The North Carolina National Guard (NCNG), commonly known as the North Carolina Guard, is a component of the

North Carolina Department of Public Safety The North Carolina Department of Public Safety (NCDPS) is an umbrella agency that carries out many of the state's law enforcement, emergency response and homeland security functions. The department was created in 1977 as the Department of Crime Co ...

and the

National Guard of the United States The National Guard is a state-based military force that becomes part of the reserve components of the United States Army and the United States Air Force when activated for federal missions.Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

and Air National Guard units. The

adjutant general An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...

's office is located in

Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...

Mission

The

Constitution of the United States The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven articles, it delineates the natio ...

specifically charges the National Guard with dual federal and state missions. Other than state defense forces and the state defense militias, the National Guard is the only United States military force empowered to function in a state status. Those functions range from limited actions during non-emergency situations to full-scale law enforcement of

martial law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Marti ...

when local law enforcement officials can no longer maintain civil control. The National Guard may be called into federal service in response to a call by the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

. The federal mission assigned to the National Guard is: "To provide properly trained and equipped units for prompt mobilization for war, National emergency or as otherwise needed." The state mission assigned to the National Guard is: "To provide trained and disciplined forces for domestic emergencies or as otherwise provided by state law."

History

The North Carolina National Guard, or Carolina militia as it was originally known, was born from the Carolina Charter issued on March 24, 1663. The charter allowed the eight

lord proprietor A lord proprietor is a person granted a royal charter for the establishment and government of an English colony in the 17th century. The plural of the term is "lords proprietors" or "lords proprietary". Origin In the beginning of the European ...

s the rights to "levy, train and muster men of all sorts" to protect the lives and property of the peoples living in the Carolinas. The state of North Carolina also maintained the North Carolina State Defense Militia as North Carolina's official

state defense force In the United States, state defense forces are military units that operate under the sole authority of a state government. State defense forces are authorized by state and federal law and are under the command of the governor of each state. ...

to augment the North Carolina National Guard during stateside missions. The unit has since been suspended indefinitely. During the

COVID-19 pandemic in North Carolina The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have reached the U.S. state of North Carolina on March 3, 2020. As of May 2021, North Carolina has the 10th highest number of confirmed cases in the United States. , 69% of the adult population in North Ca ...

, the North Carolina National Guard was activated to assist in logistics and transportation of medical supplies, as the state reported it had 179 cases.

Command structure

The

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

may call individuals or units of the North Carolina National Guard into state service during emergencies or to assist in special situations which lend themselves to use of the National Guard. When National Guard troops are called to federal service, the President serves as Commander-in-Chief.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 1663 establishments in the British Empire Military units and formations established in 1663 National Guard (United States) North Carolina militia Organizations based in Raleigh, North Carolina State law enforcement agencies of North Carolina