Royal Canadian Mounted Police

Mountie at the state funeral for Lincoln Alexander

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), (French: Gendarmerie royale du Canada (GRC)), is the national police force of Canada. The force is also called the Mounties.

Unique organization

RCMP is unique in the world because it is a national, federal, provincial and municipal policing organization:

• RCMP is the federal police for all of Canada Greater Area.
• RCMP serves as the police for the three Canadian territories
• RCMP serves in all ten Canadian provinces, although its role is limited in Ontario and Quebec as both provinces have their own provincial police services.
• RCMP provides police services for more than 190 municipalities
• RCMP is the police for 184 native communities -- the First Nations, Inuit and Métis.
• RCMP ensures security at three international airports.

The RCMP/GRC wording is protected under the Canadian Trade-marks Act.

History

Northwest Mounted Policeman -- Canadian Illustrated News Archived 2007-03-13 at the Wayback Machine, 13 February, 1875.

The Northwest Mounted Police (NWMP), was founded 1873. The Mounties were created to establish authority and to make accommodations with the native population in the west before settlers began to arrive. The smaller Dominion Police was founded in 1868 to protect federal government buildings.

The Mounties were given the right to use the term Royal by King Edward VII in 1904. Their name was changed to the Royal Northwest Mounted Police (RNWMP).

The modern RCMP was created when the RNWMP merged with the smaller Dominion Police in 1920.

The word mounted suggests that the police ride horses. Before 1920, horses were their main method of travel. However, today the RCMP do not ride horses except at special events.

Uniform

RCMP with sword

The RCMP are famous for their uniform. The "Review Order" (also "Red Serge") uniform is worn mostly at special events, such as parades. The uniform consists of a red tunic with a large brown belt,(formally known as a “Sam Browne”), a light brown hat, dark blue breeches (trousers) with a yellow stripe and riding boots.

On an ordinary day at work, RCMP officers instead wear a grey shirt, dark blue trousers, ankle boots and a peaked cap (the type worn by most police officers elsewhere). In the winter they may wear a thicker coat, heavier boots and a fur cap.

Ranks

The ranks of the RCMP are, from highest to lowest:

• Commissioner
• Deputy Commissioner
• Assistant Commissioner
• Chief Superintendent
• Superintendent
• Inspector
• Corps Sergeant Major*
• Sergeant Major
• Staff Sergeant Major
• Staff Sergeant
• Sergeant
• Corporal
• Constable
• Cadet

Ranks marked with an asterisk (*) are only found in a few parts of the RCMP and are usually not part of the chain of command. For most staff sergeants, their superior is an inspector and not a staff sergeant major. While "Cadet" is a term used for RCMP trainees at depot it is not an official rank.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police Media

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  Several RCMP members involved in the hunt for Albert Johnson, 1931.

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  A member of the emergency response team in training in 2010. The tactical unit was formed in 1977.

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  RCMP security detail at the gates of 24 Sussex Drive, 2008. The Personal Protection Group was created in 1995.

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  Memorial for the Mayerthorpe Tragedy in Whitecourt.

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  An RCMP corporal and U.S. Coast Guard member conduct a boarding as a part of Shiprider law enforcement operations. RCMP-U.S. Coast Guard Shiprider operations began in 2006.

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  Local businesses express their gratitude for the RCMP after the suspect for the Moncton shooting was apprehended.

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  RCMP members leading the funeral procession during the state funeral for Elizabeth II in London, 2022.

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  A Mountie standing with an Inuit group in Kinngait to celebrate the establishment of Nunavut, 1999

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  A Haudenosaunee flag and a banner that reads RCMP off Wetsuweten land on a petroleum gas tank car during a solidarity protest against the Coastal GasLink Pipeline in Vaughan, 2020.

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  A female Mountie during a Remembrance Day ceremony, 2017.

Sources

• Wolkomir, Richard. "Mounties forever, but these days rarely on horseback," Smithsonian. February 1989, pp. 78-89.

Other websites

• List of Civilian organizations with prefix "Royal" – Heritage Canada. Archived 2014-12-07 at the Wayback Machine
• History and Uniform of the North-West Mounted Police, 1873 to 1904
• The official website of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
• Royal Canadian Mounted Police Gazette Archived 2006-12-07 at the Wayback Machine
• The Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP
• RCMP Watch
• RCMP Wanted list Archived 2010-02-17 at the Wayback Machine
• RCMP Heritage Centre
• "Courage in Red". YouTube.
• RCMP North-West Mounted Police in Literature and History Archived 2007-10-22 at the Wayback Machine
• RCMP Honour Roll Archived 2010-08-31 at the Wayback Machine