The force was established in order to carry out law enforcement and public security duties alongside the National Republican Guard.
The new Corps, under Lieutenant-General Renato Ricci, included the Fascist Blackshirts, the Italian Africa Police members serving in Rome and the Carabinieri.
[1] The Corps would be the entity that would work against anti-Fascist groups and would be autonomous (not reporting to Rodolfo Graziani) according to an order issued by Mussolini on 19 November 1944.
The Republican Police Corps was a single government agency, which set it apart from the previous organization (which was upheld in post-war Italy).
[citation needed] The Republican Police Corps numbered about 20 000,[4] deployed mostly in provincial capital cities; they were framed into 10 Regional Inspectorates and 66 Questure (provincial-level commands), 2 Speciality schools in Padua, escort teams detached at the Ministries, including the "Public Security Presidential Squad" (Italian: Squadra Presidenziale di Pubblica Sicurezza) tasked with Benito Mussolini's personal security.