The DGGC, integrated in the Secretariat of State for Security, is in charge of organize, direct, coordinate and execute the missions entrusted to the Civil Guard by the provisions in force, in accordance with the guidelines and orders issued by the Ministers of the Interior and of Defense, within the scope of their respective powers.

To assist the Director-General there is a deputy director of Operations (DAO), a Civil Guard officer with the rank of Lieutenant general.

The need to create a rural agency that gave security to the fields and roads of Spain was evident in the first half of the 19th century.

The confiscation processes of the mentioned century, the fractionation of rural property, the dissolution of the National Militia and the political vicissitudes and continuous changes of government were some of the causes that led to the birth of the Civil Guard by Royal Decree of March 28, 1844.

[1] The creation of the Inspectorate became effective with the appointment of its first holder, Francisco Javier Girón, who was rewarded for his work in creating the agency with that position on September 1, 1844.

[2] Another decree of October 15 gave the inspector-general as functions those of "direction and inspection of the agency, and from its authority all branches of the service (...) depend, as well as the internal regime, administration and discipline.

[3] The royal decree also established that, in order to fulfill its functions, the inspector had to be dependent of the Ministry of the Interior and of War.

[7] The Spanish transition to democracy was a time of great changes in the field of public safety, although they do not affected excessively the Directorate-General.