The building is one of the few surviving buildings of the early permanent barracks in the town, which evolved from the changes in military thinking that arose in the aftermath of the Crimean War. It has a direct association with the First World War, with men of the Royal Field Artillery stationed in Colchester taking part in the Battle of Le Cateau in 1914. It has a high architectural merit, with elaborate decoration and fine fixtures and fittings, many of which have survived intact.<1><2>

The large lawn in front of (and to the south-east of) the building is on the site of the Roman Circus starting gates (MCC5549).

A programme of building recording was carried out by the Colchester Archaeological Trust in November 2013. Subsequent to the 2013 recording, the Officers’ Quarters suffered a substantial fire in April 2014, causing extensive damage to much of the interior and destroying many of the original fixtures and features for which the building was so notable. A secondary programme of building recording was undertaken in December 2019 to establish the extent of the damage and to record the degradation the building has undergone in the intervening six years since the original survey.<3>