Mossos d'Esquadra

Police of the Generalitat of Catalonia - Mossos d'Esquadra Policia de la Generalitat de Catalunya - Mossos d'Esquadra
Common name	Mossos d'Esquadra
Logo of the Police of the Generalitat of Catalonia - Mossos d'Esquadra
Agency overview
Formed	1721, as squads 1874-1939 / 1950-1983 as guards the premises of the Delegation of Barcelona 1983, through Law 19/1983 establishing the autonomous police of Catalonia
Preceding agency	Esquadres de Catalunya
Legal personality	Governmental: Government agency
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdiction*	Autonomous Community of Catalonia, Spain
Map of Police of the Generalitat of Catalonia - Mossos d'Esquadra's jurisdiction.
Size	32,114 km2
Population	7.508.106
Governing body	Generalitat de Catalunya
Constituting instrument	Act 19/1983
General nature	Law enforcement Local civilian police
Operational structure
Overviewed by	Directorate-General of Police
Headquarters	Egara Central Complex, 08206 Sabadell
Mossos	16,869
Regional Minister (Conseller) responsible	Jordi Jané, Regional Minister for the Interior
Agency executives	Albert Batlle, Director General Commissioner Josep Lluis Trapero, Deputy Director
Facilities
Stations	92
Website
http://www.mossos.cat/
Footnotes
* Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction.

1721, as squads

1874-1939 / 1950-1983 as guards the premises of the Delegation of Barcelona

The Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan pronunciation: [ˈmosuz ðəsˈkwaðɾə]); in English: Troopers (literally "Squad Lads", "Squaddies") are the police force of Catalonia. The force was founded in 1721, but a different Catalan force with a different name, the Escuadras de Paisanos, was one of the oldestpolice forces in Europe. The term Mossos d'Esquadra was first used as an informal name for this earlier force.

The Escuadras de Paisanos (later known as the Esquadres de Catalunya) are a force from which the Mossos d'Esquadra have no direct descent.

On July 21, 1950 the Deputation of Barcelona was authorised to create a small security force using the historical title Mossos d'Esquadra. These new Mossos were a militarized corps with little similarity to the earlier incarnations, with limited attributes and few in number.

With the return of democracy to Spain, the Mossos d'Esquadra grew in number and attributions. Since October 25, 1980 the force has been under the authority of the Generalitat de Catalunya (the regional Government of Catalonia).

The current incarnation of the Mossos d'Esquadra was created by a law of the Generalitat of July 14, 1983, basically re-founding the previous corps into a modern police force. They are no longer a military force, but a civilian one. Since then, the Mossos have gradually grown in both number, skills and responsibilities.

The Escuadras de Paisanos, later known as the Esquadres de Catalunya, are a force from which the Mossos d'Esquadra have no direct descent. They were men-at-arms who had fought as irregulars in the War of the Spanish Succession, and were brought together by the mayor of the town of Valls near Tarragona between 1719–1721. The corps became institutionalised and constituted a militia, which intended to provide security to trade routes and fairs, exposed to constant dangers. They were constituted as a complement to the regular troops of the bourbon army, which had to confront the Miquelets, who persisted as an insurgent redoubt of supporters of Archduke Charles. It was manned by locals, who had to speak Catalan and be familiar with the paths, caves and hiding places in the area. They were eventually placed under military jurisdiction but were less centralised than the Spanish police force (then known as the 'Intendencia General de Policía') formed in 1817, or the yet to be established ‘Guardia Civil’, both of which were systematically deployed away from their regions of origin, and were thus strangers. Throughout the centuries it has passed back and forth from Catalan authority to Spanish military command several times. They were dissolved in 1868 by General Prim after the fall of Queen Isabella II of Spain, since the Mossos had always been royalists.