History of law enforcement in the United Kingdom facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

The history of law enforcement in the United Kingdom tells the story of how policing developed in the UK. It goes all the way back to the Middle Ages. It covers the creation of the world's first modern police force in the 1800s. Then it looks at how policing changed and became more modern in the 1900s and 2000s.

How Policing Started
Policing in London
Policing Across the UK
Key Moments in Police History
Studying Police History
See also

How Policing Started

Early Days: Middle Ages

David Kirkwood being held by police during the 1919 Battle of George Square.

In early Britain, everyone was expected to help keep law and order. This idea was based on ancient laws. For example, the posse comitatus started in the 800s. This meant a group of people could be called to help the sheriff (a local official).

In 1181, Henry II of England made a rule called the Assize of Arms of 1181. It said that all free men in England had to own weapons. They had to be ready to serve the king and country. The rule even said what military gear each man should have based on his wealth.

Later, in 1233, watchmen were appointed. These were people who watched over towns. In 1252, constables were added. Constables could call men to arms. They also stopped trouble and took offenders to the sheriff. This led to a system called "watch and ward." This system involved people watching during the night and guarding during the day.

The Statute of Winchester in 1285 was a very important law. It guided policing after the Norman Conquest for many centuries. A key part was the "hue and cry." This meant if a crime happened, everyone had to shout and chase the criminal. Also, a whole area, called a hundred, was responsible for any theft or robbery. This was a form of collective responsibility, meaning the community shared the blame.

Watchmen and Constables Take Shape

During this time, local towns and communities managed law enforcement. In Scotland, the High Constables of Edinburgh were formed in 1611. They were the first official police force there. Their job was to "guard their streets" and arrest people found out late.

In England, a constable could be approved by local judges. From the 1730s, towns started hiring paid watchmen or constables. These people would patrol at night. Country areas still relied on less formal ways of keeping order. In 1737, a law was passed to better organize the "Night Watch" in the City of London. It said how many paid constables should be on duty each night.

Henry Fielding started the Bow Street Runners in 1749. They were a group of crime fighters. His brother, Sir John Fielding, later made Bow Street more like a police station. He had a team of skilled, paid constables.

By 1800, some towns were improving their policing. Glasgow created the City of Glasgow Police in 1800. As industrial towns grew, more local laws were passed to improve policing. Examples include Rochdale in 1825 and Oldham in 1827. In Ireland, the Belfast Borough Police (1800) and Dublin Metropolitan Police (1836) were also founded.

Sir Robert Peel became Chief Secretary for Ireland in 1812. He saw that local officials couldn't keep order. So, he set up the Peace Preservation Force in 1814. This led to a system of county police forces in Ireland by 1822.

The First Modern Police Force

Robert Peel later became the Home Secretary (a top government minister). He introduced the Metropolitan Police Act 1829. This law created the Metropolitan Police on September 29, 1829. This was the world's first modern police force. The new constables were called 'peelers' or 'bobbies' after Peel. The name 'bobbies' is still used today.

In 1830, the Liverpool and Manchester Railway started its own police. They kept order during construction. They also controlled train movement with hand signals. Signalmen were even called 'bobbies'. This idea spread with railways. Small shelters for these signalmen became known as police stations.

Policing in London

Victorian Police Officer with itinerant circa 1900 - recreation. The officer is pictured wearing a duty armband on his left wrist.

In the early 1800s, London had almost 1.5 million people. But it only had about 450 constables and 4,500 night watchmen. Sir Robert Peel pushed for professional policing when he became Home Secretary in 1822.

Peel's Metropolitan Police Act 1829 created a full-time, professional police force for the greater London area. This force was the Metropolitan Police. They were in charge of an area 7 miles around the city center. This area was later expanded to 15 miles. The City of London itself was not included.

The government wanted to make sure the police didn't look like a military force. Police officers were not armed. They wore blue uniforms, which were different from army uniforms. At first, the Metropolitan Police answered directly to the Home Secretary. Today, they answer to the Mayor of London.

The City of London had its own special rules. So, it formed its own police force in 1832. This force was later renamed the City of London Police in 1839.

Policing Across the UK

Towns and Counties Get Police

In the early 1800s, cities like Newcastle had police forces. But Liverpool, a city of 250,000 people, mostly had watchmen. As cities grew, people wanted more formal policing. They understood their legal rights better and were more educated.

In 1835, the Municipal Corporations Act was passed. It made 178 towns set up paid police forces. In 1839, the Rural Constabulary Act allowed counties to create police forces if they wanted. Wiltshire was the first county to do this. By 1851, there were about 13,000 policemen in England and Wales. However, local areas still didn't have to have a police force.

The Retford Borough Police was one of the shortest-lived forces. It started in 1836 and joined the Nottinghamshire Police in 1841.

National Policing Develops

The UK's first national police force was the Irish Constabulary. It was set up in 1837. It became the Royal Irish Constabulary in 1867. This was after it helped stop the Fenian Rising.

By the 1850s, the government wanted policing across the whole nation. The County and Borough Police Act in 1856 made policing a requirement in England and Wales. The central government helped pay for it. This Act also created a "central inspectorate of constabulary." This group checked how well each police force was working. A similar law was passed for Scotland in 1857.

By 1900, England, Wales, and Scotland had 46,800 policemen. There were 243 different police forces. Later laws, like the Police Act 1946 and Police Act 1964, merged smaller forces. This reduced the number of police forces significantly.

Modern Policing Takes Shape

A police helicopter, a Eurocopter EC 135 T2, helping with law enforcement in the Avon and Somerset Police area.

Chief Constable Captain Athelstan Popkess helped change British policing a lot. From 1930 to 1959, he transformed it from officers walking "on the beat" to a modern, fast-response system. His force, Nottingham City Police, was the first in the UK to use two-way radio communication. As early as 1931, they used radios to send mobile police cars to incidents. They could also get updates from the cars.

Popkess developed new ways to use this technology. This included sending mobile patrols to areas where officers were on foot. They could pick up foot officers and take them to emergencies. They also had "snatch plans" to quickly block roads with police cars during serious crimes. They even used "Q Cars," which were unmarked police cars disguised as regular vehicles for secret patrols.

In 1947, he connected this to an automatic burglar alarm system. This system reported break-ins directly to a police control room. Police cars could then be sent instantly. Since the 1960s, UK police forces have continued to merge and modernize.

Officer Height Rules Change

In the 1800s and early 1900s, most police forces required recruits to be at least 5 feet 10 inches tall. Some forces, like Nottingham City Police, even required 6 feet. By 1960, many forces lowered this to 5 feet 8 inches for men and 5 feet 4 inches for women. Some senior officers thought height was very important for a uniformed officer.

However, by the early 1990s, many forces still had height standards. In May 1990, the Metropolitan Police removed its minimum height rule. Other forces soon followed. Today, no British police force requires recruits to be a certain height. This change was also supported by reports that suggested height rules might unfairly affect people from certain ethnic backgrounds who are naturally shorter.

The shortest officer in the UK, PC Sue Day, is 4 feet 10 inches tall. The tallest, PC Anthony Wallyn, is 7 feet 2 inches tall. Both officers had to have their uniforms specially made.

Key Moments in Police History

1749: London's Bow Street Runners are formed. Many see them as the start of modern police forces.
1798: The Marine Police is set up in Wapping, London. It was a local force with a limited job.
1800: Glasgow passes the first law in Britain to create a police force, the City of Glasgow Police.
1814: The Peace Preservation Act creates the first organized police force in Ireland. It later becomes the Irish Constabulary.
1829: Home Secretary Robert Peel introduces the Metropolitan Police Act 1829. The Metropolitan Police is founded on September 29, 1829.
1835: The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 requires towns in England and Wales to set up police forces.
1836: The Dublin Metropolitan Police is founded in Ireland.
1839: The County Police Act 1839 allows counties to create police forces. Wiltshire is the first county to do so.
1842: A detective department is created within the Metropolitan Police.
1856: The County and Borough Police Act 1856 makes county and borough police forces compulsory in England and Wales.
1857: The General Police Act (Scotland) 1857 requires every county and town in Scotland to have a police force.
1867: The Irish Constabulary is renamed the Royal Irish Constabulary.
1878: The Metropolitan Police's detective department is reorganized and renamed the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
1902: Harry Jackson is the first person in the UK to be convicted based on Fingerprint evidence.
1910: Police officers are given one weekly rest day for the first time.
1915: The first official female police officer, Edith Smith (police officer), starts working in Grantham.
1919: The Police Act of 1919 is passed. It takes away the police's right to strike and form a union. It creates the Police Federation of England and Wales.
1922: After the partition of Ireland, the Royal Irish Constabulary is replaced by the Royal Ulster Constabulary in Northern Ireland and the Civic Guard in the Irish Free State.
1931: Nottingham City Police tests the first two-way radios and patrolling police cars.
1934: The UK's first national Forensic science laboratory opens in Nottingham.
1946: The Police Act 1946 merges many smaller police forces in England and Wales.
1964: The Police Act 1964 creates 49 larger police forces in England and Wales.
1966: Mohammed Yusuf Daar becomes the first non-white police officer in the UK.
1968: Sislin Fay Allen becomes the first non-white female police officer.
1974: The Local Government Act (1972) reduces the number of police forces in England and Wales to 43. The Police National Computer is launched.
1975: The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 merges Scotland's 17 police forces into 8 new ones. The Sex Discrimination Act ends the division between 'Women Police' and 'Men Police'.
1984: The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) sets rules for police actions in England and Wales, like arrests and searches.
1985: The Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 transfers the job of prosecuting most crimes from the police to the Crown Prosecution Service.
1988: Colin Pitchfork is the first person convicted of murder using DNA evidence.
1990: The Metropolitan Police removes its height requirement for officers.
1995: Pauline Clare becomes the UK's first female Chief Constable.
1999: The MacPherson report recommends against height restrictions for police officers.
2001: The Royal Ulster Constabulary in Northern Ireland is renamed the Police Service of Northern Ireland.
2002: The Police Reform Act 2002 introduces Community Support Officers (PCSOs) in England and Wales.
2003: Michael Fuller becomes the first Black Chief Constable.
2012: Police and Crime Commissioners are introduced. The National Police Air Service is launched.
2013: All 8 Scottish police forces merge into a single force: Police Scotland.
2014: The College of Policing becomes the main professional body for policing.

Studying Police History

The history of policing has become a special area of study. Groups like the Police History Society have existed since 1985 to learn more about this field. Experts in this area include Clive Emsley and Dr Chris Williams.

One interesting sub-field is "Ripperologists." These are people who study cases linked to Jack the Ripper. They also look at how policing worked during that time.