Sources - Irish police and military

Irish police and military

National police

• County Constabulary / Irish Constabulary / Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC)

• In 1922 the RIC split into:
  • RUC / PSNI
  • Gardai

• RIC and DMP site by Jim Herlihy
• royalirishconstabulary.com
• Garda Siochana Historical Society (or via here)

• GM - Garda Museum, medieval Record Tower, Dublin Castle

• PSNI - Police Museum, Belfast

RIC records

• Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) records
  • The full RIC service records were taken to the Home Office in 1922.
  • Original register is now [NA.UK] Home Office Records, H.O. 184. See guide.
  • Microfilmed by [LDS] film no. 085 6057. Copy in [LDS Dublin].
  • Copy of this in [NAI]. [GM] records have been moved to the [NAI].
  • Copy in [SOG] microfiche IR/GEN/73963/1-8.
  • The RIC service register only includes those who were serving in 1836 and later. This includes some police who joined as early as 1816. But those whose service finished before 1836 are not included.

• Notebooks of Patrick Carroll, Irish police historian, 3 boxes at [GM].
  • Box 3 has: Ms for "Notes for a History of Police in Ireland" by Patrick Carroll.
  • Box 1 has: 1829 summary of constabulary in Munster.

• RIC Return of men Rewarded, Dismissed, Disrated and Fined (1848-72), [GM] M.169
  • this may now have been moved to the [NAI]
  • might be different version in [TCD], (todo) see

• RIC pensions
  • RIC pensions (1873 on) and death list is PMG 48 in [NA.UK]
  • RIC pensions, Ireland tracts vol.1, [SOG] IR/G 164

• findmypast.ie has:
  • Royal Irish Constabulary History & Directories
  • Royal Irish Constabulary Pensions 1826-1925
  • Royal Irish Constabulary Service Records 1816-1922

• [LDS Dublin] catalogue has "RIC Index" and "RIC Records", but only RIC Index seems to exist.

• Jim Herlihy
  • The Royal Irish Constabulary: A Short History and Genealogical Guide, 1997.
  • The Royal Irish Constabulary: A Complete Alphabetical List of Officers and Men, 1816-1922, 1999, [NAI], [NLI] Ir 3522 h 3, [KCL] RR 351.74.
  • Royal Irish Constabulary Officers, 2005.

• The RIC Collection contains:
  • The History of the Royal Irish Constabulary, Robert Curtis, 1871.
  • The Royal Irish Constabulary Manual, 6th Edition, 1909.
  • Royal Irish Constabulary List and Directory, July 1889.
  • Royal Irish Constabulary List and Directory, January 1910.
  • Royal Irish Constabulary List and Directory, January 1915.
  • Royal Irish Constabulary List and Directory, January 1920.

• The Missing Personnel Records of the R.I.C.. Gerard O'Brien, Irish Historical Studies, Vol. 31, No. 124 (Nov 1999), pp. 505-512.
  • This tries to find out where the RIC personnel files went. It seems personnel files for 46,000 men were taken to England in 1922. A total of 85,000 men served in the RIC and predecessors. So it is unclear whose files survived. These files survived in England until 1939, but are now lost.

RIC List (or RIC Directory) 1840 to 1922

• [BL] - complete set - not in RR - must be ordered
  • Constabulary List, 1840-1867. General Reference PP2512g.
  • Royal Irish Constabulary List, 1868-1919.
• [GM]
  • complete on microfilm
  • incomplete on paper - 1840-1847, 1851-1855, 1867, 1869, 1880-1881, 1884, and others later
  • this may now have been moved to the [NLI]
• [NLI] - incomplete
  • 1840-1845, [NLI] Ir 3522 R 8
  • 1844-1847, [NLI] J 3522
  • 1857, 1876-1879, 1881-1919, [NLI] Ir 3522 R 8
• [PSNI]
  • incomplete - 1840-1850, 1859-1908, and others later, [PSNI] 1995.002
  • also has a 1836 Constabulary List as Ms

Dublin police

• Dublin Metropolitan Police (DMP)

• DMP records
  • Now at [NAI].
  • Formerly at [GM].

• DMP general register
• DMP Prisoners Books

• Jim Herlihy
  • The Dublin Metropolitan Police: A short history and genealogical guide, 2001.
  • The Dublin Metropolitan Police: A complete list of Officers and Men, 1836-1925, 2001.

Belfast police

• Belfast Town Police

• Belfast Town Police records
  • These were formerly held by Belfast City Council.
  • They are now in [PRO.NI], under LA/7 (Belfast Corporation / County Borough Council).

• Belfast Town Police records:
  • Minute books of the Belfast Police Committee, 1800-1844, [PRO.NI] LA/7/2/BA/1.
  • Minute books of the Belfast Commissioners of Police, 1807-1844, [PRO.NI] LA/7/2/BA/2.
  • Minute books of the Police Committee, 1844-1865, [PRO.NI] LA/7/10/AB/1 (1-5).
  • Police Fund journal, 1833 on, [PRO.NI] LA/7/4/CD/1.
  • Police Fund ledger, 1844 on, [PRO.NI] LA/7/4/DA/2.

Post-1922 military

• (Pre-1922 military is British Army.)

• Irish military
• Irish War Memorials

• MAI - Military Archives (and site)
  • Cathal Brugha Barracks, Rathmines, Dublin 6.
  • BMH - Bureau of Military History (see site and A-Z and search)
  • Witness statements for 1913-21 period online.
  • MSPC - Military Service (1916-1923) Pensions Collection
  • Irish Army Census, November 1922

Timeline of national police

1814 	Peace Preservation Force 

1822	County Constabulary
	enforced collection of Protestant Tithes from Catholics in Tithe War

1836	Irish Constabulary
	armed 
	opposed Young Irelanders
	opposed Fenians

1867	Royal Irish Constabulary
	assisted evictions in Land War
	heavy casualties in War of Independence

1922	in south, disbanded, and Gardai formed
	in north, became RUC

Timeline of Dublin police

1786	Dublin police

1836	Dublin Metropolitan Police
	unarmed
	not involved in political matters
	only 2 killed on duty in the entire 1882-1916 period
	not heavily involved in War of Independence

1925	amalgamated into Gardai