What was police force like in London in 1880's?

Answer 1

London has once of the oldest police forces in the world, by the 1880's it had a large uniformed section divided into 20 divisions each for a London bourgh. These officers wore classic "Bobbie" blue uniforms and helmets and conducted foot and mounted patrols based in Police Stations built for the purpose. These officers could be armed and, especially in the outer bourghs, often carried revolvers, issued to the stations and handed out as needed. They also carried a billy club and a whistle from summoning help. These men mostly served to "keep the peace" and act as what we would now call "first responders"

There was the recently reformed "Criminal Investigation Department" which was a plain clothed detective unit for solving crimes which weren't as simple as catching a thief in the act. These men were controlled centrally but posted out to the stations. CID is still the "detective branch" of British police forces today.

There was also the "Special Irish Branch" which dropped the Irish in 1888, this is a political police force set up to deal with the growing threat of Irish terroism. They served as the legal enforcement arm of the British intelligence services and worked undercover and through informers to break up plots and terrorist cells and other "threats to the state".

All in the Met or "Scotland Yard" as it was mostly called in this period had around 12-14,000 Officers of all ranks and types split over the 20 divisions.

In addition the seperate "City of London" police which had responsibility for the very central "square mile" of London had around 1000 officers across six stations.

The officers were getting more professional, the CID had just been reformed after a scandle involving corrupt detectives and the beat officers were trained in how to act in various situations and given "Company Drill". Around 10% of the force were former Army, about 1% Irish or Scots the rest mainly from London or surrounds.

Each constable would walk a "beat" at day or night to stop trouble. The Sergeants would check up on them or provide backup. The beats were close enough that whistles could summon aid from nearby constables. CID Detectives solved on going cases and the Special Branch stalked subversives through the foggy streets....