About Me

Dr. William Birkin was one of Umbrella's most important researchers.
The Umbrella Corporation was founded by Lord Ozwell E. Spencer, a man descended from the British Royal Family, in the 1960s. Two other people were prominently involved in the conception of Umbrella, Dr. James Marcus and Sir Edward Ashford. Though it is apparent that Spencer was the driving force behind the formation of the company, Marcus and Ashford were far more interested in the potential uses of the newly-discovered Progenitor Virus. When Edward Ashford passed away due to infection by the Progenitor Virus in 1968, Spencer was able to largely sideline Marcus at the Raccoon City facilities while he maintained control over the company for the next thirty years. Spencer would eventually grow distrustful of Marcus, worried that his research would allow the scientist to eventually supplant him as Umbrella's CEO.

The B.O.W. Development Team at the Arklay Research Facility.
Lord Spencer arranged for the assassination of Dr. Marcus, a task that was dully carried out by two of Marcus' most brilliant and ambitious assistants, William Birkin and Albert Wesker. Birkin would subsequently take over all of Marcus' research, including the studies on the Progenitor Virus. Ten years later, Marcus was completely restored by the Queen Leech. Marcus would exact his revenge on Spencer and Umbrella by unleashing the T-Virus into the Arklay Research Facility's water supply, turning the facility personnel into zombies and leaving the laboratory and mansion in complete chaos, allowing for the team's extremely dangerous research specimens to escape into the surrounding area. Birkin and Wesker used this as a diversion for their own plans to leave Umbrella, taking their research with them. Wesker, having formed Raccoon City's elite S.T.A.R.S. unit two years previous, would develop a plan to lure the team to the Spencer Mansion to obtain battle data from the conflict that would surely follow. Spencer Mansion had been constructed above the actual laboratory to conceal it from negative interests such as the government and local populace, and was now crawling with infected researchers and experiments wandering it's halls. Although the Tyrant was deployed, resulting in unforseen side-effects for Wesker, both the laboratory and the rampaging Tyrant were destroyed by S.T.A.R.S. Alpha Team before making it's escape back to Raccoon City with a single Bravo Team survivor.
Wesker was forced to go into hiding for a number of months, using his operative Ada Wong to carry out his objectives, including the recovery of Birkin's ultimate creation, the G-Virus. Several months after the Arklay incident, William Birkin finally perfected the viral strain that he'd been toiling to achieve since obtaining Marcus' research so many years earlier, the G-Virus. Birkin planned to use the virus to force the Umbrella Corporation into allowing him onto their executive board, but then changed his plans when he found that selling it directly to the U.S. Government would prove far more beneficial. Umbrella deployed it's elite U.S.S. team (a para-military black-operations unit created for Umbrella's most clandestine purposes) in a desperate bid to stop Birkin from handing over his ultimate creation. Although Birkin was mortally wounded in the ensuing conflict, and the G-Virus was successfully recovered by Umbrella, he was able to inject the G-Virus into his own body and devastate most of the team before it could make it's escape. This event would be indirectly responsible for unleashing the T-Virus on Raccoon City. While the Arklay incident had been relatively isolated and concealed from the public, and Umbrella's control over key government and law enforcement personnel had ensured that any record of what had occurred could be safely swept into obscurity, they were now faced with an entire city infected with the T-Virus and a trail leading directly back to the Umbrella Corporation. This would prove exceedingly difficult, even for Umbrella, to make simply disappear.

Decline and Collapse

The t-virus and anti-virus as seen in Resident Evil.
Umbrella's fortunes failed to improve after the Raccoon City incident, forcing the U.S. Government to take drastic measures to stop the T-Virus from spreading. They launched a nuclear strike against the city and, contrary to popular belief, there was no cover-up following the incident. While this has not been explained in its entirety, there are two likely explanations: firstly, the efforts of Jill Valentine, Chris Redfield and the other surviving S.T.A.R.S. members to expose Umbrella may well have been a contributing factor, and secondly, Alyssa Ashcroft, one of the 'survivors' along with Yoko Suzuki uploaded proof of the atrocity on the Internet, which could have been responsible for the investigation. They managed to upload the date before the nuclear missiles struck Raccoon City. Though they are not considered canon, Umbrella arranged the nuclear strike, as opposed to simply being aware of it. It is also heavily implied in both the movies and novels that Umbrella, which has great political influence, was able to cover up the entire incident.

The Arklay Mountains incident. Shortly after the Raccoon City incident, the U.S. Government suspended Umbrella's trading pending an investigation into their business practices. While this investigation must have already provided Umbrella with problems, several further disasters virtually ensured their eventual collapse. On Sheena Island, an undercover investigator linked with Leon S. Kennedy succeeded in destroying Umbrella's Tyrant plant after an Umbrella executive unleashed the T-Virus on the island. Shortly afterwards, when Claire Redfield broke into Umbrella's Paris Headquarters to look for her brother, she was captured and sent to the Umbrella prison on Rockfort Island. While there, she witnessed Albert Wesker attack the island in search of the T-Veronica Virus. Escaping the island, she found herself trapped at the South Pole Facility, where Edward Ashford's granddaughter, Alexia Ashford, awoke from a self-induced coma with a desire to establish a new order. With the destruction of Sheena Island, Rockfort Island and the South Pole Facility, most of Umbrella's illegitimate operations had been shut down.
With trading suspended, Umbrella share prices quickly collapsed, and the company was virtually bankrupt. Umbrella was largely fragmented, with the U.S. STRATCOM mainly involved in clean-up operations, such as the theft of the T-Virus and G-Virus by former Umbrella executive in R&D, Morpheus D. Duvall, and his plans to create a new order based
around 'beauty'. Umbrella's bankruptcy was absolute, and the U.S. government had completed the process of dismantling. However, in the game, it was revealed that Albert Wesker has plans to revive the company.

Umbrella in the 'Evil Company' Archetype
Though Umbrella was portrayed as a
stereotypical "evil megacorporation", similar to Weyland-Yutani from the Alien series, it was later given an elaborate backstory and presence stretching back to the turn of the century in Resident Evil Code: Veronica. On the other hand, the same game greatly bolstered the concept of an omnipotent corporation, introducing the company's private prison island. And while some of the zombie outbreaks seen in the Resident Evil series are caused by staggering incompetence and rogue operatives rather than overt maliciousness, Capcom has also stated that some viral outbreaks were indeed to test its effectiveness. It is also noteworthy that in Resident Evil 3, the corporation released Nemesis with the sole intent of tracking down and murdering all surviving S.T.A.R.S. members.
Capcom themselves appeared to realize the increasing improbability of the cliché premise (and the pitfalls of sticking to it), and thus Resident Evil 4 saw Umbrella's swift downfall, explained away in one or two sentences and not really mentioned since. This has been interpreted as Capcom sending the message that the evil megacorp is a "thing of the past" for the evolved series.
Nevertheless, examples of Umbrella's inability to control outbreaks resulting in pandemonium include: Resident Evil 0, which dealt with the outbreak caused by James Marcus in revenge for his 'death' at the hands of Umbrella. Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil 3: Nemesis and the Resident Evil: Outbreak series, which show what happened after an ostensibly failed attempt (the Umbrella operative HUNK eventually delivered the virus) made by Umbrella Special Forces Unit to recover the G-Virus from William Birkin. Resident Evil: Survivor, where Vincent Goldman releases the virus to eradicate the population of Sheena Island and any evidence against his own actions. Resident Evil: Dead Aim, where a rogue scientist, Morpheus D. Duvall, stole samples of Umbrella's prototype viruses, unleashed some of them aboard a luxury cruiser, property of Umbrella, and used several others to threaten the U.S. and China.

Company Motto & Slogan
In Resident Evil Zero, the Umbrella's 'employee pledge' is stated as being "Obedience Breeds Discipline, Discipline Breeds Unity, Unity Breeds Power, Power is Life". It is unknown if this is the motto for the public or if it is used purely within the company, due to it's ominous sound. In the 2002 film Resident Evil, Umbrella's slogan is "Umbrella Sheltering Your Family". In the 2004 film Resident Evil: Apocalypse, Umbrella's slogan is "Our Business is Life Itself."

Products

Uspirim, an aspirin product by Umbrella. A contributing factor to Umbrella's success were their non-lethal commercial products. Such products include: Adravil: An apparently ibuprofen-based analgesic. May be a real-world analog of Advil. Safsprin: Another of Umbrella's three main public products. Aspirin based, it can be used as treatment for various common, daily illnesses. Uspirim: Another Umbrella Aspirin-based product, introduced in Alyssa Ashcroft's good ending in Resident Evil: Outbreak. Aqua Cure: Umbrella's crowning public achievement, Aqua Cure is an ointment used on open wounds that made the company famous worldwide. It is considered to be Umbrella's primary public product and is very effective. Most likely the recurring item First Aid Spray that appears throughout the series. It is assumed that the T-Virus is used on this product to reaccomodate the damaged cells, though no side-effect has been shown from this product. Valifin: A non-canon medication mentioned in the novelization Resident Evil: Zero Hour by S.D. Perry, Valifin is a pediatric heart medication that has a side-effect of renal failure. Regenerate: A non-canon product mentioned in the movies, Regenerate is a skincare product that uses the T-Virus to reanimate dead skin cells, making the user appear younger.
Return A non-canon weight pill mentioned in promotions for the second movie. This pill boasts the ability to burn up to 30 pounds per pill. Developed using the T-Virus.

Other Products
There are also a multitude of other products seen briefly throughout all of the Resident Evil games including, soft drinks, cosmetics, and firearms.

Known Facilities

North America

The Arklay Research Facility.

The Umbrella's Classified Research Facility. Arklay Research Facility: A research facility located in Raccoon Forest, camouflaged by a mansion designed by George Trevor for Ozwell E. Spencer. Umbrella conducted most of its T-Virus experiments there, including the creation of the Tyrant. Umbrella Research Center: Also known as the Management Training Facility, this building was managed by James Marcus for the purpose of training future Umbrella employees. It was officially closed down in 1978, though Marcus continued his research there until his assassination in 1988. An investigative unit was sent in 1998 to inspect the facility for reopening purposes. Unnnamed Chicago Research Facility: The facility John, Ada Wong's deceased boyfriend, worked for before transfering to Arklay Research Facility. William Birkin used to visit this branch to conduct a monthly training seminar. Raccoon City Underground Laboratory: A facility established during the late 1980s for the sole purpose of William Birkin's G-Virus project. It can only be entered through a cable car system within Raccoon City's sewers, and is also connected to the Management Training Facility. Disposal Facility: A facility hidden within an abandoned factory in Raccoon City, used to chemically destroy dead and unusable specimens. Raccoon City Corporate Headquarters: A large facility used to test the combat capabilities of BOWs. An experimental serum was developed there to combat the T-Virus. Raccoon City Hospital: Umbrella maintained a small laboratory in the basement of the city hospital. This lab contained MA-124 Hunters in containment tanks, as well as equipment capable of synthesizing a vaccine against the T-Virus.
Classified Research and Testing Facility: Located in the area of what used to be Raccoon City, this facility was built after the area was destroyed and gated off. Not much is known about this facility. But what is known is that Umbrella conducts testing and research there and monitors the gated area and surrounding area for any possible biohazard threats or trespassers. The Hive (movie continuity Only): A secret underground lab located beneath the streets of Raccoon City. This facility is noted to conduct experiments on viral weaponry. When the T-Virus escapes through the air ducts a super computer (known as the Red Queen) shuts down the facility trapping anyone within. Umbrella Medical Facility (movie continuity Only): A research facility located outside of possibly Chicago. The facility is known to experiment on animals and possibly humans. 3 weeks after the t-virus outbreak in Raccoon City, Umbrella began testing a new virus on their first human subject Alice.

Other Sheena Island: A small European island privately owned by Umbrella. It housed a community of researchers working for the company and was secretly the site of a Tyrant Plant which was mass-producing the T-103 models (mr X's). Umbrella Medical, Paris: The headquarters of Umbrella in Europe. Claire Redfield infiltrates this facility briefly, only to be captured by its chief of security, Rodrigo Juan Raval. Umbrella Europe Sixth Laboratory: The facility responsible for the creation of the NE-T parasitic organism that allowed for the production of the Nemesis. Rockfort Island: A solitary island which served as the site of Alfred Ashford's private residence and palace after he purchased the land and drove the villagers out. It also housed an "inescapable" prison camp, a military training facility for the Umbrella Special Forces Unit (including a lab used to create BOWs) and an airport. Umbrella Antarctic Facility: A facility established by Alexander Ashford for his Code: Veronica project. Later, Alexia Ashford, an offspring of the project, used the facility for her T-Veronica research.

Paramilitary units

The U.B.C.S Logo
The Umbrella Corporation owned two different private paramilitary units, each established for a different purpose.

Umbrella Special Forces Unit
The Umbrella Special Forces Unit (also known as the Umbrella Security Service) specialize in dealing against corporate terrorism and VIP abductions. Their members were trained in Umbrella's own Military Training Facilities. Their operatives wear black chemical protection suits and gas masks that protects against viral outbreaks.

Delta Team
Delta Team is comprised of only two members, which were sent by Wesker and William Birkin to recover the Ecliptic Express, but were killed by Marcus' leeches.

Alpha Team
Alpha Team is comprised of at least six members, including HUNK. Alpha Team was given orders by Christine Henri and Ozwell E. Spencer to steal the G-Virus from Birkin. However, the mission went awry went Birkin transformed himself with G and only HUNK managed to survive and complete his mission. Other, lone operatives, such as Rodriguez, have also been depicted.

Umbrella Biohazard Countermeasure Service Main Article: Umbrella Biohazard Countermeasure Service.
The second unit was the Umbrella Biohazard Countermeasure Service, comprised of former war criminals and mercenaries trained to handle "accidental" viral outbreaks.

Other uses of the term "umbrella corporation"

8th Army Shoulder Patch
An umbrella corporation is an agency which supports several member organizations, usual working in a specific program area.
Citigroup, the largest financial firm in the world, is an umbrella corporation in terms of the definition of the phrase and the fact that its logo is a red umbrella, originally from the firm's roots in the Travelers Group.
The image of the Umbrella logo shares a nearly identical design to that of the shoulder sleeve insignia patch for the US Eighth Army

The precinct was formerly an art museum until the late 1980s, when it was purchased by the police for its ample parking space.
It was lavishly decorated with art purchased by Brian Irons, and several storage rooms were occupied primarily with undisplayed items. The building contained two entrances to the city's sewer system; one through the kennels, and one through a secret room connected to Chief Irons' office. These sewer entrances allowed travel into Umbrella's secret, underground lab.
Arklay Mountains incident
In late July 1998, the S.T.A.R.S. team were dispatched into the Arklay Mountains to investigate a series of murders in the region. However, after the Spencer Mansion incident, surviving S.T.A.R.S. members led by Chris Redfield, requested a full-scale investigation against Umbrella Corporation's activities; this was denied by Chief Irons, who later officially disbanded S.T.A.R.S., seeing that his role as a double agent was in danger.
Raccoon City outbreak
The Head Office
During the T-virus outbreak in Raccoon City on September 1998, Leon S. Kennedy, Claire Redfield, and other survivors sought refuge at the precinct. Hours after the initial outbreak, S.T.A.R.S. member Brad Vickers tried to seek refuge in the station after being followed by Umbrella's Bio-weapon Nemesis; however, he was brutally killed by the creature in front of his comrade Jill Valentine, at the main door of the R.P.D headquarters.
The R.P.D building was temporarily used as a fortress by surviving officers (who later were killed by creatures or shot to death by Chief Irons); it was destroyed along with the rest of Raccoon City, in a military strike aimed at preventing the T-Virus outbreak (and information about the outbreak) from spreading.
The Umbrella Biohazard Countermeasure Service is a fictional special forces unit featured in the video game Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, as well as in the Resident Evil Outbreak series. They're owned by the Umbrella Corporation and are a different unit from the Umbrella Special Forces Unit (HUNK's unit, also known as the Umbrella Security Service) and specializes in rescue operations during biohazard outbreaks. Although they've been very successful in every operation, due to their high mortality rate the unit is comprised almost exclusively of convicted war criminals and mercenaries for hire from around the world that served their national militaries and joined the UBCS as an alternative to capital punishment for any crimes they may have been caught committing. The unit is comprised of almost 120 operatives, divided between four platoons (with two or three squads per platoon).
Involvement in the Raccoon City incident
Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow. The U.B.C.S. was deployed to Raccoon City during the T-Virus outbreak on September 28, 1998 under the guise of reinforcing the RPD (Raccoon Police Department), halting the spread of the T-Virus infection, and evacuating any survivors from the worst affected areas (although Umbrella employees were to take priority, and members were encouraged to use regular civilians as decoys or human shields if their situation became dire). However, the Umbrella Corporation's true motives involved using the unit as cannon fodder for their bio-organic weapons (particularly the Nemesis and Hunter models), as well as any other irregular creatures that resulted from infection during the outbreak. Because of this, almost all of the unit's members were killed before they could effectively even begin their mission. Carlos Oliveira was the only confirmed survivor during the outbreak although rumor has it that Nicholai Ginovaef, one of the Supervisors (see below), and several U.B.C.S. regulars that caught wind of Mission Code: XX (the bombing of Raccoon City to end the threat of further infection), also escaped the city alive. Now you know...
Uniforms and Equipment
Due to their involvement in tactical, hazardous, and combat operations, U.B.C.S. operatives wear and use military grade tactical gear. Operatives are seen wearing black combat boots, khaki-colored fatigue pants, a green fatigue shirt, and a black tactical vest with the U.B.C.S. logo printed on the back. They utilise a variety of heavy and light smallarms such as 9mm pistols, assualt rifles and SMG's like the Schweizerische Industrie Gesellschaft SP2009 9mm pistol, the Colt Firearms M4 Carbine assualt rifle, the Heckler & Koch MP-5 sub-machine gun, the Beretta 92FS 9mm pistol, the Franchi SPAS-12 combat shotgun, the Heckler & Koch PSG-1 precision sniper rifle, the Magnum Research Desert Eagle pistol, the United States Army M67 fragmentation hand grenade, and the experimental mine thrower.
Supervisors
Supervisors (or Observers) were special operatives within the U.B.C.S. Their purpose was to gather combat data from B.O.W.'s and the various other infected creatures wandering Raccoon City whilst maintaining a clandestine profile within the U.B.C.S. ranks. They were also tasked with gathering samples and destroying all evidence of the Umbrella Corporation's involvement in the research and production of the T-Virus. To better coordinate their efforts, Supervisors were acquainted with each other prior to the beginning of the operation. Due to the traitorous nature of this occupation, Umbrella selected only the most heinous of war criminals, specifically those displaying anti-social and sociopathic tendancies, and absolute disregard for their fellow members, as it's Supervisors. Nicholai Ginovaef and Tyrell Patrick were merely two of several Supervisors within Raccoon City conducting Operation: Bravo-16 (the code used throughout the mssion by Supervisors regarding their true objectives). Supervisors were naturally given preferential treatment over regular mercenaries, as they were provided with means of communications to contact their superiors, were implanted with higher-quality vaccines and were provided with instructions on how to reach certain extraction points.
Known U.B.C.S. operatives
From Delta Platoon Mikhail Victor (Commander.) Carlos Oliveira (Squad A member.) Nicholai Ginovaef (Squad B member. One of the Supervisors.)
From other Platoons Murphy Seeker (Alpha Platoon, Squad A member) Tyrell Patrick (Bravo Platoon, Squad A member. Also a Supervisor.) Arnold (Further details unknown.)
In other media
The countermeasure force appears in Resident Evil: Apocalypse (the film itself being a loose adaptation of Resident Evil 3), is U.B.C.F, that stands for Umbrella Biohazard Countermeasure Force. They are an elite force, superior to the U.B.C.S.. The operatives wear dark urban-colored fatigue pants, black combat boots, a black tactical shirt and a black tactical vest with the company logo on the back and their last name across the top. Their firearms are also varied, from 9mm Berettas to Desert Eagle pistols and carbines/bullpup rifles from Heckler and Koch and IMI. Their rifles are also outfitted with a variety of laser aiming devices and tactical lights. One of the members is Nicholai Ginovaef, that in the game is one of the U.B.C.S.'s members, and a dificult person. In the movie he's a "good guy", what leads to belive that he was a member in both military groups, working as a spy in the U.B.C.S..