| Civil Guard Guardia Civil | |
|---|---|
 Emblem of the Civil Guard | |
| Abbreviation | GC |
| Motto | El honor es mi divisa Honour is my badge |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | May 13, 1844 |
| Employees | 85,426 total (2020) and 77,223 active (2020) |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction | Spain |
| General nature | |
| Specialist jurisdictions |
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| Operational structure | |
| Overseen by | Ministry of the Interior Ministry of Defence |
| Headquarters | Calle de Guzmán el Bueno, 110, 28003 Madrid, Spain |
| Elected officers responsible | |
| Agency executive | |
| Parent agency | Directorate-General of the Civil Guard |
| Notables | |
| Award | |
| Website | |
| www | |
TheCivil Guard (Spanish:Guardia Civil;[ˈɡwaɾðjaθiˈβil]) is one of the two national law enforcement agencies of Spain (the other being theNational Police). As a nationalgendarmerie, it is military in nature and is responsible for civilpolicing under the authority of both theMinistry of the Interior and theMinistry of Defence.[2][3] The role of the Ministry of Defence is limited except in times of war when the Ministry has exclusive authority.[2][4] The corps is colloquially known as thebenemérita (the meritorious or the reputables). In annual surveys, it generally ranks as the national institution most valued by Spaniards, closely followed by other law enforcement agencies and thearmed forces.[5]
It has both a regular national role and undertakes specific foreign peacekeeping missions and is part of theEuropean Gendarmerie Force. As a national gendarmerie force, the Civil Guard was modelled on the FrenchNational Gendarmerie and has many similarities.[2]
As part of its daily duties, the Civil Guard patrols and investigates crimes in rural areas, including highways and ports, whilst theNational Police deals with safety in urban situations. Most cities also have aMunicipal Police Force. The three forces are nationally co-ordinated by the Ministry of the Interior. The Civil Guard is usually stationed atcasas cuartel, which are both minor residentialgarrisons and fully-equippedpolice stations.
TheGuardia Civil was founded as a national police force in 1844 during the reign ofQueen Isabel II of Spain by the2nd Duke of Ahumada and 5th Marquess of Amarillas, an 11th generation descendant of Aztec emperorMoctezuma II. Previously, law enforcement had been the responsibility of the"Holy Brotherhood", an organization of municipal leagues. Corruption was pervasive in the Brotherhood, where officials were constantly subject to local political influence, and the system was largely ineffective outside the major towns and cities.[6] Criminals could often escape justice by simply moving from one district to another.[6] The firstGuardia police academy was established in the town ofValdemoro, south ofMadrid, in 1855. Graduates were given the Guardia's now famoustricorne orCavaliers hat as part of their duty dress uniform.[citation needed]
TheGuardia was initially charged with putting an end tobrigandage on the nation's highways, particularly inAndalusia, which had become notorious for numerous robberies and holdups of businessmen, peddlers, travelers, and even foreign tourists.[7][8][9] Banditry in this region was so endemic that theGuardia found it difficult to eradicate it completely. As late as 1884, one traveler of the day reported that it still existed in and around the city ofMálaga:[10]
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.[10]
TheGuardia Civil was also given the political task of restoring and maintaining land ownership and servitude among the peasantry of Spain by the King, who desired to stop the spread ofanti-monarchist movements inspired by theFrench Revolution. The end of theFirst Carlist War combined with the unequal distribution of land that resulted from prime ministerJuan Álvarez Mendizábal's firstDesamortización (1836–1837) had left the Spanish landscape scarred by the destruction of civil war and social unrest, 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 byNapoléon in his European campaigns, theGuardia Civil was transformed into a military 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.[citation needed]
Under the pre-1931 monarchy, relations betweenGitanos and the Civil Guard were particularly tense.[citation needed]
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During theSpanish Civil War, theGuardia Civil forcessplit almost evenly between those who remained loyal to the Republic, 53% of the members[11] (which changed their name toGuardia Nacional Republicana – "Republican National Guard")[12] and the rebel forces.[13] However, the highest authority of the corps, Inspector GeneralSebastián Pozas, remained loyal to the republican government.[14] Their contribution to the Republican war efforts were invaluable, but proved effective on both sides in urban combat.[citation needed]
The proportion ofGuardia Civil members that supported therebel faction at the time of the1936 coup was relatively high compared to other Spanish police corps such as theGuardias de Asalto and theCarabineros (Real Cuerpo de Carabineros de Costas y Fronteras), where when the Civil War began over 70% of their members stayed loyal to the Spanish Republic.[15]
Loyalist General of theGuardia CivilJosé Aranguren, commander of the 4th Organic Division and Military Governor ofValencia, was arrested by the victorious Francoist troops when they entered the city ofValencia at the end of March 1939. After being court-martialed, Aranguren was given the death penalty and was executed on 22 April in the same year.[15]
Locally recruited units of theGuardia Civil were employed in Spain's overseas territories. These included threetercia (regiments) in thePhilippines and two companies inPuerto Rico prior to 1898.[16] Over six thousand Civil Guards, both indigenous and Spanish, were serving inCuba in 1885 and smaller units were subsequently raised inIfni andSpanish Guinea.[17]
Following the Civil War, under thedictatorship ofGeneralFrancisco Franco (1939–1975), theGuardia Civil was reinforced with the members of theCarabineros, the "Royal Corps of Coast and Frontier Carabiniers", following the disbandment of the carabinier corps.[18]
Critics of theGuardia Civil have alleged numerous instances ofpolice brutality because of the organisation's association with Franco's regime. The fact that theGuardia 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.[citation needed]García Lorca's poems have contributed to theGuardia Civil's reputation as, at least at the time, a heavy-handed police force.
The involvement ofGuardia Civil figures in politics continued right up until the end of the twentieth century: on 23 February 1981, Lt. Col.Antonio Tejero Molina, a member of theGuardia Civil, participated with other military forces in the failed23-Fcoup d'état. Along with 200 members of theGuardia Civil, he briefly took hold of the lower house of theCortes before the coup collapsed following a nationally televised address byKing Juan Carlos, who denounced the coup.[19][citation needed]
TheGuardia Civil as a police force, has had additional tasks given to it in addition to its traditional role. Certain of these tasks are not delegated to the Civil Guard (as well as to the National Police) in certain Autonomous Communities, as some have their own autonomous police force, under the rule of their respective autonomous government. Forces like theMossos d'Esquadra or theErtzaintza carry out the duties of the Civil Guard there, such as highway patrol or law enforcement in rural areas.
It is the largest police force in Spain, in terms of area served. 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):[4]
_Mannequin_Challenge_UAR_(Unidad_de_Acci%25C3%25B3n_R%25C3%25A1pida)-_Guardia_Civil._Rapel.jpg)
TheGuardia Civil has been involved in operations aspeacekeepers inUnited Nations sponsored operations, including operations inBosnia and Herzegovina,Angola,Congo,Mozambique,Nicaragua,Haiti,East Timor andEl Salvador. They also served with the Spanish armed forces contingent in the war inIraq, mainly asmilitary police but also in intelligence gathering, where seven of its members were killed.[citation needed]
In theAfghan war effort the rapid reaction branch of theGuardia Civil; theGrupo de Acción Rápida (GAR) were deployed to the Kabul area in 2002 shortly afterthe invasion and served as the protective team for the High Representative of the European Union. They maintained their services until 2008. In that period, theAgrupación de Tráfico (Traffic Group),Jefatura Fiscal y de Fronteras (Customs and Revenue Service),Policía Judicial (Judicial Police), andSeguridad Ciudadana (Public Order and Prevention service) have also had their deployments to Afghanistan for the peacekeeping efforts.[20]
After 2009, the mission of the Civil Guards in Afghanistan shifted focus to training up local security forces in the country. In that period, the counter-terrorism branch of theGuardia Civil; theUnidad de Acción Rural (UAR) were deployed toAfghanistan to train theAfghan National Police[21] as part ofISAF's Police Advisor Team (PAT) formerly the Police Operative Mentoring and Liaison Team (POMLT)[20]
In addition toel instituto armado ("the armed institution"), theGuardia Civil is known asla benemérita ("the well-remembered"). They served in theSpanish colonies, includingCuba,Puerto Rico, thePhilippines,Spanish Guinea andSpanish Morocco.[citation needed]
TheGuardia Civil has a sister force inCosta Rica also called theGuardia Civil. The Costa Rican 'guardias' often train at the same academy as regular Spanish officers.[citation needed]
During theIraqi Civil War, the GAR have been deployed to Iraq to train and assist Iraqi federal police in the fight againstISIS militants.[22]
 | This sectionneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.(February 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
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The first hymn was composed between 1915 and 1916 by Asunción García Sierra (who wrote the lyrics) and Ildefonso Moreno Carrilllo (who composed the music) as a school hymn. In the 1920s, Lieutenant Colonel José Osuna Pineda was assigned to the center as Head of Studies and arranged the original text and melody. This hymn was that of the College of Young Guardsmen, adopted as the school's alma mater march since December 1922. Despite the absence of any legal provision, the hymn became official upon its use.[24]
The motto of the Civil Guard is "Honor is my badge".[25] It comes from article 1 of the "Cartilla del Guardia Civil", written by the Duke of Ahumada in 1845. The full text says: "Honor is the main badge of the Civil Guard; it must, therefore, be kept spotless. Once lost, it is never recovered".[26]
The Music Unit of the Civil Guard (Spanish:Unidad de Música de la Guardia Civil) is themilitary band of the Civil Guard and is one of multiple in the Armed Forces. It is officially part of the guard's General Directorate. Since its creation in 1844, it has had musical infantry and cavalry formations through various ranks. Only the Civil Guard and the Royal Guard, as well as many Army cavalry and artillery units retainedmounted bands with cavalry trumpeters at the time while the infantry of both the Army and Civil Guard had bugle bands then (formerly corps of drums composed of drummers and fifers). It was not until 19 November 1859 when a unified band appeared for the first time. Other bands would be formed throughout the years in bothMadrid andValdemoro. In 1940, the first squads of Civil Guard musicians were officially approved and applications to join the official Civil Guard band were released in October 1941. In 1949, and as a consequence of the merger of the Carabineros Corps and the Civil Guard, their respective Music bands were also unified.[27] These templates remained that way for over two decades when they were increased to adapt them to those of Army Music, forming two bands: one with 75 musicians attached to the General Directorate of the Corps and with 50 instrumentalists belonging to the Jefatura de Enseñanza. More recently, according to the resolutions of 28 June 2004 and 14 February 2006, the two music units were unified, constituting the current band which reports to the General Subdirectorate of Personnel and is administratively attached to the General Affairs Service.[28]
A small mounted band is in service with the Security Group's Civil Guard Cavalry Squadron, with its barracks and stables in Valdemoro, administratively under the supervision of the Young Guardsmen's College. Unlike other mounted bands, they only use small fanfare trumpets (clarines de caballeria andtrompetas bajas). They continue the traditions of the Civil Guard cavalry since its foundation. In 2022 the Mounted Band of the Civil Guard Cavalry Squadron finally received its own kettledrummer, bringing it in line with the Royal Guard's Mounted Band of the Royal Escort Squadron.
The element of uniformity that characterizes the Civil Guard is thetricorn, which is the official service'sheadgear in full and service dress uniforms.Other pieces of headgear such aspeaked caps,berets orgarrison caps are currently used in addition to this one. Throughout its history, other headwear of various types, colors and shapes have been used, including the TeresianaKepi. Officially, it is known by the Civil Guard as the "black hat".
On 8 February 1913,Our Lady of the Pillar was declared by royal decree as the guard's exaltedpatron saint.[29]
A wide range of clothing is currently worn according to the nature of the duties being performed (see schematic diagrams below).
The traditional headdress of theGuardia is thetricornio hat, originally a tricorne. Its use now is reserved for ceremonial parades and duty outside public buildings, together with the army-style tunic and trousers previously worn. For other occasions a cap or a beret is worn.[30]
The historic blue, white and red uniform of theGuardia is now retained only for the Civil Guard Company of the Royal Guard and thegastadores (parade markers) of the Civil Guard Academy.[31]
A modernised new style of working uniform was announced for the Civil Guard in 2011, for general adoption during 2012. This comprises a green baseball cap, polo shirt and cargo pants. Thekepi-like "gorra teresiana" was abolished.[citation needed]
| Uniforms of the Civil Guard | |||||||
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Patrol | Patrol Road waistcoat | Traffic Group Motorcyclist ATGC | Sailor Coverralls | Sailor Summer | USECIC | GAR | GRS Winter |
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
GREIM Rescue | GEAS Diver | Camouflage Military Police | Service Dress Winter | Service Dress Summer | Full Dress | Evening Dress | Ceremonial Dress Historic |
| Uniforms of the Civil Guard 1989–2012 | |||
 |  |  |  |
Patrol Winter | Patrol Summer | Patrol Road waistcoat | Traffic Group |
| NATO code | OF-10 | OF-9 | OF-8 | OF-7 | OF-6 | OF-5 | OF-4 | OF-3 | OF-2 | OF-1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Spanish Civil Guard[32] |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Teniente general | General de división | General de brigada | Coronel | Teniente coronel | Comandante | Capitán | Teniente | Alférez | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NATO code | OR-9 | OR-8 | OR-7 | OR-6 | OR-5 | OR-4 | OR-3 | OR-2 | OR-1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spanish Civil Guard[32] |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Suboficial mayor | Subteniente | Brigada | Sargento primero | Sargento | Cabo mayor | Cabo primero | Cabo | Guardia Civil de Primera[a] | Guardia Civil | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Corps has been organised into different specialties divided into operational and support specialties:[33]
UAR (Unidad de Acción Rural) – The rural tactical service branch of theGuardia Civil
Seguridad Ciudadana – Public Order and Prevention service, which makes up the bulk of theGuardia Civil
GEAS (Grupo Especial de Actividades Subacuáticas) – Divers
GTRIM Grupos de Rescate e Intervención en Montaña
GRS (Grupo de Reserva y Seguridad) – Security Group, involved in Riot control and includes personnel of the Civil Guard Cavalry Squadron
SEMAR (Servicio Marítimo) –Guardia Civils 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
GREIM (Grupos de Rescate e Intervención en Montaña / 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 (EOD)
Agrupación de Tráfico – Traffic Group, TheGuardia CivilHighway Patrol unit, tasked with the control of highways and trunk roads
GAR (Grupo de Acción Rápida) – Rapid Reaction Group. Special antiterrorist unit, operating within all of Spain and participating in some foreign missions
UCO (Unidad Central Operativa) – Central Operative Unit, a branch of thePolicía Judicial focused on complex or nationwide investigations
UEI (Unidad Especial de Intervención) – Special Intervention Unit | This sectionneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.(February 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Weapon | Origin | Type |
|---|---|---|
| EMTAN Ramon |  Israel | Standard issue[34][35] |
| Heckler & Koch USP Compact |  Germany | Standard issue[36] |
| Beretta 92 |  Italy | Being phased out for H&K USP Compact and EMTAN Ramon |
| Heckler & Koch MP5 | Germany | Standard issue submachine gun |
| EMTAN MZ-4P | Israel | In5.56×45mm version[37] |
| Heckler & Koch G36 | Germany | In use |
| Heckler & Koch HK33 | ||
| SIG Sauer MCX Rattler |  USA | 15 units chambered in300 AAC Blackout purchased in 2023 |
| CETME rifle | Spain | |
| SIG SG 553 |  Switzerland |
The Guardia Civil has some training and supervision responsibilities for essentially private security services with similar names:[38]
TheGuàrdia Urbana de Barcelona is not part of theGuardia Civil.
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