The Gambia Constabulary, also known as the Gambia Police, was the colonial police force of

The Gambia The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...

, in existence from 1866 to 1965. The constabulary has been described as

paramilitary A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...

, and the colonial authorities themselves described it as "semi-military". The constabulary for a period also had responsibility for

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in the colony.

History

The first police force in The Gambia was the Gambia River Police, formed in 1855. Prior to this, security in the small colonial enclaves was provided by British troops and a small local

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

, drawn from traders, freed slaves, and other settlers. The River Police's role was to control smuggling, enforce taxation, and prevent insurgencies. Its 10 men were aided by the local militia, and were further reinforced in 1866 by the establishment of the

Gambia Constabulary. Initially formed with 40 constables, this was increased to 100 in 1870. At this point, all imperial troops were withdrawn from the colony and policing was left to the Constabulary and local militia. In February 1895, a complementary police force, the Gambia Frontier Police, was formed. In November that year, they became very riotous and assaulted members of the Constabulary. A civilian was shot dead by them while he was at his morning prayers. The police then entered Bathurst with loaded rifles, causing great alarm among the populace. The citizens proceeded to approach the Administrator en masse to demand their expulsion. The authorities relented and the force was shipped abroad before being disbanded in

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. The establishment of the Royal West African Frontier Force, West African Frontier Force in 1900 led to the creation of the Gambia Company in 1901, which also aided in maintaining the colony's security. In the Protectorate, security was the responsibility of the district chief. In 1909, the British issued an ordinance granting the chiefs to appoint 'badge messengers', who were allowed to keep the peace and had all the same authority of the colony police. Francis has noted how "Although Gambians staffed the lower level of the force, to the local population, the police and security services, limited as they were, represented an essentially foreign presence."

Organisation

In 1905, the constabulary was headed by a Superintendent who was assisted by an Assistant Superintendent. Under them were 80 non-commissioned officers, 68 of whom were posted in Bathurst and the other 12 were posted across the Protectorate. The constabulary also had a band, trained by a European bandmaster. Karbin Martini-Enfield

Equipment

As part of their firefighting responsibilities, the constabulary had a 30-man

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manual

fire engine A fire engine (also known in some places as a fire truck or fire lorry) is a road vehicle (usually a truck) that functions as a firefighting apparatus. The primary purposes of a fire engine include transporting firefighters and water to an i ...

. In 1905, the constabulary was equipped with

Martini–Enfield Martini–Enfield rifles were, by and large, conversions of the Zulu War era .577/450 Martini–Henry, rechambering the rifle for use with the newly introduced .303 British cartridge. Whilst most Martini–Enfields were converted rifles, a numbe ...

carbines, and had three seven-pounder RML guns.

References

{{Reflist Law enforcement in the Gambia