Carabineros de Chile
Encyclopedia
Carabinier
A Carabinier was originally a cavalry soldier armed with a carbine...
s of Chile, (Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
:Carabineros de Chile) are the uniformed Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an national police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
force and gendarmerie
Gendarmerie
A gendarmerie or gendarmery is a military force charged with police duties among civilian populations. Members of such a force are typically called "gendarmes". The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary describes a gendarme as "a soldier who is employed on police duties" and a "gendarmery, -erie" as...
, created on April 27, 1927. Their mission is to maintain order and create public respect for the laws of the country. They report to the Ministerio de Defensa Nacional (Ministry of National Defense) through the Undersecretary of Carabiniers, but since 2011 the Ministry of the Interior and Public Security has full control over them, thus fully separating it from the three other branches by department but still considered a part of the armed forces. Chile also has an investigative police force, the Investigations Police of Chile, also under the Interior and Public Security Ministry.
History
The origins of the CarabinierCarabinier
A Carabinier was originally a cavalry soldier armed with a carbine...
s can be traced back to night watchmen such as the Dragones de la Reina (Queen's Dragoon
Dragoon
The word dragoon originally meant mounted infantry, who were trained in horse riding as well as infantry fighting skills. However, usage altered over time and during the 18th century, dragoons evolved into conventional light cavalry units and personnel...
s) (created in 1758 and later renamed the Dragoons of Chile in 1812) and other organizations that fulfilled functions such as the watch and local policing.
Later, cities such as Santiago
Santiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...
and Valparaíso
Valparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
created their own city police forces. In 1881 the Rural Police (Policía Rural) was created for the rural areas of the country. However, the main problem with these police services was that they were dependent on local authorities for day-to-day decision making. This led to local officials abusing this power for their own political ends. In 1896 the Policía Fiscal (Prosecuting Police) was created to serve the cities.
The first policing organization with the name "Carabinier
Carabinier
A Carabinier was originally a cavalry soldier armed with a carbine...
s" was the Corps of Carabiniers, in Spanish Cuerpo de Carabineros (with similar meaning as the Italian Carabinieri
Carabinieri
The Carabinieri is the national gendarmerie of Italy, policing both military and civilian populations, and is a branch of the armed forces.-Early history:...
), formed in 1903 to bring law and order to the Araucanía Region
Araucanía Region
The IX Araucanía Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions and comprises two provinces: Malleco in the north and Cautín in the south....
of Southern Chile (then much larger than today). In 1908 the Carabiniers' School (Escuela de Carabineros, currently located in Providencia
Providencia (municipality, Chile)
Providencia is a commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. Part of Greater Santiago, it is bordered by the communes of Santiago to the west, Recoleta to the northwest, Las Condes and Vitacura to the northeast, La Reina to the east, and Ñuñoa to the south.In 2006...
) was created. In 1927, President Carlos Ibáñez del Campo
Carlos Ibáñez del Campo
General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo was a Chilean Army officer and political figure. He served as dictator between 1927 and 1931 and as constitutional President from 1952 to 1958.- The coups of 1924 and 1925 :...
merged the Fiscal Police (Policía Fiscal), the Rural Police (Policia Rural), and the existing Corps of Carabiniers to form the Carabiniers of Chile, one unified institution under the direction of the national government. The organization still carries the name given to it by Ibáñez, who became the Carabiniers' first Director General.
In 1973 the Carabiniers, headed by General Cesar Mendoza Duran, later appointed Director General, joined the Chilean coup of 1973
Chilean coup of 1973
The 1973 Chilean coup d'état was a watershed event of the Cold War and the history of Chile. Following an extended period of political unrest between the conservative-dominated Congress of Chile and the socialist-leaning President Salvador Allende, discontent culminated in the latter's downfall in...
under the lead of the Army, Navy and Air Forces leaders, that overthrew President Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende Gossens was a Chilean physician and politician who is generally considered the first democratically elected Marxist to become president of a country in Latin America....
. As such, the Carabiniers' commander was a formal member of the Military Government Junta (1973–1990), as well as members of the institution taking on administrative roles, such as being in charge of the Ministry of Education.
Today
The Carabiniers' current mission is to maintain or re-establish order and security in Chilean society through civic education, service to the community, police work, and in a war situation, to act as a military force (all their members have military training). Under the current Chilean constitutionConstitution of Chile
In its temporary dispositions, the document ordered the transition from the former military government, with Augusto Pinochet as President of the Republic, and the Legislative Power of the Military Junta , to a civil one, with a time frame of eight...
the Carabiniers are integrated directly into the armed forces in a state of emergency to better guarantee order.
They also have a special armed police unit called the Special police operations Group (GOPE or Grupo de Operaciones Policiales Especiales). There is also an Elite Corps
Corps
A corps is either a large formation, or an administrative grouping of troops within an armed force with a common function such as Artillery or Signals representing an arm of service...
in charge of security in La Moneda Palace and for the President
President of Chile
The President of the Republic of Chile is both the head of state and the head of government of the Republic of Chile. The President is responsible of the government and state administration...
.
Aircraft inventory
The Carabiniers operate 35 aircraft in support of their operations, including 10 helicopters. Recently, 4 Augusta A109E have been acquired.! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Aircraft
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Origin
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Type
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Versions
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|In service
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes
|-----
| Agusta A109
Agusta A109
The AgustaWestland AW109 is a light-weight, twin-engine, eight-seat multi-purpose helicopter built by the Anglo-Italian manufacturer AgustaWestland...
|
| utility transport
| Agusta A109E
| 4
|
|-----
| Bell 206
Bell 206
The Bell 206 is a family of two-bladed, single- or twin-engine helicopters, manufactured by Bell Helicopter at its Mirabel, Quebec plant. Originally developed as the Bell YOH-4 for the United States Army's Light Observation Helicopter program, the 206 failed to be selected...
|
| utility helicopter
| 206B
| 1
| Used for pilot training only.
|-----
| Cessna 182
Cessna 182
The Cessna 182 Skylane is an American four-seat, single-engine, light airplane, built by Cessna of Wichita, Kansas. It has the option of adding two child seats, installed in the baggage area....
|
| utility
| 182Q
| 5
|
|-----
| Cessna 206
|
| utility
|
| 3
|
|-----
| Cessna 208
Cessna 208
The Cessna 208 Caravan is a single turboprop engine, fixed-gear short-haul regional airliner and utility aircraft built in the United States by Cessna. The airplane typically seats nine passengers, with a single person crew, although with a FAR Part 23 waiver, it can seat up to fourteen passengers...
|
| utility
|
| 1
|
|-----
| Cessna 210
Cessna 210
The Cessna 210 Centurion is a six-seat, high-performance, retractable-gear single-engine general aviation aircraft which was first flown in January 1957 and produced by Cessna until 1985.-Design and development:...
|
| utility transport
|
| 5
|
|-----
| Cessna Citation
Cessna Citation
The Cessna Citation is a marketing name used by Cessna for its line of business jets. Rather than one particular model of aircraft, the name applies to several "families" of turbofan-powered aircraft that have been produced over the years...
|
| VIP transport
| 550 Citation II
| 2
|
|-----
| Eurocopter Bo 105
|
| utility helicopter
| Bo 105C
Bo 105LSA-3
| 5
2
|
|-----
| Eurocopter EC 135
Eurocopter EC 135
The Eurocopter EC135 is a twin-engine civil helicopter produced by Eurocopter, widely used amongst police and ambulance services and for executive transport. It is capable of flight under instrument flight rules .-Development:...
|
| utility helicopter
| EC 135 T1
| 1
|
|-----
| MBB/Kawasaki BK 117
|
| utility helicopter
| BK117B-1
| 2
|
|-----
| Piper PA-31 Navajo
Piper PA-31 Navajo
The Piper PA-31 Navajo is a family of cabin-class, twin-engine aircraft designed and built by Piper Aircraft for the general aviation market, most using Lycoming engines. It was also licence-built in a number of Latin American countries. Targeted at small-scale cargo and feeder liner operations and...
|
| utility transport
| PA-31
PA-31T Cheyenne
| 3
1
Ranks of the Chilean Carabiniers
Enlisted personnel and Non-commissioned officersChilean and foreign NCOs enter the service through enrollment at the Carabiniers Formation School and receive further training as Corporals at the Carabiniers NCO Academy, both located in the Santiago Metropolitan Region
Santiago Metropolitan Region
Santiago Metropolitan Region or simply Metropolitan Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions. It is the country's only landlocked administrative region and contains the nation's capital, Santiago...
, and some of them have later training at the various service schools of the Carabiniers specializing in frontier defense, horsemanship and K-9 training and handling skills.
- Carabinero alumno (Student Carabinier)
- Carabinero(Carabinier)
- Cabo Segundo (Second Corporal)
- Cabo Primero (First Corporal)
- Sargento Segundo (Sergeant)
- Sargento Primero (First Sergeant)
- Suboficial (Sub-officer)
- Suboficial Mayor (Subofficer Major)
Commissioned officers
Officers of the Carabiners, native born or foreign officer having scholarships, start out as Officer Aspirants at the Carabinier Officers School "Pres. Gen. Carlos Ibanez del Campo" in Santiago, and after graduating become Sublieutenants either in Chile or in their home countries. Later training is provided by the Police Sciences Academy also in Santiago, and in the aforementioned specialty schools of the force.
- Aspirante a oficial (Officer Aspirant)
- Subteniente (Sublieutenant)
- Teniente (LieutenantLieutenantA lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
) - Capitan (CaptainCaptainCaptain or The Captain is derived from the Greek word katepánō which was a senior Byzantine military rank and office.It may refer to:...
) - Mayor (MajorMajorMajor is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
) - Teniente Coronel (Lieutenant ColonelLieutenant colonelLieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
) - Coronel (Colonel)
- General (General)
- General Inspector (Inspector General)
- General Director (Director General)