Organized policing in Ireland commenced with the formation of the Dublin Police in 1786. Prior to the Dublin Police Act, law and order in Irish towns and cities was maintained by watchmen (Night watchmen had protected Ireland's Norman towns and cities from about the 14th century), parish constables and the military. Between 1723 and 1785, civil patrolmen known as the 'Charlies' (see F. Glenn Thomson's illustration) policed the city of Dublin. They were glorified parish constables and often figures of fun. The armed constables and watchmen of the Dublin Police were replaced by an unarmed civil police force in 1795.
In 1787, the Baronial Police ("Old Barneys") was created to police the remainder of Ireland. All appointees had to be Protestants, a clause that was later removed after the Penal Laws were abolished. In 1869 Robert Curtis, in his book 
'History of the Irish Constabulary', claimed that three quarters of the R.I.C. were Roman Catholic. The Baronial Police was an undisciplined force without a set uniform, dealing only with minor crimes and offences. They relied on the military to suppress serious disturbances, such as the 1798 Rebellion, the numerous faction fights,
drunken brawls, attacks and raids by Secret Societies, Raparees, Tories and pirates. 
So, even after the creation of the "Old Barneys" many rural towns retained their own police forces or Watch system. Typical examples are Carrick-on-Suir and Kilkenny. In 1787, Carrick-on-Suir's police "the Carrick Constables" (see illustration) wore blue tunics trimmed with crimson, white breeches, and a round hat with a feather plume.
Kilkenny City's Watchmen were known as Kilkenny Constables. The watches were of varying strengths and some were more ornate than others. By 1867 the Kilkenny Watch had dwindled to four men. This F. Glenn Thompson illustration of a Kilkenny Constable is based on a description which appears in "Recollections of the Life of John O'Keeffe", published in 1826. In 1770, the Kilkenny Rangers were formed to protect "the neighbourhood of Kilkenny from the ravages of the Raparees and Tories" (Dublin Evening Post, 27 May 1783).
In the latter part of the 18th Century the Yeomanry and Irish Volunteers (which consisted of a variety of military units such as the Athlone Rangers, Shinrone Volunteers, Naas Light Dragoons) were called upon to protect the towns and cities, prevent crimes, arrest and take prisoners to the courts, jails or gallows. 
An auxiliary military force "The Irish Militia" (see the F. Glenn Thompson illustration of a Waterford Militiaman, distinguished by the yellow facings on their uniforms) were formed in 1793 to perform many of the police duties performed by the Irish Volunteers and Yeomanry. Their duties included enforcement of the illicit distillation laws and seizure of illegal publications.