Crime and Punishment: Robert Peel

How was law enforcement changed by Sir Robert Peel’s new Metropolitan Police Force?

In 1822, Sir Robert Peel was appointed Home Secretary. He would become closely associated with penal reform in Britain. He is remembered especially for the formation of the Metropolitan London Police Force in 1829. Police constables were called ‘bobbies’ or ‘peelers’ in reference to Peel. Before Peel’s reforms, public order in London was a serious concern, with crime rates rising as the population of the city grew. London had previously been policed by an old system of 4,500 night-watchmen, the Hue and Cry, the Bow Street Runners, and 450 constables, who were generally seen as corrupt, inefficient, and jealous of one another’s powers. Peel was convinced that the establishment of a state-funded, professional, and unified police force was the solution.

The Act for Improving the Police in and near the Metropolis in 1829 saw the establishment of the Metropolitan Police Force in central London, including eight superintendents, 20 inspectors, 88 sergeants and 895 constables.

Use this lesson with original documents, to explore the foundation of the Metropolitan Police Force, the nature of the new police force, and contemporary attitudes to this new system of law and order in London.