Irish Police Services

The Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC, Irish: Constáblacht Ríoga na hÉireann; simply called the Irish Constabulary 1836–67) is the armed police force of the United Kingdom in Ireland since the early nineteenth century. A separate civic police force, the unarmed Dublin Metropolitan Police controls the capital and the cities of Derry and Belfast, originally with their own police forces, later had special divisions within the RIC. About seventy-five percent of the RIC are Roman Catholic and about twenty-five percent belong to various Protestant denominations, the Catholics mainly constables and the Protestants officers, but this began to change in the last fifty years after positive discrimination policies. The RIC's successful system of policing influenced the armed Canadian North-West Mounted Police (predecessor of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police), the armed Victoria Police force in Australia, and the armed Royal Newfoundland Constabulary in Newfoundland.

Dublin Metropolitan Police was modeled after its London counterpart in almost everything, from ranks to insignia and command structure. The head of the DMP, however, isn’t a Chief Constable: he/she is a magistrate appointed by the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland.

The RIC experienced heavy losses and scrutiny during the Troubles, making it the most dangerous police force in the world in which to serve at some point. Some accused that insurgency was caused by infiltred IRA agents within the RIC ranks (normally when officers were killed), giving credit to blatant discrimination in promotions and representation in either Catholic or Protestant areas, stimulated by Republican and Loyalist extremists. Conversely, it was praised as one of the most professional policing operations in the world by British security forces, and regularly provided security for the Royal Family members who visited Ireland. In 2000, the RIC was awarded the George Cross for bravery, and its Fire Service was granted a royal title as well.

* In this AU, Ireland simply achieved what it aimed before 1916: a government modeled after Canada's, an autonomous state which recognizes the sovereignty of the Crown. Whoever is the British monarch is by default King/Queen of Ireland. There is a royal residence in Kerry, and it's customary for the either Prince of Wales (whose Irish title is Duke of Leinster) or the sovereign to open at least one session of the Irish Parliament during their tenure/reign, among other ceremonies that mark the link with the Crown.