Royal Canadian Gendarmerie

The Royal Canadian Gendarmerie (RCG; French: Gendarmerie royale canadienne, GRC) is the provost (military police) of the Canadian Armed Forces and the law enforcement agency of the Department of National Defence (DND). It is a real gendarmerie, in that its policing authority extends beyond the armed forces to the civilian realm, albeit rarely in the general public (usually only in remote areas as well as in urban areas during large national events, major unrest or disasters) and only regularly concerning the civilian Department of National Defence. Nevertheless, the Royal Canadian Gendarmerie has been known to provide assistance to the federal/national civilian Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Canada Sheriff Service during major investigations and operations, such as nationwide manhunts and counterterrorism operations. It answers directly to and is considered entirely an agency of the DND in wartime; in peacetime, all civilian law enforcement corps, such as the Gendarmerie's Border Security Corps and Public Security Corps, instead answer to Public Security Canada, while the provost and other military units remain under DND jurisdiction.