Brief History of Corps Name
Researched by Antony Buckingham, MP History Website
1901
The
year 1901 would be a landmark year in Australian history. Australian states, as
a series of colonies of Britain were federated into one unified country to be known
as the Commonwealth of Australia. As a result of Federation, the Australian
Army was born in 1901. As the new Australian Army contained a small regular
force designated the Permanent Military Force or PMF and the remainder of the
Australian Army at that time being predominately a militia or part-time force,
it was not felt necessary or justified that a Military Police force or Corps,
be created to police the new Australian Army.
In 1909, Field Marshal Viscount Kitchener of Great Britain was invited to Australia to inspect the Australian Army and advise on its future structure and training. As a result of that visit, Kitchener recommended the introduction of compulsory military training 1910 and in 1911 the scheme commenced. The scheme was to train young Australian’s as soldiers (cadets) titled as junior and senior cadets from ages 12 to 18 years and, thereafter, in the Citizen Forces (part time) to age 25. To support the scheme a whole range of administrative and legal support would be required including the raising of a Provost Staff to police the UTS. Military Order 719 dated 1912 and Statutory Rule No. 254 dated 24 December 1912 approved the creation of a Provost Staff which was to commence its duties as of 01 January 1913 and to be established as a portion of the Administrative Staff of the Commonwealth Military Forces. The order stated:
A Provost Staff shall be established to be a portion of the
Administrative Staff of the Commonwealth Military Forces. It may consist of
Officers, Warrant and Non-Commissioned Officers.
The
Provost Staff were the first “police” personnel to serve in the Australian
Army; however, it is important to note that they were never called or known as
Military Police and their duties were only in connection to the UTS and not in
support of the Australian Army or PMF of the period. As they were formed on the
eve of the First World War they had little effect on the UTS or the Australian
Army prior to the war commencing in 1914.
WW1 would see the raising of
the Corps beginning in 1916:
3 April 1916
AIF Police Corps formed in
Middle East during WW1.
February 1917
Name change to ANZAC Provost
Corps.
1 January 1918
Name change to Australian
Provost Corps.
The
Australian Provost Corps was disbanded in 1920 along with the AIF in 1921. The
Corps was not maintained as an "active" Corps of the Australian Army
during the post war period of 1920 to 1938.
1920s to 1938 -
The Provost Staff and Provost Marshal
During the early 1920's, the Australian Government was re-addressing Defence policy and re-instituted Universal Military Training (UTS) again commencing by 1922. As previously occurred, the Provost Staff were included to support the scheme, once again their duties only in connection to the UTS and were not employed on general policing tasks. Raised and amended via the Defence Act on 01 July 1922 the Provost Staff would become “defacto” Military Police again as follows:
UNIVERSAL TRAINING PROVOST STAFF
Australian Military
Orders 255 of 1922
The following is the establishment of the Universal Training Provost Staff, to come into operation as from 1 July 1922
Whilst
the Provost Staff policed the UTS during the period provisions were made via
the Defence Act to allow a Police Corps, to be known
as the Australian Army Provost Corps to be raised in time of war. The Defence Act also raised a Provost Marshal and Assistant
Provost Marshal positions in peace time although
rarely filled or utilised during the period stating:
The following extracts of the Defence Act 1903-41 states:
Division 12A – Australian Army Provost Corp
Para 1066a. Constitution of Corps in time
of war
In time of war there shall be an Australian
Army Provost Corps which shall constitute a corps of the Permanent Forces and
shall consist of officers and soldiers appointed to or enlisted in that Corps,
or transferred to, or seconded for duty with, that Corps from other portions of
the Military Forces.
Division 6 – Provost-Marshals
Para 384. Appointment of provost-marshals
and assistant provost-marshals
Provost-marshals and assistant provost-marshals may be appointed by –
In
absence of a formal Military Police Corps or personnel, local garrison troops
known as Regimental Police (RP) were available from units to assist in carrying
out policing duties. The RP staff was a defacto “police”
used around the barracks area to police standards and local rules; however,
were not MPs and were given no formal police training. They were separate to
the Provost Staff who did not conduct policing.
WW2 would see the raising and
professional development of the Australian Military Police Corps.
1938 - Australian Army
Provost Corps.
The
Corps was "resurrected" in 1938 on the call out of the Army for WW2.
The Corps was now called the Australian Army Provost Corps and widely employed
during WW2 and provided essential battlefield support. When the newly appointed
Provost Marshal took up his position in 1939 to raise and train the Australian
Army Provost Corps he found the only document in his office was a copy of the
British Military Police Manual dated 1936. It is with this document that the
information on raising and training the infant Australian Army Provost Corps
was derived. As the manual was the one in use by the RMP at this time, it was
found useful but inappropriate as an Australian Army manual. To overcome this
problem it was decided to produce local amendments (typed inserts) that could
be inserted or replaced over the relevant UK chapters or pages in the UK manual
to make it relevant to Australian MPs. The first page (amendment) of the manual
stated:
Notified in A.A.Os. dated
31st August 1939
Local Amendment Serial No.1 to the MANUAL OF THE CORPS OF MILITARY
POLICE, 1936
The preface to the publication stated:
The Manual of the Corps of Military Police, 1936, as amended locally,
will be used for training military police in the Australian Military Forces.
There is no Corps in the Australian Military Forces in peace
corresponding with the Corps of Military Police, but in war the Australian
Provost Corps will be formed. This Corps will be organised
into two branches; the Administrative Branch which will provide the staffs of
military detention barracks and military prisons and the Military Police
Branch, the organisation and duties of which are
outlined in this manual.
From these humble beginnings
sprang the rebirth of the Australian Military Police Corps which served the
Australian Army well throughout five years of war and provided a necessary
service to all soldiers.
September 1948 -
Name change to Royal Australian Army Provost Corps (RAA PRO)
The
Corps was maintained in the post WW2 Army and in 1948 the Corps had the title
"Royal" added before "Australian Army Provost Corps" to
become "Royal Australian Army Provost Corps". This was granted by The
King (King George the Sixth) in recognition of the service provided by the
Australian Army Provost Corps during World War 2. This was promulgated in
Australian Army Orders from Army HQ on 31st December 1948 (Document/File
number: 260/1/2990). This entitled the Corps to have the Kings crown on the top
of their Corps badge. It is interesting to note that this change was not
amended in the Defence Act until 1st March 1957. (See
below for extracts from the Australian Military Forces - Amendments to The Defence Act 1903-41 dated 1st March 1957)
Is amended by omitting the words "Australian Army Provost
Corps" (wherever occurring) and inserting in their stead the words
"Royal Australian Army Provost Corps"
The Corps was active in all
major conflicts involving the Australian Army from 1945 to 1974.
4
September 1974 - Name change to Royal Australian Corps of Military Police
(RACMP)
4th September 1974, Her
Majesty the Queen granted the prefix "Royal" to the new Corps title.
Military Board Minute No.
66/74 approved the change in Corps title from "Royal Australian Army
Provost Corps" to that of "Royal Australian Corps of Military
Police".
Also the following info from
Corps Magazines of the day:
RAA PRO Corps News Letter - October 1974
Message From The Provost Martial
Action is being taken to change the Corps title. We are unable to give a
progress report at this stage because of protocol restrictions. As disclosed in
the last newsletter, the new name proposed is "The Royal Australian Corps
of Military Police (RACMP).
There was much debate over the name change and many were suggested.
Suggestions were:
CAMP - Corps of Australian Military Police
RAMP - Royal Australian Military Police
The Corps Director decided that the above titles/names and others were
unacceptable, had similar letters to another Armies MP or Countries Police and
adopted The Royal Australian Corps of Military Police (RACMP).
The Military Police Newsletter - January 1975
Message From The Provost Martial
The most significant event affecting the Corps
in 1974 was, undoubtedly, our change in name. As the newsletter cover
indicates, it is now officially recognised and so, as
a matter of factual record, the procedural sequence leading to the announcement
can be disclosed.
The notion to change the Corps title was put
to the Senior MP Officers Planning Conference in December 1973. It was among a
number of proposals concerning the Corps which were
staffed at Army Office in the period January to March. In April, the proposals
were considered by the Army Development Committee and in May, the Military
Board approved a submission by the Chief of Personnel and Colonel Commandant to
change the Corps title to 'The Australian Corps of Military Police'.
At this point it is appropriate to explain the
prefix 'Royal' is an honour granted only by the
Monarch and is not an automatic procedure. In our case, His Majesty King George
VI originally bestowed the prefix 'Royal' on the Australian Army Provost Corp
in 1948. However, the honour is not transferable and
so could not be adopted by the Corps under its new name. Separate initiative
action was, therefore, necessary.
The Minister for Defence
then wrote to the Prime Minister in July, asking him to approach the Govenor-General with a request that he seek the approval of
Her Majesty the Queen, to grant the prefix 'Royal' to the Corps under its new
title. The reply from the Prime Minister was received in late September,
stating that he had been informed by the Governor-General that, pursuant to the
Prime Minister,s fullest
endorsement and recommendation of the proposal, the Queen had given her
approval for the Corps to be granted the distinction of the prefix 'Royal'.
The Corps was given a new
title to reflect changes in the modern employment and use of Military Police in
the Australian Army and is still known as RACMP today.