Civil Guard (Spain)
Encyclopedia
The Civil Guard is the Spanish
gendarmerie
. It has foreign peace-keeping missions and maintains military status and is the equivalent of a federal military-status police force. As a police force, the Guardia Civil is comparable today to the French Gendarmerie, the Italian Carabinieri
and the Dutch Royal Marechaussee as it is part of the European Gendarmerie. The Guardia Civil uses as its leading emblem the words "El honor es mi divisa" (Honour is my emblem), a motto emphasizing the unit's esprit de corps. Guardia precincts are called casas cuartel (garrison posts).
Navarrese aristocrat Francisco Javier Girón y Ezpeleta, 2nd Duque de Ahumada and 5th Marqués de las Amarillas, an 11th generation descendant of Aztec
Emperor Moctezuma II
. Formerly, law enforcement had been the responsiblity of the Holy Hermandad
, an organization of municipal leagues. Corruption was pervasive in the Hermandad, where officials were constantly subject to local political influence, and the system was largely ineffective outside the major towns and cities. Criminals could often escape justice by simply moving from one district to another. The first Guardia police academy was established in the town of Valdemoro
, south of Madrid
, in 1855. Graduates were given the Guardia's now famous tricorne or Cavaliers hat as part of their duty dress uniform.
The Guardia was initially charged with putting an end to brigandage
on the nation's highways, particularly in the province of Andalucia, which had become notorious for numerous robberies and holdups of businessmen, peddlers, travelers, and even foreign tourists. Banditry in this region was so endemic that the Guardia found it difficult to completely eradicate. As late as 1884, one traveler of the day reported that it still existed in and around the city of Málaga
:
The Guardia was also used to interdict smuggling efforts and repress revolutionary elements in the traditionally independent provinces of the Basque country and Catalonia
, a duty which earned it the undying enmity of both Catalan and Basque separatists.
The Guardia Civil was also given the political task of restoring and maintain land ownership and servitude among the peasantry of Spain by the king, who desired to stop the spread of anti-monarchist movements inspired by the French revolution. The end of the First Carlist War
had left the Spanish landscape scarred by the destruction of civil war, and the government was forced to take drastic action to suppress spontaneous revolts by a restive peasantry. Based on the model of light infantry used by Napoleon in his European campaigns, the Guardia Civil was transformed into a paramilitary force of high mobility that could be deployed irrespective of inhospitable conditions, able to patrol and pacify large areas of the countryside. Its members, called 'guardias', maintain to this day a basic patrol unit formed by two agents, usually called a "pareja" (a pair), in which one of the 'guardias' will initiate the intervention while the second 'guardia' serves as a backup to the first.
Today, they are primarily responsible for policing and/or safety regarding the following (but not limited to) areas and/or safety related issues (given in no special order):
s in United Nations
sponsored operations, including operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina
, Angola
, Congo
, Mozambique
, Nicaragua
, Haiti
, East Timor
and El Salvador
. They also served with the Spanish contingent in the war in Iraq
, mainly in intelligence gathering, where seven of its members were killed . In addition to el instituto armado ("the armed institution"), the Guardia Civil is known as la benemérita ("the well-remembered"). They served in the Spanish colonies, including Cuba
, Puerto Rico
, the Philippines
, Spanish Guinea
and Spanish Morocco
.
The Guardia Civil has a sister force in Costa Rica
also called the Guardia Civil
. The Costa Rican 'guardias' often train at the same academy as regular Spanish officers.
Their traditional hat is the tricornio, originally a tricorne
. Its use now is reserved to parades or ceremonies, being now substituted by a cap, a beret or the characteristic "gorra teresiana".
Members of the Guardia Civil often live in garrisons (casa-cuartel) with their families.
Since the Guardia Civil must accommodate the families of its "guardias", it was the first police force in Europe that accommodated a same-sex partner in a military installation.
The symbol of the Guardia Civil consists of the Royal Crown of Spain
, a sword and a fasces
. The different units have variations of this symbol.
The Corps has been organised into different specialties divided into operational and support specialties:
was charged with spying for a foreign power (allegedly Russia).
regularly became involved in politics. The Guardia Civil was no exception. For this reason, the 'guardias" were seen historically as a reactionary force. On 3 January 1874, General
Manuel Pavía y Rodríguez de Alburquerque
stormed congress and ended the Spanish First Republic with a company of thirty guardias civiles.
The first three decades of the 20th Century in Spain was a time of great political turmoil. During this period the Guardia Civil served frequently in the restoration of order remaining mostly loyal to established regimes. Thus, it supported the dictatorship of General
Miguel Primo de Rivera
(1923–1930), but it also supported the Spanish Second Republic (1931–1939). During the Spanish Civil War
, the Guardia Civil forces split almost evenly between those who remained loyal to the Republic, 53% of the members (which changed their name to Guardia Nacional Republicana - "National Republic Guard") and the rebel forces. After the war, under the authoritarian government of General
Francisco Franco
(1939–1975), the Guardia Civil was reinforced with the members of the Real Cuerpo de Carabineros de Costas y Fronteras - "Royal Corps of Coast and Frontier Carabiniers".
The involvement of Guardia Civil figures in politics continued well to the end of the twentieth century: on 23 February 1981, Lt. Col. Antonio Tejero Molina
, a member of the Guardia Civil, participated with other military forces in a failed coup d'etat
. Along with 200 members of the Guardia Civil Lt. Col. Tejero took hold of the lower house of the Cortes
.
of the Andalusian
population, a campaign in which numbers of otherwise innocent members of the public found themselves accused them of being members of the secret society The Black Hand
. For this reason the 'guardias' of that era were portrayed negatively in the literature and popular history, particularly by Spanish expatriate artists and writers.
Critics of the Guardia Civil, particularly Republican sympathizers have alleged numerous instances of police brutality because of the organization's association with Franco's regime. The fact that the Guardia largely operated in mostly rural and isolated parts of the country increased the risk of police violations of individual civil rights through lack of supervision and accountability. Garcia Lorca's poems have contributed to the Guardia Civil's reputation as a heavy-handed police force.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
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...
. It has foreign peace-keeping missions and maintains military status and is the equivalent of a federal military-status police force. As a police force, the Guardia Civil is comparable today to the French Gendarmerie, 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:...
and the Dutch Royal Marechaussee as it is part of the European Gendarmerie. The Guardia Civil uses as its leading emblem the words "El honor es mi divisa" (Honour is my emblem), a motto emphasizing the unit's esprit de corps. Guardia precincts are called casas cuartel (garrison posts).
History
The Guardia Civil was founded as a national police force in 1844 during the reign of Queen Isabel II of Spain by the BasqueBasque people
The Basques as an ethnic group, primarily inhabit an area traditionally known as the Basque Country , a region that is located around the western end of the Pyrenees on the coast of the Bay of Biscay and straddles parts of north-central Spain and south-western France.The Basques are known in the...
Navarrese aristocrat Francisco Javier Girón y Ezpeleta, 2nd Duque de Ahumada and 5th Marqués de las Amarillas, an 11th generation descendant of Aztec
Aztec
The Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the...
Emperor Moctezuma II
Moctezuma II
Moctezuma , also known by a number of variant spellings including Montezuma, Moteuczoma, Motecuhzoma and referred to in full by early Nahuatl texts as Motecuhzoma Xocoyotzin, was the ninth tlatoani or ruler of Tenochtitlan, reigning from 1502 to 1520...
. Formerly, law enforcement had been the responsiblity of the Holy Hermandad
Hermandad
Hermandad, literally "brotherhood" in Spanish, was a peacekeeping association of armed individuals, which became characteristic of municipal life in medieval Spain, especially in Castile....
, an organization of municipal leagues. Corruption was pervasive in the Hermandad, where officials were constantly subject to local political influence, and the system was largely ineffective outside the major towns and cities. Criminals could often escape justice by simply moving from one district to another. The first Guardia police academy was established in the town of Valdemoro
Valdemoro
Valdemoro is a municipal district, located in the Southern zone of the autonomous community of Madrid, Spain. Located 27 kilometers from the capital, Valdemoro is officially part of the comarca of La Sagra, though it is generally also included in the Madrid metropolitan area.The municipality has...
, south of Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, in 1855. Graduates were given the Guardia's now famous tricorne or Cavaliers hat as part of their duty dress uniform.
The Guardia was initially charged with putting an end to brigandage
Brigandage
Brigandage refers to the life and practice of brigands: highway robbery and plunder, and a brigand is a person who usually lives in a gang and lives by pillage and robbery....
on the nation's highways, particularly in the province of Andalucia, which had become notorious for numerous robberies and holdups of businessmen, peddlers, travelers, and even foreign tourists. Banditry in this region was so endemic that the Guardia found it difficult to completely eradicate. As late as 1884, one traveler of the day reported that it still existed in and around the city of Málaga
Málaga
Málaga is a city and a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, Spain. With a population of 568,507 in 2010, it is the second most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth largest in Spain. This is the southernmost large city in Europe...
:
The favorite and original method of the Malagueño highwayman is to creep up quietly behind his victim, muffle his head and arms in a cloak, and then relieve him of his valuables. Should he resist, he is instantly disembowelled with the dexterous thrust of a knife...[The Spanish highwayman] wears a profusion of amulets and charms...all of undoubted efficacy against the dagger of an adversary or the rifle of a Civil Guard.
The Guardia was also used to interdict smuggling efforts and repress revolutionary elements in the traditionally independent provinces of the Basque country and Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, a duty which earned it the undying enmity of both Catalan and Basque separatists.
The Guardia Civil was also given the political task of restoring and maintain land ownership and servitude among the peasantry of Spain by the king, who desired to stop the spread of anti-monarchist movements inspired by the French revolution. The end of the First Carlist War
First Carlist War
The First Carlist War was a civil war in Spain from 1833-1839.-Historical background:At the beginning of the 18th century, Philip V, the first Bourbon king of Spain, promulgated the Salic Law, which declared illegal the inheritance of the Spanish crown by women...
had left the Spanish landscape scarred by the destruction of civil war, and the government was forced to take drastic action to suppress spontaneous revolts by a restive peasantry. Based on the model of light infantry used by Napoleon in his European campaigns, the Guardia Civil was transformed into a paramilitary force of high mobility that could be deployed irrespective of inhospitable conditions, able to patrol and pacify large areas of the countryside. Its members, called 'guardias', maintain to this day a basic patrol unit formed by two agents, usually called a "pareja" (a pair), in which one of the 'guardias' will initiate the intervention while the second 'guardia' serves as a backup to the first.
The modern force
Today the Guardia Civil is a police force subject to the checks and supervision expected in a democratic society. Moreover, the guardias' proven effectiveness throughout history, whether in controlling banditry or in addressing the subsequent challenges and tasks given them, meant that additional tasks have been added regularly to their job description.Today, they are primarily responsible for policing and/or safety regarding the following (but not limited to) areas and/or safety related issues (given in no special order):
- highway patrolHighway patrolA highway patrol is either a police unit created primarily for the purpose of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on roads and highways, or a detail within an existing local or regional police agency that is primarily concerned with such duties.Duties of highway patrols or traffic...
, - protection of the Royal Family and the King of Spain,
- military police
- counter drugs operations,
- anti-smuggling operations,
- customsCustomsCustoms is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting and safeguarding customs duties and for controlling the flow of goods including animals, transports, personal effects and hazardous items in and out of a country...
and ports of entry control, - safety of prisons and safeguarding of prisoners,
- weapons licenses and arms control,
- security of border areas,
- bomb squad and explosives,
- security in rural areas
- anti-terrorism;
- coast guardCoast guardA coast guard or coastguard is a national organization responsible for various services at sea. However the term implies widely different responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to being a volunteer organization tasked with...
, - police deployments abroad (embassies);
- intelligence and counter-intelligence gathering,
- cyber- and internet crime;
- hunting permits and
- environmental law enforcement.
Peacekeepers
The Guardia Civil has been involved in operations as peacekeeperPeacekeeper
Peacekeeper may refer to:* A person involved in peacekeeping* Peace officer* Conservator of the peaceIn vehicles:* The LGM-118 Peacekeeper, a land-based nuclear ICBM...
s in United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
sponsored operations, including operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, Angola
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
, Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
, Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
, Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
, East Timor
East Timor
The Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, commonly known as East Timor , is a state in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the nearby islands of Atauro and Jaco, and Oecusse, an exclave on the northwestern side of the island, within Indonesian West Timor...
and El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
. They also served with the Spanish contingent in the war in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, mainly in intelligence gathering, where seven of its members were killed . In addition to el instituto armado ("the armed institution"), the Guardia Civil is known as la benemérita ("the well-remembered"). They served in the Spanish colonies, including Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
, the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, Spanish Guinea
Spanish Guinea
Spanish Guinea was an African colony of Spain that became the independent nation of Equatorial Guinea.-History:The Portuguese explorer, Fernão do Pó, seeking a route to India, is credited with having discovered the island of Bioko in 1472. He called it Formosa , but it quickly took on the name of...
and Spanish Morocco
Spanish Morocco
The Spanish protectorate of Morocco was the area of Morocco under colonial rule by the Spanish Empire, established by the Treaty of Fez in 1912 and ending in 1956, when both France and Spain recognized Moroccan independence.-Territorial borders:...
.
The Guardia Civil has a sister force in Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
also called the Guardia Civil
Military of Costa Rica
On December 1, 1948, President José Figueres Ferrer of Costa Rica abolished the military of Costa Rica after victory in the civil war in that year....
. The Costa Rican 'guardias' often train at the same academy as regular Spanish officers.
Characteristics
They typically patrol in pairs.Their traditional hat is the tricornio, originally a tricorne
Tricorne
The tricorne or tricorn is a style of hat that was popular during the 18th century, falling out of style by 1800. At the peak of its popularity, the tricorne was worn as civilian dress and as part of military and naval uniforms...
. Its use now is reserved to parades or ceremonies, being now substituted by a cap, a beret or the characteristic "gorra teresiana".
Members of the Guardia Civil often live in garrisons (casa-cuartel) with their families.
Since the Guardia Civil must accommodate the families of its "guardias", it was the first police force in Europe that accommodated a same-sex partner in a military installation.
The symbol of the Guardia Civil consists of the Royal Crown of Spain
Coronation crown
A coronation crown is a crown used by a monarch when being crowned. In some monarchies, monarchs did not wear the one crown but had a number of crowns for different occasions; a coronation crown for the moment of coronation, and a state crown for general usage in state ceremonial...
, a sword and a fasces
Fasces
Fasces are a bundle of wooden sticks with an axe blade emerging from the center, which is an image that traditionally symbolizes summary power and jurisdiction, and/or "strength through unity"...
. The different units have variations of this symbol.
Ranks and insignia
| NATO Code | OF-8 | OF-7 | OF-6 | OF-5 | OF-4 | OF-3 | OF-2 | OF-1 | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula... |
|||||||||||||||||||
| Teniente General | General de División | General de Brigada | Coronel | Teniente Coronel | Comandante | Capitán | Teniente | Alférez | |||||||||||
| US equivalent | Lieutenant General Lieutenant General Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a Captain General.... |
Major General Major General Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general... |
Brigadier General Brigadier General Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000... |
Colonel Colonel Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures... |
Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel Lieutenant 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... |
Major Major Major 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. ... |
Captain | First Lieutenant First Lieutenant First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank... |
Second Lieutenant Second Lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal... |
||||||||||
| NATO Code | OR-9 | OR-8 | OR-7 | OR-6 | OR-5 | OR-4 | OR-3 | OR-2 | OR-1 | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula... |
||||||||||||||||||||
| Suboficial Mayor | Subteniente | Brigada | Sargento Primero | Sargento | Cabo Mayor | Cabo Primero | Cabo | Guardia Civil de Primera | Guardia Civil | |||||||||||
| US equivalent | Sergeant Major Sergeant Major Sergeants major is a senior non-commissioned rank or appointment in many militaries around the world. In Commonwealth countries, Sergeants Major are usually appointments held by senior non-commissioned officers or warrant officers... |
Master Gunnery Sergeant Master Gunnery Sergeant Master Gunnery Sergeant is the ninth and highest enlisted rank in the United States Marine Corps... |
First Sergeant First Sergeant First sergeant is the name of a military rank used in many countries, typically a senior non-commissioned officer.-Singapore:First Sergeant is a Specialist in the Singapore Armed Forces. First Sergeants are the most senior of the junior Specialists, ranking above Second Sergeants, and below Staff... |
Gunnery Sergeant Gunnery Sergeant Gunnery Sergeant is the seventh enlisted rank in the United States Marine Corps, just above Staff Sergeant and below Master Sergeant and First Sergeant, and is a staff non-commissioned officer... |
Staff Sergeant Staff Sergeant Staff sergeant is a rank of non-commissioned officer used in several countries.The origin of the name is that they were part of the staff of a British army regiment and paid at that level rather than as a member of a battalion or company.-Australia:... |
Sergeant Sergeant Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent.... |
Corporal Corporal Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to NATO Rank Code OR-4.... |
Lance Corporal Lance Corporal Lance corporal is a military rank, used by many armed forces worldwide, and also by some police forces and other uniformed organizations. It is below the rank of corporal, and is typically the lowest non-commissioned officer, usually equivalent to the NATO Rank Grade OR-3.- Etymology :The presumed... |
Private First Class Private First Class Private First Class is a military rank held by junior enlisted persons.- Singapore :The rank of Private First Class in the Singapore Armed Forces lies between the ranks of Private and Lance-Corporal . It is usually held by conscript soldiers midway through their national service term... |
Private Private (rank) A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career... |
||||||||||
The Corps has been organised into different specialties divided into operational and support specialties:
- Seguridad Ciudadana - Public Order and Prevention service, which makes up the bulk of the Guardia Civil.
- GEAS (Grupo Especial de Actividades Subacuáticas) - Divers.
- GRS(Grupo de Reserva y Seguridad) - Riot control
- SEMAR (Servicio Marítimo) - Guardia Civil's Naval Service, tasked with seashore surveillance and fisheries inspections.
- SEPRONA (Servicio de Protección de la Naturaleza) - Nature Protection Service, for environmental protection.
- SAER (Servicio Aéreo) - Guardia Civil Air Service.
- Servicio Cinológico - K-9 Unit, for Drugs and explosives detection and people finding.
- Servicio de Montaña - Mountain and Speleology Rescue.
- Jefatura Fiscal y de Fronteras - Customs and Revenue Service
- SIGC (Servicio de Informacion de la Guardia Civil) - Intelligence Service.
- TEDAX (Técnicos Especialistas en Desactivación de Artefactos Explosivos) - lit, Explosive Artifacts Defuser Specialised Technicians (EODEODEOD may refer to:* Explosive Ordnance Disposal, the disposal of bombs* End Of Day, a financial markets term* Evolve Or Die, A Political Party, started in Montana, with the beliefs that humanity must move forward or die out...
) - Agrupación de Tráfico - Traffic Group , The Guardia Civil's Highway PatrolHighway patrolA highway patrol is either a police unit created primarily for the purpose of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on roads and highways, or a detail within an existing local or regional police agency that is primarily concerned with such duties.Duties of highway patrols or traffic...
, tasked with the control of highways and trunk roads. - GAR (Grupo de Acción Rápida) - Rapid Reaction Group. Special antiterrorist unit, operating within Basque Country provinces.
- UCO (Unidad Central Operativa) - Central Operative Unit, a branch of the Policía Judicial focused on complex or nation-wide investigations.
- UEIUnidad Especial de IntervenciónThe Unidad Especial de Intervención is the emergency response unit of the Spanish Guardia Civil. Its motto is Celeritas et Subtilitas Patrio.The unit was created on February 3, 1982...
(Unidad Especial de Intervención) - Special Intervention Unit.
Requirements
- Spanish citizenship
- Good standard or native Spanish languageSpanish languageSpanish , 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...
ability - Between eighteen and thirty-one years old.
- More than 1.65 metres (65 in) tall (men) and 1.55 metres (61 in) (women)
- Having obtained the Compulsory Secondary Education (ESO) degree
- No record of acute illness and general good health.
- Be able to swim
Spying
On 23 July 2007, Roberto Flórez García, a retired guardia civil ascribed to Centro Nacional de InteligenciaCentro Nacional de Inteligencia
The National Intelligence Center is the Spanish official intelligence agency. Its headquarters are located in the A-6 motorway near Madrid. The CNI is the successor of the Centro Superior de Información de la Defensa, Higher Centre for Defense Intelligence. Its main target areas are North Africa...
was charged with spying for a foreign power (allegedly Russia).
Political involvement
Throughout the nineteenth century the Spanish armySpanish Army
The Spanish Army is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest active armies - dating back to the 15th century.-Introduction:...
regularly became involved in politics. The Guardia Civil was no exception. For this reason, the 'guardias" were seen historically as a reactionary force. On 3 January 1874, General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Manuel Pavía y Rodríguez de Alburquerque
Manuel Pavía y Rodríguez de Alburquerque
Manuel Pavia y Rodriguez de Alburquerque was a Spanish general, born in Cadiz. He was the son of Admiral Pavia, a naval officer of some note in the early part of the 19th century....
stormed congress and ended the Spanish First Republic with a company of thirty guardias civiles.
The first three decades of the 20th Century in Spain was a time of great political turmoil. During this period the Guardia Civil served frequently in the restoration of order remaining mostly loyal to established regimes. Thus, it supported the dictatorship of General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Miguel Primo de Rivera
Miguel Primo de Rivera
Miguel Primo de Rivera y Orbaneja, 2nd Marquis of Estella, 22nd Count of Sobremonte, Knight of Calatrava was a Spanish dictator, aristocrat, and a military official who was appointed Prime Minister by the King and who for seven years was a dictator, ending the turno system of alternating...
(1923–1930), but it also supported the Spanish Second Republic (1931–1939). During the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, the Guardia Civil forces split almost evenly between those who remained loyal to the Republic, 53% of the members (which changed their name to Guardia Nacional Republicana - "National Republic Guard") and the rebel forces. After the war, under the authoritarian government of General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
(1939–1975), the Guardia Civil was reinforced with the members of the Real Cuerpo de Carabineros de Costas y Fronteras - "Royal Corps of Coast and Frontier Carabiniers".
The involvement of Guardia Civil figures in politics continued well to the end of the twentieth century: on 23 February 1981, Lt. Col. Antonio Tejero Molina
Antonio Tejero
Antonio Tejero Molina is a Spanish former Lieutenant Colonel of the Guardia Civil, and the most visible figure in the attempted coup d'état – also known as the 'Tejerazo' – against the Spanish democracy on 23 February 1981....
, a member of the Guardia Civil, participated with other military forces in a failed coup d'etat
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
. Along with 200 members of the Guardia Civil Lt. Col. Tejero took hold of the lower house of the Cortes
Cortes Generales
The Cortes Generales is the legislature of Spain. It is a bicameral parliament, composed of the Congress of Deputies and the Senate . The Cortes has power to enact any law and to amend the constitution...
.
Police brutality
At the end of the nineteenth century, the Guardia Civil conducted a campaign against criminal and anarchist elementsAnarchism in Spain
Anarchism has historically gained more support and influence in Spain than anywhere else, especially before Francisco Franco's victory in the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939....
of the Andalusian
Andalusian people
The Andalusians are the people of the southern region in Spain approximated by what is now called Andalusia. They are generally not considered an ethnically distinct people because they lack two of the most important markers of distinctiveness: their own language and an awareness of a presumed...
population, a campaign in which numbers of otherwise innocent members of the public found themselves accused them of being members of the secret society The Black Hand
La Mano Negra
La Mano Negra was a supposed secret and violent Anarchist organization that was founded in Andalucia, Spain at the end of the 19th century....
. For this reason the 'guardias' of that era were portrayed negatively in the literature and popular history, particularly by Spanish expatriate artists and writers.
Critics of the Guardia Civil, particularly Republican sympathizers have alleged numerous instances of police brutality because of the organization's association with Franco's regime. The fact that the Guardia largely operated in mostly rural and isolated parts of the country increased the risk of police violations of individual civil rights through lack of supervision and accountability. Garcia Lorca's poems have contributed to the Guardia Civil's reputation as a heavy-handed police force.
See also
- Civil GuardCivil GuardThe Civil Guard , often abbreviated in Hebrew to Mash'az is a volunteer organization of Israeli citizens which assists in daily police work. It is a subdivision of the Israel Police.-Organization:...
- Guardia de AsaltoGuardia de AsaltoThe Guardia de Asalto , usually shortened to Los Asaltos or just Asaltos, were the blue-uniformed urban police force of Spain during the Spanish Second Republic. It was the urban analogue to the green-uniformed Guardia Civil which patrolled the countryside. The Assault Guards were special police...
- Policía Nacional
- Republican National Guard (Portugal)
External links
- Official web page
- Spanish police forces forum The most complete forum about different Spanish police forces.
- Seproneros members not Official web page