.

Intelligence gathering within 1 UDR was good. The local community responded well and in particular, Catholics were keen to warn individual soldiers of threats to their lives or to phone information through to the barracks advising of potential "happenings" in the battalion area.[10]

B Company was formed in March 1970, in the former North Irish Horse barracks at John Street, Ballymoney.[11] The first Officer Commanding (OC) was Major John Munnis, formerly the sub-district commander of the Ulster Special Constabulary (USC). Major Munnis was killed in a traffic accident in 1972.[12] The Company sergeant major was WO2 Willy Mooney who had been a sergeant instructor with the same USC unit.

Soldiers in B Company were mostly drawn from the towns and villages of North Antrim such as: Ballymoney, Ballycastle, Bushmills and Dervock.[11] There was a high number of recruits who had been USC men (B Specials) who joined from these areas too, as well as from the village of Stranocum, although incidents of men joining in other groups such as from the same workforce or as neighbours were few.[13]

Entire families joined together and this created problems in dividing them up on patrol. There was a fear that two or more members of the same family could be killed or wounded if they were together in the same vehicle which was under attack.[13]

In late 1970 a new company was raised in Coleraine as part of 5 UDR and forty experienced soldiers from B Company volunteered to transfer.[14]

Because the company base contained the only secure armoury in the area soldiers from Coleraine, Portrush and Portstewart were also based in nearby Henry Street, Ballymoney.[11]

In 1983 B Company was transferred to the command of 5 UDR and renamed G Coy, 5 UDR, but remained in the John Street base.[14] The base finally closed in 1992 after further restructuring in 5 UDR.[15]