Editing Constabulary (section)

{{Short description|A form of police force used in various jurisdictions}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2024}}
'''Constabulary''' may have several definitions:
*A civil, non-paramilitary (police) force consisting of police officers called constables. This is the usual definition in the [[United Kingdom]], in which all [[county]] [[Law enforcement in the United Kingdom|police forces]] once bore the title (and some still do). [[Constable#United_States|Constables]] also exist in some [[U.S. state]]s including [[Texas constable|Texas]] and [[Pennsylvania State Constable|Pennsylvania]].
*In English-speaking Canada, the starting rank of all police officers is Constable. The provincial police service of [[Newfoundland]] and [[Labrador]] is the [[Royal Newfoundland Constabulary]]. This term reflects the force’s history of having been modelled after the [[Royal Irish Constabulary]]. In this case, Constabulary is used in the same sense in which it is used in the UK.  
*A large civil police force organised and trained along military lines, which may contain [[paramilitary]] elements. This is the usual definition in places outside [[Great Britain]] such as the former [[Royal Irish Constabulary]], the former [[Royal Ulster Constabulary]]{{fact|date=July 2018}}, [[Royal Newfoundland Constabulary]], [[Jamaica Constabulary Force]].
*A military or [[paramilitary]] type force consisting of soldiers trained for police duties. Mostly established by the [[United States]] in the several countries over which it had protective status e.g. [[Philippine Constabulary]]; [[United States Constabulary]] in [[West Germany]] after [[World War II]]. These forces also performed military functions by maintaining "mobile forces" of organised units.