Regimental police or regimental provost (RP) are soldiers responsible for regimental discipline enforcement and unit custody in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

, other

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

armies and some armed forces structured in the British tradition. They belong to the regiment or

corps Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...

in which they enforce discipline rather than the

Royal Military Police The Royal Military Police (RMP) is the corps of the British Army responsible for the policing of army service personnel, and for providing a military police presence both in the UK and while service personnel are deployed overseas on operations ...

or its equivalent.

United Kingdom

Properly called Regimental Provost Staff in the United Kingdom, most Army

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions ...

s and

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

s and the

Royal Marines The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious warfare, amphibious light infantry and also one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighti ...

Commandos have an RP section, usually headed by the Regimental Provost Sergeant, who operates under the authority of the

Regimental Sergeant Major Regimental sergeant major (RSM) is an appointment that may be held by warrant officers class 1 (WO1) in the British Army, the British Royal Marines and in the armies of many other Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations, including Australi ...

(RSM). They are normally responsible for the maintenance of good order and military discipline, with all criminal offences being passed to the specialists of the

. Members of a regiment's Provost Section can be identified by the

brassard A brassard or armlet is an armband or piece of cloth or other material worn around the upper arm; the term typically refers to an item of uniform worn as part of military uniform or by police or other uniformed persons. Unit, role, rank b ...

s they wear, which carry the letters "RP". Unlike

Service Police In the United Kingdom, the term military police refers to the three branches of the service police. Often, the term 'military police' is considered synonymous with the Army's Royal Military Police, but in fact, has a wider context. There are a nu ...

, RPs carry no warrant card and have no powers of arrest greater than those of

citizen's arrest A citizen's arrest is an arrest made by a private citizen – that is, a person who is not acting as a sworn law-enforcement official. In common law jurisdictions, the practice dates back to medieval England and the English common law, in which ...

. They are not police officers/

constables A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

service police In the United Kingdom, the term military police refers to the three branches of the service police. Often, the term 'military police' is considered synonymous with the Army's Royal Military Police, but in fact, has a wider context. There are a nu ...

and serve no policing function.

Regimental Duties

In some Regiments/Corps, the role is now known as "Regimental Duties" and wear a "RD" brassard or shoulder patch. The role is largely the same, but might more accurately reflect their role, as they are not service policemen, but more soldiers who work for the

(RSM) and are responsible for camp discipline and security, as outlined above.

Singapore

The roles of the Regimental Policemen (RP) in the

Singapore Armed Forces The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) are the military services of the Republic of Singapore, responsible for protecting and defending the security interests and the sovereignty of the country. A military component of the Ministry of Defence (MINDE ...

are similar, in that they too enforce discipline and are responsible for the security of the base they are assigned to. The Regimental Policemen that once used to protect all camps and bases have been progressively replaced by Security Troopers. As of April 2011, all Regimental Policemen have been replaced by Security Troopers. These Security Troopers are better trained than the original RPs. Security Troopers are Operational Combat Soldiers with special Security Training. They are usually Full-time National Servicemen. All Security Troopers are centrally trained and qualified by 8th Battalion, Singapore Infantry Regiment at Clementi Camp before the majority are being sent to the various Army camps all over Singapore to serve their duties as part the 8th Battalion Singapore Infantry Regiment (8SIR), while a selected minority are posted to the Republic of Singapore Air Force Force Protection Squadrons or the Republic of Singapore Navy Base Defence Squadrons to serve their duties. The Army and Air Force Security Troopers (ST) maintain the name Security Troopers. However, Security Troopers posted to the Navy are called Sea Soldiers to reflect the role they perform. At the core, regardless whether they continue to serve at 8SIR, or posted to Air Force or Navy, all these soldiers are Security Troopers. All Security Troopers undergo eleven weeks of training before they are qualified as Security Troopers. Two months before the majority of the Security Troopers from 8SIR mark their end of two year full time national service, these security troopers from 8SIR shall undergo National Service Transition Training (NSTT) at Clementi Camp to train themselves to serve as Infantryman for their subsequent reservist training. Their Air Force and Navy Counterparts remain to serve as Security Troopers and Sea Soldier respectively for their subsequent reservist training. It may be of interest to note that Regimental Police used to be trained at the Military Police Training School (MPTS) & 2 PDF Training Centre before 8 SIR took on the role to raise Security Troopers for the SAF. The working hours vary depending to operational requirements. They are easily identified by a black brassard with 'SECURITY TROOPER' in orange wording worn on their right arm.

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...

RPs were once called Field Defence Troopers and

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

RPs, now Security Troopers, are still called Sea Soldiers. They are organized at the squadron level. After completing the RP training, they would proceed to a twelve weeks Field Defence Course (FDC), which includes rigorous physical and mental training, as well as teaching advanced security and fighting techniques before they were replaced by Security Troopers. They were trained in small arms, less-lethal weaponry and crew-served weapons. In the final theory exam in FDC, trainees must pass the Military Security Knowledge Exam (MSKE) in order to pass out. FD Squadrons are organized at the battalion level during wartime, and normally field reinforced company-sized units. This has all changed since the Security Troopers have replaced all RP. 8SIR now performs all the training mentioned less the context specific training and qualifies all Security Troopers for Army, Navy and Air Force. Security Troopers work alongside Military Policemen from 8SIR. MPs have greater powers of arrest and detention. These MPs operate in a manner dependent on the local base security, carrying out normal duties within the unit according to their rank, or deployed solely to perform access control into the base at key entry points.

Sri Lanka

In the

Sri Lanka Army ta, இலங்கை இராணுவம் , image = File:Sri Lanka Army Logo.png , image_size = 180px , caption = Emblem of the Sri Lanka Army , start_date ...

, regiments and corps have Regimental Policemen (RP) assigned to soldiers to maintain discipline and security with bases and barracks. When serving as RPs, the soldiers will wear

hackle The hackle is a clipped plume or short spray of coloured feathers that is attached to a military headdress, with different colours being associated with particular regiments. In the British Army and the armies of some Commonwealth countries, ...

, RP arm band, white leather/web belt, white anklets and

cane Cane or caning may refer to: *Walking stick or walking cane, a device used primarily to aid walking * Assistive cane, a walking stick used as a mobility aid for better balance *White cane, a mobility or safety device used by many people who are ...

of 18 inches in length per the regimental pattern.

Indonesia

Although not part of the

, in the

Indonesian National Armed Forces , founded = as the ('People's Security Forces') , current_form = , disbanded = , branches = , headquarters = Cilangkap, Jakarta , website = , commander-in-chief = Joko Widodo , ...

(TNI), the Regimental Police are known as "Provosts" or in Indonesian known locally as ''Provos'' which have the duties and responsibilities in the enforcement of internal discipline, law and order, and conduct access control for a

. They are separate from the

Military Police Military police (MP) are law enforcement agencies connected with, or part of, the military of a state. In wartime operations, the military police may support the main fighting force with force protection, convoy security, screening, rear rec ...

because they have no authority outside of their battalion/regiment (except for certain situations). Provosts are posted at the entrances of a military base and are identifiable by their white belts, white

lanyards A lanyard is a cord, length of webbing, or strap that may serve any of various functions, which include a means of attachment, restraint, retrieval, and activation and deactivation. A lanyard is also a piece of rigging used to secure or lower ...

, and wear a dark blue

bearing the word "PROV" worn on their upper left sleeve. Soldiers who are selected to become Provosts are usually picked based on their big/tall posture, discipline, firmness, and attitude which can be dependent upon by the battalion/regiment commander in terms of implementing internal security and internal discipline enforcement. Soldiers who are caught red handed by Provosts conducting serious criminal offences are handed to the

for further investigation. Soldiers who are selected to become Provosts are sent to undergo a 6-week training program which focuses on the education and training concerning Regimental policing tasks, which consists of the education regarding law and constitution, physical security, enforcement of discipline, maintenance of rules and management of military prisoners. Provosts are also responsible to check visitors coming into a

military base A military base is a facility directly owned and operated by or for the military or one of its branches that shelters military equipment and personnel, and facilitates training and operations. A military base always provides accommodations for ...

Hong Kong

The Regimental Police (traditional Chinese:軍團警察) in the

Royal Hong Kong Regiment The Royal Hong Kong Regiment (The Volunteers) (RHKR(V)) ()), formed in May 1854, was a local auxiliary militia force funded and administered by the colonial Government of Hong Kong. Its powers and duties were mandated by the Royal Hong Kong R ...

was an internal policing force to provide security and law and order within the regiment.

Belgium

Most units at

level have a small Regimental Police detachment. In the Belgian forces, duties tend to be limited to providing access control and ensuring general base security during normal working hours, with special security teams taking over out of hours. Belgian Regimental Police belong to the unit that they police and wear a black brassard bearing the red letters 'RP' on the left upper arm together with a white webbing belt.

References

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