Royal Ulster Constabulary

Royal Ulster Constabulary
Abbreviation	RUC
Badge of the Royal Ulster Constabulary
Flag of the Royal Ulster Constabulary
Agency overview
Formed	1 June 1922
Preceding agency	Royal Irish Constabulary
Dissolved	4 November 2001
Superseding agency	Police Service of Northern Ireland
Legal personality	Non government: Police force
Jurisdictional structure
National agency	Northern Ireland, UK
Map of Royal Ulster Constabulary's jurisdiction.
Size	13,843 km²
General nature	Law enforcement Local civilian police
Operational structure

The Royal Ulster Constabulary was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. Following the awarding of the George Cross in 2000, its formal title became the Royal Ulster Constabulary, GC. It was founded on 1 June 1922 out of the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC). At its peak the force had around 8,500 officers with a further 4,500 who were members of the RUC Reserve. During the Troubles, 319 members of the RUC were killed and almost 9,000 injured in paramilitary assassinations or attacks, mostly by the Provisional IRA, which made, by 1983, the RUC the most dangerous police force in the world in which to serve. In the same period, the RUC killed 55 people, 28 of whom were civilians.

The RUC was replaced by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) in 2001. The former police force was renamed and reformed, as is provided for by the final version of the Police (Northern Ireland) Act 2000. The RUC has been accused by republicans and Irish nationalists of one-sided policing and discrimination, as well as collusion with loyalist paramilitaries. Conversely, it was praised as one of the most professional policing operations in the world by British security forces. The allegations regarding collusion prompted several inquiries, the most recent of which was published by Police Ombudsman Nuala O'Loan. The report identified police, CID and Special Branch collusion with loyalist terrorists under 31 separate headings, in her report on the murder of Raymond McCord and other matters, but no member of the RUC has been charged or convicted of any criminal acts as a result of these inquiries. Ombudsman Dame Nuala O'Loan stated in her conclusions that there was no reason to believe the findings of the investigation were isolated incidents.