Metropolitan Police Criminal
What difference did the modern police make when founded in the nineteenth century?
Traditionally, historians have focused on the 1829 Metropolitan Police Act as the great turning point of British law enforcement history. Before this time, there were no major acts which enforced the law and no criminal justice agencies. The main developments before 1829 were down to a few farsighted individuals.
However, due to factors such as urbanization, population rise and industrialization, people started to realise that some dramatic changes were needed.
Whilst there was no formal police force prior to the nineteenth century, there were lots of different forms of policing. The major difference with the earlier period was that policing was effected on a local, rather unsophisticated basis.
As a result of this, the local community, usually in the form of a parish vestry had a big involvement in the policing of their village. The other difference was that policing was mostly unpaid, with a few exceptions which will be mentioned later.
Stipendiary magistrates did not appear until the eighteenth century and until this time the magistrates, constables and watch were largely dependant on a variety of rewards and handouts to make their position worthwhile.
The period from 1674 to 1834 saw a big transformation in policing in London. The society changed from a system which relied upon individuals and a few part time officials to catch criminals, to the development of salaried officials, and then eventually a modern professional police system.
How did the public react?
They hated the Peelers. Many were poor quality - drunks and bullies. Of the first 2,800 new policemen, only 600 kept their jobs. The first policeman, given the number 1, was sacked after only FOUR HOURS! (He was legless)
In 1833 PC Robert Culley was stabbed to death after the police broke up a political meeting. The jury acquitted the man who killed him, and a newspaper awarded the jurors medals! JPs were also angry that they had no control of the police.
Eventually however the impact upon crime, particularly organised crime led to an acceptance, if not approval, of the Bobbies.
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the development of policing in England from 1750 can be roughly divided into two initial phases. Initially, from 1750 to about 1850, what has become known as the ‘old' police was in operation. This was a very old fashioned and amateurish way of stopping people committing crime. - parish constables and night watchmen.
This may have been an unsophisticated system but it did actually work in many places. In the latter half of the nineteenth century, more so called professional system was developed.
This was mainly due to the introduction of the Metropolitan Police in 1829, and it featured uniformed officers.
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