The Reputation

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The Reputation of the 'Peelers'
By Miss Boughey www.weatherheadhistory.ik.org
Downloaded from www.SchoolHistory.co.uk
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Primary Sources

• Primary sources are the most useful items for
  learning about an historical event. Today we
  will look at some primary sources that provide
  clues about the reputation of the Metropolitan
  Police Force (Peelers) in the nineteenth century.
  Think about the following questions when you
  examine the sources
• When was the source written/painted/photographed?
  
• Was it an official photograph/poster?
• What does the source want you to think?
• How reliable is it and what can we learn from
  the source?

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SOURCE 1
This cartoon is from 1833 - What kinds of people
does the cartoonist show as having joined the
police?
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A photograph is accurate but a cartoon shows what
somebody thinks
The expression on the face of the Peeler is surly
and he does not appear approachable.
The police truncheon was supposed to be a
deterrent but this Peeler looks keen to use it on
a criminal.
So who is the dreaded criminal in this picture
a little old lady with a walking stick why is
this important?
SOURCE 2
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Photographs are usually very useful sources of
primary evidence as the camera catches an
accurate description. However you can not just
take them at face value. This shows us what a
Peeler looked like but think about who might have
authorised the picture and why? Would they have
wanted the Police to be seen in a bad or good way?
SOURCE 3
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Peel's Police
Raw Lobsters
Blue Devils
Are these names complimentary?
SOURCE 4
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This cartoon was published in September 1888 in a
satirical magazine called Punch. The title of
the cartoon is Blind Mans Buff and the caption
that went with it read Turn round three times
and catch whom you can! What is the cartoon
telling us about the reputation of the police
force around the time of the Ripper
murders? Do people take the police seriously?
Satirical means to ridicule or mock something!
SOURCE 5
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SOURCE 6
Peel's introduction of the Metropolitan Police in
1829 was not at all popular. This poster, from
1830, raises various objections and calls for
public meetings to "Abolish the New Police!"
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In Conclusion Were the Peelers liked?
The middle and upper classes welcomed the new
Peelers. But most poor people thought that
they were only there to protect the rich. They
gave them nasty nicknames such as crushers,
blue locusts, and blue drones. According to
one Victorian newspaper people in poorer areas
looked on policemen as an enemy whom it was right
to kick and beat whenever that can be done with
safety.